I pretty much agree with hugo, have you skated the park in Birżebbuġa by any chance ? - ( for context wife is half Maltese, I got married in Mellieha 3 yeas ago )
Least the weather’s nice
Know where your coming from OP & i’m in the same camp.Eastern Europe is a cheap place to live,the locals are hard but friendly but sadly not much going on…
Netherlands has the friendliest people but your not going to get much change with the climate if that pisses you off.
The USA is still a great country to live in but it depends where you go,California is expensive places like Texas are cheaper with friendlier locals than many states.
Cant mention OZ or NZ as ive never been to either although dudes I know who have been there love it.
Depend’s what your scene is I guess but you can do much better than living in this expensive shit hole…
I worked for Converse at Nike in a similar role, wouldn’t say I just ‘walked in’, I had 7 interviews in total to get it.
I meant skill set wise. Not saying it would be easy.
I wonder how many interviews the guy in charge of stuff like the #alexolsonskateseverydamnday campaign had to go through.
I’m in New Zealand, we traveled all over before settling in Wellington for 2 years now and I have a government job that precludes forum lurking hence not posting on here any more (Hiya Everyone!). We bailed on the UK for a number of reasons, Brexit and the overwhelming sense of angry right wing stupidity taking over England was definitely a big factor.
Pros:
- Wages are much better here.
- The weather is great, people think of NZ as being the UK of the southern hemisphere but in latitude terms it’s more like the south of France. Although Wellington is windy as.
- Politics and general civic life here is way less mental than the UK. NZ has a very pragmatic evidence based approach to politics. There are still Tories but they are laughably incompetent in opposition right now and ideologically more like New Labour. National are actually more in favour of immigration than Labour which is weird. Everyone loves Jacinda but don’t forget she’s in coalition with the xenophobic NZ First party.
- The skate scene is really healthy, decent parks everywhere and everyone is super friendly and unpretentious. Kids aren’t obsessed with filming themselves here. People just skate.
- Nature rules this place. Wild bush is never more than a few hundred meters away and everyone really values it. The govt puts Billions into conservation, but also making it all accessible for everyone. Well maintained walking, cycling and riding tracks everywhere.
- Public Transport in cities is insanely cheap and good. The roads are windy and small but scenic and there is fuck all traffic on any of them.
- Maori and Pacifica culture are rad as fuck, its all a bit impenetrable at first and place names are confusing but once you learn a bit of Te Reo Māori it all starts to make sense.
*Did I mention Nature? Volcanoes, Mountains, Fjords, Beaches, Forests, Lakes, Snow, Surf, Whales, Dolphins, Kiwis, Pengiuns, Wetas, etc and nothing is trying to kill you. I regularly see dolphins the harbour on the way to work, last year I looked out of the train window and saw mother and baby whales chilling in the water not 20 meters away. Another day I got off the bus and noticed I’d been going about the place with a massive green stick insect clinging to my arm. - Everyone is really friendly, considerate and polite, but not in a fake american way, being a dickhead is a big no no here. There’s no class system. If you are working class you drive a second hand Ute, if you are middle class you drive a new Ute, if you are rich you drive a second hand Ute with a new fishing boat on the back. If you’re poor you ride in your mates Ute.
*in two years, not one single person has ever tried to engage me in a conversation about sport. People like rugby and that, but nobody really obsesses over it.
Cons:
- Housing is expensive and shit, In Wellington and Auckland especially, you pay about the same as the UK for a house but here you get a draughty shed with a tin roof. These people have never heard of central heating or double glazing.
- It’s a bit of a backwater, bands don’t come here and outside of the 3 biggest city centres there’s no nightlife. Pubs all shut at 10.30 on a Saturday night, not because they have to, just because everyone’s gone home to bed by then.
*Food is expensive and very seasonal. A single red pepper can cost $5 in winter. But eating out is cheap and you don’t tip.
*Everyone drives Utes. But they do pull over to let you pass.
*Nothing is old here and the architecture has a feeling of impermanence. If man was wiped out nature would reclaim NZ completely within a few years because it’s all just a few inches of concrete over dirt and wooden sheds with tin roofs. - Racism exists here like everywhere. Mostly in the south island which has a more white European demographic. The north Island is far more diverse but it’s not unusual to come across older people who dislike China and Chinese people who are somehow blamed for all economic problems.
*Ecommerce is not a thing here. There’s no Ebay or Amazon, there are local versions of those but not nearly as popular. People still go to the shops for everything and shops don’t trade much online if at all. I’d have this as a Pro, for you it might be a Con, but I guess maybe there’s opportunity there.
Overall, I’d recommend it. Especially if you’re bringing up kids or don’t mind the quiet life.
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Holy shit, that sounds so good.
Sounds like heaven.
Inspired by @Hoorayforthecornet’s great roundup here’s mine for Estonia:
Pros
- Amazing childcare and maternity leave. Wife is entitled to full pay for 18 months. If you need to take time off work for anything family related, no questions are asked. It’s incredible (I took about 2 weeks off as extra to work from home but everyone knew I was just babysitting full time and it was fine)
- some of the cleanest air and food in the world
- Housing is cheap
- There is forest and trees everywhere
- Lots of tech jobs and foreigners quite valued
- Really good holiday entitlement (I think I get something like 70 days)
- people are incredibly respectful to each other and there is very little crime (eg I accidentally left my car open for 2 weeks and nothing happened. A lot of people don’t bother locking up bikes, even in centre of town)
- self-starting environment and is maniacally encouraged (eg most people own their own business or have a side hustle)
- Latvia and Finland a short drive/ferry away
- Tight working hours. Start 9.30-10. No one is in the office after 5. No one.
Cons:
- language is incredibly difficult. Like fucking impossible. But it’s ok, most people under 50 speak English perfectly.
- Low wages compared to rest of Europe
- It gets cold (think -20-30c in winter) and winters are looooong. Although weather is fair for a few months over summer.
- Very few friends dropping by as it’s not on the way to anywhere
- Some pretty sick spots here but not exactly a skate ‘destination’
- Far right party now has joint venture with government and they are fucking idiots
- Not exactly spoilt for choice when you go to the shops
- Very little diversity, I see maybe one black\coloured person a week
- Little choice on flights back to UK ( there might be one a day, it’s not like Amsterdam where you can choose a flight to the nearest 20 minutes)
Overall it’s been amazing for my family life. Getting people to visit is impossible as to be honest there’s not much here. But I really like the respect people have for each other and the family values.
What’s also mad is people genuinely do not give a fuck what they wear to the office. I used to buy maybe 2 pairs of shoes a month and worry about my 'fit and now I’m like, meh, whatever, it’s fine. There are people running non ironic socks/sandals combos you would not believe. Fashion is about 15 years behind.
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Loving these two pro / con round-up posts, so interesting to read both of your perspectives on the places you’ve chosen to live. I think it’s also important to realise that the ideal place doesn’t exist - but it’s encouraging to know that there are places in the world that place importance on things that you value, e.g. childcare, holiday etc.
Would be interesting to read what people have to say about their respective towns/cities in the UK as well.
As it happens, I’m in Helsinki next week in the unlikely event you stumble onto the booze cruise over the Baltic.
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I’d seen this topic and thought to write something about NZ but not got round to it and you’ve covered a lot! I met a kiwi in London and when her Mum got sick we moved to Auckland 6 years ago. On a partnership visa to begin with but now I’m a permanent resident with house and a kid, and all from having never even visited here before so guess its worked out ok!
I laughed at your comments about the stick insect- preying mantis are I guess pretty common?! and I’ve had similar experiences and found one chilling in the car a little while ago.
Best money I spent was on a heating system a year ago but houses are a bit mental price wise and for what you get- a damp cold house generally and that’s acceptable?!
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Am I the only one who loves living in the UK? I like pubs and cool grey weather. British summertime is just the right warmth for me. Occasional snow is perfect I don’t want it every year. I can surf now and again and it’s not too pumping and there’s no scary shit in the water. People are friendly and funny. We have wifi everywhere and great shopping online and off. The food is good. My local takeaway options are banging. My local indoor skatepark is the shit. Skateparks popping up everywhere. Some decent street skating options about. Everything is calm and organised reasonably well without veering into scary clinical efficiency. Education is great. Public libraries. Free museums. We’re nice to dogs and cats. Historical shit everywhere. Festivals and events every weekend. I can get involved with loads of local shit with people who are all positive and making their own scene better.
On the down side it sometimes rains too much.
No! There’s also loads to see here in terms of beautiful landscapes such as the Lake District or Cornwall for example which I’ve really only come to properly appreciate in recent years. The public transport I use is largely very reliable and air conditioned so I’d give that a high score from my side as well.
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i don’t really mind it here either.
all fine and well moving to another country but just you try an edgy sarcastic comment and see how you get on.
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Learnt my lesson with that in Spain. Lead fucking balloon.
12 years in and I still hate Australia for not appreciating my sarcasm.
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I’m living in Cornwall now. It’s nice sometimes, but it feels like a slow death a lot of the time. Been here 6 years, after 6 years in Paris, and 10 years in London. I miss city life more than anything, or just being nearer to civilization.
If someone says to me that they’re thinking about moving to another country, I always say to go for it. I have no regrets about moving to France. Loved it for the most part. Just ended up being priced out of our neighbourhood and job came to an end. Could have probably found something else, but it seemed like a good idea at the time. Maybe it’s time to move on again?
Regarding the sarcasm, the Parisians are sharp as anything. More banter there than most places.
Go towards rather than away. Make it a positive choice rather than a negative one.
Decide on the thing you really enjoy, and go where they have most of it.
For skating and lift-accessed bike parks in the summer and snowboarding in the winter, Vancouver is pretty good. Plus they speak English.
Also one of the world’s most expensive cities. At least from the perspective of buying a home.
