Your channel's content continually gets better and better. I believe this is a tangible reflection on your commitment for self growth. This is inspiring to see and look forward to your future videos.
I really liked the comment on temperature. I live in Saskatchewan, Canada, with winter temperatures in the -30C to -40C range. A few weeks ago, I spent two weeks in Calabria, with temperatures of 5C to 12C. I was freezing cold and chilled to the bone there. It was crazy. The leather jacket that I wear down to -5C was useless at +8C. Here at +5C, students at the university run around in shorts and sandals. The difference between a dry cold and a damp cold.
how on earth? I live in italy and 10-15C is perfect weather to me. Yes it is damp cold and feels colder yet it is still warmer to me than -5C in germany or scandinavia. I would never change this weather in italy to any other climate.
I grew up in Italy and TOTALLY AGREE life is the same the world around!!! You are wise and adaptable, the best qualities for happiness in life. great video. ❤
Thank you for the advice. It's great that content creators like you try to give the realities of life abroad. There are way too many expat/travel channels focusing on rainbows and fairytales!
Brava! Well said, and great reflections. All very true and thought provoking. Thank you. I agree wholeheartedly and have been here for around the same amount of time, in Calabria. Different circumstances brought me here, but I can thoroughly relate.
A lot of maturity and depth in this video. As a single older woman I really appreciated it xo. I really like hearing about the negatives you encountered and how you dealt with it. Different to most of these “I moved to x country” videos. I wish you the best, and all success, but it looks like you have the tenacity to make difficult situations work 🙂
Thanks for your point of view, which is always helpful. Is there any chance you can do a video on utilities monthly costs and any other costs that people considering a move should be aware of. Thank you 😊
really depends where right? South tends to be cheaper than North, yet also depends you wanna live in a city or you are happy in a small town/village. What is your work situation? If you can work from home as i do, you can live anywhere. Smaller towns are much nicer and cheaper but definitely you need to have a car. To me best thing worked that moved to a smaller town but 40min drive to a major city. Life is beautiful/peaceful here yet can go to the city if I need something or just wanna do some city stuff (museums, opera, entertainment..)
Once again , very well said ; oddly enough I do live in the wild west of canada , which in many ways sounds alot like living in southern italy. Maybe that's why i prefer central italy , where people are normal , happy and the streets are paved with pasta !
Great advice. Hopefully others will listen to you and take on board your lessons learnt and save themselves going through them themselves. I am an Australian born retiree who is fortunate to have Italian citizenship by descent (jure sanguinis). I was partially raised in the north, Veneto region, as a child but am now in Puglia and have been here for 3 month and can attest to your comment about the huge differences between the north and south. And yes, they may as well be different countries with neither being better than the other.
Thanks for the video, we are looking at South Italy to possibly live. I agree with you about not being bothered with other peoples opinion or remarks. We both have the same opinion that we just don't care what others "think" and will not put too much effort in these online expat sites. Look forward to more of your videos, gives us a lot of insight. We don't need jobs as my wife and I are retired. We are trying to find a slow paced town with good food to cook and eat out. We really like Lecce. We have lived in Sicily for a short term and love it there as well. Ciao
I just watched your video, ""What nobody tells you about living in Italy" and was really hoping you were still making content. So glad to see you are. I'm from the states and have never spent time in Italy but my grandmother's father was Italian (born in Italy) and I've always felt some kind of distant connection and have wanted to visit. I'm turning 38 this month and figure now is as good a time as any. Your video really gave me some perspective that I will keep in mind along my journey. Thank you for making real and genuine content!
I retired to Sicily in January 2018. Despite being fluent in Italian, I faced major challenges. How about, you cannot make a valid contract (to buy or rent property) without a codice fiscale (like a National Insurance Number). But to get a codice fiscale, you must demonstrate that you have a residential address. Catch 22 ahahaha 😂
Yes - there are many things here that feel like a riddle. That said though, I didn't have any problems getting my Codice Fiscale - in fact it was one of the fastest bits of bureaucracy I completed - I wonder why 🤣
Thank you for this video! I love your accent and the way you express yourself. You always make it so clear and understandable. These are the issues we often think but rarely discuss, in my opinion.
You are a deep thinking person. I can definitely relate and thank you for the good content. I never knew that different parts of Italy were so much different from each other. Do you have an opinion on Puglia verses Umbria? There seems to be quite a few expats in Puglia. You have a great day and smile! 👍🏻
Thank you! Unfortunately I don’t have any experience of those regions so I can’t really say! That said though, I’m sure there are other TH-camrs who live in those regions who can shed light on this for you.
I came from Portugal to Central Italy and I thought it would be an easy transition because the cultures are not so different, but it was still a challenge! Italy is a complicated country and there is so much to learn and understand!
i dont think you made a wrong choice moving to the south. It depends on your goals and purpose of course but the south is so much better. 1. where is the "south"? Rome? Napoli? Calabria? Puglia? Sicily? huge difference in all those regions all considered "south". 2. Language is a problem in the south for sure but it pushes you to learn and adjust quicker than in the north where you will be comfortable enough to keep english but still struggle because main things really dont work in english. 3. if you wanna rely your income based on italy then north is better. But if you can do your business/work/income outside of italy then south is better. You dont move to italy to WORK, you move to italy to LIVE. I feel lot of your frustration comes from working in italy and dealing with italians at work which is understandable. Italians stress a lot and they work a lot for small money. They are angry and they arent motivated (no wonder). On top of that of course they are not famous of being punctual or precise i.e.many qualities - we value north/west europe. It is all understood but surely cant be surprising. There are movies and stereotypes around it all over (real ones). As i say to anyone moveing to italy. "You dont live in italy because things work great, you live in italy despite of it..."-with other words, yeah system sucks but life is so great here, you bear it so you can be here. Great video though. I agree on everything. Dinner time is still 6-8Pm to me unless i need to eat out, but even then i do it latest by 7-8pm. I dont wanna eat late just because locals do. Problems and life is the same as anywhere else just as you said however, it makes a huge difference that i can take a walk in a beautiful beach in february or early march taking sun, watching the sunset and hearing the waves. Sure you can do it in Ireland too but makes a difference that it is cold, rainy most time of the year...and i can get in my car and see mountains within 30minutes if i want to, or a beautiful city with museums and enjoying great quality food. Not many countries can offer this besides Italy.
"Life is the same here" Well, It might be different for someone like me who is looking to retire, not work much accept for online, and who has been a loner for so long that friendships aren't a high priority. I don't see myself struggling with either of these. The language, on the other hand....
I retired to Sicily in January 2018. Yes, learning the language is an absolute priority - the locals like to address you in English, but it is very basic schoolchild English
Personally if I meet a foreigner who want help I will help him/her: using my little english, using Italian, using gestures. I dont care how, but I will help at last! (Excuse my english)
La prima cosa che suggerisco a chiunque si voglia trasferire in Italia, è di imparare l'italiano! Tutto il resto è secondario rispetto a questo fatto davvero essenziale.
As an expat, I have a similar experience (not ITA): LANGUAGE is most imporant thing, without this even as a pensioner you would feel like an alien all the time! Also, things are DIFFERENT, not "better" or "worse" and people have basically the same struggles everywhere. Within Europe, the contrast is even less, of course. Q: Claire, @MsBritaly, I think it's a taboo, but even with good language use and decent experience, one is likely to get rejected on the job market because he/she is simply not Italian... did you ever cover this topic before?
Well done video. Thanks for all the insights. You definitely have to have thick skin for folks who don't understand your dreams. Sadly, many are family or close friends. Everyone needs to have a more open mind to others perspectives and desires. Again, thanks for sharing.
Assuming you can be objective about yourself (I know it's difficult for people in general to do so), what are some (non-intrusive) ways you think you have changed, whether positively or negatively? For myself, even just living there for 6 months, I found I have become less tolerant of my fellow Americans (a negative trait), but I am far more understanding of the difficulties immigrants might face coming to the U.S. (a positive trait). I don't mean for the first part of that to seem like a dig. It isn't meant that way. I like your channel and always try to watch your content.
Actually she’s not very expectedly fluent. Her level is very very low. Her accent is still very British 🇬🇧. I believe everyone’s journey is different. I am learning Italian too. One day I feel like I have made progress the next day every word has flown through the window and I start all over 😆😆🥹🤔.
Hi there! My name is Domenico and I'm from the South of Italy. I really enjoy your videos. I have a channel as well where I talk about my life in Dublin. I would love to interview an expat living in Italy just like you! Would you be interested?
I really WANT to like your channel as I will move to Italy but YOU OFTEN SEEM RATHER NEGATIVE about Italy....just a comment I'm a TH-camr too 29k subs and your channel would grow faster if you did talk more about the positives of Italy- as that is what folks MOSTLY want to watch. Think about it- who watches videos about Italy?? Folks who love it, or are fascinated by the country. Also a bit more b-roll meaning images, clips of the country not just you talking to us. Please don't take this as being mean. Just my personal feeling and being a TH-camr too....I see what folks like in popular channels.
Thanks for taking the time to leave your thoughts and opinions. I’m happy with the growth and direction of my channel because I’m real about life here - the good and the bad - and my audience appreciate this. Just to say not everyone is interested in the sugar coated image of Italy - some of my most popular videos have been when I’ve been sharing the other side to life here. Point to note - 7 reasons not to visit Sicily far out-performed 7 reasons to visit Sicily. I will grow in the time right for me - TH-cam is a marathon not a sprint. Love and light ❤️
Your channel's content continually gets better and better. I believe this is a tangible reflection on your commitment for self growth. This is inspiring to see and look forward to your future videos.
Thank you so much!
I really liked the comment on temperature. I live in Saskatchewan, Canada, with winter temperatures in the -30C to -40C range. A few weeks ago, I spent two weeks in Calabria, with temperatures of 5C to 12C. I was freezing cold and chilled to the bone there. It was crazy. The leather jacket that I wear down to -5C was useless at +8C. Here at +5C, students at the university run around in shorts and sandals. The difference between a dry cold and a damp cold.
how on earth? I live in italy and 10-15C is perfect weather to me. Yes it is damp cold and feels colder yet it is still warmer to me than -5C in germany or scandinavia.
I would never change this weather in italy to any other climate.
Yes - the humidity makes a big difference!
I grew up in Italy and TOTALLY AGREE life is the same the world around!!! You are wise and adaptable, the best qualities for happiness in life. great video. ❤
Thank you!
Thank you for the advice. It's great that content creators like you try to give the realities of life abroad. There are way too many expat/travel channels focusing on rainbows and fairytales!
Thank you so much - I’m really happy that you appreciate it!
Brava! Well said, and great reflections. All very true and thought provoking. Thank you. I agree wholeheartedly and have been here for around the same amount of time, in Calabria. Different circumstances brought me here, but I can thoroughly relate.
Thank you!
A lot of maturity and depth in this video. As a single older woman I really appreciated it xo. I really like hearing about the negatives you encountered and how you dealt with it. Different to most of these “I moved to x country” videos.
I wish you the best, and all success, but it looks like you have the tenacity to make difficult situations work 🙂
Thank you so much!
Thanks for your point of view, which is always helpful. Is there any chance you can do a video on utilities monthly costs and any other costs that people considering a move should be aware of. Thank you 😊
Also interested in this and thank you
really depends where right? South tends to be cheaper than North, yet also depends you wanna live in a city or you are happy in a small town/village. What is your work situation? If you can work from home as i do, you can live anywhere. Smaller towns are much nicer and cheaper but definitely you need to have a car.
To me best thing worked that moved to a smaller town but 40min drive to a major city. Life is beautiful/peaceful here yet can go to the city if I need something or just wanna do some city stuff (museums, opera, entertainment..)
Great suggestion - I’ll add it to the list of future videos!
Once again , very well said ; oddly enough I do live in the wild west of canada , which in many ways sounds alot like living in southern italy. Maybe that's why i prefer central italy , where people are normal , happy and the streets are paved with pasta !
Ahahha maybe!
Great advice. Hopefully others will listen to you and take on board your lessons learnt and save themselves going through them themselves.
I am an Australian born retiree who is fortunate to have Italian citizenship by descent (jure sanguinis).
I was partially raised in the north, Veneto region, as a child but am now in Puglia and have been here for 3 month and can attest to your comment about the huge differences between the north and south.
And yes, they may as well be different countries with neither being better than the other.
Thank you. I hope I can help people to understand these differences because it’s not easy sometimes to recognize this, until you start living here.
Thanks for the video, we are looking at South Italy to possibly live. I agree with you about not being bothered with other peoples opinion or remarks. We both have the same opinion that we just don't care what others "think" and will not put too much effort in these online expat sites. Look forward to more of your videos, gives us a lot of insight. We don't need jobs as my wife and I are retired. We are trying to find a slow paced town with good food to cook and eat out. We really like Lecce. We have lived in Sicily for a short term and love it there as well. Ciao
I just watched your video, ""What nobody tells you about living in Italy" and was really hoping you were still making content. So glad to see you are. I'm from the states and have never spent time in Italy but my grandmother's father was Italian (born in Italy) and I've always felt some kind of distant connection and have wanted to visit. I'm turning 38 this month and figure now is as good a time as any. Your video really gave me some perspective that I will keep in mind along my journey. Thank you for making real and genuine content!
Thank you and I hope you get to visit!
I retired to Sicily in January 2018. Despite being fluent in Italian, I faced major challenges. How about, you cannot make a valid contract (to buy or rent property) without a codice fiscale (like a National Insurance Number). But to get a codice fiscale, you must demonstrate that you have a residential address. Catch 22 ahahaha 😂
Yes - there are many things here that feel like a riddle. That said though, I didn't have any problems getting my Codice Fiscale - in fact it was one of the fastest bits of bureaucracy I completed - I wonder why 🤣
Thank you for this video! I love your accent and the way you express yourself. You always make it so clear and understandable. These are the issues we often think but rarely discuss, in my opinion.
Thank you!
You are a deep thinking person. I can definitely relate and thank you for the good content. I never knew that different parts of Italy were so much different from each other. Do you have an opinion on Puglia verses Umbria? There seems to be quite a few expats in Puglia. You have a great day and smile! 👍🏻
I think she has 1 of the most greatest channels! Honesty, info galore, & is a lovely lady! 🍓💝
Thank you! Unfortunately I don’t have any experience of those regions so I can’t really say! That said though, I’m sure there are other TH-camrs who live in those regions who can shed light on this for you.
I came from Portugal to Central Italy and I thought it would be an easy transition because the cultures are not so different, but it was still a challenge! Italy is a complicated country and there is so much to learn and understand!
Yes - indeed!
i dont think you made a wrong choice moving to the south. It depends on your goals and purpose of course but the south is so much better.
1. where is the "south"? Rome? Napoli? Calabria? Puglia? Sicily? huge difference in all those regions all considered "south".
2. Language is a problem in the south for sure but it pushes you to learn and adjust quicker than in the north where you will be comfortable enough to keep english but still struggle because main things really dont work in english.
3. if you wanna rely your income based on italy then north is better. But if you can do your business/work/income outside of italy then south is better. You dont move to italy to WORK, you move to italy to LIVE.
I feel lot of your frustration comes from working in italy and dealing with italians at work which is understandable.
Italians stress a lot and they work a lot for small money. They are angry and they arent motivated (no wonder). On top of that of course they are not famous of being punctual or precise i.e.many qualities - we value north/west europe. It is all understood but surely cant be surprising. There are movies and stereotypes around it all over (real ones).
As i say to anyone moveing to italy. "You dont live in italy because things work great, you live in italy despite of it..."-with other words, yeah system sucks but life is so great here, you bear it so you can be here.
Great video though. I agree on everything. Dinner time is still 6-8Pm to me unless i need to eat out, but even then i do it latest by 7-8pm. I dont wanna eat late just because locals do.
Problems and life is the same as anywhere else just as you said however, it makes a huge difference that i can take a walk in a beautiful beach in february or early march taking sun, watching the sunset and hearing the waves. Sure you can do it in Ireland too but makes a difference that it is cold, rainy most time of the year...and i can get in my car and see mountains within 30minutes if i want to, or a beautiful city with museums and enjoying great quality food. Not many countries can offer this besides Italy.
Some very true reflections!
"Life is the same here" Well, It might be different for someone like me who is looking to retire, not work much accept for online, and who has been a loner for so long that friendships aren't a high priority. I don't see myself struggling with either of these. The language, on the other hand....
Ahaha yes the language….that will be a continual journey
I retired to Sicily in January 2018. Yes, learning the language is an absolute priority - the locals like to address you in English, but it is very basic schoolchild English
Personally if I meet a foreigner who want help I will help him/her: using my little english, using Italian, using gestures. I dont care how, but I will help at last! (Excuse my english)
That’s a beautiful thing!
@@MsBritaly 😊
Thanks for sharing.
You’re welcome!
La prima cosa che suggerisco a chiunque si voglia trasferire in Italia, è di imparare l'italiano!
Tutto il resto è secondario rispetto a questo fatto davvero essenziale.
Si. È importante
Great video !
Thank you!
Good asvice...font stress about the opinions of others...very Stoic😊( control what you can control, the rest, just leave)
Absolutely!
As an expat, I have a similar experience (not ITA): LANGUAGE is most imporant thing, without this even as a pensioner you would feel like an alien all the time! Also, things are DIFFERENT, not "better" or "worse" and people have basically the same struggles everywhere. Within Europe, the contrast is even less, of course.
Q: Claire, @MsBritaly, I think it's a taboo, but even with good language use and decent experience, one is likely to get rejected on the job market because he/she is simply not Italian... did you ever cover this topic before?
It’s a good topic and one I haven’t covered before- I’ll add it to the list of future videos
Well done video. Thanks for all the insights. You definitely have to have thick skin for folks who don't understand your dreams.
Sadly, many are family or close friends. Everyone needs to have a more open mind to others perspectives and desires.
Again, thanks for sharing.
Thank you!
I think everyone should leave their home country for a while… amplifying perspectives.
Yes!
Assuming you can be objective about yourself (I know it's difficult for people in general to do so), what are some (non-intrusive) ways you think you have changed, whether positively or negatively? For myself, even just living there for 6 months, I found I have become less tolerant of my fellow Americans (a negative trait), but I am far more understanding of the difficulties immigrants might face coming to the U.S. (a positive trait).
I don't mean for the first part of that to seem like a dig. It isn't meant that way. I like your channel and always try to watch your content.
It’s a good question - I think for a future video.
Are you living in Southern Italy or Sicily? Big difference
I love that you don't sugar-coat the life in Italy. 💚
Ah thank you!
What were your expectations and what was your reality after living in Italy?
A great question - a future video for sure!
Beautiful accent you have! 💝
Thank you!
I met an English lady in Florence married to an Italian for 30 years. She doesn’t speak ITALIAN 😊
Wow - suddenly I don’t feel so bad about my progress 🤣
Actually she’s not very expectedly fluent. Her level is very very low. Her accent is still very British 🇬🇧. I believe everyone’s journey is different. I am learning Italian too. One day I feel like I have made progress the next day every word has flown through the window and I start all over 😆😆🥹🤔.
Hi there! My name is Domenico and I'm from the South of Italy. I really enjoy your videos. I have a channel as well where I talk about my life in Dublin. I would love to interview an expat living in Italy just like you! Would you be interested?
Sure. Send me an email and we can talk about it. ciao@msbritaly.com
I really WANT to like your channel as I will move to Italy but YOU OFTEN SEEM RATHER NEGATIVE about Italy....just a comment I'm a TH-camr too 29k subs and your channel would grow faster if you did talk more about the positives of Italy- as that is what folks MOSTLY want to watch. Think about it- who watches videos about Italy?? Folks who love it, or are fascinated by the country. Also a bit more b-roll meaning images, clips of the country not just you talking to us.
Please don't take this as being mean. Just my personal feeling and being a TH-camr too....I see what folks like in popular channels.
Thanks for taking the time to leave your thoughts and opinions. I’m happy with the growth and direction of my channel because I’m real about life here - the good and the bad - and my audience appreciate this. Just to say not everyone is interested in the sugar coated image of Italy - some of my most popular videos have been when I’ve been sharing the other side to life here. Point to note - 7 reasons not to visit Sicily far out-performed 7 reasons to visit Sicily. I will grow in the time right for me - TH-cam is a marathon not a sprint. Love and light ❤️