Aachen, Germany. The place itself: - Excellent Technical University (RWTH) - cozy place to live - vivid cultural and recreational life The area nearby: -

Aachen, Germany. The place itself: - Excellent Technical University (RWTH) - cozy place to live - vivid cultural and recreational life The area nearby: - literally besides the borders of The Netherlands and Belgium - close to Cologne and Dusseldorf area (1hr) - Frankfurt/Main (international flights, banking) 2hrs - Luxembourg (is it fair to say, this is the Delaware of the EU?) 2hrs - Berlin by car, train, flight - London within 5-6 hours by train (literally a door-to-door experience and thus faster than flight) - Nature nearby (Eifel) However, there are some downsides: - Rents are increasing sharply here, too - most people act and think very provincially - weak (but evolving) tech/startup community - no water around (no lakes, rivers), but North Sea within a 2-3 hrs