I bounced around NYC, Texas, Rockies, and the southeast from about 25-30yo and then eventually moved back to Alabama for some family issues. Been here for 3.5 years and I'm starting to get the itch to move again, in part because of how truly abhorrent and inept our state politicians are. The overwhelming majority of the people in Alabama that I interact with on a regular basis are progressive, but when I venture out of my bubble I realize my bubble is atypical. Lately I've found myself thinking about (and bringing up in conversations) California more and more. While it'd be far away from her family, I don't think I could convince wifey to leave the country.
if anyone doesn’t like Miami you probably won’t like Panamá City. but there are pockets of Americans in smaller towns and cities like Boquete and Coronado where the environment is different
My ex-GF's stepdad was filthy rich and was obsessed with Panama -- for no reason other than it being a supposed tax haven. It's all he ever talked about -- not the food, climate, people, nothing -- just how much money he could save and how inviting their visa process was for rich folks. The guy was a successful orthopedist in BC, Canada and never talked about anything other than how much he hated Trudeau and taxes.
Costa Ricans and Colombians are friendlier people and more laid back . but outside Panama City could be different
BC taxing would be a stark change compared to WA. It'd be great to have everything covered medically, and you can live in one of if not the most desirable places to live on earth, but it's a tough place, especially Vancouver proper, to have any aspiration of owning a home or setting family up for financial success. However, a sunny day in Vancouver is probably the greatest place on Earth and will sow doubt of why you would ever move. Canadians will tell you BC stands for Bring Cash. Alberta is unfortunately Texas with scenery from a financial perspective. BC or nothing if moving to Canada imvho
Having trouble keeping up but any north Florida posters thinking about ditching this hellhole, let me know and I’ll piggyback on your relocation with my family. This is fucking miserable watching one thing after the next crumble.
Joke’s on you. I moved to Tallahassee 3 years ago. Lost Matt Gaetz but gained proximity to Ron DeSantis. I’m better off mentally because this city is a hell of a lot more tolerant than Pensacola but the GOP decided once I moved that they’d drag their nuts across the entire state to make up for it.
Yelp PC gets the "Lil Miami" mentions. The weather is a lot different in Boquete and other mountain towns than the coastal areas. Bocas is another totally different spot. Seems like there were more Gringos there than anywhere I've been in the country, even Boquete or Coronado.
Were you interacting with folks conducting business in PC? They tend to be a bit uptight and overly formal/professional while working. I believe it's the way they are taught, trained and expected to act. Restaurant waiters are a good example. Their's are a complete 180° from the typical southern US waiters that I'm accustomed to.
BIL ended up in Vancouver after taking a job with Pixar Canada. They shuttered a few years back, but he stayed around taking contracts with Sony and other studios, making what I consider to be fantastic money. His now wife was doing pretty well too. Their hunt for permanent housing was wild to watch from the sidelines. Dinky ass apartments for 1mil+, and they lost every time. He ended up getting an offer from Pixar here, and they recently relocated. They were excited about the relative affordability of the Bay Area lol
I have never seen anything like the Vancouver housing market. You will drive down entire blocks of vacant, quality homes (2000+ Sq feet, 3 Bed/2 Bath looking homes) that have been purchased up by Asian real estate moguls that will just destroy the entire area and put in 10+ story apartments. No place in the US can compare the insanity in that area. Toronto is supposed to be as bad too.
This is always my internal dialogue Then I waffle back and forth between UK, Switzerland, Germany, New Zealand, and France and then I remember how deep my roots go here and then I get frustrated and don’t do anything
No doubt, I have at least some kind of connection I could chase to all those countries except NZ and Germany though. NZ my occupation is in demand.
I wish it wasn’t so cheap to live in these shit hole states. getting used to a certain lifestyle can make it difficult to leave
the easiest path is to get a english TOEFL certificate and then join up with an english teaching program.
If I don't know a foreign language, how would I teach them my language though? I'm just thinking back to the days when I took Spanish, I'd have been lost if my teacher/professor didn't know English. Or is this just teaching people to take a test and they already know the language reasonably well?
If you have a bachelor's degree, you can get hired as an english teacher most anywhere in SE Asia. An online TEFL certificate will only run you a few hundred. You'll only make like $20-25K/year (more if you have an education degree/background), but that's enough to live very comfortably in those countries. Just won't be saving much. I researched the shit out of it and was very close to pulling the trigger, but never did.
As you know, I did this and can confirm that if you aren’t crazy spending, you can still very easily save. School pays for your lodging and bills; I was making roughly $25k amd saved about a quarter of the salary both years in Korea.
Definitely taking some actual steps to make this a reality. My kid starts school in a year and my wife teaches now. Don’t feel like playing the odds