Packing up and moving to a new country is an alluring dream for many, but relocation is always a delicate balance of pros and cons. CNN regularly talks with people who’ve done it. Here’s what five Americans who relocated to Europe had to say about how it worked out for them.
Retiree Paula Dreyfuss, who swapped San Diego for the Portuguese city of Porto five years ago, loves that she can now afford vacations several times a year and restaurant meals multiple times a week. She finds the locals “so warm and so nice” and loves feeling safe enough to be comfortable walking alone at night.
The downsides, she says, are the bureaucracy and learning a new language: “Nothing is perfect.” Read more.
Jeffrey Davidson and Walter Zak were approaching 60 when they decided to move from Florida to the Peloponnese region of Greece.
“We lived in the land of make-believe,” Davidson says of their former home near Walt Disney World. “Now we stumble over ruins that are several thousand years old in every direction.”
They love Greece’s “wonderful chaotic energy” but admit the transition would have been harder if they’d left it until later in life, as they “still have a lot of learning time.”
“We still have issues here with earthquakes and wildfires,” says Zak, and “Greece will still get a little colder than we’re used to.” Read more.
In a story for CNN subscribers, Emily and Robert Toole share how they moved to Switzerland more than a decade ago, after Emily was offered a job in Geneva.
Even though she arrived with a foothold in the work world, the first year was “horrible,” according to Emily. She found it difficult to adapt and build connections.
“There’s no welcoming committee,” agrees Robert, saying that Swiss people tend to “keep to themselves.”
Today, though, they’re happy and settled, and they think the outdoorsy lifestyle of hiking and swimming is the best environment to raise their five children. Read why they changed their mind.
