peterinjapan wrote: ↑Wed Jun 22, 2016 9:52 pm
I seen people talking about living abroad when they retire, which is something I'd like to do, so I thought I'd toss out a thread on this topic. What places are on your short list to consider? Mine are...
a) Costa de Sol or Malaga, Spain. Lovely area, lots of Brits living there, and you're not far from Gibraltar, if you need a proper British pub.
If you have an Irish passport or other EU, great. I don't know what the rules are for new Brits, but I doubt Spain will be that welcoming to aging retirees-- the existing community was granted right to remain (largely) at the time of Brexit (but Brits are being tossed out of European countries all the time if they didn't get their paperwork in order, Sweden is apparently the worst offender in terms of making that difficult). At the very least, you will need medical insurance.
BTW the presence of Brits refusing/ unable to integrate is one of the less appealing aspects. Who wants to sit talking about the weather when it's always the same? Or yack about football clubs back home owned by oligarchs & sheikhs? Play golf? Complain about the locals? My friend who has retired to outside of Malaga speaks Spanish, has Spanish neighbours and has very little to do with the English there. I am not such a good linguist.
Portugal seems to be the new "hot" destination and I liked Portugal. So Portugal over Spain. South of France over Spain, too - although it is more costly. But around Toulouse or in the Pyrenees.
With modern high speed trains now all over Spain, a friend (Argentinian) says he can live cheaply 250 km from Madrid and go up there whenever he needs stimulation or to do research.
b) Penang, Malaysia. Very nice area, huge shopping malls with Western shops, a big expat culture and high standard of living. Much better than Kota Kinabalu, though that is also a nice place. I might also consider Kuala Lumpur too.
A conservative Muslim country but as long as you are OK with that, it's very beautiful.
c) Bali is another possibility, though I haven't been yet.
What countries are you interested in possibly living in in the future?
It depends what you want. I would last about a month in these places and then be off somewhere for more stimulation.
So. Retirement. New York City (Manhattan or Brooklyn). London (well I already live near there). Canada (but only April to October, please unless it was the West Coast). Maybe Denmark, Norway or Sweden (the weather might get to me). Scotland (ditto). Melbourne?
I have a friend from London who has settled in a Canadian maritime city of less than 500k people. He's gotten involved in local politics & community action. He seems happy. But jeez do they have a tough winter (ice storms).