Decide Where to Move

NorCal

Seriously. Beautiful locations, lots of cultural life, scenic splendor and friendly people. It runs on tech/communications/information industries so if that's your bag - you can start looking. Good mass transit, mild winters, cool summers.

Basically, the San Francisco Bay area - including SF, Berkeley, Alameda, Oakland the cities on the Penninsula all the way down to San Jose.

It CAN be pricey as hell - so moving WITHOUT a job is a non starter.

I've never moved cities or countries, but I daydream about it, and if I had the money here's how I'd decide:

Either:
-go somewhere that has something no other place does that I want/need
-go somewhere with the weather that best suits me
-go somewhere with the best musical scene as per my tastes
-go somewhere where it's easy to travel to other interesting places (ie. Canada so I could visit America, or England so I could visit Europe)

In any event, for me it would be dependent on getting into a Commonwealth country. I can't live permanently in America, because to get one of their VISAs I'd need to have skills not found in America, which I don't imagine I'll ever have.

It was an easy enough decision for me to make the move from England to China: I'd already travelled a lot and China was the most comfortable for me, in terms of atmosphere and job prospects. Also, I felt as if I belonged, as if the country was home (and it is; I've never lost that feeling since being here).

I guess my take on moving States or Countries would be this:

• What are the economical concerns or growth directions (in terms of industry, income sustainability, market stability, etc.)?
• What are the job prospects (if you don't get one before you move)?
• Can you survive long enough to get a job if you don't have one before moving?
• And most importantly: Where do you feel most at home? (This last will help you most, especially when dealing with culture shock.)

Good luck!

If you want more information about Australia, a good place to start would be in the G'Day thread here in the International District. In there are Aussies from all round the country, or thereabouts.

Granted, that thread has been pretty quiet recently, but it might be a good place to start collecting information.

I've moved city/country several times in my life and am just about to do it again: UK to Germany, due to circumstance. This will not be my last move, however. It all comes down to where I want to live out my days, and that won't be Germany.

I also want to be close to my kids, whereever they settle, and they also want us all to be near each other. They grew up far apart from grandparents and other family and this international family spread just isn't a good thing. We all tend to like the same places, too.

First on my list is India, because I just love it. The big problem is that I can't get a permanent visa. All they give is six month visas, except to Americans, who get 10-year visas. That is so unfair! The kids probably won't want tolive there, though, because of education for their kids.

A possibility is Thailand, where I cna get a retirement visa for me and hubby. Warm climate, nice people, good Asian culture. Too many Western expats, though.

As for Western countries, two cities are tops: Vancouver and Brisbane; Vancouver for the well-known qualities (toocoldm though!) and Brisbane because, well, its Australia, and I have a cousin there already.

The West Indies is another option. Out of the question are UK, Germany, Austria, all northern European countries.

I wouldn't mind the US, if I found a nice place. Not enough info, though. I don't know what their retirement requirements are. (That rhymes!)

Brisbane's nice, but they do get some pretty hectic weather. Such as the floods recently.

I've got my eye set on Melbourne, Sydney and Perth. I expect Sydney will be too expensive, unless I start raking in the dough, but Melbourne is exciting, and Perth has glorious weather (or so I'm told).

I think I might one day retire in Perth. Ideally I'd live for a while in Melbourne, till I got bored of it, then live in Sydney and fall in love, then live in Canada (a city that doesn't get too cold during winter though - I don't drive, so I need temperatures I can walk through) and visit America and Europe. Then retire in Perth.

*daydreams*

Australia has a strong economy and is open to immigrants with skills or qualifications (ideally both). Great cities, from my experience, in virtually every aspect, as mentioned by Cliff Face. The people are especially lovely. It can be expensive though, especially now that the A$ is more expensive than the US$.

There's also the countries mentioned by aruna. Asian cities have been posting strong grwoth in recent years and jobs are a plenty in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Shanghai. There are opportunities in Bombay too but visas are more tricky to get.

Search the websites based on what you have to offer. There's bou8nd to be something suitable!