moving to prague

[allybee]

i dont know if this is the correct place to post or if i am allowed to post on this subject.if i am breaking any rules,please remove post.

i am hoping to move to prague and was hoping for some advice from any ex-pats living there..

i visit once a month and love the place.

i have read some blogs of ex-pats.

in the beginning every-thing is wonderful,but as time goes on,their lives seem to spiral out of control..

i dont want to move because of boys,or to find love or anything.its just my lifes in a rut.i've just hit the big four oh and i want to try before i get too old

is it possible to get a job,preferably in catering,when i speak little czech??

is it possible to get reasonable accomodation at a reasonable price??

any-one got any advice or any web-sites i can go on ???

i maybe move next month,but only for two months trial in case it isn't what i'd hoped....i dont want to give every-thing up in uk and end up homeless..

if any-one can help with any advice,i'd be most gratefull...thanks

[alexis]

Try it two months. That is the wise thing to do. Don't depend on too much advice since you are going to have to weather it yourself.

I suggest you go to www.expats.cz to learn more about making the move.

My question to you is simple. If you are not moving for the boys or the sex or find a boy friend, then I fail to see why you would want to move to Prague when the economic downturn is making it difficult for locals to find work.

Since you don't speak Czech, about the only job you might find that might pay you a decent wage would be teaching. Catering is not a high paying or stable job situation. It is all about special events and freelance work.

And buying property in CZ is difficult for anyone and the market is glutted with overpriced condos and I'm not even sure you can buy a condo unless you have a lot of disposible cash.

If I were you and just turning 40, I would save my money, take two months to get a better idea of whether the city is worth the move.

Sorry if I sound a bit arch, but hold off on moving. Working in another country and vacationing there are two different animals.

I had the same urge several years ago, but realized that I would be working so hard for less than I make in my country of origin that I was better off visiting two or three times a year. Soon reality sunk in and I realized that Prague was a great place to visit but not a place I'd like to be stuck in.

Either way, I would also want to move to a city where I could find a BF. Don't you want to share your life with someone you love? Most of us on this board are punters looking for an easy shag. However, the local RBs are also just looking for a quick trick and more than likely aren't interested in settling down. They might consider a Sugar Daddy but once the money runs out. You are ancient histpry.

Whatever you choose, remember that you are going to have to live with it for a while.

Life can begin at 40, but be prepared for the rest of your life too.

Best of luck,

Alexis

[allybee]

thanks for the really good advice,alexis

a few points to think about.

i'll probably give it a go,just for the summer.if it doesn't work out,i'm only 2hrs from where i live now..

can always get my crappy job and life back here anytime

thanks again

[Roamer1610]

Originally Posted by allybee

i'll probably give it a go,just for the summer.if it doesn't work out,i'm only 2hrs from where i live now..

can always get my crappy job and life back here anytime

thanks again

Yes, good advice. Don't entirely cut off the escape route!

Living in a place, you get to see it 'warts and all' and not just what the tourists see.

That can be good but also bad. If you don't like what you see, you don't want to be stuck there.

Giving yourself a trial period of the summer seems like a great idea.

Whatever you decide to do, all the best with it.

[jaizan]

I would take the approach of working out what lifestyle is required, then figure out how to pay for it.
Czech GDP per capita is about 55% of UK levels, so salaries are probably correspondingly lower.
There's a lot to be said for earning money in a high labour cost country & spending it in a low labour cost country.
Personally, I'd like to live in SE Asia, but want to build up a portfolio of investments first.

[allybee]

thanks for advice and good wishes,

i shall start looking for temp job when i am in prague on 21st..

its prob just a mid-life crisis and i'll end up back in uk doing my crappy job..but i suppose in some ways i'm very lucky,its well paid and if i work my ass off and can go to prague every 17 days...with ryanair doing 3 pound flights at moment,probably every 10 days.so i virtually live there any-way

thanks again

[tristan]

i just read this thread. did you end up moving? i'm one of the expats and have a different point of view. let me know if your interested.

[travelcouple]

Hi,
I agree with everyone who has advised you not to make the move. I had a friend who dropped everything in the US and made the move to CZ to work as a non teaching job at a University. Everything was ok for a few months but then everything started to go wrong. The University did not want to offer him full time position; cut back his hours and reduced salary due to "the bad economic crisis." He fell and broke his leg and found out that the University offered no health insurance. He ended up having to charge thousands of dollars for the medical procedures to his credit cards and complained that the pain medication the doctors/hospital gave him had to be fakes since they had no effects what so ever. Now he just wished he never moved there in the first place.
Hope you make the right decision.