Awineor2

Has anyone got and idea on where is the best place to live? We have travelled extensively, lived in UK, Ireland, Holland, Cyprus, Oman, South Africa and now living in Australia, and visited the States on nemerous occasions. What we would like to do now is find somewhere to put downs roots and call our permanent home. We are torn between NZ and Italy for various reasons, but we love to be surrounded by countryside and trees and warm weather. we are draw to NZ for this but Italy as it is nearer our families. Any feedback on life in either place would be greatly appreciated and I really do look forward to hearing from you.

kt0157

The wine is better in NZ.

K.

cottageinthesky

With the financial wherewithal, would opt to live in NZ and have a holiday home in Italy - spend the NZ winter in Italy during the European summer and do the family thing, then retreat back to NZ.

Depends if you are retired or still need to work? Depends on what your lifestyle priorities are? Depends if you have a budget to shuttle backwards & forwards - at least until the family thins out a bit or can afford to visit you!

I feel safe in NZ, love the space and the raw undeveloped feel to the country, which is close enough to be accessible from Wellington, where I live, which gives me the theatre/symphony/ballet/opera/restaurants/cafes with great coffee, which I think I would probably be lost without.

Genesis

Have only taken hols in Italy..can see why you would wanna live there!! I would like to live there in the perfect world. But we don't do the lingo, we need to earn money and I am not sure it would be so easy to fit into such a different psyche.

NZ on the other hand is relatively simple (save for the distance betwixt NZ and UK for return visits), there is a culture gap but we speak the same, there is very little red tape..apparently Italy runs on the stuff!!! I would like to spend a month in Italy every year..the country is utterly amazing..but NZ has so much more to offer us from a practical point of view. Realistically NZ is better for us..we have 3 very young kids..we are not awash with money..I think Italy is quite pricey to live in, then again some people think NZ is pricey, we find we are better off here than in the UK.....Italy wins hands down from a romantic point of view. But you can't eat romance can you? I tried once made an awful mess!!!!

Been in NZ for 18 months and all goes well. It has not been an easy 18months but NZ has far exceeded our expectations and we have a lifestyle that would be impossible to emulate in the UK. I would recommend NZ to anyone..so long as they had thought it through!!! We love it here.

brussels_sprout

A Canadian tourist was shot dead during Mafia crossfire last week while walking across the central Piazza in Naples, Italy. Racial tension is causing massive rise in murders in many Italian cities currently, the government is planning to bring in the army ! New Zealand 2nd in world´s most democratic country list, Italy near bottom of European countries. Italy is nice for a short visit, all those nice old buildings and the food, but, do would you really want to live there all the time ? all the sensible Italians emigrated long ago.

brussels_sprout

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magaz...932050,00.html

SecretSquirrel

cultural oasis vs cultural desert...... tough one....

Buzzy--Bee

What's wrong with your current life in Oz? Why don't you want to put down roots there?



Buzzy

brussels_sprout

It even made the NZ Herald today
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/st...ectID=10408629

mazi

You need to ask?
ITALY!

brussels_sprout

Italians wear the best clothes certainly, small mountain villages have a designer clothes shop but NO grocers ! But do you really want to live somewhere which is ruled by gangsters , who drive and generally do what the HELL they want. In the north of England , there is an expression "All fur coats and no knickers", ie True Beauty is on the inside , people who are attracted to living in Italy are interested in surface, shallow things, while the rest is rotten to the core.
NZ has the best of British aspects, little corruption, stable, civilised, good, happy place.

World Audit is used by governments throughout the world !
http://www.worldaudit.org/democracy.htm

mazi

[QUOTE=brussels_sprout]
NZ has the best of British aspects
No it doesn't

mazi

I don't entirely agree - all those orange trousers and pale lemon jumpers thrown jauntily around the shoulders...

mazi

Pardon???!!! Did I go to the wrong country for three years?

Jack The Lad

Obviously