½ûÂþÌìÌÃ

In my own case am coming into Italy from Malaysia. I just got opportunity to be in Italy through the Erasmus student mobility program by 1st March 2022. This is my first time in Italy. I will be spending a semester as part of my phD reserach in POLITO before going back.Ìý From what I see online phD students in POLITO are much younger & already getting accomodation near POLITO area is is a herculean task. There's no age limit in pursuing progress in life except the one imposed by self. However, it is better to face challenges early when one is younger so that the benefits also will come early.

I moved to Italy after retirement. I was in my 60s. I am here with my wife on a residenza elettiva, or elective residency visa. This visa does not permit working in Italy.

If you are job hunting in Europe, there are likely better places to find jobs than Italy with a few exceptions such as nursing or medical professionals.

I moved to Italy 3 years ago at age 64 after I retired.Ìý I came with dogs, not with people.Ìý I had been thinking about it for several years and actively planning for about 5 yrs.Ìý It took a while because I had to wait for the Italian government to officially recognize my Italian citizenship.Ìý I had about a year in Italy, then while I was traveling and visiting Vienna, COVID arrived, I got sick and ended up staying in Austria for about a year and 8 months.Ìý ÌýI'm back in Italy now and planning to move to Portugal next.

I moved to Italy, actually to Europe, to explore, to meet different kinds of people, to experience different cultures, to learn some different languages and to challenge myself in various ways.Ìý It's been difficult.Ìý I didn't plan for a pandemic and the isolation and restrictions that came with that.Ìý But it has been an adventure, just not the one I thought I was going to have.

I have certainly changed.Ìý I now see things through a different lens, one that is no longer 100% American.Ìý That was one of my goals.Ìý I also have a better understanding of how culture shapes and is shaped by people.Ìý There are things about Italy specifically, and Europe in general, that really aggravate me and seem incomprehensible to me.Ìý There are also things about America that really aggravate me now, too.Ìý I also have a better understanding of the kind of place/environment that America grew out of, and how difficult it is to change those influences, even after several centuries.

I'm not sure I'll go back to the US.Ìý I'm pretty exhausted, and with the threat of another world war looming as Putin threatens the West with his nuclear arsenal, I think there will be no safety anywhere.Ìý Whatever happens will happen.Ìý I came to change myself, not the world.

Maryann , what was your biggest challenge aside from the pandemia, which as we all know , was challenging enoughÌý

@maryann20ÌýHow have you found it travelling with dogs. I have a dog, love him to bits but Im conflicted. I dont want to leave him for a year or 2 but I'm not sure I should bring him. Its a 25 - 30 hour flight from where I am and he's happy here and living in a flat in Italy would be a lot more restrictve for him (he loves his outdoors)Ìý so I really dont know whats best. Im also in my 60s and feel that this is my last chance to live abroad again.Ìý Ìý Ìý

@maryann20Ìý

HI, I find you perspective veryÌý interesting, and similar to mine. I am a 61 years oldÌý Italian, now living in Italy, after many years abroad, including 5 years in the USA.Ìý If you want to have an exchange of views, you are welcome.

Regards

@CherylÌýhello ,I can find job in Italia ?

I am farmer doing is farming