Tldr; I love my job, hate the Netherlands, want to move somewhere warmer but where and how?

[gina@fosstodon.org]

That's not even mentioning the pension age that they raised to 72, the houses that on average cost over €500.000 (for a rijtjeshuis btw), the insane cost of being single instead of a couple, and the right wing conservative parties consistently dominating for the last 20 years leading to a hollowing out of every collective utility from healthcare to energy to housing. The Netherlands is a boomers paradise.

5/n

[santiago@mastodon.uy]

@Gina come to Uruguay 🇺🇾

[webhat@infosec.exchange]

@Gina funnily enough I was thinking tha same when I visited the area twice last year, need to try getting there by train before I'd think about living there

cc: @mario

[underseamonkey@fosstodon.org]

@Gina That's really interesting because, despite the rise of Wilders and his ilk, the perception in the UK (or at least, in GenX) is of NL as a bastion of liberalism.

[sandorspruit@mastodon.nl]

@underseamonkey @Gina It may have been, like 20 years ago. Downhill from there.

[neil@mastodon.neilzone.co.uk]

@Gina

> The problem with NL is that it's cold, grey, wet and miserable

*waves from the UK*

It sounds like you'd be right at home here :)

[martijn@ieji.de]

@Gina visit Friesland and Drenthe in summer ☺️. Forests, wetlands, what's not to like! That's more than 3 parks.

[andyc@mastodon.me.uk]

@neil @Gina Plus we can retire at 67!

[gina@fosstodon.org]

Clearly it's time to go (even though I'd be willing to stay a bit longer for a ~particular role~, in case my boss is reading this 😂), but the question is..

..go where?

Australia was a contender, but I haven't heard back from my visa application. Finding a visa sponsored job also hasn't led anywhere. Plus, it feels like Australians are dealing with their own financial challenges, especially aspiring home owners.

6/n

[strght@mastodon.social]

@Gina

Portugal and especially Lisbon might be something for your longlist. The country has emerged well from a huge hit by the financial crisis (2007/ 2008). Lisbon seems to have an entrepreneurial drive. That includes tech companies.

On the country @Dodo_sipping might be able to contribute some insights. She moved from Germany to the North of Portugal. She can tell herself.

[accordingtowouter@mastodon.world]

@Gina I read your posts about moving with a lot of interest!

[whvholst@eupolicy.social]

@neil @Gina Your beaches are objectively worse than ours. But then, I like several Dutch beaches and Gina doesn't, so what do I know.

[itorres@social.xin.cat]

@Gina I suppose people already told you but you can check the Canary Islands and Madeira. They’re not hot, they’re temperate the whole year.

Greece is also a wonderful place with really nice people.

And I don’t know directly the south of Portugal, the Algarve, but people say it’s great and cheaper than Andalusia in southern Spain.

[chris@myprivate.social]

@Gina I grew up in Seattle. Pretty much the same. Except for the food - some of the best anywhere.

[bobo_pk@chaos.social]

@Gina Spain. Good weather, fiber at home in 2 days, cheaper living conditions, healthcare is cheap or included and the people are also lovely.

[gina@fosstodon.org]

The US isn't an option for obvious reasons, Canada too cold, Latam too far, South Africa too murder-y, and Thailand doesn't seem convenient careerwise.

So that leaves Southern Europe.

The biggest issue is where and how. I have two cats to haul along. Do I buy a campervan and rent out my house? Where do I go?

Also, I love my work atm, can I keep doing that for as long as possible while figuring this out? And will I find a new role in the same field again?

7/n

[solardavy@climatejustice.social]

@Gina as a native Dutch person, I agree. If not for family tying (ageing parents) me down, I would also be looking for other places.

I think new Aotearoa is interesting, I'm not sure if it's because it's the literal other side of the world, or if they still have nature.

But every place I've looked at has either colonialism, racism, or woefully unprepared for the coming climate crisis.

So I'll be following your journey, as maybe we'll do the same somewhere soon.

[hadronized@fosstodon.org]

@Gina I’ve always thought The Netherlands wouod be a good place to live in. Probably a biased and blasé French point of view.

[max@toet.dnzm.nl]

@martijn @Gina This! There's plenty of pretty in .nl, but you won't find most of it in Amsterdam or even the Randstad. I moved north (from the Hague) some 25 years ago, lived in Drenthe, currently Fryslân, work in Groningen. You couldn't pay me to move back south.

And if you get bored here, you can easily make day trips to the wadden, or Germany maybe.

The "always gray and boring" doesn't match my experience, I do hope you can find some krenten in the pap somewhere. 😉

[haayman@todon.nl]

@Gina Slovenia seems a very nice country. Checks a lot of boxes