saw this in r/ireland
so thought I’d ask here, my parents moved to the uk in 2002 from lithuania, and i was born here, it’s alright, not ecstatic about it tho i’m happy i was born n raised here, but i think i could be more happier abroad, after uni i’ll probably move to germany/austria (got back from 4 days in wien and i’m obsessed with it)
so i’ve got some questions:
1.Where do you live now?
2.What do you do?
3.Why did you leave?
4.Are you happy there?
5.Will you return (why/why not)?
16 comments
I moved to London for three years to study a branch of history that is not so well covered in Danish unis. I was open to the possibility of staying, as I love the city and had found some good friends, but Brexit and the politics kept going the way they did, and I didn’t have a proper job lined up (and my student job was slated to end after graduation). So, it was (in my mind) not a responsible choice to remain under those circumstances, as much as I would have loved to.
After graduation, I moved to Belgium to continue my studies, as I didn’t want to go home – at least not just yet. But I must say I wasn’t particularly impressed, so I decided to move back home to Denmark, where I am now.
Had it not been for Brexit and had I had a guaranteed job, there’s a very real possibility that I would have remained in London
I moved from Bavaria to Vienna after graduating. I hadn’t really planned to go to a different country, but I found a researcher position there.
Vienna is a wonderful city, not only to look at as a tourist, but also for living there. Those international rankings don’t lie.
Being a Bavarian in Austria is a very light version of being a foreigner, naturally.
I stayed a total of 9 years, got married and had a kid there. I moved back mostly because I wanted to get away from the big city (in a small town guy) and wanted to be closer to my family. I still visit Vienna almost every year.
1.Where do you live now?
I’m German and now live in Norway.
2.What do you do?
I originally came as a student and now work in public administration.
3.Why did you leave?
I did an exchange year to Norway in High school and really loved it, so I wanted to spend more time there. I went to study on Norway after finishing school in Germany. I did not necessarily plan to stay permanently, but a year turned into a bachelor, turned into a master, turned into a job and a boyfriend and a flat and here we are 10 years later and I’ve applied for citizenship.
4.Are you happy there?
Yes. I don’t think it’s only because of Norway though. There are good and bad things about moving away from home and across a border. But I love my life here, enjoyed my studies, found a partner and like my job, so it worked out for me. Objectivly, I could have found most of these things in Germany as well, but I would not have the partner or the job I have now.
5.Will you return (why/why not)?
Probably not. My entire adult life is in Norway. I never had a job or a flat or paid taxes in Germany, so returning would basically be an entire new process. And it would be difficult for my partner. I don’t have many connections to Germany anymore except my parents and while I would love to have them closer, it wouldn’t be much different if I had moved to the other side of Germany.
1 Portugal (I was born and raised in the Netherlands)
2 Retired (at 38), have some rescue horses, dogs and cats, am writing a book and do some art that i sell.
3 I waned to get away as far as possible from my ex, to a better climate for my health.
4 Absolutely happy
5 Never. The Netherland is nothing like it was when I left in 1999.
I left the USA to move to Germany after university about 5 years ago.
1. Germany
2. I’m an engineer
3. Originally I moved here for a job and just to try something new, and I ended up liking the lifestyle so much that I’ve stayed.
4. As happy as I would be anywhere I recon
5. Tough question to answer long-term, but short term I don’t see myself returning.
1. UK, originally from Ireland
2. Senior software engineer
3. To close the gap on a long distance relationship
4. Nope, I really want to move back. I’m 110% done with living in the UK.
5. I’m stuck here thanks to the Hague convention – my children’s dad (my abusive ex husband) won’t consent to me moving back to Dublin with them so if I just go it would be considered child abduction.
1.Where do we live now? NL
2.What do we do? Museum Consultants / Makers
3.Why did we leave CA/UK? way too much like US
4.Are we happy here? Yes ABSOLUTELY
5.Will you return (why/why not)? Nah, because…
Because we prefer the
1. QoL,
2. (and Quality and variety of Clients & Museum Clients),
3. the Live/Work balance,
4. living car-free and carefree
5. and the immense ^ savings associated allowing
6. saving for travel to the huge variety of dozens of other cultures
7. most all being within close proximity and
8. especially free passport-less access to
9. all of Schenghen,
10. Mediterranean,
11. Canaries,
12. Alps
> 1.Where do you live now?
I’m in Tokyo, Japan
> 2.What do you do?
IT, I’m a dev in a Japanese company
> 3.Why did you leave?
Just wanted to try living in another country and was not interested in an english speaking country. Came with a working holiday
> 4.Are you happy there?
I’m fairly happy with my life
> 5.Will you return (why/why not)?
no plans but I’m an only child and my parents are in their 60s so don’t really know
1. LA
2. I’m a planetary scientist
3. I’m in a very specialised field and typically you have to spend your late 20s/early 30s jumping from temp contract to temp contract so I have to go where the work is. I initially left the UK in 2019, lived in France for a few years and then when that contract finished I went to the US where there are far more opportunities in my field. Other reasons were that I was disenchanted with British politics at the time and I was just getting itchy feet.
4. Not really. I’m not a huge fan of my work environment (my project’s great, my supervisor’s great, my colleagues are gr…eh, mostly alright, but senior management are cunts), and LA’s not an easy place to love if you’re used to walkable European cities with nice parks and picturesque old centres. Apparently Europeans tend to hate it for the first two years and grow to really love it over time once they find their jam.
5. I’m on an exchange visa so I’m legally obliged to say yes haha. No but in all seriousness I don’t think I can imagine living here for the rest of my life, even if I earn double what I’d earn in the UK. I certainly wouldn’t raise a family here. Whether or not I would return to *England* though is another matter. I’d happily live in Paris again: close to London, but just that little bit cheaper, just that little bit more history, the weather and surrounding countryside’s just that little bit nicer, and it’s easier to travel around Western Europe without taking a plane.
1. im lithuanian-egyptian and live in germany
2. just to live here idk
3. i originally lived in lithuania and visited my family in egypt, but because of a revolution (2011) i had to leave the country and my dad had a german friend and he spoke a little bit of german so we moved here
4. i am, but not really at the same time, since i like to be with my family but they live in other countries, but it is nice here
5. probably not, my dads planning to move for us to move to the uk
1. Colombia
2. Working in an IT firm
3. I was feeling so bored by the routine of my daily life. I was needing a big change in my life to feel alive again.
4. Quite happy. I live a better life here.
5. I don’t feel the need as of now. I believe I will retire here in Colombia. We’ll see. There’s still 15 yrs to go.
1. I live in Austria. Lived in Germany for a couple years before that.
2. I’m an engineer.
3. Left France out of curiosity, left Germany because of the people and weather (I was in NRW).
4. So far yes, I really like it, but it hasn’t even been a year.
5. I won’t stay forever, but eventually my boyfriend and I will end up in his home country, close to his family. So I’ll probably never live in France again, unless we break up. :p If he were out of the picture, yeah probably, after a few years.
1. Ireland
2. Corporate finances
3. work – got a good offer and wanted to make some change in my life anyway.
4. mixed feelings – feels “too American” for me – american style infrastructure and urban planning, not the best food, ugly cities/towns (country side is amazing tho), very potato-couch type of culture – there not many activities for adults and if they are you need to travel long distances for them, you got that fake smile (not as bad as in US, but noticeable) and sugarcoating culture. There’s also close to non forests 🙁
5. hard to say – depends what work opportunities pop up down the way. I wouldn’t mind moving to any EU country on the continent. When compared to Poland had it not been for money i would pick Poland over Ireland
As an American on a year long maternity leave in Denmark… yes, I’m very happy. And I don’t expect to permanently return. I’m a teacher here. We’re opening to doing a few years by my parents after we’re done having kids, but I feel very happy knowing my kids will have a large safety net here.
From Austria to Scotland
Did various jobs, there is demand for native German speakers
Left originally because of a boyfriend (to England, later found that I prefer Scotland)
I love it. The friendliness, the landscapes, the culture, the sense of humour, and I genuinely like the weather – anything over 25° C is not my thing. I am also married, got friends , feel absolutely settled – it’s been 20 years
I go back to visit and (bit tricky because of Brexit) am hoping to spend more time with my parents but I can’t deal with the summers, don’t feel at home any more, find the people quite grim in comparison. Not even the food makes up for that!
1. Germany
2. Freelance translator.
3. Met a German girl (30 years ago now), who eventually became my wife and mother to my children.
4. Mostly. Germany has pros and cons like any place. Some bits I love, others I cant stand.
5. No. Though I would like to have the option, but Brexit has made it extremely difficult and expensive for my German wife to get permanent residency in the UK.