Emigrating?

bubbadabut · Feb 28, 2022

Would not recommend living in NZ at all. Weather is similar to UK. Scenery is similar to stuff you can see closer to home in Wales/Scotland/Iceland. Its expensive, the supermarkets are rubbish, shocking public transport. No decent shops. Ugly, basic, soulless architecture. Lack of culture. Its about 20-30 behind the times. You feel disconnected from relatives in the UK due to the time difference. Most of all - very racist.

Just my opinion, I'm sure others love it. Personally I would never go back even if it was all expenses paid.

Loouie · Mar 1, 2022

Justwishfulthinking said:
Loving this thread. I’d love to emigrate…one of the things that puts me off is the spiders in Australia. Does that make me sound stupid?! Probably.

I’d love to move abroad for sure. I feel like I’m UK it’s merely a case of existing. Like not much hope either!

Do you not have spiders in the UK? We have plenty of other more deadly things here - like the rental market. Make sure you have somewhere to live settled as they're very hard to come by nearly everywhere.

yogiessexdubs · Mar 1, 2022

I've lived in Dubai for past 2.5 years. I am hoping to return to the UK this year.

FlipFlop0706 · Mar 1, 2022

Loouie said:
Do you not have spiders in the UK? We have plenty of other more deadly things here - like the rental market. Make sure you have somewhere to live settled as they're very hard to come by nearly everywhere.

We have spiders but any tv show that shows Australia tends to show Australia as a place where the spiders are HUGE and will basically kill you, lol.

yogiessexdubs said:
I've lived in Dubai for past 2.5 years. I am hoping to return to the UK this year.

How did you find Dubai? There’s quite a large ex pat community over there- was it easy making friends etc? Or on the flip side, did you ever find it hard to make Dubai friends because there’s such a large ex pat community?

Why are you moving back to the UK?

TheGlossy · Mar 2, 2022

sewcute said:
Dont know if this answer will interest you as it wasn’t my choice. But I’m from England and my parents decided to move to France when I was younger, and honestly best choice ever. They wanted to move to Australia originally but it was too far from our family.
moving country is great you learn so much. The only thing that bothers me is that I miss English food, like stupid things, I would kill for certain foods

Your post is interesting because I left France as a teenager and I truly think that life in France is very difficult and stressful. Granted, France has better weather, more consumer goods, better food but the amount of bureaucracy, intolerance, judgment and overall lack of safety cancels out a lot of positives. I don't think it's any better than the UK.

Australia would be my ultimate dream personally, but it is far too remote and while my 20 year old self would be tempted, as a 32 year old woman I can't picture myself taking the plunge at this stage of my life (perhaps in my 50s for 6 months or so). Canada would be a great option, but I don't do well in the cold at all. I'd be miserable. Florida/California or Singapore would be two great options in my opinion, but it's rather difficult to emigrate there and I have to say, Florida is a bit sketchy. I would need some place where it's always warm (humidity or rain is not an issue as long as it's warm). I'm getting sick of the whole 345 days of cold / rain and 20 days of heat / sun per year. It's really starting to affect me.

I thought of Dubai, but Dubai's values don't agree with mine. The extreme display of wealth when some migrants are literally held hostage to basically work for free in some neighbourhoods is despicable. Not to mention, the extreme heat is not for me. I like heat, but not to that extent.

The thing is the problems you are trying to escape by moving to another country might translate into different problems in that other country. There's always a level of trade-off, it depends on how much you are willing to sacrifice.

Justwishfulthinking · Mar 3, 2022

Loouie said:
Do you not have spiders in the UK? We have plenty of other more deadly things here - like the rental market. Make sure you have somewhere to live settled as they're very hard to come by nearly everywhere.

We do have spiders but not deadly. Honestly if one is “big” so maybe a couple of inches long they’ll be posting it all over Facebook and booking themselves in for counselling

Seriously it will make the news https://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/ne...ed-cambridgeshire-homes-pictures-16873523.amp

Just here to say · Mar 3, 2022

TheGlossy said:
Australia would be my ultimate dream personally, but it is far too remote and while my 20 year old self would be tempted, as a 32 year old woman I can't picture myself taking the plunge at this stage of my life (perhaps in my 50s for 6 months or so). Canada would be a great option, but I don't do well in the cold at all. I'd be miserable. Florida/California or Singapore would be two great options in my opinion, but it's rather difficult to emigrate there and I have to say, Florida is a bit sketchy. I would need some place where it's always warm (humidity or rain is not an issue as long as it's warm). I'm getting sick of the whole 345 days of cold / rain and 20 days of heat / sun per year. It's really starting to affect me.

I thought of Dubai, but Dubai's values don't agree with mine. The extreme display of wealth when some migrants are literally held hostage to basically work for free in some neighbourhoods is despicable. Not to mention, the extreme heat is not for me. I like heat, but not to that extent.

The thing is the problems you are trying to escape by moving to another country might translate into different problems in that other country. There's always a level of trade-off, it depends on how much you are willing to sacrifice.

How about India? It's so vast that you will be able cater to your needs in terms of weather and climate. Sea, mountains, desert, city, village. There's culture, beautiful architecture, great food, good accessibility, nice people.

I went to Australia to study for a few months. It was amazing, but I don't think I'd be okay with living there. I think I'd be quite lonely and bored. Yes the weather is exceptional, but I need more. Australians are also quite straightforward and this can be seem like a positive, or you could just say they're pricks lol. And as other posters have said: it lacks that historical/cultural aspect. It's difficult to get there, and difficult to get out. The main cities are also getting very crowded. Sydney is full of people. Brisbane is starting to hike up house prices because now everyone wants to live there.

I'm thinking about getting a job somewhere in India and trying it out. I have considered a lot of countries including Mexico, Canada, European countries like Portugal. The thing is each one has its unique drawbacks. I haven't really found one for India (except far from my mum, but that's going to be everywhere).

Justwishfulthinking · Mar 3, 2022

yogiessexdubs said:
I've lived in Dubai for past 2.5 years. I am hoping to return to the UK this year.

How come? You not enjoying it anymore? You’ll have for there just before the pandemic I’m guessing x

Heyguysswipeup said:
I felt like that before I went to Aus on holiday but once you’re there you are fine and sorta know where you’d find a spider e.g not leaving shoes outside but also not being so OTT that you check under your sheets etc before you go to bed.

So do the spiders not really come into the house then? Are certain parts of Australia more prone to certain spiders than others? X

sewcute · Mar 3, 2022

TheGlossy said:
Your post is interesting because I left France as a teenager and I truly think that life in France is very difficult and stressful. Granted, France has better weather, more consumer goods, better food but the amount of bureaucracy, intolerance, judgment and overall lack of safety cancels out a lot of positives. I don't think it's any better than UK

That is very true concerning intolerance and judgment. As I am now married to a French man I must admit that I tend not to tell people that I am English. Racism is such a problem here, I live in quite a remote part of France and you should see the way some people treat different colored/accents etc it is quite disgusting!
Yes there are unsafe places also but i really don’t tend to think about this, as I live so far away from problems.
Its nice to hear other people’s perspectives on the country, I know a lot of people that left France around 2008/2012 period, and lots of the (at the time) kids/teens had a hard time fitting in at school, did you have this kind of problem ? I was lucky to be the only English in my school at the time so they accepted me really well, it was not the case for people we knew that had multiple English in the same school, the French kids would reject them and they would stay among themselves and never fit in

yogiessexdubs · Mar 3, 2022

For me, it's been a great experience, some things are super easy here (having everything you can think of delivered to your door, doctor's appointments, it's SO safe, taxis are inexpensive etc.) but some things are very hard/annoying here (renting an apartment, government related things, everyone's constantly trying to have you over, despite being tax free it's very expensive).
It's very much a 'Peter Pan's playground'. It's very hard to make meaningful connections here. I have one close friend who is moving back to her home country, I pretty much keep to myself other than that.

TheGlossy · Mar 3, 2022

sewcute said:
That is very true concerning intolerance and judgment. As I am now married to a French man I must admit that I tend not to tell people that I am English. Racism is such a problem here, I live in quite a remote part of France and you should see the way some people treat different colored/accents etc it is quite disgusting!
Yes there are unsafe places also but i really don’t tend to think about this, as I live so far away from problems.
Its nice to hear other people’s perspectives on the country, I know a lot of people that left France around 2008/2012 period, and lots of the (at the time) kids/teens had a hard time fitting in at school, did you have this kind of problem ? I was lucky to be the only English in my school at the time so they accepted me really well, it was not the case for people we knew that had multiple English in the same school, the French kids would reject them and they would stay among themselves and never fit in

I agree. Absolutely abhorrent!

Yes, I did have a hard time fitting it at school (which is part of the reason I still have some negative feelings about the environment over there).

I went to a regular French school for a portion of my early education and was heavily bullied. The school was a in a small town and people over there were very backwards in their way of thinking. Then, I went to an international school with students from different ethnicities, nationalities and backgrounds and it was much better. I had a great time in that international school because it was very "cosmopolitan" and people were very open-minded.

I also think the educational system in France is tailored in such a way that positive reinforcement is not part of the equation. During my time in the regular French schools, I was constantly put down by my teachers which really didn't help me as an insecure teenager. However, during my time at the international school, positive reinforcement was constant. It was like a breathe of fresh air.

I truthfully think it is a cultural thing to be "judgmental" in French because we're told from a young age to develop a strong sense of critical thinking. The issue is that most people don't apply this critical sense to the right context. For instance, I was walking down the street in some area in Paris and it just so happened that on that day, my hair looked very very dry. While in Ireland or in the UK, no one would care really. Some girl who walked past me with her friends made it a point to say loudly: "Look at her hair, it's so fried. It's horrible". This type of stuff is constant. You're constantly judged on silly things people wouldn't even notice elsewhere.

TheGlossy · Mar 3, 2022

Just here to say said:
How about India? It's so vast that you will be able cater to your needs in terms of weather and climate. Sea, mountains, desert, city, village. There's culture, beautiful architecture, great food, good accessibility, nice people.

I went to Australia to study for a few months. It was amazing, but I don't think I'd be okay with living there. I think I'd be quite lonely and bored. Yes the weather is exceptional, but I need more. Australians are also quite straightforward and this can be seem like a positive, or you could just say they're pricks lol. And as other posters have said: it lacks that historical/cultural aspect. It's difficult to get there, and difficult to get out. The main cities are also getting very crowded. Sydney is full of people. Brisbane is starting to hike up house prices because now everyone wants to live there.

I'm thinking about getting a job somewhere in India and trying it out. I have considered a lot of countries including Mexico, Canada, European countries like Portugal. The thing is each one has its unique drawbacks. I haven't really found one for India (except far from my mum, but that's going to be everywhere).

India sounds like a great option and would love to visit one day, but I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with living there long-term. I know a few people who visited and they said the most difficult was facing true poverty. Also, I don't want to sound biased, but violence against women seems to be quite preeminent over there and safety would be a big concern of mine.

greenvelvet · Mar 4, 2022

Tax-fee payment in Dubai sounds incredible, like I know someone on £4K/month tax free as a teacher. I just can’t imagine it. She says the heyday is past and you used to be able to get more free stuff, and that she thinks at some point in the semi-distant future, they’ll take away the incentives for expats to come over once their expat workforce is steady. But the money is mind-boggling - I can’t imagine any teacher in the UK getting that much. Apparently everyone knows everyone (or at least someone knows someone who knows someone else) in the expat community so if you know someone, you can find out which employers are decent and which aren’t. All this being said, the human rights abuses are shocking for a relatively “free” country.

I lived in the US in one region & while I’m sure other parts of it are nicer, the legacy of segregation was still alive and kicking. People hung out in ethnic groups for the most part and the poverty line was very racialised. People were also crazy judgmental and less educated than we are here despite thinking the US is the best country in the world which used to piss me off. They would judge you for the most ridiculous shit. I couldn’t hack how everything was built for cars either.

I absolutely love the UK but I find the housing situation so depressing. My partner and I earn good money but I think the UK does not reward hard work as much as it does coming from money. People on less money than us with less education (I know one guy who works in a phone shop whose gf was a first line IT support technician - both on around £18K - who just bought a house) speed off ahead and buy a house with inheritance money while we won’t be able to for several years. I’m happy to pay tax but the roads are dirty, I can barely see a doctor, schools are struggling…:/

Just here to say · Mar 4, 2022

TheGlossy said:
India sounds like a great option and would love to visit one day, but I'm not sure I'd be comfortable with living there long-term. I know a few people who visited and they said the most difficult was facing true poverty. Also, I don't want to sound biased, but violence against women seems to be quite preeminent over there and safety would be a big concern of mine.

We all face true poverty no matter where we live. In India like everywhere there are poor and rich, but you can avoid it if you want. In fact the poverty in the EU is the same rate as in India.

Regarding sexual harassment let's not forget India has 1.4 billion people so any statistic about rape as well as poverty etc. Is proportionate to the population. It does sound a bit iffy from your side because it is based on your own biases and assumptions. This happens everywhere and if anything I'd feel much safer in India than in some European countries. Statistically, an act of sexual violence happens every 70 seconds in the US. And in India? Every 16 minutes. Being anywhere in the world doesn't protect you from this, it's just the colonial mindset that makes people afraid/ look at others in a different way. The only reason why you would feel safer in the US is because its in the west, there are a lot of people that resemble you and your circles i.e. White people.

I'm not trying to change your mind or offend you, just wanted to point this out because it's a common misconception. I would highly recommend going on holiday there and experience first hand

FlipFlop0706 · Mar 4, 2022

greenvelvet said:
Tax-fee payment in Dubai sounds incredible, like I know someone on £4K/month tax free as a teacher. I just can’t imagine it. She says the heyday is past and you used to be able to get more free stuff, and that she thinks at some point in the semi-distant future, they’ll take away the incentives for expats to come over once their expat workforce is steady. But the money is mind-boggling - I can’t imagine any teacher in the UK getting that much. Apparently everyone knows everyone (or at least someone knows someone who knows someone else) in the expat community so if you know someone, you can find out which employers are decent and which aren’t. All this being said, the human rights abuses are shocking for a relatively “free” country.

I lived in the US in one region & while I’m sure other parts of it are nicer, the legacy of segregation was still alive and kicking. People hung out in ethnic groups for the most part and the poverty line was very racialised. People were also crazy judgmental and less educated than we are here despite thinking the US is the best country in the world which used to piss me off. They would judge you for the most ridiculous shit. I couldn’t hack how everything was built for cars either.

I absolutely love the UK but I find the housing situation so depressing. My partner and I earn good money but I think the UK does not reward hard work as much as it does coming from money. People on less money than us with less education (I know one guy who works in a phone shop whose gf was a first line IT support technician - both on around £18K - who just bought a house) speed off ahead and buy a house with inheritance money while we won’t be able to for several years. I’m happy to pay tax but the roads are dirty, I can barely see a doctor, schools are struggling…:/

I’ve written off buying a house with the way things are at the moment. My brother feels the same way. It’s completely unobtainable for us and any houses we would be able to afford are nothing more than overpriced new build boxes in shitty areas. Not to mention all the associated bills that come with being a home owner at the present time. All of my friends who own houses relied on family support/inheritance and are now doing the 2.4 children thing and struggling to pay the bills.

I refuse to spend the best years of my life scrimping and saving to them go on to be tied to a mortgage. I find it hilarious that we spend most of our time at work here in the U.K. leaving for work at 7 and not getting in until 7pm, I’m that knackered that more often than not I’m in bed by 9pm so I would effectively just be paying a mortgage just to sleep in my house.

It’s one of the reasons I have for emigrating. I’m not fixed to anything in the U.K. and have the freedom to go wherever. The only thing that is currently holding me back however is leaving my mum on her own. She would love to join me in a new life in Australia but she’s in her sixties and as I understand it, I don’t think she would be entitled to a visa/residency.

Onecandream · Mar 4, 2022

FlipFlop0706 said:
I’ve written off buying a house with the way things are at the moment. My brother feels the same way. It’s completely unobtainable for us and any houses we would be able to afford are nothing more than overpriced new build boxes in shitty areas. Not to mention all the associated bills that come with being a home owner at the present time. All of my friends who own houses relied on family support/inheritance and are now doing the 2.4 children thing and struggling to pay the bills.

I refuse to spend the best years of my life scrimping and saving to them go on to be tied to a mortgage. I find it hilarious that we spend most of our time at work here in the U.K. leaving for work at 7 and not getting in until 7pm, I’m that knackered that more often than not I’m in bed by 9pm so I would effectively just be paying a mortgage just to sleep in my house.

It’s one of the reasons I have for emigrating. I’m not fixed to anything in the U.K. and have the freedom to go wherever. The only thing that is currently holding me back however is leaving my mum on her own. She would love to join me in a new life in Australia but she’s in her sixties and as I understand it, I don’t think she would be entitled to a visa/residency.

Would it not be the same most other places though where you have to work long hours full time to afford a mortgage/rent/cost of living? (Genuine question) or have you worked out that you’d be able to work less and still have a decent standard of living?

barmcake · Mar 4, 2022

Just here to say said:
How about India? It's so vast that you will be able cater to your needs in terms of weather and climate. Sea, mountains, desert, city, village. There's culture, beautiful architecture, great food, good accessibility, nice people.

I went to Australia to study for a few months. It was amazing, but I don't think I'd be okay with living there. I think I'd be quite lonely and bored. Yes the weather is exceptional, but I need more. Australians are also quite straightforward and this can be seem like a positive, or you could just say they're pricks lol. And as other posters have said: it lacks that historical/cultural aspect. It's difficult to get there, and difficult to get out. The main cities are also getting very crowded. Sydney is full of people. Brisbane is starting to hike up house prices because now everyone wants to live there.

I'm thinking about getting a job somewhere in India and trying it out. I have considered a lot of countries including Mexico, Canada, European countries like Portugal. The thing is each one has its unique drawbacks. I haven't really found one for India (except far from my mum, but that's going to be everywhere).

Downside of India:
paying bribes to policemen or even a hospital;
no one keen to help you, unless you got your money in your pocket but living on next to nothing is still easy;
being able to cope seeing poverty at a level never seen before;
one price for foreigners and one for Indians.
Upside:
unbelievably cheap with great dentists and doctors;
never a dull moment but peace and quiet found easily, wildlife breathtaking;
lots of expats who will give genuine help;
Indian people warm and friendly.
Have your wits about you and you can have a great life. Make sure there is always enough money in the bank to get back home.

greenvelvet · Mar 4, 2022

Onecandream said:
Would it not be the same most other places though where you have to work long hours full time to afford a mortgage/rent/cost of living? (Genuine question) or have you worked out that you’d be able to work less and still have a decent standard of living?

I think in several countries it would be the same, for example New Zealand. The issue is more prevalent where there isn’t enough housing and substantial enough infrastructure (eg hospital/school capacity) for the population. Building more houses would help but the UK government is not supporting existing public sector infrastructure enough so I don’t see them building more. Where land/property is worth less and the salary is higher in real terms, than it tends not to be so much of a problem, for example in Australia. I’m the same as OP - I’d be open to Australia but don’t want to leave my parents behind. They’d be fine on their own but I would miss them.

Are there lots of jobs in India, @Just here to say? I’m thinking to go to Mauritius - never thought of India as a possibility

FlipFlop0706 · Mar 4, 2022

Onecandream said:
Would it not be the same most other places though where you have to work long hours full time to afford a mortgage/rent/cost of living? (Genuine question) or have you worked out that you’d be able to work less and still have a decent standard of living?

My job is currently in demand over there and depending what state i would move to, I would be paid more than I am here at the moment working much less hours! As many have said, the cost of living is higher but financially it still is viable for me.
Just need to find a way to bring my mum over and I’d have gone yesterday!

Just here to say · Mar 4, 2022

greenvelvet said:
Are there lots of jobs in India, @Just here to say? I’m thinking to go to Mauritius - never thought of India as a possibility

I briefly looked on LinkedIn jobs section for my interests and there were jobs, mainly in Bangalore, where only language requirement was English. So I'm taking that as a positive but I haven't looked extensively.

Emigrating?

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