Ask HN: Where should I live?
77 comments
Out of your shortlist, I would recommend Lisbon. It's not as big but punches above its weight in most of your other criteria.
The Brazilian cities you described do not have good public transport or bikes, and almost no foreigners. The advantage is that cost of living is very low, but Lisbon is also not that expensive as well.
The Brazilian cities you described do not have good public transport or bikes, and almost no foreigners. The advantage is that cost of living is very low, but Lisbon is also not that expensive as well.
Really appreciate this reply, I will bump Lisboa in my mental ranking then!
Alas, if you consider Sydney winters too cold to bear, then you'll probably have a bad time in Lisbon too.
Sydney is not only warmer on average, but also much less prone to cold spells (not that cold spells are common in Lisbon, but they certainly occur more frequently: the last time it snowed in Sydney was 1836; the last time it snowed in Lisbon was 2006).
I think the climate you're looking for is more in line with Miami.
Sydney is not only warmer on average, but also much less prone to cold spells (not that cold spells are common in Lisbon, but they certainly occur more frequently: the last time it snowed in Sydney was 1836; the last time it snowed in Lisbon was 2006).
I think the climate you're looking for is more in line with Miami.
It's true but I'm happy to trade some climate for the other factors on my wish list. Sydney and Melbourne both fail not only on climate, they're also not as diverse and cultured and don't have super great public and alternative transport. Based on the feedback here Lisboa def seems like a top option. (by all means Miami too)
This is probably going to be the most ridiculous suggestion on this thread, but since you mentioned Latin American and African cities:
Have you thought of India? the major South Indian cities (Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad) have large tech scenes, with Bangalore probably have one of the largest in the world. Many major US and EU employers have remote workers and/or offices here. The weather is certainly warm, perhaps even too warm :P
I'm from one of these cities and spent several years living in Europe. It wasn't until I moved from continental Europe to the UK that I found a comparable restaurant scene to my home city. Beaches, deserts, forests, and mountains are all just a short flight away. Not sure what diversity means to you though, so I might get this one wrong.
Uber, Ola, and other alternatives to cars are preferred by many, if not, well, you could always get a car with a driver, it's quite affordable on a developer wage. All three cities are building up their metro systems as well.
Of course, life in India doesn't suit everyone. There are several negatives, which I guess everyone knows. As I said, it's probably the most ridiculous suggestion, but here it is.
Have you thought of India? the major South Indian cities (Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad) have large tech scenes, with Bangalore probably have one of the largest in the world. Many major US and EU employers have remote workers and/or offices here. The weather is certainly warm, perhaps even too warm :P
I'm from one of these cities and spent several years living in Europe. It wasn't until I moved from continental Europe to the UK that I found a comparable restaurant scene to my home city. Beaches, deserts, forests, and mountains are all just a short flight away. Not sure what diversity means to you though, so I might get this one wrong.
Uber, Ola, and other alternatives to cars are preferred by many, if not, well, you could always get a car with a driver, it's quite affordable on a developer wage. All three cities are building up their metro systems as well.
Of course, life in India doesn't suit everyone. There are several negatives, which I guess everyone knows. As I said, it's probably the most ridiculous suggestion, but here it is.
Ho Chi Minh?
If it's not what you want on any given day super cheap to duck off somewhere else.
Tech scene, still french influenced, last time I was there a couple could live very comfortably for 2k a month, or even 1.5k.
If it's not what you want on any given day super cheap to duck off somewhere else.
Tech scene, still french influenced, last time I was there a couple could live very comfortably for 2k a month, or even 1.5k.
It's non car centric alright... I wouldn't want to drive one around all the motor scooters anyway.
In the US: Miami,Atlanta, Houston minus #4. Is there a city outside of Northeast that isn't car centric?
"Actually diverse" is a tall order. Maybe a handful of cities fit that globally imo: in addition to the list above, nyc and I don't know, can't think of any but I am sure they exist.
"Actually diverse" is a tall order. Maybe a handful of cities fit that globally imo: in addition to the list above, nyc and I don't know, can't think of any but I am sure they exist.
I'd say Chicago hits three of their points, but fails 1. miserably.
Atlanta is second to maybe only LA in terms of how bad the traffic gets. Neighborhood streets backed up with highway traffic bad.
Definitely not the place to look if cars stress you out like they do for me. On the bright side living there disillusioned me about American cities and now I live happily car free in Tokyo :)
Houston is much easier to navigate with a car, but you can find a few transit-centric areas (mostly downtown and in the areas around Rice). You would be SOL if you wanted to get to a different part of town without a car though.
If you want extra hot places that had improved in terms of cars there is Seville also with a lot of recent bike lanes.
Like Scottish in UK, they have a peculiar way to speak Spanish and all the common nuissances of being in a big city, but you will be dealing with just one language (Valencia and Barcelona speak two at the same time) and should be cheaper to live than both. Andalucía has a lot to offer in terms of gorgeous nature, culture (ancient mix of jew, muslim and christian heritages and links with America) and great food. Many good beaches at a reasonable distance and connected with Madrid by fast train AVE (2 hours 30 min) 15 times a day or so.
The climate in summer is a little hot to me but if you live in Australia shouldn't be much different. Similar range of temperatures than Brisbane but less humid.
My main concern would be the tech scene. Barcelona/Madrid are unbeatable in that.
Like Scottish in UK, they have a peculiar way to speak Spanish and all the common nuissances of being in a big city, but you will be dealing with just one language (Valencia and Barcelona speak two at the same time) and should be cheaper to live than both. Andalucía has a lot to offer in terms of gorgeous nature, culture (ancient mix of jew, muslim and christian heritages and links with America) and great food. Many good beaches at a reasonable distance and connected with Madrid by fast train AVE (2 hours 30 min) 15 times a day or so.
The climate in summer is a little hot to me but if you live in Australia shouldn't be much different. Similar range of temperatures than Brisbane but less humid.
My main concern would be the tech scene. Barcelona/Madrid are unbeatable in that.
To mitigate the hot weather of Seville, you can live in one of the smaller towns closer to the beach. If you don't want to be around of a bunch of Americans, avoid Rota and El Puerto de Santa Maria as there is a U.S. Naval Base there. This could be a plus though as it may help you make friends quickly if you don't speak Spanish. If you have any questions about that particular area, let me know. I lived there for 3 years about 10 years ago while I was in the Navy.
Yes, you would have mountains and beach.
I add that remote work shouldn't be a problem for most EU. All Spain except Canary Islands are in the same time region than Germany so you would cover most Europe in real time (From Norway to Italy and from Spain to Croatia). One hour more than London or Lisbon.
I add that remote work shouldn't be a problem for most EU. All Spain except Canary Islands are in the same time region than Germany so you would cover most Europe in real time (From Norway to Italy and from Spain to Croatia). One hour more than London or Lisbon.
Ten years ago I’d have said Hong Kong, without hesitation. Now? I’m not so sure
I wanted to say the same thing, but I am reluctant to go back myself let alone recommend it these days
Taiwan is an option. It actually has a visa that allows you to work there.
A lot of people are throwing out country names with little regard of the ability to live and work there legally.
A lot of people are throwing out country names with little regard of the ability to live and work there legally.
Why not Singapore? The tech scene there is amazing and inspiring, (too?) Warm, diverse, and very good public transportation. Heck, you can walk though neighborhoods if you fancy some sweating.
Unfortunately it's a little bit too car-centric despite the expensive prices of cars, and I find the culture to be a little bit "unhinged".
Unfortunately it's a little bit too car-centric despite the expensive prices of cars, and I find the culture to be a little bit "unhinged".
Singapore is pretty awful for LGBTQ rights, no? OP didn't mention it but it's the reason I would never consider living there despite having heard nice things.
Depends on how you define "LGBTQ rights". Nobody cares who you are with here, if that's what you are asking.
Homosexuality is still illegal, isn't it?
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Singapore
> In June 2019, at the Smart Nation Summit, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong reiterated that Singapore would keep Section 377A "for some time" saying, "Whatever your sexual orientation is, you're welcome to come and work in Singapore... You know our rules in Singapore. It is the way this society is: We are not like San Francisco, neither are we like some countries in the Middle East. [We are] something in between, it is the way the society is."[13][14]
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Singapore
> In June 2019, at the Smart Nation Summit, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong reiterated that Singapore would keep Section 377A "for some time" saying, "Whatever your sexual orientation is, you're welcome to come and work in Singapore... You know our rules in Singapore. It is the way this society is: We are not like San Francisco, neither are we like some countries in the Middle East. [We are] something in between, it is the way the society is."[13][14]
Yes this is correct
It's a place I've considered for sure but I've already spent five years in Tokyo so looking more outside Asia. (I know, I know, painting with a very broad brush here but yeah)
Lisbon is absolutely fantastic. I would happily move there.
Walkable, very diverse, awesome beaches, great food, beautiful scenery, 1h or 2h by plane to rest of Europe. Amazing nightlife, best parties I've ever had :D
Consider Boulder, CO if you've got stupid amounts of money. The winters here are very mild (no, not sarcasm) and you'll find plenty of 50-70 F sunny days in the dead of January.
I looked it up, wow you aren't kidding. It's about the same latitude as my hometown (roughly) so I just assumed it got as cold, but no it's significantly warmer.
check nomadlist.com. nomad style would be travel to all the ones you fancy and spend a few weeks there, then you'll know. one of the most favourite nomad places worldwide is thailand and bali. if you factor in costs work from home/paradise very likely gives a lot higher payoff than locating at tech hubs in terms of price/value. e.g. Chiang mai, Thailand frequently ranks #1 on nomadlist. living cost there is shown at 1000$/month (versus 4400$ in London or 6000$ in SF, 3600$ in Brisbane).
$1000/month will make you live like king in Tbilisi and Georgian cuisine is unmatched worldwide. Also super cheap craft beer and wine.
I'd move to Georgia with absolutely no hesitation!
The life is surprisingly "slow", people are more relaxed (apart from the recent protests related to the incident we all are worried about), friendly faces, and like you said, the cuisine caught me off guard and turned out to be absolutely amazing!
The life is surprisingly "slow", people are more relaxed (apart from the recent protests related to the incident we all are worried about), friendly faces, and like you said, the cuisine caught me off guard and turned out to be absolutely amazing!
Are many Russians moving there because of the sanctions?
~25,000 Russians moved there right after the incident. So maybe many will return or move farther.
Honestly all things being equal you should live where you are relevant.
The scenary, temperature and all the rest gets old pretty quickly and you are left with the social connections you can make as the only metric of how you are faring in a city. And that is dependant upon your relevancy
Given that you are planning to go as a foreigner all things being equal you should go for a place where you speak the local language and it has a decent amount of mobility and social volatility.
Without mobility and social volatility you are essentially looking at people still latching onto social relationship they established early on such as high school or college, that makes harder to create connections for somebody who is just arriving.
Mobility I don't think I have to explain, social volatility I'd define it as uhmm...essentially if you don't see fist fights or people arguing and going at each other, you won't even enjoy the opposite side of the emotional spectrum . Which I suppose is what you desire (maybe I am projecting)
An international South American city where people make friends and fall off quickly: say Sao Paolo or Rio or Mexico City seems a good fit, but as I said depends upon your relevancy and ability to speak the language.
The scenary, temperature and all the rest gets old pretty quickly and you are left with the social connections you can make as the only metric of how you are faring in a city. And that is dependant upon your relevancy
Given that you are planning to go as a foreigner all things being equal you should go for a place where you speak the local language and it has a decent amount of mobility and social volatility.
Without mobility and social volatility you are essentially looking at people still latching onto social relationship they established early on such as high school or college, that makes harder to create connections for somebody who is just arriving.
Mobility I don't think I have to explain, social volatility I'd define it as uhmm...essentially if you don't see fist fights or people arguing and going at each other, you won't even enjoy the opposite side of the emotional spectrum . Which I suppose is what you desire (maybe I am projecting)
An international South American city where people make friends and fall off quickly: say Sao Paolo or Rio or Mexico City seems a good fit, but as I said depends upon your relevancy and ability to speak the language.
Sydney? ;-)
I'm Adelaide based these days, and coming from London, the lack of day-to-day diversity is rather shocking!
I'd suggest London and the South of England during the summer months!
I'm Adelaide based these days, and coming from London, the lack of day-to-day diversity is rather shocking!
I'd suggest London and the South of England during the summer months!
Ha ha, I was going to suggest Byron Bay :-)
From your list I'd go for Lisbon, I mean if you are interested in learning languages it has to be Europe really. Are you interested in any particular activities e.g. surfing and outdoor life is great in Lisbon and probably Bilbao too (although cooler).
From your list I'd go for Lisbon, I mean if you are interested in learning languages it has to be Europe really. Are you interested in any particular activities e.g. surfing and outdoor life is great in Lisbon and probably Bilbao too (although cooler).
We seem to have a similar experience of Australia then :) scores very highly in many things but diversity just doesn't compare to London, NY etc. (which is to be expected so not a dig or anything but yeah)
Not sure how you’d fare in Fortaleza, Recife and Salvador, which have their share of security issues.
I doubt you’d stick to a place like Lagos for more than a month.
I doubt you’d stick to a place like Lagos for more than a month.
I haven't been to Europe so can't compare it to some of your alternatives, but I've lived in south Texas for most of my life so could give some perspective there.
Pros for Austin:
* It definitely meets your first 2 goals of having a warm climate and a good tech scene.
* I would describe Austin as moderately diverse. Not as much as SF, NYC, or Houston, but it has some things going for it. A lot of people are moving there from out of state, so it's growing a lot. There's great fusion food, especially if you like Mexican food, and it has the 3rd highest rate of LGBTQ people in the country. Despite being in Texas, the cities here are tolerant and diverse.
* Great music scene and festivals.
* Fun summer activities, like tubing down nearby rivers.
* It would probably be a good place to raise a family, as it has some really nice neighborhoods and decent schools.
* You have a lot to do if you'd like to get out of the city. Fredericksburg for German restaurants/culture and Texas wine country, Corpus Christi and North Padre Island for long weekend beach trips, San Antonio for very good Mexican food, Fiesta (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiesta_San_Antonio), or seeing the Riverwalk or historic missions. I live in San Antonio, for reference.
* I'm not super familiar with the parks and trails, but I think they are good, if you enjoy cycling or running. The Austin Marathon is a blast.
Cons:
* It is car centric, and the traffic isn't great. However, a lot of people bike, so you could arrange it so that your work and errands are within a bicycle commute. I would definitely have a car for getting around elsewhere, though.
* Cost of living is high, but tech salaries cover that. It's not to the level of cities like NYC or SF, though, and I think it's mainly limited to housing.
* It is Texas, so there are certain regressive state policies, like a recent declaration from the attorney general attempting to criminalizing gender affirming healthcare for trans youth. A lot of these get challenged in court and thrown out, but it is something to consider.
Good luck with your decision! Lisbon or anywhere in Spain sound amazing, too.
Pros for Austin:
* It definitely meets your first 2 goals of having a warm climate and a good tech scene.
* I would describe Austin as moderately diverse. Not as much as SF, NYC, or Houston, but it has some things going for it. A lot of people are moving there from out of state, so it's growing a lot. There's great fusion food, especially if you like Mexican food, and it has the 3rd highest rate of LGBTQ people in the country. Despite being in Texas, the cities here are tolerant and diverse.
* Great music scene and festivals.
* Fun summer activities, like tubing down nearby rivers.
* It would probably be a good place to raise a family, as it has some really nice neighborhoods and decent schools.
* You have a lot to do if you'd like to get out of the city. Fredericksburg for German restaurants/culture and Texas wine country, Corpus Christi and North Padre Island for long weekend beach trips, San Antonio for very good Mexican food, Fiesta (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fiesta_San_Antonio), or seeing the Riverwalk or historic missions. I live in San Antonio, for reference.
* I'm not super familiar with the parks and trails, but I think they are good, if you enjoy cycling or running. The Austin Marathon is a blast.
Cons:
* It is car centric, and the traffic isn't great. However, a lot of people bike, so you could arrange it so that your work and errands are within a bicycle commute. I would definitely have a car for getting around elsewhere, though.
* Cost of living is high, but tech salaries cover that. It's not to the level of cities like NYC or SF, though, and I think it's mainly limited to housing.
* It is Texas, so there are certain regressive state policies, like a recent declaration from the attorney general attempting to criminalizing gender affirming healthcare for trans youth. A lot of these get challenged in court and thrown out, but it is something to consider.
Good luck with your decision! Lisbon or anywhere in Spain sound amazing, too.
You don't mention if you speak any languages other than English?
Whilst you'll get by OK in any large city with just English, some places are better than others. For example, in my experience, Lisbon (and Portugal in general) has a much higher level of English than Barcelona.
Maybe language isn't a huge concern for you but you still have a level of bureaucracy and settling in moving to any new place.
Whilst you'll get by OK in any large city with just English, some places are better than others. For example, in my experience, Lisbon (and Portugal in general) has a much higher level of English than Barcelona.
Maybe language isn't a huge concern for you but you still have a level of bureaucracy and settling in moving to any new place.
Non English is a plus tbh
Vancouver is not that diverse and doesn't have good public transport or bike infrastructure ? That's a first I hear.
Vancouver has a large and visible Asian population ("diverse")
but it doesn't have large numbers of Francophones, Afro, Caribbean or Latino people as eg Toronto or NY does (this is kind of what I'm trying to get at by saying "ACTUALLY diverse")
please note I'm fully aware a) this is painting with a very broad brush, terms like "Asian" or "Afro" "population" are kind of nonsensical b) this is not a dig at Vancouver, it's just an observation - Vancouver pretty plainly not as diverse as eg Toronto or NY.
but it doesn't have large numbers of Francophones, Afro, Caribbean or Latino people as eg Toronto or NY does (this is kind of what I'm trying to get at by saying "ACTUALLY diverse")
please note I'm fully aware a) this is painting with a very broad brush, terms like "Asian" or "Afro" "population" are kind of nonsensical b) this is not a dig at Vancouver, it's just an observation - Vancouver pretty plainly not as diverse as eg Toronto or NY.
Vancouver has a pretty big Latino community, I'm Latino and I live here. Lots of Mexicans and Brazilians. It's the warmer place in Canada.
Tel Aviv, and Israel in general, is very car centric, not what you mean by diversed and cultured and you will need to be a Jew to get an Israeli citizenship, permanent residencies are also hard to get AFAIK.
Buy a good winter coat and come here to Stockholm, it is cold but (like Copenhagen) the infrastructure is really good and built for the weather.
Buy a good winter coat and come here to Stockholm, it is cold but (like Copenhagen) the infrastructure is really good and built for the weather.
This site may help with learning about details of the climate in places all over the world. I've learnt so much in just an hour with it:
https://weatherspark.com/map
https://weatherspark.com/map
Maybe Porto? Never been, but I've heard great things! Maybe check out the Nomadlist listing (heh): https://nomadlist.com/porto
Barcelona should fit well. If you want warm winters Madrid is not an option. You could take a look also to Valencia that has a Mediterranean climate and is a little warmer. Both have good beaches and lots of tourism. Barcelona has a metro so is a little less car centric maybe.
Lisbon is Atlantic climate and the sea is colder but should be also a competitive option. Barcelona is one of the 3 most expensive cities to live in Spain. Portugal should be more affordable probably.
Lisbon is Atlantic climate and the sea is colder but should be also a competitive option. Barcelona is one of the 3 most expensive cities to live in Spain. Portugal should be more affordable probably.
Yeah, I think I'd go for Barcelona or other small towns nearby.
Athens nails (1), (2), (3) but not (4). I mean moving around the city with the bike is dangerous, as there are virtually no bike roads.
The climate wasn't _very warm_ this year around though and the energy crisis is going to hit Greece hard. The summer is fantastic though as you can hop around the islands with ease.
The diverse culture, hm. Well it's no Vienna or Berlin, I guess but you can meet ppl from all over the place.
The tech scene is booming.
The climate wasn't _very warm_ this year around though and the energy crisis is going to hit Greece hard. The summer is fantastic though as you can hop around the islands with ease.
The diverse culture, hm. Well it's no Vienna or Berlin, I guess but you can meet ppl from all over the place.
The tech scene is booming.
Zurich, Switzerland. Very high living standard, great public transport, healthcare and whatever you could need. High to very high salaries (120k to 150k TC for experienced SWs at local companies, more at FAANG). It can be quite cold, though and there's certainly more diverse places.
Barcelona has gone to shit in the past couple of years, it’s gone from a relatively safe city to one where it’s commonplace for knife-wielding gangs to rob your car in the stoplights.
Pre-covid, it was a wonderful place to live (although outside of restaurants customer service is non-existent)
Pre-covid, it was a wonderful place to live (although outside of restaurants customer service is non-existent)
Hmm I don't agree, really, and I live in BCN, for 5 years now. People living here twice as long tell me how bad it was in the early 2000s, and it's nowhere like that today.
There's pickpocketing, sure, but it's not at all the hellhole you describe, seriously. Not sure where you got that from.
There's pickpocketing, sure, but it's not at all the hellhole you describe, seriously. Not sure where you got that from.
I lived in BCN for 4 years before the pandemic, I know how it was before.
>There's pickpocketing, sure, but it's not at all the hellhole you describe, seriously. Not sure where you got that from.
I’ve been here for just over a week, in that time I’ve been robbed twice. Once by a knife-wielding gang that slashed my tires as I was driving
My friends in the Mossos tell me that this is has all become super common after COVID, before such attacks would’ve been unheard of. Pretty much all of my local friends agree that everything has gone to shit after COVID bankrupted half the city.
It might be simple demographic differences leading us to experience this differently. Of course I’m more likely to be targeted driving a newish S-class than the guy in a Dacia, but this wasn’t something you had to worry about before.
>There's pickpocketing, sure, but it's not at all the hellhole you describe, seriously. Not sure where you got that from.
I’ve been here for just over a week, in that time I’ve been robbed twice. Once by a knife-wielding gang that slashed my tires as I was driving
My friends in the Mossos tell me that this is has all become super common after COVID, before such attacks would’ve been unheard of. Pretty much all of my local friends agree that everything has gone to shit after COVID bankrupted half the city.
It might be simple demographic differences leading us to experience this differently. Of course I’m more likely to be targeted driving a newish S-class than the guy in a Dacia, but this wasn’t something you had to worry about before.
Yeah op listen to this, some areas of Barcelona are now very dangerous, I lived there for 3 months during the worst part of covid.
Covid induced unemployment has spiked crime a lot. It was not unusual to see drug addicted shirtless guys carrying machetes walking through the streets first during the night and now during the day.
Infrastructure is starting to suffer because the drug addicts are pulling the copper out of the boxes.
Some central areas are better but I have friends there still and over the past 6 months every one of them has been robbed
Covid induced unemployment has spiked crime a lot. It was not unusual to see drug addicted shirtless guys carrying machetes walking through the streets first during the night and now during the day.
Infrastructure is starting to suffer because the drug addicts are pulling the copper out of the boxes.
Some central areas are better but I have friends there still and over the past 6 months every one of them has been robbed
Not just “some areas”, our car got robbed while driving on C/ de Mallorca just 2 blocks from Sagrada Familia, a normally quiet area near the centre.
Guys with knives surrounded the car and stabbed out the tires, pulled out whatever stuff they could get from the backseat.
A couple of days later two guys in hoodies ripped my watch from my wrist after I stepped out to smoke next to a posh Eixample restaurant. Admittedly I’d occasionally heard those stories before, but never had such an issue while wearing the same watch every day for 4 years back when I lived in Barcelona pre-covid.
It might still be quiet and safe in Sarria or Diagonal Mar, but the central areas seem to be worse than even the worst tourist areas were a couple of years ago.
Guys with knives surrounded the car and stabbed out the tires, pulled out whatever stuff they could get from the backseat.
A couple of days later two guys in hoodies ripped my watch from my wrist after I stepped out to smoke next to a posh Eixample restaurant. Admittedly I’d occasionally heard those stories before, but never had such an issue while wearing the same watch every day for 4 years back when I lived in Barcelona pre-covid.
It might still be quiet and safe in Sarria or Diagonal Mar, but the central areas seem to be worse than even the worst tourist areas were a couple of years ago.
@rosndo @malux85 not sure if you're just trying to scare away another expat or if it's legit :P but if legit that doesn't sound good at all :( any other places in Spain you would recommend? Valencia and some other cities are pretty non-car centric too, no?
Valencia isn’t so bad, but almost nobody speaks English. This is very helpful if you want to learn Spanish :)
The food scene in Valencia isn’t half as good as in Barcelona though, but the beach is infinitely better and life tends to be more relaxed.
Pre-COVID I would have recommended Barcelona to anybody.
The food scene in Valencia isn’t half as good as in Barcelona though, but the beach is infinitely better and life tends to be more relaxed.
Pre-COVID I would have recommended Barcelona to anybody.
Well, to do my part in scaring potential expats away, air pollution and noise pollution (it's LOUD) are pretty bad here and you might find lead pipes and asbestos in your building. If you live in a bajo (ground floor) in the old town, expect cockroaches the size of mice (they are quick). Depending on where you are, the tap water tastes like the water from a children's swimming pool. Depending on where you live, your barrio might smell like a sewer on certain days (even the expensive ones). Population density is very high, so expect to hear a part of your neighbors' lives, walls are often thin.
Never seen shirtless guys with machetes anywhere, day or night. Crime (apart from pickpocketing) never struck me as a huge problem (not above general big-city levels), neither pre- nor post-Covid, and I don't live in the best part of town for sure. But all the stuff above I personally experienced.
Never seen shirtless guys with machetes anywhere, day or night. Crime (apart from pickpocketing) never struck me as a huge problem (not above general big-city levels), neither pre- nor post-Covid, and I don't live in the best part of town for sure. But all the stuff above I personally experienced.
I dont know, I only lived in Barcelona sorry, but I lived there pre-covid for about 6 months, then moved to Germany for 8 months, then back to Barcelona for about 3-4 months ... after I went back the city was a LOT scarier.
Valencia and Málaga also meet your requirements, I think.
I would recommend Dubai. Emerging tech scene in a new market (Middle East) and a metro with public buses spanning everywhere. Close to EU time but around 8-9 hours from US time but still manageable.
Dubai fits the climate criteria.
It has some tech scene, would love to have someone comment on this.
80%+ of Dubai are expats so it is probably diverse.
Its a bit car centric though with only one metro line.
It has some tech scene, would love to have someone comment on this.
80%+ of Dubai are expats so it is probably diverse.
Its a bit car centric though with only one metro line.
You can go ahead and scratch Miami from your list if you want non car centric, or decent public transportation, is non existant here.
Vancouver is not too cold in Winter but you get lots of rain. It has great public transport too. It's very expensive though.
Florianópolis, in Santa Catarina, Brazil.
I'd definitely live there, but I'm not sure it covers number 2 and number 3.
It does. I mean, unsure what cultured means but it does have its own culture and takes pride on it. It probably isn’t as diverse as OP is looking for tho
Not Dubai, right? It probably falls on point 4.
[deleted]
Take a remote job and visit all
1 Amsterdam Base --> legal stuff
2 Van Life --> freedom to roam around.
Wish list:
1) Very warm climate (Brisbane has this)
2) Decent tech scene (or in a near enough timezone to enables remote work for US or EU employers) (Brisbane barely has this)
3) ACTUALLY diverse and cultured (Brisbane has gotten a lot better in the past ten years, but falls well short here IMO)
4) Non-car centric with good public and alternative transport opportunities (Brisbane falls well short here too)
The ultimate city for me would have the huge population and excellent public transport of Tokyo, the diversity of NY, Miami, London and Paris, the climate of Singapore and the non-car centrism of Amsterdam.
Short list so far:
* Barcelona?
* Lisbon?
* Miami?
* Austin?
* Tel Aviv?
* ??? Any Latin American or African cities I'm missing? Maybe Fortaleza, Recife, Salvador Bahia, Lagos, Dakar ???
Cities like NY, Toronto are diverse and have lots of opportunities but are too cold. Also not that great on public and alternative transport.
Sydney, Melbourne and Vancouver are too cold in winter and not that diverse. Also not that great on public and alternative transport.
Paris, Amsterdam, Copenhagen are very non-car centric but too cold.
Yes, I'm too picky and probably asking for the impossible =) but would love to hear more suggestions