Latest Mercer Report - Quality of Living

Hi Evilshell

thanks very much for that! and I do see more clearly your point of 'other elements' for day to day life which things like the report I put up don't really show. I think it's well known the Swiss are quite draconian in certain aspects, I think car ownership is very very heavily taxed for instance.

Without looking to more granular levels in each country, it's hard to place one country above another be it from independant reports like Mercer and forbes etc and personal experiences. I know of plenty of people who 'love' a particular country and those who 'hate' it for usually personal reasons etc etc.

Cheers for that insight tho!

MPG - Yep, the weather is important for many I must admit! I loved Vancouver in summer 99 on my first and currently only visit there - absolutley fantastic with the snow capped mountains on the horizon! from my friends and relatives there, I'd happily go there 'just' for the weather's 'stability' !  at least you 'know' you'll have a summer in Vancouver!  here, things change within a day - look at it now! just a few days ago we were 85F, and now it's a typical october day!

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK!

Hi Evilshell

thanks very much for that! and I do see more clearly your point of 'other elements' for day to day life which things like the report I put up don't really show. I think it's well known the Swiss are quite draconian in certain aspects, I think car ownership is very very heavily taxed for instance.

Without looking to more granular levels in each country, it's hard to place one country above another be it from independant reports like Mercer and forbes etc and personal experiences. I know of plenty of people who 'love' a particular country and those who 'hate' it for usually personal reasons etc etc.

Cheers for that insight tho!

Believe it or not, where I lived the tax on cars for the years was surprisingly cheap - about 150 pounds a year for a new-ish VW.

Why someone loves or hates a country is absolutely subjective, which is why I truly dislike things like the Mercer list. In my post above, I pointed out a few of the negatives about Switzerland, but there are also many positives about the place, and things which I miss about it (like bureaucratic systems that work efficiently, feeling safe walking at 3am on the streets). I suppose before someone moves to a new city or country, the more they can do to educate themselves about the place, the better.

And often people will love or hate a country for the exact same reason - what is heaven to one is hell to another. 

MPG - Yep, the weather is important for many I must admit! I loved Vancouver in summer 99 on my first and currently only visit there - absolutley fantastic with the snow capped mountains on the horizon! from my friends and relatives there, I'd happily go there 'just' for the weather's 'stability' !  at least you 'know' you'll have a summer in Vancouver!  here, things change within a day - look at it now! just a few days ago we were 85F, and now it's a typical october day!

Cheers! DtM! West London & Slough UK!

MPG - that tickles me! 

I miss the mountains, ocean and the beach. That's probably the main complaints I would have, not the weather! 

Some of the high ranking places are really dull imho.  A high ranking score doesn't mean somewhere is interesting.  Personally i'd rather live somewhere exciting and vibrant that was a little run down or grubby than some perfectly clean, efficient Stepford-esque nightmare.

Some of the high ranking places are really dull imho.  A high ranking score doesn't mean somewhere is interesting.  Personally i'd rather live somewhere exciting and vibrant that was a little run down or grubby than some perfectly clean, efficient Stepford-esque nightmare.

I think you would love Italy.