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Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Old Sep 24th 2017, 1:18 pm
  #76  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Originally Posted by scot47
Poland ? Have you looked at the insane clerico-fascists who run that country now ?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaros%...Kaczy%C5%84ski
Funny, I looked at the link and I see nothing to define or even imply the fellow is clinically insane, nor that he is a fascist by any standard political-science definition.

I don't know internal Polish politics well, but is it such a bad place to live and raise a family if one has a basic economic standard of living ?
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Old Sep 24th 2017, 1:45 pm
  #77  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Seriously bigmak, if you want the real lowdown on Norway pm me.
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Old Sep 25th 2017, 8:00 am
  #78  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Thanks Annabel12, thats all very helpful and useful, I think as this thread shows everyone will have a different experience or opinion, good bad and otherwise. I suppose thats what makes moving or travelling in general so exciting, one persons paradise is another's nightmare, the diversity is the key and its like anything in life, its what you make of it.
We are planning at trip in November now, its booked, just 3 days but at least give us a flavour of Oslo and then we will see.
In terms of Poland, as above its all relative. Yes some of the politics is at the extremes, but so is ours and so is the US and people will continue to move to both those countries unabated due to everything else they offer. My brother lives in Dubia, not exactly a paragon of openness nor democracy but if you get on within those certain perimeters you seem to have a good life, agree or disagree with its politics people go there, make money and my brother seems to love it, went for a year.....3 years ago.
My partner is Polish, majority of her family still live there and I have been a couple of times, not somewhere I would consider living but fine in terms of a visit....in my eyes, for her it will always be home.
Mike1001 I have spoken to two Norwegians(both living, working in Oslo with families) and they did not sugar coat it, like anywhere its not perfect but they were honest and as above its all for that person, no matter what another thoughts are. Yes Ive heard the horror stories in terms of social service(but as I said we've been through utter hell in the UK, I cant g in to it but its pretty much the worst situation imaginable)and i know prices are astronomical and the weather can be harsh, while the locals can be hard to make friends with....but depending on where you come from thats true of any country, anywhere, at any time. For us its seeing if first we like the feel of the place(that comes very quickly) and if so if its viable to make a move....end of the day worst comes to worst we move back, that I suppose is the beauty of it all, nothing is forever....well bat tax and death as they say!
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Old Sep 25th 2017, 4:31 pm
  #79  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Good Luck.
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Old Oct 21st 2017, 11:20 am
  #80  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Hi,

I have done just that, moved from the UK to Norway.

So the one thing I would ask is what type of work are you thinking? I came with a very good job offer and a bit of the language. I am a quick learner but by no means fluent after 18 months I know what's going on and can explain myself. I can't stress how useful having a reasonable grasp of language before you move is. There are many folk who come with the idea they'll pick it up but what you tend to do is end up working in a shop. I met someone who'd been here 15 years and still wasn't B2 level. There are many here who insist on that for employment.

NTNU has some fantastic resources for beginners.

So what's Norway like.... Actually both sides are correct! The weather is a bit wild but it adds to the amusement. I live in a coastal town so it's warmer.

The issues with children can arise and people are obliged to report suspicion. This is a lot wider than UK but it is what it is. It's worth knowing people are more suspicious of foreign folk so they get reported more.

I prefer the speed of life here and the facilities but it's really down to personal taste. The comments re Sweden and Norway are kind of true. Sweden is much more safe. I find a lot of things are it will probably be alright here, but I like that. I know a lot of others particularly those with young children find it alarming.

Oslo is very different and nothing like Iceland or the rest of Norway. Good luck and enjoy Oslo
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Old Nov 30th 2017, 12:19 pm
  #81  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

I moved to a small town of 2500 people in Iceland back five years ago, and I have never regretted it. Some background: I came at the age of 29, ostensibly for educational reasons, but really because I wanted to move here. Though I am a British citizen, I grew up in a large city in the US. I quickly felt right at home in Iceland, and then I met my partner, who is from the place, and that was that. I am here for the long haul. That said, I suppose it is not for everybody.

There is a lot of work here in the tourism industry, which has exploded in recent years. There is a very low unemployment rate here, and most people can get some kind of work (though I have not looked carefully through this thread and thus do not know what sort of work you have done and expect). One cannot be certain how long this level of tourism will last though, or if we can expect another financial collapse (people are constantly expecting one, but they are just riding the wave).

For a lot of professional, non-tourism related work, you need to speak Icelandic, though it varies. If anyone in your family does stuff like IT, Icelandic might not be necessary. From what I have heard, I really don't think it is as difficult as the other Scandinavian countries when it comes to finding work and integrating. People here are generally pretty welcoming and interested in foreigners, though perhaps more so in the countryside (where the population has dwindled the last 25 years) than in the capital area. The country has few people, so people are valued. The big difficulty in integrating probably comes from the fact that most Icelanders are very family-oriented, with large families, and people have known each other all their lives. That is difficult to penetrate, but it is what it is, and Icelanders in general (in my experience) do their best to be kind and welcoming.

I think the biggest problem with moving to Iceland at this point would be the horrible housing situation in Reykjavik. If you have the amount of money needed to buy a place, then that is fine. But Iceland has never had a very strong rental market (the mentality is heavily predisposed toward home ownership), and the tourism boom has made this even more dire, as everyone with a spare room or apartment wants to rent it as an Air Bnb. This is increasingly the case in big tourism destinations throughout the world. Anyway, this is slightly less obvious outside of Reykjavik (the countryside and coastal towns/villages), but 2/3 of the population live in the area around the capital. Life in the rest of the country, away from the capital, comes with its own difficulties, but like I said, I love it here and have decided to stay for good.

Other things...there is a large Polish population here. I think about 10-11% of the population are immigrants, with the majority from Poland, and then from Estonia, the Philippines, and Thailand. After that maybe it is British and German, but I am not sure. My town of 2500 has a Polish foods shop. The government is corrupt here as everywhere, and people are fed up with the politics. But it is safe, and people generally have trust in each other (or they know whom not to trust). People treat each other as human beings, regardless of where they are from and what they do for work. The weather is not for everyone, and in December/January we only get a few hours of light. It's not that cold, generally around the freezing point, give or take several degrees.

If you are still interested and have more questions, let me know! I would definitely recommend visiting, regardless of whether you want to move here, and be sure to check out other regions of the country, outside of the capital region/south coast!
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Old Jan 19th 2018, 3:51 am
  #82  
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Default Re: Looking at possible move to Norway....or Iceland.....

Originally Posted by morpeth
The language issue I agree is always an interesting one, not always that easy to pick up a foreign language, especially the older one gets. I watched a show the other day that used the American department of state guidelines, and other specialists, on how easy it was for an English-speaker to learn other languages. The conclusion was the easiest foreign language for an English speaking person to learn was Dutch, Africaans, and Frisian, if one doesn't count Scots and Geordie/Northumbrian.

The second group in terms of greater difficulty, included Danish, Swedish, and Norwegian.

The third was German, then after that in group four the Romance languages.(Surprised me as I always thought French easier than German).


Danish is rather harder on the English tongue than Norwegian and Swedish, both of which considered 'easy' to learn.
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