Why do you live where you live?

[Light Lover]

Hi everyone!

I know I don't post much on here these days, but I just felt like this was a really good question that I have been contemplating today, even if it has been asked on here before, and even if it is a very obvious one, I feel like a lot of people don't think about it that much? I think many people just subconsciously assume they are trapped where they are lived so they never actually think about life outside their city/country. So my question is why do you live where you live? Where do you live, and then explain why you continue to live in this place, is it out of choice, friends, family?

If any of you wonder why I ask it's because I myself am seriously considering leaving the UK to somewhere maybe up north of the globe, Norway, Sweden, Denmark etc...sound like good places to live, this country is going down the pan by the day I am very afraid to say, (just like most other countries across the world).

Any answers will be extremely appreciated as I want to see all of YOUR perspectives on this, mine is not good enough  (P.S If any of you DO live in Norway, Sweden or Denmark it would be amazing if you could tell me what it's like, economically, socially etc...is there room for artists there? 

[Elham]

I live in a hell named Iran! Everything is crazy here ... you can't even imagine what's going on! Forget the media and newspapers and all they say about us... The country is the world of paradoxes!!!

Furious people with kind heart, rich history with poor present, Islamic country with no religion, tradition minds with modern appearance,  sanctions, brain drain, economic pressures... the list goes on and on. I can write a book!

I am still living in Iran because the value of our money is so low and I cannot pay the living costs in another country for few months... I am struggling to apply to a university with scholarship to be able to leave appropriately!

[Light Lover]

@Elham that is really interesting, thank you so much for sharing your own personal experience and being so open about it, it definitely sounds like a hellhole, hopefully soon you will be able to get into a university and get out of there!! What is the freedom of speech like there?

[Elham]

Freedom of speech is zero? no freedom, no speech? 

[Dimi]

I live in Belgium in the west part. I was born here and I want to move to Asia, probably Thailand or India (south) but Bhutan is also an option.

I have traveled a lot and I don't want to stay in one place, not because i don't like it but because i want to meet new people, new places, cultures and so on. Ill either move to Asia and stay there or maybe ill move somewhere else after that who knows but my goal is to see as much of the planet and people as i can, if i can do this by my profession, that would be awesome, if not, it's going to be travel than

I speak 3 languages (french, dutch and English) and understand Arabic, Spanish, a little Italian and German but like Shiva said, if you speak English, you would be fine in 80-90% of the countries

 

[Moreira]

7 hours ago, Shiva said:

I live in Spain because I want to. I love the language, the culture, the people, the climate, the job I have here and of course my gf.

At some point I might move to a new country again but right now I couldn't imagine a better place for me.

If you want to live in a different country just look for a job there. You have an advantage because your native language is probably English so you can find something anywhere. I have a lot of colleagues who don't speak Spanish.

College is also a good opportunity to go abroad if you have the chance. That's how I got here. I did a master's in Spain and then transitioned to a job.

How is your salary in Spain? Dont you feel discouraged when in USA or Germany or France they earn 2/3 times more?

[Commodent]

On 28.6.2019 at 8:25 PM, Light Lover said:

P.S If any of you DO live in Norway, Sweden or Denmark it would be amazing if you could tell me what it's like, economically, socially etc...is there room for artists there? 

I live in Norway, and I'm pretty content with living here.

I feel like things are fairly stable here compared to many other countries. The political parties seem to agree on the most important things so they usually just argue over trivialities such as road pricing etc.

Economically things seems to be going well, and if things were to go terribly wrong with the economy we always have an almost £1 trillion oil fund as a buffer. The city where I grew up in has largely recovered from the "oil crisis" that happened a couple of years ago where several people in the petroleum industry were laid off. I'm currently living entirely on student loans (which provides a bit over £900 a month), and it's alright.

An American I lived with told me that Norwegians are "so nice", and I tend to agree. I think that Norwegians are generally decent people but they can be a bit inhibited. That can make it a bit hard making friends, but you just have to be a little more patient in my view. Joining a club or something is a good way to make new friends, as you get to see many of the same people frequently.

I'm really tired so excuse me if my writing is a bit off a mess. Let me know if you have any questions.

[Shadowraix]

US. In east Tennessee grew up here but I've been to Chicago, Illinois San Francisco, California and the general dfw area, Texas

I love the mountains, close enough to the beach to be drivable but not suffer from hurricanes. I live in a valley so tornadoes are hard to form. Earthquakes almost never happen. It is very rural which is great for consciousness work and sight seeing. It's also incredibly cheap to live in. 

$500/mo for rent for a 3 bedroom apartment vs like $1k+ in San Francisco for a 1 bedroom lol

[Light Lover]

Wow, so much response on this topic, thankyou thankyou thankyou to all who posted!! So many questions Light Lover has...  

@Shiva that is very interesting, thankyou, I have heard a lot about Spain, apparently it is has gone downhill politically but it's good to know you are enjoying it there at least.

@Dimi again thankyou for your insight dude, I don't know anyone who lives in Belgium to be honest.

@Shadowraix I have only been to US once when I was a child so I don't remember it well, those are some damn cheap apartments!! Over here in the UK the house prices are the laughing stock of the nation, ask anyone, it's at least £600 a month to rent most places (761 dollars) and they are tiny and crammed. And that applies to the whole country.

@Commodent I might have to ask you more later about Norway dude as it's the country I am by far most interested in living in....thankyou for your insights and allowing me the liberty to ask you more questions about the country! 

[Missy in Japan]

I did a foreign exchange in Japan during high school, and I loved it so much that I moved back permanently over a year ago as a college transfer student. Lifestyle factors paired with wanting to be bilingual motivated me to take the leap, and I go to a university here full-time so I'm planning on getting a job right after I graduate.

[Epiphany_Inspired]

I live in Canada. We moved to a small island 2 years ago, myself/child. I chose this place because it is a hub of creativity (art/music/ etc), a spiritual center, it is safe, communal, and a natural wonderland. If I wanted to, I could go "downtown" in my pajamas, or in a crazy costume, and either would be accepted and possibly appreciated. My daughter can be friends with chill nature loving kids, that have awesome likeminded parents. Rushing is frowned upon, local food is cherished... it's paradise for us  

[Sleyker]

I live in Colombia, I moved here several months ago and so far I love it!!

Probably because I used to live in Venezuela and as you might know that country is just a mess right now. That's why Colombia looks like a paradise to me right now , even though many people do complain about the situation here.

Of course I'd love to live in the US in the future but right now I'm pretty happy here and soon I'll start college.

 

[Becks]

I live on the island Trinidad, which is part of the country Trinidad and Tobago in the Caribbean close to Venezuela. To me, life here was normal, exactly what you would imagine living on a tropical island with just the dry and rainy seasons. I grew up in a mostly stage blue family lifestyle and the only reason I started to question what life and reality really was is when my brother died last year in September 2018. He was shot in his head by a stray bullet while he was taking a driving lesson. Gang violence shattered my reality and then I found actualized.org which has helped me tremendously and I dont know where I would be now without it. 

I'm still living here because unfortunately I'm only 23, I have hardly any real life experience as I've never travelled outside my twin islands. I have a job in a bank monitoring fraudulent activity on bank cards, and I recently started a small business which is comfortably profitable for my lifestyle here now but it's not enough to leave and seek asylum in a less dangerous environment. I do see myself leaving here in the future. 

[Light Lover]

@John Lula Wow...it sounds incredible there dude, exactly what I am looking for to be honest, can I swap places with you for a week? Hahahaha  

 @Missy in Japan Sounds like you made the right choice. Japan must be truly an excellent place to live if you were willing to move there permanently, that takes a lot of motivation!

@Epiphany_Inspired Damn that does sound like paradise, compared to where I live it's the opposite, glad you are enjoying yourself, I envy you! 

@Keyhole Very interesting, another American! Thankyou, again, good to know you are enjoying the US in all it's glory  

@Sleyker Thankyou for sharing my friend. Yeah, I hear Venezuela is not doing the best at the moment, it's a shame as well.

@Becks Wow!! That's really inspirational! I am very sorry to hear about what happened, congratulations on starting  a business as well, it seems like you are going places!

So far on this thread there is a hell of alot of different stories from across the world, it's very enlightening to hear and I am very humbled that you all would share your personal stories for me and others to read. It looks like I am not the only one who struggles with where they live! Keep em' coming!  

 

Edited July 4, 2019 by Light Lover

[Aeris]

I m born there, and that's a good city and a good country so far.