Not that my experience is that relevant, since I've only hopped to a neighboring country (Netherlands -> Germany). But maybe it's useful anyway ;). It's been a

Not that my experience is that relevant, since I've only hopped to a neighboring country (Netherlands -> Germany). But maybe it's useful anyway ;). It's been a fun experience so far, because ~6 months after we moved our daughter was born. My wife is German, but had a preference for staying in the Netherlands. What has your experience been? More bureaucracy, more organizational hierarchy, but also a nice environments (close to the woods, mountains, etc.). People are a bit nicer/warmer here, but Dutchmen are more honest/to the point. What is your particular career? Academia. How much is your rent or did you buy? We rent. Southern German university city. Approximately 900 Euro, 1100 Euro including garage and water. Where did you move to/from? Groningen, The Netherlands, though I commuted to Amsterdam for a while. How are the schools? Our kid only goes to kindergarten now. They are great. Less commercial than NL, much cheaper, nice personnel. I don't know about schools, but many German Bundesländer have free university education. Have you become fluent in the native language and was the language barrier difficult to overcome? I had German in high school, so I can understand the language without too much trouble. I can speak at a basic level. The percentage people knowing English as a second language is far lower than The Netherlands or Scandinavian countries. But since we live in a university city, it's not too bad. How long have you lived in this country? 1 year, and a couple of months when I was a child. Are you a permanent resident or do you plan on moving back to the Netherlands? Not sure, so far I am leaning towards staying permanently. What's the cost of living compared to where you moved from? Pretty much the same, though the wages seem to be better in academia. Has your quality of life improved or not? How and why? Yes, there are more opportunities, since it's larger country with more cities. Also, it's easier to relax more here, given that nature is nearby.