Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#111

Post by smoe » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 2:32 PM UTC

BigRedDog1669 wrote: post #59

smoe wrote: post #28

Swiss living in Colombia for a bit over 5 years. There is not that much of a path or sophisticated plan to it. I was tired of Switzerland/Europe and wanted to try different things for at least a while. I have travelled Latin America extensively before and had a short list of potential countries/cities. After that it was basically a couple of months for finding a job I'm exited about and winding down obligations and c…

I just spent about a year in Colombia and really enjoyed it. People there are more friendly than anywhere else I've been in the world. Money goes a lot further there too (if you have a foreign source of money). The thing that I couldn't get used to is in the cities, you could always be subjected to loud reggaeton blasting or other loud noises, even in residential areas, rich or poor. Weekdays, weekends, 8am or 1pm or…

And regards the bureaucracy. Yes, it is still very convoluted and unnecessary complex. But digitalization has advanced significantly in recent years.

The entire visa process was done online, I just had to go to the offices in the end to take picture for ID, but with a pre-scheduled half hour slot, so there was little wait. Taxes from filing to paying is trough a web application. Most proceses with my bank, health insurance, internet provider are via apps or web chat.

As mentioned many things are still too confusing for me to do alone and I would be completely lost. I have a personal tax person, friends advising me on contracts before signing and the company lawyers for visa stuff. But at least I no longer have to sit around hours and fill by hand long forms and start again from scratch if I make any tiny mistake.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#112

Post by mdp2021 » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 2:51 PM UTC

meheleventyone wrote: post #75

I moved from Scotland to Iceland just over ten years ago. The company I worked for exploded spectacularly and a company here came to pick up the pieces. I wanted to visit but didn’t really have any intention to live here. Initially I thought I might be here a couple of years and then move on again. It was super easy to move here due to the UK being in the EU at the time. Brexit didn’t change anything for me personall…

> There is a vibrant cultural scene

Care to elaborate? Thank you!

By the way: have you found the cold an issue?

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#113

Post by tiddles » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 2:57 PM UTC

atmosx wrote: post #83

This is by far the most interesting thread to me in years. Thanks for kickstarting the discussion!

Very timely for me too, as I'm planning an unbounded move from the UK to Europe in the next few months.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#114

Post by pasabagi » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 3:00 PM UTC

radicalbyte wrote: post #109

CodeGlitch wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The UK in comparison feels like a third world country - everything seems to be falling down, and working-age people - particularly those under 40-45 have been absolutely screwed by the last 10-15 years of policy. Which part of the UK did you come from? I have to say I'm 41 and neither me or my friends/family have experienced what you describe.

We're the same age. I'm from the South West, but called Warwick my home. Before Corona I visited family in the South West regularly - driving along the M20 > M4 > M5 or M20 > M4 > A-roads. Dover, Maidstone, Swindon, Bath, Bristol and Exeter all look and feel worse with every visit. The shops are where you see it the most. In the past towns were full of boutique places. They have been replaced by "pound shops" and pla…

I have the same feeling (am also an ex UK guy). It's a feeling v. much borne out by the statistics - there's been a slump in wages and living standards in the last fifteen years or so that's been unevenly distributed, both geographically and socially, but has generally lowered quality of life for everyone.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#115

Post by netjiro » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 3:45 PM UTC

Just my opinions. Grew up in Sweden (Gothenburg). Started moving around on my own in my late teens for work, studies, research, love, etc. Have lived in quite a few places over the years.

Moving to a new place is not difficult. Just don't bring a lot of baggage, neither physical nor emotional. Don't pack lots of expectations and opinions. Adapt fast. Expend serious effort to make a lot of new friends immediately, there will be some uncomfortable moments, most people are genuinely nice.

These are the countries (regions) I generally recommend and would move back to:

Switzerland (Zürich-Zug-Liechtenstein), Norway (Oslo), Denmark (Copenhagen), Sweden (Gothenburg), Netherlands (Amsterdam-Rotterdam-Utrecht), Japan (Tokyo).

These are the countries (regions) I would need a strong reason to move back to:

USA (South East states), Germany (München, Frankfurt, Konstanz).

These are the countries I avoid, recommend against, and would need very strong reason to move back to:

France (Grenoble), Spain (Bilbao), Cyprus.

These are the areas I'm keeping an eye on for future possibilities. Just for fun, from my limited knowledge:

Auckland, Vancouver, Singapore.

Just my opinions, based on my values and what I want in life. I love nature and want easy access more or less daily. I want a clean environment wherever I go. I want functional society that does not drain my time with bullshit nonsense. I am ultraliberal and want to have an easy time to find many other well educated and active open minded people.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#116

Post by Shorel » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 3:50 PM UTC

alangibson wrote: post #3

I married an Austrian while living with her in Texas. I made exactly zero plans before moving. She had the better degree by far so it only made sense to move to Austria. Getting a job was easy by local standards due to a tight local market for programmers. Getting through German classes to earn the permanent residency was the toughest part. I would never consider moving back to the USA. I was always a sceptic of the…

By definition, not a 3d world country.

But it is a rich country full of poor people.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#117

Post by tjpnz » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 3:51 PM UTC

arvinsim wrote: post #48

Aeolun wrote: post #10

For reference, I’m from the Netherlands. I didn’t have any plans to emigrate until my friend introduced me to a small company in Japan that was looking for an engineer. I applied, but was rejected, so I thought that was that. Then a few months later I got another email. Their initial hire didn’t work out and now they wanted me to join. I worked remote for about a month while we got the visa process sorted (apparently…

Japan was known to have low salaries in tech. Has this changed nowadays?

You can very easily earn 100k USD in Tokyo if you're half decent.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#118

Post by blub » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 3:55 PM UTC

4ad wrote: post #81

mdp2021 wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So do you confirm the availability of "horror stories", as mentioned? Kindly share why you consider Austria a nightmare. I got mixed signals from the place. While some people are extremely friendly, I also perceived quite a defensive atmosphere. Something solid on the surface but struggling below it, like a defence of daily routine - not really lively or happy. But it could also depend on the region, I guess.

There are many horror stories indeed. Xenofobia is a big thing here, but unlike the US where racism is direct and in your face, here it is subtle. People are polite, but that won't help you get that raise that native Austrians colleagues would get. While all these things are important, my main issue is far deeper, see my reply to alangibson.

A certain degree of xenophobia, like in the example you mention is present everywhere. Or where are foreigners treated just like the locals in this world?

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#119

Post by blub » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 4:03 PM UTC

4ad wrote: post #98

alangibson wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in village so small the streets don't have names, but today I talked to an Ethiopian guy living around here and said Servus to a couple of kids adopted from Tanzania walking down the street. The chances of them getting shot by a police officer rounds off to 0%. Austria has racism, but the US has Racism.

Very few people are racist, although you will find that if immigrants come from eastern europe instead of exotic countries like Ethiopia and Tanzania, the percentage of racist people towards them increases dramatically. Even so, few are overtly racist, yet somehow the society behaves in a way that precludes true integration. My friends from Romania are paid significantly less than their native Austrian collegues. Are…

Here in Germany the BLM protest marches were tolerated in the middle of the pandemic.

News orgs would fall over themselves trying to dredge something to be offended about in Germany’s colonial past or discussing any triviality regarding black people.

I saw this one article about people from Eastern Europe working in Germany, lodged together like cattle, passports taken by the employer for safe keeping. Modern slavery happening in 2021 on German soil. Few comments online if any condemning the perpetrators and zero empathy, no marches, no protests.

Re: Ask HN: What is your story of immigrating to another country?

#120

Post by jhugo » Sat, Oct 09, 2021, 4:21 PM UTC

4ad wrote: post #76

alangibson wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why? It could be it just doesn't suit your personality. If you a 'rise and grind' type of person, I can see it being hell.

Well I could enumerate all the material things that are worse in Europe and better in the US (I have lived in the US enough time to have an informed opinion), but that would get old, and in the end it would miss the point, as I could just as well enumerate countless things which are better in Europe compared to US. The real issue (which causes all the above differences anyway) is cultural. What matters is not compari…

GA is huge in Europe. There are small airfields dotted all over Spain, France and Italy (probably elsewhere, I only have personal knowledge in those countries) and many aero clubs and communities operating. I suspect that in this, and in cheese, you may have found that a language barrier prevented you finding the information that you were seeking? Even then, the U.K. (still geographically part of Europe!) has a vibrant GA scene and cheese scene as well as a strong hobbyist culture in general.