美网友：我真的很羡慕生活在欧洲的人。我觉得那里的生活比美国好太多了。这让我很郁闷。那里的生活真的好吗？

Bryan Caldwell
I’m a U.S. citizen living in the South of France. There are lots of little snags and problems for an American relocating here but, overall, it’s great. The pace of life is slower. I can live easily without a car (and all the related automobile expenses). Health care is excellent and very inexpensive (ridiculously inexpensive by U.S. standards). There’s much less crime than where I lived in the U.S., private gun ownership is almost unheard of. The food is excellent with much fresher food readily available. Distances are much shorter. In a very short time I can be in Monaco or Italy. A little longer and I can be in Spain, Portugal, England, Germany, or Switzerland. Public transportation is clean, efficient, reliable and cheap. People are generally kind and helpful. I still struggle with the language and the French are sticklers for paperwork and bureaucracy, but if you’re patient everything seems to work out. Everyone looks for different things in life, but I’m very happy with the life I’ve found here.

我是美国公民，住在法国南部。
对于一个移居到这里的美国人而言，虽然会遇到很多小麻烦，但总的来说，这里很棒。
这里的生活节奏比较慢，即使没有车（以及所有与汽车相关的费用），我也能轻松生活。
医疗保健非常优质，而且价格低廉（以美国的标准来看，简直低得可笑）。
这里的犯罪率比我在美国居住的地方低得多，私人拥有枪支几乎闻所未闻。
这里的食物很棒，而且随时都能吃到更新鲜的食物。
路途也短得多。我可以在很短的时间内到达摩纳哥或意大利。再过一段时间，我就能到达西班牙、葡萄牙、英国、德国或瑞士。公共交通干净、高效、可靠且价格低廉。人们普遍都很友善，乐于助人。
我的语言能力还有待提高，而且法国人对文书工作和官僚主义非常严格，但只要你耐心等待，一切似乎都会迎刃而解。每个人对生活的追求都不同，但我对在这里找到的生活非常满意。


Robert Hill
Surely it depends on what you want out of life and what your priorities are?
I've been on Reddit a lot recently and I've read a good number of posts from Americans either living in already, or thinking about moving to, the UK or Ireland and they were all gushing about the place. And I had to laugh because those same sub-Reddits were filled with Brits and Irish people talking about how our respective countries have gone to the dogs.
Either the gushing Americans were super well-off and able to inoculate themselves against the travails of regular British and Irish people, they were living in a self-imposed fantasy land/bubble in which they closed their eyes to all our problems, or, in spite of all the problems, they still preferred living over this side of the water.
I mean, I'm sure any of the above three explanations can apply to Americans who move here and don't end up brow-beaten by the realities of life.
Ultimately, life here is quite good for most of the time, but there are serious issues that plague our societies and many of us still suffer under the worst ravages of capitalism just like they do down your ends.
Also, Europe is, relatively speaking, stagnating when it comes to technology and innovation. I know the bigwigs in Brussels and London want to change that by investing trillions into deadly weaponry, but you can fuck that for a banana butty. But, if you are someone who wants a dynamic business environment with lots of scope for entrepreneurship, you might find yourself a little underwhelmed by what is on offer in Europe relative to the States or parts of East Asia.
Anyway, what I'm trying to say is, you might indeed find your place in Europe, just like those Americans on Reddit did, but be prepared for a healthy dose of reality. Maybe your life will be better than it is in the States, but there's no guarantee of that.
In either case, I wish you luck.

这当然取决于你想从生活中得到什么，以及你的优先事项是什么。
我最近经常上Reddit，看到很多美国人的帖子，他们要么已经在英国或爱尔兰生活，要么正在考虑搬到那里，他们都对那里赞不绝口。我不禁笑了，因为同样的Reddit子版块里，充斥着英国人和爱尔兰人，他们在谈论我们各自的国家是如何衰败的。
要么这些热情洋溢的美国人非常富裕，能够免受普通英国人和爱尔兰人所经历的苦难。要么他们生活在一个自我强加的幻想世界/泡沫中，对我们所有的问题视而不见。要么，尽管存在所有这些问题，他们仍然更喜欢住在海的那一边。
我的意思是，我相信以上三种解释中的任何一种都适用于那些搬到这里，最终没有被现实生活吓倒的美国人。
归根结底，这里的生活大部分时间都相当不错，但也存在一些严重的问题困扰着我们的社会，我们中的许多人仍然在遭受资本主义最严重的摧残，就像你们一样。
此外，欧洲在技术和创新方面相对停滞不前。我知道布鲁塞尔和伦敦的巨头们想通过投资数万亿美元研发致命武器来改变这种状况，但只要有一块香蕉三明治，这些都无所谓。但是，如果你渴望一个充满活力、拥有广阔创业空间的商业环境，你可能会发现，与美国或东亚部分地区相比，欧洲的条件会略显逊色。
总之，我想说的是，你或许真的能在欧洲找到自己的位置，就像Reddit上的那些美国人一样，但要做好面对现实的准备。也许你的生活会比在美国更好，但这并不能保证。
无论如何，我都祝你好运。

Dave
I am a US citizen living in Portugal. I have a smile on my face every day I wake up. Things are so much nicer here, like not worrying about getting shot every time you go out. I walk alone at 2 in the morning without a care in my mind. Going out to eat here is much healthier. Portugal people use about 10% of processed food compared to the US, which is about 75%. When we go out to eat, we usually spend about 20–40 euros for an appetizer, main, dessert, and a bottle of wine for the two of us. I pay 165 euros for my property tax on a 2+2 condo, and my condo fee is 30 euros. Our health insurance is just over 200 euros for both of us, and we get appointments within a day or two. So, yes, life is so much better than the knife and gun club dictatorship they now call the US.

我是一名居住在葡萄牙的美国公民。
每天醒来，我都面带微笑。这里的生活好太多了，比如每次出门都不用担心被枪杀。我凌晨两点独自散步，无忧无虑。
在这里外出就餐更健康。葡萄牙人食用的加工食品约为10%，而美国人约为75%。我们外出就餐时，通常会花大约20-40欧元，包括一份开胃菜、一份主菜、一份甜点和一瓶葡萄酒（两人份）。
我租了一套2+2的公寓，房产税是165欧元，公寓费是30欧元。我们两人的健康保险略高于200欧元，而且我们一两天内就能预约。
所以，是的，这里的生活比现在被称为美国实际是个刀枪俱乐部且具有独裁统治的地方要好得多。


John Carlton
Well, I’m an American who lives in Europe full-time. Relax. Things are different, but I wouldn’t say life is “better” overall. Depends what kind of person you are, what stage of life you’re in, and what sorts of things you value.
As President Coolidge famously said, “The business of America is business.” This is sorta the root of everything. The USA is not like other countries: it’s more an idea than a place. People came from everywhere in order to achieve a better life. So the population is a “sifted sample”, in statistical terms. It’s not random. You’ve got the descendants of strivers. So it’s more competitive. And that changes everything. In the USA, there’s more winning and losing going on. There’s more creating. There are fewer rules. It’s easier to change things. Even systems and processes, in the USA, are designed to accommodate and facilitate change. Americans are mobile. In the perpetual tug-o’-war between liberty and equality, the USA is among the very few places on earth where “liberty” (individual freedom) is prized slightly higher than equality. In the USA, it’s very clear, every single day, that the government derives its power from the people. The government serves the populace. In the USA, the ideal is that discomfort associated with change and growth is largely GOOD.
European countries are very different. People find themselves there — by and large — because they and their ancestors were born there. They come FROM there. They are OF that place. That place is THEIR place. The most ardent strivers mostly left, and the populace is decidedly less mobile. Life is less about competition and achievement and more about assuring a medium-to-high-quality existence for all. Systems and processes are designed to assure that change is controlled, monitored, and — mostly — prevented. There’s much more an attitude that the government holds power OVER the people. And they like it this way! Europeans like having a superordinate body whose job it is to make sure nobody gets out-of-line — too far ahead of anybody else. It gives them comfort to live in a more egalitarian, more mono-class society. There’s more of a focus on conformity to local norms. It’s less admired to “stick out”. In European countries, the discomfort associated with change and difference is largely considered to be BAD and to be avoided. The COMFORT that comes from conformity and similarity is highly prized.
OK, yes, I’m “painting with a broad brush” here. But I’ve lived in the USA, and I’ve lived now for extended periods of time in 4 different European countries. And I’ve found these sorts of broad differences to hold pretty much true.
So, yeah, one of these cultural models may suit YOU, individually, more or less than the other. And, of course, it’s actually a spectrum, with extremes and middles. But that doesn’t make one or the other good or bad, in any absolute sense. So choose!
When we find ourselves in the situation where our Reality does not match our Vision (ie. where you have described yourself being), we have 3 choices:
Change Reality: make a change in our real world that causes Reality to conform more to our Vision.
Change our Vision: learn and adopt a new perspective that allows us to be content and happy with the Reality we have.
Suffer: if we decide to live perpetually in a Reality that does not conform to our Vision, we have chosen to suffer.
The choice is yours!

嗯，我是一个长期生活在欧洲的美国人。别紧张。情况确实不同，但我不会说生活总体上“更好”。
这取决于你是什么样的人，你处于人生的哪个阶段，以及你重视什么样的事物。
正如柯立芝总统的名言：“美国的正经事就是做生意。”
这可以说是一切的根源。美国与其他国家不同：它与其说是一个地方，不如说是一种理念。
人们从四面八方涌来，为的是追求更好的生活。所以从统计学的角度来看，美国人口是一个“筛选样本”。它不是随机的。你拥有奋斗者的后代。所以竞争更激烈。这改变了一切。在美国，胜败更多。创造更多。规则更少。改变更容易。在美国，即使是制度和流程，也是为了适应和促进变革而设计的。美国人流动性很大。在自由与平等永无休止的拉锯战中，美国是地球上极少数将“自由”（个人自由）置于平等之上的国家之一。在美国，政府的权力源于人民，这一点显而易见，日复一日。政府服务于民众。在美国，理想是与变革和发展相关的，变革带来的不适感在很大程度上是好事。
欧洲国家则截然不同。人们之所以会在那里——总体而言——是因为他们和他们的祖先在那里出生。他们来自那里。他们属于那里。那里是他们的家园。最热忱的奋斗者大多离开了，而民众的流动性明显较小。生活不再关乎竞争和成就，而更多地关乎确保所有人都过上中高品质的生活。系统和流程的设计旨在确保变革得到控制、监控，并且——大多数情况下——得到预防。人们更多地认为政府掌握着凌驾于人民之上的权力。而且他们喜欢这种状态！欧洲人喜欢有一个上级机构，其职责是确保没有人越界——超越其他人太多。这让他们可以安心地生活在一个更加平等、阶级更加单一的社会中。他们更注重遵守当地规范。“与众不同”则不太被受推崇。在欧洲国家，变革和差异带来的不适感通常被认为是不好的，应该避免。而由一致性和相似性带来的舒适感则备受推崇。
好吧，是的，我在这里“泛泛而谈”。但我在美国生活过，现在又在四个不同的欧洲国家生活了很长时间。我发现这些广泛的差异几乎是真实存在的。
所以，是的，这些文化模式中的一种可能更适合你个人，也可能比另一种更不适合你。当然，它实际上是一个光谱，有极端也有中间。但这并不能绝对地决定其中一种或另一种的好坏。所以，选择吧！
当我们发现自己的现实与愿景不符时（即你所描述的自我现状），我们有三个选择：
1、改变现实：改变我们的现实世界，使现实更符合我们的愿景。
2、改变我们的愿景：学习并接受一种新的视角，让我们对现有的现实感到满足和快乐。
3、承受痛苦：如果我们决定永远生活在与愿景不符的现实中，我们就必须选择承受痛苦。
选择权在你手中！


Pat Brown
It all depends on who you are, where you live, and what you want. I lived in Denmark for six months at age 23 and hated it. Hated the cold, the dark, the bland expensive food, the dreadful bland pastries. I found it was a very racist country at the time (in 1976) and I got along better with my Kenyan, Turkish, and British friends than with Danes.
Having said that, this was just MY perspective at that point in time in my life. I also disliked Paris when I traveled through there and quite liked it three years ago when I went to visit again. I don’t know what living there would be like but I loved the look of the city, the walking avenues, the cafes, the food, the wine, the bread, the cheese, the coffee…..
Every experience is different depending on so many circumstances. Are you married or single? Do you like the country or the city? Can you work or are you retiring? Does the place have your kind of food or weather?
For myself, at 65, I have found three places that might work for me outside of the state I live in in the US. Hawai’i because I love the weather and the laid back atmosphere, the culture, and the ability to have beach, mountains, and every sort of landscape within an island or just a hop over to the next one. If I moved, I would not buy a home, but likely just rent a room or part of a home. I don’t need much. I would have to see if actually living there would work or not.
Mexico is another choice. I have been there many times and I like the cities and towns. I would have to figure out exactly what would be best for me. I prefer a non tourist area. I like the warm weather spots, the friendly people, the fresh vegetables and fruit and I could do okay although I am not sure the culture really fits me although I enjoy aspects of it.
My top choice is India. I doubt this would have worked for me in my younger years but in retirement, it might be a good choice. I can find a place to rent very cheaply (I don’t need fancy amenities), food is cheap, and transport is cheap. I could live very well on social security alone. I love the culture - the clothes, the music, the movies, the way people do pretty much everything in groups, and the respect I get as a senior citizen (I like being called “Madam” and not “Honey.”) I have found one city which seems to fit my requirements for living there; Indore. It is warm enough, people speak Hindi which I am studying, they have pickle ball and table tennis - two sports I love, and a school for the Deaf I could work or volunteer at for something to do. If I move there, will I like it? I have no idea. Visiting and living somewhere are two different issues. Sometimes visiting is fine, but living is not so good, and sometimes visiting is too short a time, a living there changes everything.
You will simply have to test a place out and see how it goes.
Having said that, don’t believe the hype that living in Europe is so much better than living in the US. The US is a pretty fine place to live and Europe is not a paradise. Each has its positives and negatives, again, depending on circumstances. Don’t feel you are necessarily missing something, but there is nothing wrong either with checking it out.

这完全取决于你是谁，你住在哪里，以及你想要什么。
我23岁时在丹麦住了六个月，我讨厌那里。讨厌那里的寒冷、黑暗、乏味昂贵的食物，以及难吃又乏味的糕点。我发现当时（1976年），丹麦是一个非常种族歧视的国家，我和肯尼亚、土耳其和英国朋友相处得比和丹麦朋友好。
话虽如此，这只是我当时人生中的看法。我以前路过巴黎时也不喜欢那里，但三年前我再次去巴黎时却很喜欢。我不知道在那里生活会是什么样子，但我喜欢这座城市的风貌、步行街、咖啡馆、美食、美酒、面包、奶酪、咖啡……
每一次经历都会因各种因素而有所不同。
你是已婚还是单身？你喜欢这个国家还是这座城市？你能工作吗？还是已经退休了？那里有你喜欢的食物或气候吗？
就我本人而言，今年65岁，除了我在美国居住的州之外，我找到了三个可能适合我的地方。
夏威夷，因为我喜欢那里的气候、悠闲的氛围、文化，以及拥有沙滩、山脉和各种岛屿景观，有需要的时候，可以轻松前往下一个岛屿。如果我搬家，我不会买房，很可能只是租一个房间或部分房屋。我不需要太多。我得看看在那里生活是否合适。
墨西哥是另一个选择。我去过那里很多次，喜欢那里的城市和城镇。我必须弄清楚什么最适合我。我更喜欢非旅游区。我喜欢那里温暖的气候、友好的人民、新鲜的蔬菜和水果，虽然我不确定那里的文化是否真的适合我，但我还是可以接受的，因为我喜欢那里的某些方面。
我的首选是印度。年轻的时候，我怀疑并不适合我。但退休后，这可能是一个不错的选择。我可以找到非常便宜的租房（我不需要豪华的设施），食物和交通都很便宜。仅靠社会保障金，我就能过得很好。我喜欢那里的文化——服饰、音乐、电影、人们几乎做什么事都喜欢聚在一起，以及我作为老年人所受到的尊重（我喜欢被称为“夫人”而不是“亲爱的”）。我找到了一个似乎符合我居住要求的城市：印多尔。那里气候温暖，我正在学习的印地语，他们有匹克球和乒乓球——这两项运动我都很喜欢，还有一所聋哑学校，我可以在那里工作或做志愿者。如果我搬到那里，我会喜欢吗？我不知道。参观和居住是两码事。有时候参观还不错，但居住并不那么好，有时候参观的时间太短，在那里居住会改变一切看法。
你需要去一个地方体验一下，看看情况如何。
话虽如此，也别轻信那些“在欧洲生活比在美国好太多”的宣传。美国确实是一个相当不错的居住地，而欧洲也并非天堂。两者各有优缺点，同样，要视具体情况而定。不必担心自己错过了什么，但去看看也无妨。

Colin Riegels
It sounds like you may have unrealistic ideals about what ‘life in Europe’ is like. Don’t get me wrong - I live in Europe and I am very fond of it. But Europe is not some kind of giant Disneyland. There are nice bits, but there are also plenty of not-so-nice bits (much like America - it’s a big place). The key - in either place - is to get your self in a situation that makes you happy and where you can enjoy the things in life that matter to you.

听起来你可能对“欧洲生活”抱有不切实际的理想。别误会——我就住在欧洲，而且我非常喜欢这里。但欧洲并非什么巨型迪士尼乐园。那里有美好的事物，但也有很多不那么美好的地方（就像美国一样——它很大）。无论在哪里，关键在于让自己处于一个让你快乐的环境，让你能够享受生活中那些对你来说重要的事情。

Mark Giraud
It all depends on what you want in life. If you want to get a job, learn an industry and eventually compete in the industry to build generational wealth, you can’t beat the USA. I am not even sure if that can be done in Europe.
If you are less focused on financial achievement and just want good food and more recreation, Europe is better. Germany has the best healthcare in the world. It’s not free, but it’s cheaper than in the US. The free healthcare in other European countries has drawbacks. If you like going to the hospital for free France and Northern Italy are pretty good. You can definitely eat a more healthy diet more affordability in most European countries. You can really live cheap in a country like Albania. America has become very expensive.
It’s much easier in European countries to shut everyone and everything down. Public transportation can go on strike and the economy can just stop. The US government has a harder time shutting us down especially in Texas and Florida. The employee gets a better deal in Europe. The Employer gets a better deal in the US. The US will always have more businesses and therefore less unemployment.

这完全取决于你的人生目标。如果你想找到一份工作，学习一个行业，并最终在该行业中竞争，积累世代财富，那么没有地方可以打败美国。我甚至怀疑在欧洲是否能够做到这一点。
如果你不太注重财务成就，只想要美食和更多娱乐，欧洲更适合你。德国拥有世界上最好的医疗保健。它不是免费的，但比美国便宜。其他欧洲国家的免费医疗也有缺点。如果你喜欢免费去医院，法国和意大利北部地区就很不错。在大多数欧洲国家，你绝对可以吃得更健康、更实惠。在阿尔巴尼亚这样的国家，你真的可以生活得很便宜。而美国的生活成本已经变得非常高昂。
在欧洲国家，关闭所有设施要容易得多。公共交通可以罢工，经济也可以停滞。美国政府很难让我们停摆，尤其是在德克萨斯州和佛罗里达州。在欧洲，员工的待遇更好。在美国，雇主的待遇更好。美国的企业数量将永远更多，失业率也将更低。