MrCrowley wrote:For close to a decade now I've thought that a life goal of mine would be to live/work in Europe for at least a couple of years. A lot of it probably has to do with the fact that we're quite isolated down here and nearly every Kiwi wants to go overseas with Europe being the most popular destination.
Isolated is good. Would you rather live in spectacular LOTR-worthy landscapes or a densely populated crime ridden metropolis?
Are you disillusioned about Europe in general or just where your epoxy bat cave was?
Epoxyland in particular but I've lived elsewhere in Europe for extended periods (Britain and Spain for example) and its not much better there.
I will take again the Dodge Ram as a concrete example.
I currently drive a Landrover tugged along by 2.3 litre naturally aspirated diesel engine. This is more than enough for my needs, and is reasonably economical to run. If I were to chose to buy a new equivalent one (Defender 90 with a 2.4 litre diesel), it would cost me at least 50,000 euro. Along with insurance and licensing costs, that would be enough to purchase a small single bedroom apartment. I would *never* consider doing this here, even if I was earning double what I currently do.
As to purchasing a 5.7 litre Dodge Ram, it's not even sold here. Licensing and running costs would be through the roof.
A brand new basic model from a Canadian retailer costs 20,000 dollars, that's well below half the price and more than affordable - but do I
need a 5.7 litre truck the size of a battleship?
No.
Do I
want it?
Yes. F*** yes.
Can I get it in my current situation without working a second job and living in a cardboard box?
Certainly not.
Could I afford it in Canada on a minimum wage while renting a modest apartment?
So it would seem!
There is no further argument in my head.
The winters are harsh, but if that's the price I have to pay then I can put up with that.
I guess a lot of it depends on where you spent most of your time growing up.
I cannot imagine someone in my inverse situation would feel the same way, unless they *really* loved summer sun and sea.
The grass is always greener on the other side... except sometimes it is true
Agreed 100%
everything is perfect here, european culture flavor strongly teinted with French roots, but North American way of doing business, and overall happy, kind and polite people...
That's the impression I got, and I loved it.
I'm with
Berlusconi here:
I'm leaving this shítty country of which I'm sickened
