Ha ha, you and I agree that "temperate rainforest" is actually uncomfortably chilly.

At least in the upper midwest here we get a summer of sorts, (it's cold as shit here even in the summer for the most part,)

(And yes, I am well aware that by "Tahiti" I really mean "France." Il y a une raison pour laquelle j'apprends le francais depuis quelques années.)

New Zealand seems pretty nice too.

Lived in Norway most my life, and one day I woke up and decided to move to Estonia. Been living here for some years now, and life is quite similar, but with a lot of different nuances.

People are a bit more cold and generally untrusting towards strangers, but not in a bad way. People here are really warm once you befriend each other however, and they invite you to go mushrooming with them. I like mushrooms, and Estonia being a big swamp, there's a ton of them here! (my freezer is completely full of them now as the season draws to a close)

Before I moved here I had traveled a lot, and I've seen many people and cultures. With how easy it is to travel the world in this modern day and age, I really recommend people to go a bit outside their comfort zone, and experience life from a different angle. It truly helps get a more open mind and wider perspective on things. The language barrier that some people here mentioned isn't that much of a barrier anymore, since a majority of people under 40 know passable English these days, and there's always digital translation solutions.
Also, learning a new language is considered a very healthy thing for the mind!

yes, France. Alas they are as afraid of me as the Australian government is afraid of the French

why ? As an Australian, France has way less Australians, so that's a huge bonus.

but more seriously, i'd be forced to learn another language and be open to exploring entire new ways of thinking and living.

As an Australian I don't have a problem with the metric system :) and both France and myself think our ex PM ScoMo is a complete fucking asshole, so we have lots in commin :)

currently I spend 8 months a year in SE Asia and 4 months in Australia.

I would love to live in italy. I love the people, culture, food, wine, the dolomites, music... the list goes on...

Yeah upper Midwest has great summer weather. Too bad about the mosquitoes though.

Even San Francisco is freezing much of the time. And Alaska is quite cooler than that.

I moved to Spain from Poland over 10 years ago. I could see the society in Poland is not planning on advancing anytime soon so I left. Since I moved Spain kept making progressive reforms (they are now considered #1 LGBT friendly country in the world among other things) while Poland kept moving backwards (restricted access to abortion even more) so I'm not looking back. Spain is far from perfect (I liked the relax attitude to general order at first but now it's getting to me. pick up your trash, people!) but people, food, weather, nature... If I will even move again it will be inside Spain.

I've lived (stayed for more than a year) in six different countries. The longest I've lived in one country was the US, 16 years. I moved there as an adult already. Since then, I've been living in Ireland for the past 15 years.

I view countries like products. I move to the one that suits me best at the moment. I work, pay taxes, volunteer and otherwise contribute to society as a payment for the privilege to stay, and I live fairly comfortably, based on my stage of life. The US, for example, was great for higher education and saving up money. Ireland sucks for the young and old, but is perfect for the midfle aged middle class. Once I retire, I'll look somewhere else again.

Just for kicks, I looked into this years ago, pre-trump. Figured Scandinavia would be good and ultimately settled on Gothenburg, Sweden. Big city, relatively mild weather, close-ish to the rest of Europe.

Other options I've either daydreamed about or heard good things about over the years:

Vancouver, BC, Canada
Australia (East coast, have some extended family)
Spain
Baja California, Mexico

The only thing that would make me leave is if I could have the same quality of life I have here, but with less harsh winters. So I guess New Zealand maybe? But I have no idea. Maybe I just want an excuse to go and look at the cool endemic geckos and other animals.

Maybe. I don't know enough about what it actually is like in most other countries. I have a few ideas, but I'd have to visit them for a bit to know if I would actually want to live there permanently. Like the Netherlands or Japan. Only ever been to Mexico, Germany and Ireland. And I was only in Ireland for about 3 hours waiting for a change of planes on my way to Germany where I worked for about 2 and half weeks in Bremerhaven. I could probably live in Germany; but I sure as hell would want to be in a different city. Bremerhaven was a bit boring; not much to do there unless I was into strip clubs. They had a gnarly red light district.

The Netherlands. I already understand some Dutch and I think the weather will be okay with climate change.

Currently living in Russia.

Would love to explore Scandinavia more, had mostly positive memories from visiting Finland (although, folks, don't forget smaller towns also need some colors! Imatra, for example, is depressing AF in the autumn).

China is also interesting to explore and live a bit in. An incredible mix of cultures and ways of life, all packed in unimaginable ways. Also, the nature of Far East is breathtaking.

Other than that, I'd love to settle somewhere very, very remote, away from the world's troubles and noise. New Zealand seems to be nice, or, if I'd want to go hardcore on a small civilized spot in the middle of nowhere, St. Helena is a great pick.

Nice! So where do you stay in SE Asia?

Don't forget some of those cool animals are, indeed, scary. And some people carry guns.

For all I remember, people on Svalbard are allowed to carry rifles because being attacked by a huge bear is a possibility.

I don't think climate change affects that neverending wind much

Originally from China. It's probably quite hard to explain on a short post over the internet especially since there are way too many fucked up things where I'm from, but I absolutely wanted to and have been living outside for 11 years straight now, and I've been mostly happy wherever I've been (and I've been in some shittier cities). Although it is more of an "anywhere but China" attitude for me...

So yeah. I don't think I necessarily dreamed of living in any particular country, but just wanted to live anywhere else

Other than mine? Probably France, Italy or Portugal. They are like cousins to me, I feel I could be at home in any of them. And the languages are similar enough to what I already speak that I'm sure I'd pick it up without too much trouble.

Yeah nah

NZ. Once were warriors. Man that movie hit hard.

Edit: title correction thanks absgeeknz.

I live in Denmark and am studying French to move either there or to Spain (I already speak Spanish) although it would mean higher living costs.

I miss people with strong, possibly contrasting opinions.
And crowds, damn I miss street crowds!

I've lived in 5 developing countries for work, though 2 are really only developing outside of urban areas, and 5 places in the US. Spouse and I still can't even agree on a place to want to live, but our criteria is super picky.

It's worth also saying that to move from your home is very much a personal decision, and not everyone is into that. I value understanding a people and a place, not travel for the sake of IG posts. Without leaving the US, I got the hell out of the small town where I was raised because there were no opportunities to grow as a person. Not because I wanted to go to college in a place with a Starbucks.

Sometimes people need to step back and see if they're just stuck thinking the grass is always greener somewhere else. Humans love to compare things.

There's a time to appreciate where you are, a time to leave to improve yourself or your situation, and a time to fix where you are rather than leave.

Be warned, there's a growing far right movement in spain as well.

There is in every country. I'm aware of it and keeping an eye on it, but its not even compatible to how it was in the US. I lived in a small town that had "the only good liberal is a dead liberal" bumper stickers on the back of every other pickup truck, and a giant confederate flag painted on the side of an apartment building. Rape and murder were weekly crime statistics and people would try to run over stray cats as a type of local game.

The worst thing ive seen here is two drunk people yelling at each other about football.

Once were warriors.

I live in NZ.

There are a bunch of people saying that NZ is is a place they would like to go. It is really nice, slow pace of life in most places; however the cost of living here is way too high compared to incomes.

Politics is relatively stable compared to other nations; but we do have our own scoundrels who are complete fuckups.

There are quite a few drawbacks; talking with a German friend last night. We were talking about cites around the world, he said "Rome, oh yea I went there in high school when I was 17 for a week". That is just not really possible from here. Getting certain things here is just not worth it; the postage is more than the thing itself; or it just doesn't ship here at all. e.g. Jolla phone; but it isn't just niche Linux phones; a few years back I couldn't buy a laptop with a Ryzen processor, had to order it from Amazon in the US, everything available form a NZ retailer was Intel.

Public transport here is shit; outside of Wellington, it is 30 years behind where it should be. The CRL (city rail link) just opened in Auckland (our biggest city); this completes a loop that should have been built in the 90's.
NZ is a very car dependent country; I can't catch a train from Taupō where I live in the middle of the North Island, at all, there is no rail line here.

Germany, yeah SWITZERLAND PLEEEAAAASSSSEEWE TAKE MEEE!!!! PLEASE ANNEX US!

Yeah it will only make the ongoing dutch war worse

You have to carry outside of the town at all times, they don't mess around with bears over there

this completes a loop that should have been built in the 90’s

To be fair, living in Auckland, it feels like they started building it in the 90's.

FYI, on that tropical island in the header image:

Living there is not all it’s cracked up to be. It’s green hell, salt eats everything, pests never get culled from freezing, I could go on and on.

And unless you’re exactly on the equator, tropical cyclones are going to make your life difficult.

I'm a Brit and I moved to New Zealand in 2010 and haven't looked back. UK is a shit hole traumatised by Tory rule and Brexit.
New Zealand is such a literal breath of fresh air. sure we also have similar social issues like right wing politics (Act, NZ1st, National), but we also had Jacinda and I'd vote for her again forever.
you don't move to NZ to get rich, you move because you love the land, and the people are awesome and friendly.
I'd never go to the US. ewwww

American here who is currently awaiting approval of a visa for Australia. My wife got a job in Adelaide, so we’re just waiting for visa approval and will be moving us and the kid. Cannot wait! I look forward to a healthier lifestyle, assimilating to their culture, and just having a new/different outlook on life.

We only visited Sydney and Cairns a couple of years ago, but we loved everything about both places and wished we could stay.

I'd pick Spain. But, there's no way I can do it now, I'm too old and poor.

Had I known what a shithole this country would become, I would have started out with that in mind and made it happen. I would have done many things differently, had I known. Hindsight is 20/20.

I don't want to live in any country. I dream of a future world without states or borders.

But Ireland seems pretty cool I guess.

They will be corporations. The land of Walmart or the land of Amazon.

Somewhere with good public transport. Ideally somewhere that doesn't prioritise cars over safety, transport efficiency, health, the environment, and the economy.

Sometimes I'd like to try life in Europe somewhere, I'm lucky to live in Canada but I'd like to see life where we really have a robust social safety net and not just a nod to it.

It's not everything you think it is. The fentanyl addicted homeless problem in the cities is getting brutal, and the lack of decent transit is hard, and honestly we have our share of kooks. It is also becoming embarrassingly racist because some white Canadians are starting to openly hate immigrants, which I blame the government for as it's basically a glorified slavery system now and not a way to bring talented people to work here. That is not the fault of new immigrants, but these Canadians hate African, Indian, and Muslim immigrants a LOT, and it's honestly embarrassing.

I'd start now. Immigration has grown quickly a lot less popular in Canada and the government dials it back when people get angry about their own quality of life here.

Switzerland.

I’d like to live in France

Yes. But, it’s really difficult to figure out where is realistically ideal right now. Ultimately, I’d love a tropical climate or mountains.

Fortunately my mom is a hobby geneaologist, which helps a lot.

No matter where you go you bring yourself.

Australians complain about the brutal housing prices.

Also Canadian, also thinking the same

I live in the Midwest part of America. I'd love to live in Canada or a European country. I have a friend in Canada so it'd be nice to hangout more often. As for Europe, only downside is their winters I'm pretty sure suck more than ours and I despise winter.

I'm just really tired of pretending we don't have problems. What's happening to health care here is distressing, and so is the fentanyl problem. Housing sucks too.

Health care is one thing. Lack of competition / pricing when it comes to internet and mobile. Tired of being next door to the US.