Bay Area —> Belgium. Experiences, anyone?
I’m looking for people who have moved from California to Belgium and are open to sharing their experiences.
For context; I am a dual citizen of Belgium and the USA. Same goes for my toddler son. My wife is a US citizen. I grew up in Belgium and moved to the US as an adult. I’m bilingual Dutch-English, so is my son, and my wife has been taking dutch classes for two years. I love living in California but now that we have a young child, sometimes we wonder out loud if moving to Belgium would be a better choice.
Mostly because of the reduced costs of childcare, healthcare, education, and housing (we could live very cheaply there because of a family property). I feel like this would significantly reduce our stress levels and get off the hamster wheel just a little bit. I also have very fond memories of my childhood there and feel like it was more relaxed than what kids experience in the Bay Area.
What makes us doubt however are the intangibles. Belgians can be… narrow-minded, predictable. A little closed off at first. Ambition and drive are not as rewarded and the cultural contract is one of fitting in vs standing out. I also wonder how easy it would be for my wife to feel good there and make friends.
If anyone has made a similar move, I’d love to hear what your experience has been like. Are you miserable? Or loving it?