Author has 23.4K answers and 286.7M answer views · Updated 11y ·
Not all aspects. I can tell you this -- as a well traveled American who loves Europe (esp. Spain -- where I could live the rest of my life in happiness and peace). There are many reasons to stay in the US and those reasons are in no way slanderous or negative about Europe. Europe is amazing and I could see myself living there. (I think Amsterdam and I would love each other dearly). But, pointing out the differences isn't a value-judgement on either nation/location -- we're just a bit different.
- Generally, if you are in a good trade (but not always), especially engineering, medicine, IT, chemicals, petrol, etc., you can make a LOT more living in the USA & Canada (I include Canada because -- well -- the markets are very similar, if not better up north).
- If you are like me, and define a good deal of your life by your career (and truly LOVE your career in a way that is positive and personally fulfilling), then Europe may drive you mad. Europeans (with their own good reason) do not usually define their lives by their careers. In fact, in many (most?) European circles, it's very taboo to overly focus on your job in conversations and such. With me -- in general conversations -- it almost always dominates what I talk about from what I make to what I do. I love EVERYTHING about my job and I truly look forward to Mondays. I only pepper vacation days here and there, and even then, Rick pushes me out the door when it's time to return to work (generally with me sprinting in front of him). I work day and night and on weekends too. Europeans would punch me in the face after a while.
- Languages. Man, those pesky Europeans haven't given up their native languages and adopted Americanese has their lingua franca yet. Buncha' jerks, I know! It's so fucking annoying. There are some countries where English is incredibly well known (Netherlands and Luxembourg) and other places where people will expect you to speak the local tongue (ahem . . . I'm looking at you France!). If you're a monoglot, then you're gonna' have some troubles.
- Odd conveniences. The hours of places like shops, restaurants and such are generally better in the USA. I'm a convenience driven fellow and dammit! I want my 24-hour Circle K! In Europe entire industries shut down for holidays and Sundays. Drove me nuts.
- Prices. On. EVERYTHING! Shit's expensive in Euroland due to complex factors like regulation and taxes. I mean, sure, stuff like local produce is pretty well priced, but everything else is just so much more pricey. While housing prices vary in the USA, on average, a home here is larger and less expensive than in most places in Europe.
- Europe is a lot more crowded (though, personally I found this to be its biggest selling point, I'm a man about town and seeing people actually walking about town was always a huge plus for me).
- The pace of everything is much too relaxed for me. I'm a hyperspaz and I get in and out of my activities as if the world were about to end. Eating. Shopping. Talking. Burying dead hookers in the desert. Everything in my life is a surgical strike mission with a plan of attack and escape, generally choreographed down to the milisecond. People in Euroland don't go in for that. Eating in Spain (with mis amigos) is arduous and painful because I'm finished with my food in under 10 minutes, they casually chomp on tiny bites and take what appears to be long enough for the fucking pasta to fossilize. . . . COME ON PEOPLE! I've got things to do!
- The food is TERRIBLE! (kidding, it's pretty fucking good)
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