Moving overseas for happiness

>>17356055
>on reddit

Do it.

>>17356059
My post is very negative regarding Reddit, you didn't pick up on that?

>>17356055
Where are you from? US is like Europre. Both have good and bad places for your perfect growth

>>17356069
The suburban South, near Atlanta.

>>17356055
>more of a respect for privacy
>everyone's not shouting all the time
Europe will havd much less rszpect for privacy in general. And in general, much more shouting. Depends on the specific areas we are comparing here tho

>>17356055
The problem with going anywhere to change your life is that when you get there you're still you.

>>17356070
Yeah you're going to find Europe unbearable in general if you can't handle that. Try moving to a smaller town in the US.

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>>17356055
You definitely should get out. Really, go and get to know people around the world. It will be an eye opening experience that most Amerifats would never even bother to consider because they're busy being fat, too ignorant and stupid.

But let me say this... no culture is perfect, there are flaws everywhere you go.

>>17356070
Have you lived anywhere else than the Atlanta area?

>>17356055
Have you ever visited Europe? It's pretty silly to change your life based on "I've read that X country is like that on the internet".

If you find a place you like more than the one you live in, move.
Don't think that it will solve your issues.

>>17356078
I notice a lot of feedback from people who come to America who talk about how everyone is very loud and tends not to use an "inside voice", whereas in many places of Europe people have conversations which can only be heard between the two of them. I know that say Italy or Spain don't have this, but I'm not looking at those two.

>>17356082
I'm not depressed or super unhappy, I just have no ties to where I live (my parents themselves were farmers) and have total freedom in choosing where I want to be as an adult.

>>17356083
I'm fine with the suburbs, but I'd hate living in the country. There are still plenty of confederate flag-waving rednecks around. My uncle's one of them actually. Not a good crowd to be around.

>>17356087
Yeah, I know that. Still, I'm poor. Any ideas on how I can take that opportunity? I thought studying abroad wasn't useful for a "serious" degree.

>>17356091
No. I don't live in Atlanta, but in the surrounding region.

>>17356093
Yeah, I definitely realize where you're coming from, trust me. I got chewed out the last time I asked because of this stereotype (kind of like the weeaboo thing), but I fully realize why it might be stupid. I'm just asking here for perspective, since it's no more than a consideration while I still have the chance.

>>17356087
>Amerifats
>hoping his immigration spot opens up with you leaving so ge can come here and get food

>>17356099
>i notice a lot of feedback from people who come to America who talk about how everyone is very loud and tends not to use an "inside voice"
Inside voice is very common in all three regions of the US I've lived in. Never lived close to Georgia tho. You might want to travel the country. Its diverse

>>17356099
>plenty of confederate flag-waving rednecks around
Leave the bible belt dumbass.

>>17356055
Do your research. Find a country you like (maybe even visit first), check immigration laws, get all your ducks in a row.

Also be prepared for culture shock - even the little things can get under your skin.

Source: been there, done that. I miss the food but otherwise best choice I ever made. Although you are American, all your food is fucking disgusting, so that might be a plus.

>>17356099
>Still, I'm poor.
Poor person in the rural bible belt is as bad as it gets. Go pretty anywhere else in the US and you will be much happier

>>17356109
>I miss the food
Whenever I think about moving abroad the food thing kills me.

>>17356109
What part of America did you try food in?

Do it man. I moved to Germany from Oregon 2.5 years ago and have had a wonderful time.

Once I'm do studying I would like to stay or maybe move throughout Europe, but I definitely feel a lot more comfortable here.

>>17356103
Guess so, but people usually don't make the distinction. No one goes "those dumb Southerners" on the internet, they just generalize all Americans as that way.

>>17356106
The urban areas of Georgia are much nicer than people usually assume, and those types always get laughed at around here. Anyways, nothing about the rural-life style even outside of the Bible Belt appeals to me.

>>17356109
Can you talk about your experience more? I'm really interested in some personal accounts.

>>17356114
I'm lower-middle class, really. I don't live in a trailer park. Southern public high schools are shitty, though, and this isn't for any race-related reason.

>>17356122
Can you elaborate more? I'm curious, everyone usually points to places like the Pacific Northwest as one of the highlights of America compared to the rest. I've been told to go to places like that first before going overseas.

>>17356120
Food thing is why i can't leave my section of the US. Food is so good here. Only Italy could compete i hear from the 100 or so people that have tried both here and Europe

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>>17356100
Thanks but no thanks. You can take your "freedom" and shove it.

>>17356122
Doesn't Germany all speak English nowadays? I heard Holland is like that too but you're fucked if you go to Spain, France, etc, they look at you like we look at Mexicans speaking Spanish in the US

>>17356121
I ordered a lot of "popular snacks" (which I know from experience is about the only thing you can't recreate yourself with fresh ingredients.) Poptarts and mike and ikes and tons of similar things. I would be hard pressed to name even one thing I found palatable, let alone "nice". I blame it on the corn syrup, even your drinks taste like fucking ass.

Local cuisine is a totally different beast. I can find recipes for that no problem if I feel the need (and I'll freely admit some of those recipes rock my socks off, but you don't miss what you can make yourself.)

About the only non-snack I genuinely miss here is mutton. Holy fuck I am sick of pork some days and just crave a mutton joint.

>Guess so, but people usually don't make the distinction. No one goes "those dumb Southerners" on the internet, they just generalize all Americans as that way.

It is true the sophisticated Europeans i know generalize Americans like we are all redneck from the bible belt sitting on our porch with our gun not going to school and eating deep fried food all the time. No idea how Europeans got the idea the bible belt in America. That would be like us liking Slavs are what all European countries are like (and slaves have different regions like the bible belt)

>>17356144
Opps for typos all over. On phone one thumb distracted

>>17356128
Ha. I am Italian. I feel your pain.
I love travelling and I always managed to eat good food abroad, but the stuff I eat at home is just another fucking level.

>>17356136
>I ordered a lot of "popular snacks" (which I know from experience is about the only thing you can't recreate yourself with fresh ingredients.) Poptarts and mike and ikes and tons of similar things
None of those are popular snacks. Only morons buy that trash. It's plebe tier food. How dumb are you?

>>17356144
The bible belt is actually really bad in some places, and Christanity is kind of a weird topic here still. I know a few people in school who were isolated by everyone else due to crazy religious parents, which multiply in number exponentially the further away you get from the city. Considering America is one country and Europe is an entire continent, I'd say this generalization is more fair than one with slavs. I don't have anything against them though.

>>17356153
Don't act like an idiot, this country is by and large known internationally for its junk food. Go into any international food store and you'll just see aisles of mediocre candy and soda. Even if you say it's just morons who eat that, that's still a huge portion of the population.

>>17356160
>Don't act like an idiot, this country is by and large known internationally for its junk food. Go into any international food store and you'll just see aisles of mediocre candy and soda. Even if you say it's just morons who eat that, that's still a huge portion of the population.
I feel you, I've tried it before obviously but you'd be dumb as fuck to buy it, especially on vacation. It's poor people food. Cheap. Plebe tier. Not even good. You'd be much better off with a dollar loaf of cheap bread and dollar half-pound of sliced meat from any chain store on any corner in the country if you want to go for the slums

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>>17356169
Yeah, here's a good pic actually. I was raised off of this shit and it still bothers me that it's what makes up more than half of the grocery stores around here. Promoting junk food like this is one of the many societal things about America that just doesn't make sense to me.

>>17356160
>Go into any international food store and you'll just see aisles of mediocre candy and soda.
i assume you thought our gas stations were "international food stores"
Lol. How dumb are you? Those are the only places with you'll just see aisles of mediocre candy and soda.
You couldn't find a drugstore or supermarket? How dumb are are you?

>>17356055
>America is often labeled an "Extroverted society", and I couldn't agree with that tag more.
Yet you are considering France and Germany?

>School is a tool to learn more, it's not just a place where you waste your teenage years meandering like here.
Yet you are considering the UK?

>There's more of a respect for privacy
Yet you are considering Scandinavia?

Do some homework, son. You're stuck so badly in your "my opposition doesn't think" mentality that you're starting to jusge other cultures based, from what I can tell, on the most superficial of glances. If anything, Japan fits your criteria far better, but if you think fitting into American culture is hard, Japan will chew you up and spit you out.

My advice is to stop trying to live other people's lives. Build yourself a psyche, improve upon it as needed, and just be yourself. There is a culture where such people fit in decently well, but you won't find that in the places you're looking.

>>17356175
That's a gas station, retards from Europe. Nobody buys food there unless they are drunk. The place is to sell gas. Few blocks over you will find drugstores and grocery stores which amaze Europeans on how much fresh food we have. And that is nothing special. That's just basic plebe stuff every town in America has.

>>17356149
Let's compare recipes Eye-talian

>>17356179
Can you explain more about how those specific countries don't fit what I'm looking for? Like I said, I don't have the money to travel, but from all the personal accounts, media depictions, and so on these regions do those specific things much better than America. If you know any resources on where I can actually read up on these things, I'll gladly take them. Until then, I'm stuck with my impressions from these sources. There is no question about "being myself" - I always do, yet I don't feel at home where I live. I'm not particularly tortured, I just don't feel satisfied with my surroundings, and if there's a way to improve upon that, I'll take it.

>>17356186
Sure, have it your way. I don't particularly care about food.

>>17356192
>I don't particularly care about food
You'll make a shit wife

>>17356192
Are you black? Probably so if you're rural Georgia right? If so, do France, most black-friendly since they colonized most of Africa and believe in a melting-pot culture. Or you could just get out of Georgia.

>>17356196
And a worse husband I bet.

>>17356203
No, I'm white.

>>17356205
>And a worse husband I bet.
Good parents care about food for the kids. I care about food. You don't, you literally just acted like you were cool with gas station food. That is white trash and definitely not wife material. I have this loser bumb friend nobody likes and she's like "oh it will all be better if i go to Europe". You think bible belts or Americans are picky, wait until you hit Europe (even the poor countries)

>>17356213
Are you okay man? This isn't even related to the thread. I don't have any strong feelings about cuisine one way or the other.

>>17356216
Go to Antarctica then

Move to a big city.

>>17356175
All this stuff is awful, and exactly what I meant - internationally this is ALL you see Americans talking about (barring pizzas and burgers.) Literally anything of quality you can buy in practically any place that isn't a slum, and you can always make things yourself. I cannot think of a single food item unique to America that isn't complete trash (which is sad honestly, food would be one of my biggest reasons to travel, so America is likely off the table.)

>>17356169
I understand it is poor people food. But it is also the only unique set of products America has to offer - if you can name a single decent item I can import I'll be willing to try it and even change my opinion based on one thing that isn't shit.

I mean I don't doubt the fresh food is good, but where is fresh food bad exactly?

>>17356055
You will find it hard in France or Germany if you don't speak the language. Contrary to popular belief, not everybody speaks English in these countries or at least they choose not to. This is especially true for France, the French are very proud of their language.

The UK would probably be easiest for you if you go somewhere outside of London. London is very expensive. There would be no language barrier and the cost of living wouldn't be too high.

Scandinavian countries are beautiful but expensive, most speak English fluently, so it'd probably be the second easiest option.

The best thing you could do is save your money and go on a vacation around Europe to get a feel for it. Like everyone has said in this thread, European countries have their good and bad points. You'll learn fairly quickly after doing a bit of travelling whether you could last in a country in Europe. There will be other factors that you'll have to take into account if you move; the distance from your family, the cost of travel, visa, getting decent work, etc.

Moving to another continent is a much bigger deal than you expect, you can't base on a few small differences unless you're from a wealthy family.

>>17356179
>Germany
>extroverted

Maybe when they are drunk, but most Germans I have met (and I have visited several times in recent years) are reserved and even overtly hostile to strangers. I haven't seen almost any that would sit down and chat with a person they didn't know. Might just be the part of Germany though.

Still, Americans are fucking loud and extroverted compared to literally everyone except maybe Australians (and both groups are still good people despite that.) That isn't inherently bad, and is definitely a generalisation that doesn't fit all Americans, but even my ex-best friend was a very loud extroverted American (and his taste in food was mostly shit, except his love for pizza, steak with steak sauce and cordon bleu.)

EU seems more reserved overall, but that might be a side effect of all the cultural rifts and language barriers making it harder to come together.

>>17356266
Thanks for the response. I've been studying languages on-and-off for a while, and I do really like German as a language. I'd say all other countries come second to Germany in my mind, it just seems ideal.

How do you recommend I get to travel Europe? And how should I come to know if I like living in a country by a short visit? Currently it looks like studying abroad is the best option, but I don't know if my degree would suit it. Hell, I don't even know how I could land a job in a foreign country actually. There's another problem.

Join the Navy. That will give you some exposure to a variety of countries around the world.

>>17356266
I gotta agree about the language stuff here - pretty much every German refuses to learn English unless their interests (often gaming and anime are the primary reasons) force them to learn. France is slightly less worse but like Germany, they dub everything in French.

Netherlands would be the nicest place nearby, they (by and large) understand English, and can speak (if a little broken) and Dutch isn't too difficult to learn (pronunciation and grammar are the hard parts.) All local shows are in Dutch, but almost everything filmed in English stays in English (except most children shows and movies are often dubbed with an option on which version to watch.)

Like France it is also a melting pot, so racism is pretty limited, if that matters. I really like living in The Netherlands, and I came here from NZ. Would recommend. Getting work is hard atm though and immigration laws can be strict depending on where you are coming from.

>>17356281
I'd prefer not working for the armed forces.

>>17356266
>>17356286
This seems to contradict what I've heard about Germans refusing to speak it with foreigners. I've heard countless stories about people coming from overseas to practice their language and being denied it for some reason because using English is easier.

>>17356275
No problem. German is a good language to learn, and there is a lot of flexibility with that language. Germany is a great country, especially Berlin if you're creative or young. There is a lot happening there and it is a melting pot of different cultures and nationalities. However, if you're keen on integrating with German people, that is slightly harder. >>17356268 is right in saying that they can be quite reserved.

In terms of travel, if you can study abroad with your degree, you absolutely should. This is probably the best option for someone your age. You will find it easier to make friends and you'll be more easily integrated into the culture if you make enough of an effort.

Otherwise, I would recommend you get a holiday visa. I know that for European students,they are eligible for a J1 working visa to spend the summer in the US working. If you could get something like that, it would be ideal. You could work somewhere and take some trips via train. Otherwise, save a lot of money and pick a country that you like, preferably in central Europe. You won't know for sure if you would like living in a country from a short visit, but you will get a better idea of what you are looking for. For example, something as simple as how people will treat you as an American will definitely shape your attitude towards particular countries.

>>17356293
This is helpful. For studying abroad, does your major have to be something that would benefit from studying abroad to do it? For example, a degree in something like German or translation would be a great candidate, but if it's just a typical degree, does it apply?

Also, what do you mean by how people will treat you as an American? Is there still that anti-American current from 9/11 going around?

>>17356289
I have never heard of Germans preferring English unless they are a millenial. And they are kinda right, English is easier thanks to online culture. But the actual population? Everything is in German. All signs, TV, movies, events, even Gamescom is primarily German despite it having thousands of international visitors (and I know this from personal experience.)

All older people may know a few words of English at most, Germans tend to learn something like French or Spanish as a second language over English. And again it may change a bit depending on location (Berlin may be more relaxed than a place like Oberhausen for example), but by and large it is a very closed language place.

One notable exception is game companies (Gameforge etc) - they tend to hire bilingual people over everyone else, and almost all of them will be near-fluent in English.

>>17356289
I am only speaking from my experience, so I hope not to offend anyone. In France, they will usually try and speak to you in French first, but will quickly change to English if you're obviously foreign. It should be noted, especially in Paris, they HATE that. If they notice you are American or British, Parisians can be quite rude. In other parts of France they are a little bit nicer about speaking English with you.

Germans are probably a little bit more likely to speak English with you in my experience, (I am married to a German man), but it is still a huge misconception that everybody in Germany speaks English. They don't. They are German. This goes for France too. If you visit the country, never expect that they will speak English with you right away because it often pisses off locals.

>>17356305
>>17356306
Well, thanks for the corrections. In my mind I thought that it was the French who knew very little English, while in Germany they were like northern Europe where most people could have a conversation in English very easily, and would prefer using it. German is a pretty language but apparently foreigners very often butcher it due to forgetting some of the rules. I still like the language a lot and look forward to speaking it if I ever have the chance.

>>17356302
It would probably benefit you to do a degree in German if you were studying in Germany, but I would imagine that it depends on the university you attend. When I was in college, some science students were able to study abroad, while all language students were given the option to.

There isn't really an anti-American current, but some people in some countries don't like Americans and can be rude to them. It doesn't happen as much as it used to, but it is still present in some places.

>>17356318
I see. Do you know anything about the job market there? It's fine if not, but currently it seems like I either choose a STEM profession or I won't be able to immigrate/find a job at all. I know those are the most in-demand, but I'm unsure of the leeway in career freedom.

>>17356325
It seems okay to find well paid work if you're any of the STEM fields, most friends of mine who have moved to Germany with one of those degrees have done well in those areas. People also seem to do well with a business degree + a foreign language. I know many creatives who have settled in Berlin and they work in retail/customer service and seem happy. Much like anywhere else in the world, you need a decent degree and some experience in your chosen field to land a decent job. At 18, I'd imagine you will find it difficult to get a decent job for a while.

>>17356126
>>17356134

Sorry for the late reply.

I lived in a little suburb near Portland and didn't really feel good there, I guess after visiting Germany it was a lot more exciting and interesting and it still is. I fucking love being able to go to another country and feel totally fucking lost, and with Germany being in the middle of Europe that's very easy and affordable.

If I had lived in Portland it might've been more interesting but I really love Germany. The history, old architecture and language are all pretty awesome. Germany has become a melting pot much like the states, but its still very unique in some ways. The public transportation is phenomenal in most places, most of the cities are also really interesting and not at all like the typical American city. There are clubs and groups for just about every interest.

Yeah most people in Germany speak English but I would recommend learning German. If you ever want to build a deeper relationship with natives you have to learn the language.

I'm studying here and would definitely recommend it. Most bachelor programs are in German but if you take German classes for a 6-12 months its doable. Tuition is nonexistent, but the programs are pretty challenging. I'm studying compsci here and its definitely hard. So if you're willing to work your ass off definitely go for it.

Southern Germany is also really awesome because of the Alps and little villages. I think my dream would be to retire there.

>>17356352
I've heard that STEM fields are the popular choice by far, but it seems like an awful lot of work for something I lack a natural interest in. If I were to do STEM, some medical field seems plausible, but if it's possible to make do with a business degree then that sounds great.

Can you really live off of working retail, though? Is that the typical job someone with a language/business degree gets?

>>17356375
It's cool, thanks for the reply. Glad you're getting things to work out for you, a CompSci degree seems incredibly difficult.

>>17356136
Junk food universally blows dick, it sucks that foreigners come to America and think of this as American cuisine when there's so many amazing resteraunts and home style recipes. Although yeh you could make the food if you had the ingredients for the most part.

>>17356416
I feel the quality of the ingredients and quality of the junkfood are the two biggest factors in whether a country is "good at food". These days literally any place can take a dish and make it, so unless you only ever visit restaurants you have to look at what is unique.

For Netherlands the cheese is very good quality. Germany has amazing sausage. Italy has great oils and fresh pastas. New Zealand has fresh fish, and unique shellfish.

Then you look at the junkfood - NZ has amazing meat pies, great fish and chips, and the best marmite. Netherlands has some pretty interesting fried food - frikandel, oliebollen, they eat raw herring with raw onions, etc. These are all snack foods, some processed, some not, but all infinitely more edible than US snacks that can be imported. Oh, and the candy here is a lot nicer (the lack of corn syrup does it I think.)

>>17356491
Yup. Scandinavia also has great licorice, and Japan has excellent candy. It's just that America produces all kinds of snacks and you can eat pretty much none of it without feeling like shit afterwards.

>>17356498
I swear its the corn syrup that makes me feel shit and makes it taste like ass. Ordered cola and other stuff, felt like I was drinking watered down syrup with cola flavour rather than actual cola.

>The City, by C.P. Cavafy

You said: “I’ll go to another country, go to another shore,
find another city better than this one.
Whatever I try to do is fated to turn out wrong
and my heart lies buried as though it were something dead.
How long can I let my mind moulder in this place?
Wherever I turn, wherever I happen to look,
I see the black ruins of my life, here,
where I’ve spent so many years, wasted them, destroyed them totally.”

You won’t find a new country, won’t find another shore.
This city will always pursue you. You will walk
the same streets, grow old in the same neighborhoods,
will turn gray in these same houses.
You will always end up in this city. Don’t hope for things elsewhere:
there is no ship for you, there is no road.
As you’ve wasted your life here, in this small corner,
you’ve destroyed it everywhere else in the world.

just fyi OP unless you're independently wealthy or have family connections in a particular country its almost impossible to immigrate to another first world nation

>>17357392
My life isn't destroyed by any means, and I'm not even particularly unhappy. I just think I'd feel more at home in another society.

>>17357398
How so? I've read a lot of accounts of other people doing it. Just look in this thread.

>>17357399
traveling overseas to study and traveling overseas to work and live are two very different things

>>17357441
I'm up for anything as long as I can experience another culture and see if I prefer it to my own.

>>17357443
I don't think you understood what I was saying, any country will give you a visa to live there while you study as long as you have a letter of acceptance from a school there and prove you have the bank account to support yourself. Many countries will even give you permission to work part time while you're studying there. But if you're not going there as a student or just to visit temporarily, or if you are independently wealthy and don't need to work, that door is going to slam shut right in your face. As far as they're concerned you'd be a foreigner stealing a job from one of their citizens.

I had this happen to me when I was in university up in Canada. I lived and worked there for four years while I was studying up in Monreal and really loved it. I attempted to get my status changed when I graduated so I could stay there and pursue Canadian citizenship but it was amazing how the very moment I graduated I went from a foreigner bringing money into Canada to a foreigner stealing muh jobs. I even hired an immigration lawyer to see if anything could be done but it was an absolute no starter.

>>17357489
That sounds rough. Don't they have a checklist or something though for "in-demand careers" where you get a pass if you might add to the economy? I mean a major in puppeteering might be considered a leech (no offense).

>>17357496
as my lawyer put it, to be considered for a work visa you need to have a job offer from a canadian company and they need to show to the department of immigration that they did an exhaustive job search and were completely unable to find a suitable candidate for that position within canada. The only people who ever qualify for those visas are people with advanced degrees and decades of experience in a specialized field, and a company so desperate to recruit them that they don't mind jumping through all those hoops which can take years and costs thousands of dollars. It was literally impossible for me, oh and I didn't major in puppeteering tyvm, I majored in computer science and had been working at EA Montreal while going to school.

>>17357517
Well, I said no offense. Thanks for the info, I guess it is much harder than I imagined. If going overseas doesn't work out, I suppose I can try a city somewhere in the US that's considered better. As long as I don't pick a career I hate it should all work out.

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>>17357525
yeah, those immigration laws are pretty much the same for all first world nations (with the notable exceptions of EU nations if you have an EU passport, and Israel if you are jewish) we actually have the same system as Canada as far as work visas go, as you can see in this picture.

America is a huge and tremendously diverse country. Just because you don't like where you grew up doesn't mean you have to abandon your country. I grew up near Mobile but now I live in NYC and love it way more than Alabama. It feels like all the culture of an entire countinent has been poured into this one city, its fantastic. Just move to a new city rather than a new country.

>>17357562
I'll attempt to study abroad first and see what works out. Considering I'll be in the city for college soon after never leaving the suburbs, I'll have plenty of experience to think about moving once I graduate.

>>17356055
Just go to Canada

Hey, I'm an american that has moved to France for my masters. I would seriously advise against france or Germany anyways.

You might think the language barrier isn't a problem, but it really cuts into a lot of basic functions. I've studied french for a long time and there are a lot of things that are just alien to me due to culture and language differences.

From my experience in Germany, it would be similar, though easier since english is much easier to find there, same with Scandinavia. Best shot is the UK since the culture is just like a more repressed US.

From the French side, I would say if you like food and "gentle" company, it's the place to be. I live near Paris, and it's really a different feel than anywhere I've been in the US.

I'd be more than happy to talk about this more if you wanted to email or skype or something.


tldr: Unless it's the UK, you better be really really sure that you want to escape the culture because there are some things you take for granted I'm sure.

>>17357859
Can you elaborate on why you think it's a bad idea? I have several years in which I can learn the language beforehand.

>>17358056
I mean, maybe because I'm an introvert, but I find that it's hard to make friends from language/cultural barrier. That's different for everyone though.

Another problem is filling out your visa and associated bureaucratic stuff every year, and always having to double check if you're eligible for X or Y thing due to not being a citizen. Of course this goes away if you get citizenship.

I've only been living here for a year, so of course I represent the beginning of the road.

It's less that it's a bad idea, it's more just that it's very difficult. You are literally starting an entirely new life, and with the distance from the US, it will be hard to talk with friends or family back home.

Just make sure you're ready to abandon your old life for a new one, I guess is the takeaway.

>>17358091
I'm super introverted, but I've heard that places like France and Germany are more accepting of introverts, whereas in America you're a de-facto weirdo if you're not a bit outgoing. If I'm not going to have friends, I'd at least not like to be bothered about it.

Do you have more to say about it? I understand it's a hassle, but surely there are more things than that to talk about.