Moving To Another Country To Start A New Life

[holdthegluten]

My wife and I have lived in Fresno,California (United States) for our whole lives. We just started talking about moving to another country like Costa Rica and working at possibly one of the resorts. We have a little 8 month old boy and would like to be sure there are good schools and medical people there to take care of him and us is health problems occur. Has anyone ever picked up and moved to another country? I would love to here some stories of successful lifestyle changes by moving away from the fast pace lifestyle in the United States. We just want to find a peaceful place to work and raise our little boy with a healthy atmosphere and slower lifestyle. We are tired of having to make so much money just to live an averge life in a very polluted and crowded environment. It is a little scary thinking about moving away from all we know, but i would like to give it a go. Let me know some stories and advice if possible. Thanks

[Fiddle-Faddle]

Try moving to Pittsburgh!

Seriously.

When I moved here from the West Coast, I felt like I needed a passport!

We have a MUCH lower cost of living, a slower pace, no smog, less traffic, great universities, medical centers (including a celiac clinic!), world-class symphony orchestra, museums, schools, major sports, and three rivers!

We don't have an ocean, but we're in the foothills of the Allegeheny Mountains, so there's good skiing in the winter. The people are nice, and they even speak English! We have a gluten-free bakery, a pizzafusion where you can get gluten-free pizza, a Whole Foods, AND a Trader Joe's. We're cookin'!

It's a great place to raise a family.

Check out www.imaginepittsburgh.com

[DingoGirl]

Well hey there! I am a lifelong Fresnan as well (except that, I had seven years in Monterey, came back in 2004 and am now in Clovis).

If I had the money/chance/opportunity and no serious ties here, I would ABSOLUTELY move to another country. My choice? Italy. But Costa Rica sounds good also. One of my closest friends moved to Italy in her mid-twenties, spent one year there, has visited many times since, and cannot WAIT to move back. It's such a different world.......really lovely and definitely slower-paced.

Sadly........I hate Fresno now. It wasn't bad growing up, at all, in the early 60's and 70's.....but it's so different now.........

I SAY DO IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There are plenty of places to consider. I always think of moving to San Miguel de Allende, a wonderful artists' colony in Mexico..........

let us know what you decide.

[home-based-mom]

Are you bilingual? Being able to speak Spanish in Costa Rica would be even more handy than being able to speak Spanish in California - and I don't have to tell you how useful Spanish is in California!

[missy'smom]

I'll agree with the other poster about trying another part of the U.S. We moved from LA out east 2 years ago. I grew up in Iowa but have lived in NY, LA and Tokyo. Very happy where we are now. Good balance between country and the city. One thing I thought I'd miss was the diversity in LA but I was quite suprized to find how many "internationals" as they call them here. I'm an ESL teacher/tutor so I have plenty of opportunities that I didn't think I'd have. The Japanese I knew who had been transfered to LA would often observe something there and would say "In America..it's like this..." or "Americans do ....this..." but I would say to them, "that's how it is in LA or California, America's a big country and it's different in different places.

As far as another county.... in my experience and opinion, part of the appeal sometimes is that you, as a foreigner can separate yourself more easily from society and live in your own little world. It is sometimes bliss to not understand everything and therefore tune out all the stuff that we are bombarded with every minute. There are some expats on the web who blog about living in another country. You should read them. Several of the ones I have stumbled across lately lived oversees for maybe 5 years and are now coming back to the U.S. Open Original Shared Link for example.

It depends on the individual but I imagine there is sort of a honeymoon period too, when all is new and exciting and different. It's different for me too because my spouse is Japanese so if I moved back there(I lived there when I was single) I would eventually start to fall under some of the expectations of the culture, which could be hard. It's important to understand the culture and it's expectations. Japan, for example, is a very group oriented culture and if you're on the outside it can be hard to join in. Long term, it might be hard for me to join a group of wives or mothers, and make friendships and not be always the foreigner. It's hard to say, but some of my Japanese friends have echoed my concern. Short-term, maybe for a few years, it wouldn't bother me. I also wouldn't have the opportunity to see other foreign wives. The few westerners would be teachers living there for a few years and most likely a decade younger than I. Living in Japan was the best thing I ever did and I love the country and would go back in a heartbeat, but for concerns about the long-term and because of the Japanese system we'd have to stay permanently, we couldn't change our minds and come back to the U.S. in a few years. You have to evaluate your expectations. If you're at a place in your life where you feel that you can do it go for it. Kids adapt more easily when they are young too. I once read that before the age of 13 the brain is still able to develop the connections for children to be able to speak another language with fluent, natural pronunciation.

[missy'smom]

Here's a link to expat blogs that might be more useful to you.

Open Original Shared Link

[Mango04]

I'm also from California and I currently live in the Czech Republic (not exactly a healthier atmosphere or slower lifestyle, but the experience as a whole is definitely positive ). It's nice to be in a place where there are plenty of job opportunities and I don't have to work a horrid 9-5 just to get by.

If you can do it - go for it. You can always move back home if it doesn't work out.

[theceliachusband]

CANADA, EH? Come on up, lots of space and good quality of life.

I am from Austria and lived in quite a few place around the planet in my life. US included (6 years in Vegas). My wife is Canadian, hence my current home base. Every country has pros and cons, but if you don't try, you will never find out. I'd say you got a good 5 years before you need to think about school for your boy, so just do it.

NO GUTS, NO GLORY. Set your priorities first, then decide on a country. I joined Club Med @ 18 and they gave me the bug. Every 6 month a different place, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Africa, etc. Later in the Hospitality industry and a few cruise ships further made me go from spot to spot.

I personally loved living in the US, warts and all included. Your healthcare system is a bit screwey, but where there is a will there is a way. No other country in this world (Canada being the exception) will give you the opportunity "to make it" like the USA. But sometimes it takes a "leave of absence" for a few years to see how good your life is back home...

Visit this site for all sorts of information on your dreams: www.escapeartist.com

Good luck.

[Lockheed]

Our business partner just moved to Argentina because he can "live like a King on less than $600 a month". Whoa?! yeah. seriously. Other than the two months a year that everyone is sick because of the dumping of pesticides on the crops he has absolutely no complaints.. oh and not having heat in the middle of winter because the government sold too much crude oil for heat to the neighboring country... but every place has it's ups and downs. He really is enjoying it and he moved there with no one that he knew. So I'm all for it. I think you just have to do it because if you worry about all the risks associated, you'll never leave your home. you probably have problems with decent medical care in CA too, but they are problems you are familiar with so they don't seem as daunting as the problem you would face abroad.

[mushroom]

I have done it several times. From New Zealand I moved to London for a year (on my own), then moved to Germany for two years with a girlfriend; married a Californian and lived there for 38 years (northern California in the wine country--probably would still be my first choice for living in U.S.), but got to feeling kinda crowded there so five years ago hubby and I retired to New Zealand, which was almost like moving to a foreign country again because so much had changed in the interim, except for the old familiar patterns of interaction which I find incredibly comforting. We live in a small community which is like a little United Nations with nationalities from all over the globe, no cliques or hierarchies, nobody feels like an auslander, and we just love it (or at least I think I love it more than hubby, but hey, it's my turn.) It does take a bit of planning and research to make such a move, and figure out if you can afford it and researching the things like taxes and medical care. In my years in the U.S. I was never able to make the kind of close friends I have now, so it wasn't hard to leave. Maybe it was the fact that we didn't have children and both worked out of town. But I have never regretted getting out of my rut and seeing the world--it is an invaluable life experience, and if you learn a new language so much the better, for you and the kids. Be bold and brave, but not foolish! Have some idea of what you are getting into.