Ethelred_the_Unready

I posted this in the "moving back to the UK" section before realising I should have posted it here instead...

Say you missed many aspects of the UK, but didn't want to move back to the UK specifically, but could find many of the things you missed in other EU nations (e.g. football, countryside, real beer, free healthcare, less individualistic policies), which European country would you choose (I have lived in the US since 2003)? I would prefer to stick to Germanic countries as I find Germanic languages easier to learn and the culture isn't all that different from the UK. On my list so far:

Germany
Sweden
Norway
Denmark
The Netherlands
Iceland

Which of the above would you pick and why? I would love feedback from anyone who has lived in any of these countries. I have only been to Germany & the Netherlands, but could see either quite easily becoming "home".

What's also important to me is to live somewhere where the British aren't disliked or ridiculed. I want a climate similar to the UK's, but colder and darker is fine. I am a tad socialist too and believe in income equality and all that jazz. I like football and would get into any local team to make friends.

I'm an EU citizen, prepared to learn a new language and soon to be divorced from my American wife. No kids, no friends here, so there's really no point in me staying, but I do not want to return to the UK (given it much thought).

Mike and Janet

Cheer your self up,go to Ireland!

Novocastrian

Personally I'd pick Germany (I speak the language already having lived there before), but without that decider I'd rank The Netherlands and Denmark pretty high.

I presently live in Canada so I've had frigid weather in sufficiency thank you, which would strike Iceland, Sweden and Norway off my list. BTW, I don't think Icelandic is a Germanic language.

In fact though I'm retiring to France in a year or two.

Domino

then why not go straight there ?
Germanic - well no, partly romance language, but then when Merkel told Hollande to pay fealty he went running so more controlled by Germany.

missile

That would rule out Germany then but they dislike americans even more, so you may have one thing in common .

Beaverstate

If disliking americans was a requirement, you could live damn near anywhere.