Ask HN: Have you emigrated from the USA?
If so, care to share your story? Where'd you go and how did it turn out?
How's the cost of living and quality of life?
How's the cost of living and quality of life?
How the cost of living compares depends a lot on where you're coming from, and what your lifestyle is like. I would say overall it's cheaper than the SF Bay Area, though the first few prices a tourist sees are likely to be shockingly expensive ($8 coffee, $10 beer). The main thing that is more expensive is eating out, mostly because there is less income inequality (even McDonald's employees make ~$40k/yr). Food at supermarkets is roughly the same price, maybe a bit more expensive. Rent is much, much cheaper; I have a really nice 2-bd apartment in a great walkable area, near the city center and with a view, and it's under $1500/mo. Transit depends on your lifestyle; it would be much more expensive to own a car, but I found I didn't need one anymore, because public transportation is very good, and you can walk/bike most anywhere anyway. So my transit costs went down, but those of others might well go up.
Good quality of life I'd say. Lots of parks, nice city, interesting neighborhoods, good work/life balance, low crime, fairly multicultural. Easy to get by in English as well (even when dealing with the government or healthcare). The large role of English in public life surprised me a bit; it's not just that people speak English, but many public events are also held largely in English (especially at museums, universities, festivals, hackerspaces, etc.). That makes it a fairly easy place to meet non-Danish Europeans, because there are a lot of them and they come to such events. So I've met a bunch of Germans, Spaniards, Italians, Poles, etc. who I doubt I would've met in their own countries. On the other hand, the general English-friendliness of Copenhagen makes it harder to learn Danish, or to meet Danes who aren't also part of the mixed-nationality social scene (especially those who aren't part of the academic or tech scenes, which are more internationally oriented than society in general is).
Biggest downside imo is that it's gray and overcast about 6-7 months a year, and for 3-4 of those months the days are also very short. On the plus side, people as a result really appreciate nice days, and almost literally the entire city will be outdoors grilling and lounging in parks on nice summer days, with a palpably positive mood.
The bigger noise problem in older buildings (this one's from 1910) is internal noise; they're not very well isolated between floors and units. Newer buildings are better for that.
[1]http://denmark.dk/en/meet-the-danes/language/starting-danish...
An interesting post from a man who's lived in Japan for 17 years:
http://www.istorical.com/countries/japan/experiences/78
A rather well-written post about living in Hong Kong:
http://www.istorical.com/cities/hong-kong/experiences/88
A good post about Berlin:
Not sure he'd by my poster boy.
This comment appears to be unpopular, from the link
> Western women don't last because they realize they are fat and they can't get laid and this makes them bitter.
I'm sorry that makes him a complete dickhead.
1997: I moved to Anguilla to (legally) get around ITAR and other stuff. Stayed until we had visa problems there, just before e-gold disintegrated. My salary was nominally $1500/mo with a bunch of equity and all living costs met; it was fine.
2000-2002: Sealand. Lived in London for a while, then out on Sealand. Traveled a lot. Startup. Was fun. Went back when it imploded.
2003-2010: Iraq/Afghanistan/etc., as a civilian company founder, and then defense contractor. Was...interesting.
I'd probably like to do Asia for a year (CloudFlare's going to open an Asian office before the end of the year somewhere, so that's an option, at least for weeks/months at a time), and probably someday Berlin for a few years at least.
I love it here. It matches my personality more than the States. But it's always a mixed bag; every country has its pros and cons. I wouldn't have changed a thing, though. The cost of living is much higher in Europe for almost everything, strangely, but the quality of life (which is a personal metric) is unmatched, and everything I hoped it would be.
My email is in my profile if you want more details.
(For those of us who were born here, it may even enhance our appreciation of the place. ;)