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Anonymous
This picture.

I'm 20 and an American. It is my eventual goal in life, /trv/, to live in a village like this for a while. The one pictured is Hallstatt in Austria, and is pretty ideal, but not necessarily the one I'll go with. My question to you, /trv/, is this: what do I need to do to live somewhere like this? Is there a certain type of job Americans can get that has outlets in villages, that you know of? I thought about the UN, but if I worked for them I'm sure I'd only be able to get a job in a bigger city. halp pls?
>> Anonymous
>>47198
well for one, if you plan on living in a small village, you better damn well speak the native language fluently without a major accent or you will have an extremely tough time fitting in.

larger cities might be more tolerant of this but you can easily become a total outsider if you cant speak the language like the locals expect you to, not to mention have proper knowledge of the culture.

In terms of what jobs might permit you to stay in a town like that, Im not entirely certain, but I do know that you could try teaching english if there isnt already some established institution. Private tutoring can pay fairly well. If there is an institution there already, try getting employed by them. Except if you are aiming for Europe you will probably need a TESL certification at the absolute least (in addition to a university degree) because every north american worth their shit has one and you wont get hired unless its eastern europe or something.
>> Anonymous
>>47202

Yeah, I've looked at TESL, and I plan on getting a degree regardless. Teaching English wouldn't be terrible. I've heard a decent number of people in Europe seek foreigners to be nanny/tutors, is that at all likely in a small village?
>> Anonymous
>>47203
>I've heard a decent number of people in Europe seek foreigners to be nanny/tutors
by foreigners they mean the Polish

Female Polish immigrants with low skills become housekeepers/nannies, males become construction workers, if they have some skills, especially when it comes to education then they become tutors but its fairly rare

the only tutor you would have any chance at becoming would be for english and besides, only the more well of are able to hire private tutors

in a small village your best bet is to get hired by a private english institution or if you think you can manage it, teach english privately. If you manage to get and keep enough students, you could make enough money to live comfortably, so long as you spend realistically.
>> Anonymous
>>47198
If you don't look European (read:White), forget it. Small European villages want nothing to do with you. This sentiment increases exponentially the further away from England you get.
>> Anonymous
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>>47217
>>If you don't look European (read:White), forget it.

But every village needs at least one moyl!
>> Anonymous
>>47223
k, I lol'd
>> Anonymous
OP, ignore what 47202 and 47217.
As far as living in a small village like that, its really up to luck and how bad you want it. There are plenty of things you can do to make it work. Yes, it helps when you speak the language fluently....... DURRRRR.... But it is not so important, nor is your accent. These are obviously people (47202 and 47217) who either know nothing of what they speak, or had a bad experience in a village while being a tourist. I lived in two small villages in Germany, both for about two years. Both of them were in Baden Weurtemberg Germany, and if you know anything about the germans, the germans from that area, (Schwebisch) are notorious for being weird and stand off-ish with visitors and tourists. The people there were VERY tollerant while I was learning german, loved my accent, and in both villages, I was warmly welcomed into the community. As far as how I got there and worked, well I worked for the US Army on an Army base. There are tonnes of jobs you can get with NAF or AAFES. (then you dont have to pay the outlandish european gas prices.) And then I would drive about 40km to and from work. It's totally possible and with some work and luck, easy to do in certain areas.
>> Anonymous
>>47204
Where I live Polish are everywhere (no I don't live in Poland). They work at cash registers, construction, or as something really basic requiring minimal linguistic skills. They always buy the cheapest most disgusting meats at stores and drink heavily.
>> Anonymous
>>47255
The US military closed down most of the bases in Germany. Just Hanau, Rammstien, Holensfels/Graf.

Those jobs take veterans and military dependants as a priority, and there is less of them available now and they are fairly low-paying shitjobs on top of that.

Anyways, you might have a tough time getting citizenship there, most of thee countries have reciprocal laws reguarding naturalzing, meaning as an American its going to be as tough as a German trying go get American citizenship.

Your going to need a profession or a skill thats in demand there before you even try. Your going to need a degree in something. Also, keep in mind Germany has a huge surplus of skilled workers and professionals looking for jobs, and competition is going to be pretty feirce from the locals in just about any feild.

As for being and English teacher? They have plenty of English people to do that, and judging how nearly every German in the country speaks excellent english, I can't say that job is in huge demand.

Also, alot of degrees don't translate perfectly into their education system. A few medical professions, for example.

Also, OP, why the hell do you want to live in some little village in Europe anyways
>> Anonymous
Don't forget how American English isn't real English.
>> Anonymous
>>47198
>what do I need to do to live somewhere like this?
Be obscenely wealthy. It's the only way.
>> Anonymous
yeah, umm... 47259 is grossly misinformed. A lot of bases have closed, but there are still many in Germany. Try looking it up before you offer any information. lol
in addition to Rammstien and Graf, there's Panzer, Patch, Kelley, Robbinson Barracks, Bremerhaven, Einsiedlerhof, Kaiserslautern,Heidelberg, Berchtesgaden, Oberammergau, Pfullendorf, Munic, Potsdam ect, ect, ect....
Yeah there are some shit jobs. Flipping burgers, etc. But as anyone who has moved through the system will tell you, sometimes you take the shit ones to get in the system, then its easier to get the good ones while your in the system. I was a teacher for two years and them moved on to being a building and operations manager. Yeah. there are some shit jobs... but then there are teaching jobs, IT jobs, Marketing jobs, PR jobs.... the last four I mentioned are all jobs that I would see listed as open in all kinds of places around Germany. And yes, they do give prefrence to spouses, vets, etc.... but ONLY if they are as qualified as a regular civilian. 99% of the time, that kind of people never apply. Most army wives are more interested in shitting out the next army brat, widening their fat ass in front of the tv, or shopping at the BX/PX. Getting a good job on a military base is not hard. It just takes some time to jump through the hoops.
>> Anonymous
>>47198
I have to say that town looks stunning. Only in Europe can you find this combination of amazing scenery and architecture.
>> Anonymous
>>47290
I should say "schedualed" to close. Its part of the reorganization of the Army/ spiteing the Germans.

They only plan on keeping Rammstien, Holensfels/Grafenwher and two of the larger bases. They are only keep one Stryker unit and a handful of support units.

I don't think they have changed their base closures schedule, most of the bases in Germany are due to close, and I would'nt rely on getting a job there when there is massive base closures and alot of former employees vying for what might still be available.

Besides, none of those bases are really near places like OP's picture. Medium sized, unremarkable towns filled with bars and drunken military guys everywhere if memory serves me.
>> Anonymous
>>47296
I agree that the towns these places are IN are like that. but who the fuck cares where your working? Commute. And seriously.... yer information is .... well, wrong. There are lots of places. Do you think Stuttgart's going anywhere? C'mon, It has one base that hosts European command and and another with African command. And there are a couple.... COUPLE that are schedualed for closure. I was just there.... two weeks ago. There may not be as many there back when you were came back from 'Nam, but there are many still there, and many.... especially in the southwest are not going anywhere. there's also quite a few in the surrounding countries too, if thats more to your liking, OP. Belgium, netherlands, luxemburg. do some research. you may find a place that you like. It could get you in the area, working, learning the culture and the language, ect.
>> Anonymous
OMG, please don't move to a small village in Austria. I know what I'm talking about. I'm Austrian myself and people in villages as small as Hallstatt are fucking stupid! And there's nothing. Hardly any shops, no clubs, nothing!
If you really want to move in such a small village, I'd recommend you to chose one which has a bigger city nearby, as you'll need it.

And it's necessary to speak the native language. For Austria: even if your German is perfect, you won't understand people as they speak a fucking stupid slang nobody can understand...

Good luck, though!
>> Anonymous
There is village like that in every european country
depends of what languages do you speak (english only I think..) also little villages are often full of old people who don't even know a word of english, no jobs, no shops, nothing to do

cool to live here during 1 week but after it's a torture
>> Anonymous
>>47198
Well, OP, there are places like your pic in America, and you can't afford to live there either.
>> Anonymous
in my case, how hard is for a half east-asian to fit in austria, germany and switzerland???
>> Anonymous
Become a well-respected composer and you can live just about anywhere in Europe.
>> Anonymous
>>47435
"There is village like that in every european country"
wat
>> Anonymous
>>47449
Theres Asians all over the place in Europe... kinda like most places in the world.
>> Anonymous
>>47259
>As for being and English teacher? They have plenty of English people to do that, and judging how nearly every German in the country speaks excellent english, I can't say that job is in huge demand.
>judging how nearly every German in the country speaks excellent english,
>every German
>speaks excellent english

Stop fucking lying Nazi-fag. I lived in Germany as an exchange student for 6 months and only 2 to 3 out of 10 Krauts I met speak English in an acceptable level. I wouldn't make it out alive if I didn't master basic conversational German.
>> Anonymous
>>47466
Dunno what part of Germany you were in, but I'd say 2/3rds of them speak passable english, excepting the older people and rural people and other uneducated Germans, they all speak enough english to get across.

Every single Polizi officer spoke English, and every tool working at the Bahhof spoke english too. You might be mistaking the Germans for Turks or Eastern europeans or something.
>> Anonymous
>>47476
>excepting the older people and rural people and other uneducated Germans

which makes %70 of German population.
>> Anonymous
I spent five years in the southwest. We're talking where IBM is, BMW, Porsche, VW, Audi, Mercedes, you name it. It's like the silicone valley and motor city all rolled into one. And maybe....MAYBE 30% of the people spoke some english, and of that 30, maybe 5% of them spoke it well enough to hold a conversation. Everyone says, "Oh yeah, dont worry, they all speak english." bullshit. I showed up there and realized right away, that if I was goig to live there, I better start learning quick. But most the krauts were pretty cool about it. they would help me and such. They basicly saw me as a forigner, sure, but in their mind it was always, "Well at least he isnt another stinking fucking turk" lmao
>> Anonymous
>>47500
About 30% of the German students attend a grammar school or an equal school. There shouldn't be problems if you can talk to one of them... most of the other 70% will only understand simple phrases.

On Topic: Hallstatt is a little boring town, crowded with tourists. The lake is freaking cold. I'd recomment Southern Tyrol, although you'll have problems with the language even If you're fluent in German. I'm Bavarian (with a strong accent) and even I have problems to understand them at some times... and it's not better in Northern Tyrol or the whole Austria either (maybe except Vienna). People from Northern Germany have big problems in understanding when passing the foothills of the alps.
>> Anonymous
> in my case, how hard is for a half east-asian to fit in austria, germany and switzerland???

I don't think it would be too hard. I mean, Austria has a lot of foreigners, so we're used to see people who look different. We only have problems with foreigners who refuse to learn German or work, but like taking money from the state.

If you're willing to fit in, then you won't have any problems. Of course there are some jerk, like in every country, but most young people are open and friendly!

The only real problem is that, especially in rural areas, people know little to know English. Now children start learning English in primary school, but many drop out of school when they're 15, so of course their English is terrible.
Officials, however, speak enough English to help you (even if their accent will be TERRIBLE!).
>> Anonymous
Just move to a small town in Canada it looks just like that without the european stuff
>> Anonymous
WHEREVER YOU GO DON'T BE THE AVERAGE ASSOLISH AMURIKKKAN AND LEARN THE FUCKING LANGUAGE FOR GOD'S SAKE.
>> Anonymous
>>47476
I guess you went to Berlin or another big city. Most Germans speak piss-poor English if any. Hell i discovered many of them tend to speak their regional dialect more often than German.
>> Anonymous
>>47600thanks for the tip, i thought that people in those countries are a little closed minded
>> Anonymous
>>47635

To be honest, it really depends. You said you were half East-Asian, so I highly doubt you'll have a lot of problems. We have a fair number of Chinese people and people from other East/South-Asian countries, and I personally felt that people were always very friendly with them. The typical stereotype is that people from countries like that are hard working and friendly, so you won't be confronted with the prejudices the stupid and uneducated people in Austria have against foreigners.

As for jobs you could get in such small villages... I don't really know. I've thought about it, but since I don't know what qualifications you have I probably won't be of any help.
A lot of school have, like in probably any other country in the world where English isn't the first language, English assistant teachers. However, in most of the really small villages in Austria, you'll only have a primary school if anything at all.

So I think it would really help to have a grasp of the German language before moving there (or Germany and Swiss). There are a lot of language courses for foreigners in Austria, but I think they're only available in bigger cities (whatever you want to call big in Austria... XD).

Hope I could help you a little bit!
>> Anonymous
>>47637

yeah it helped a lot, i was thinking of sudying abroad after i finish university and for curiosity i wanted to know how are the people in there
>> Anonymous
>>47644

I think your problem won't be the people, but the boredom you'll encounter in those small villages. I love nature and everything, but living in a town with 40 000 people can be very boring. It's probably nothing compared to what you're used to.

Btw, if you're interested, look up Grünau im Almtal. It's a little bit bigger than Hallstatt and it's really beautiful. It has a lake nearby as well, and the most beautiful zoo I've ever been to.
>> Anonymous
>>47647

>40 000

try again with a real village.

go for 500 - 1000 next time
>> Anonymous
>>47652

I never said that was a village! I just said that I live in a town with 40 000 people. If a town with 40 000 people is already boring as fuck, I don't want to imagine how boring a village with 900 people like Hallstatt has to be.
>> Anonymous
>>47476
It was motherfucking Köln, the 5th biggest city in Germany or so I've heard.

Mastering the language to an acceptable level is a must if you plan to move to Germany or Austria otherwise, it's very difficult to survive. I suggest attending classes by the Göethe Institute or something for at least 6 months or so.
>> Anonymous
This is probably a stupid question/comment, but how would you really establish yourself in a small village like that if you weren't born into it?

I mean, how would you get to know people, and whatnot. Just go to bars and talk to the few people that regular the place until you consider them friends?

It's not like there's as much options as in cities.

I'd love to do something similar myself, though.
>> Anonymous
>>47255

This guy is pretty much spot on, OP. Small towns in Europe are very very different culturally than a major metropolitan area, but you can easily fit in.

I spent about a year in Radeburg, Saxony. Originally I ended up there as a tourist. I shared pints of lager with a local whom spoke English. I stayed a bit and after many visits to a pub and having him introduce and interpret for me, the people warmed up to me very fast. Eventually I ended up with a job helping out on a farm. The owners didn't know a word of English, nor I German, but it was that which brought us together (we slowly taught each other minimal bits of the language). I made enough money to live there for a bit until going back home. Quite the adventure that was.

tl;dr: Small towns are okay if you play your cards right.
>> Anonymous
I'd suggest you look into living in europe a little more before deciding to move. Its a different culture, and culture shock can be a little weird there.

Germany also has some hard-ass laws there. You can't even have a camp fire anywhere in that country, and your not likely going to beable to afford to own a gun or anything either. You can get fined for spitting on the sidewalk, but its cool to take a piss on the wall if you have to.

On the positive side, you can drink in public, right there on the sidewalk and its legal.
>> Anonymous
>>47714
>You can't even have a camp fire anywhere in that country
i'm shure you can't camp fire on the times square, either
>and your not likely going to beable to afford to own a gun or anything either
..what is a good thing. but if you need a gun (no, you don't) get a gun licence and buy one
>You can get fined for spitting on the sidewalk
depends on the city.. normally not. but anyway.. just don't spit on the sidewalk when the police is around.
>but its cool to take a piss on the wall if you have to.
no it's not.. costs 25€.. just don't get caught