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My husband and I just moved to NYC from London - I was living there for the past five years, he is a native Londoner.
My main motivations for moving back to NYC were sunshine, family and (I believed) a better standard of living.
Now it has only been a few months, but he still can't find a job, and I'm starting to doubt my belief in "better standard of living", although the sunshine is definitely here!
Just curious to hear from folks who have lived in both places (i.e. USA and UK). I would consider moving back to the UK, but only outside of London (I think I'm more a country girl than a city girl after all). What do you think are the pros/cons of each city/country? Where can one make a happier home?
tpk-nyc: Part of London = east london, a nice neighborhood, zone 4. Part of NYC = the bronx, a nice neighborhood, comparable to the one we lived in in London. Lifestyle is fairly homey. Enjoy getting out to the country at the weekend. Prefer driving to public transport. Soon to have children (hopefully) so need good schools. Perk of NYC is childcare by way of family... perk of London is childcare by way of humane maternity leave laws. ahhh!
Suburbs are fine, we aren't overly keen on the urban lifestyle and don't HAVE to have access to museums every weekend, etc.
re:driving - I just mean that when given the choice we'd rather drive (unless parking is going to be impossible). But I guess the reason I wrote that was just to say that I don't need every convenience that the city has to offer. And also that I'd like to live somewhere where the prospect of finding a parking spot isn't going to make me anxious. So I guess that puts us in the suburbs. Which is fine, but still - suburbs where? NY or UK?
Hey Antlered Chamataka - I have a job, so we're not destitute. The motivations for moving back aren't purely financial (although, since hubby had a great job in London, and bad luck here so far, I guess part of me believes that he'd have an easier time of it back home again). But anyway, to address your concern - I have a job, it was part of the moving-to-NY-deal. I'm really just more interested in having a happy life. Maybe the location shouldn't matter. But right now, it's on my mind.
Cheers!
Hey Antlered Chamataka - I have a job, so we're not destitute. The motivations for moving back aren't purely financial (although, since hubby had a great job in London, and bad luck here so far, I guess part of me believes that he'd have an easier time of it back home again). But anyway, to address your concern - I have a job, it was part of the moving-to-NY-deal. I'm really just more interested in having a happy life. Maybe the location shouldn't matter. But right now, it's on my mind.
Cheers!
Ok, great! NYC can be brutal for jobseekers who move here. Actually, it can be more than brutal given the current economic situation. Real estate is still through the roof and the city basically can shred money in every possible way
It's an interesting question. Although I never lived in London and only visited it once, I liked it for the same reasons that I like New York (where I do live). Both are world-class cities; both have great public transportation systems. It seemed to me (and the locals confirmed it) that London has even fewer apartment buildings (a.k.a. blocks of flats) than New York (i.e. more Londoners than New Yorkers dwell in private houses). This was a surprise to me because I thought that private houses is more of an American thing.
As for which place is better for you, it depends on your own preferences and situation. Obviously, it makes more sense to reside in the country of your citizenship. But if one of you has American passport while the other has British one, then figure it out for yourselves.
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