Reviews of cities, countries, employers and services abroad

Destination

Tokyo· Tokyo

Tokyo after 18 months: calm, safe and easier than I feared

I moved to Tokyo for a design job and expected the paperwork to be painful. The ward office took one visit, my bank account opened within a week, and trains made a car pointless. Rent in the centre is high, so I live two stops outside the Yamanote line and pay much less. The hardest part was making friends outside work, which improved once I joined a weekend cycling group.

Maya Lindqvist1 day ago1

Healthcare

Urgent care clinic, Pilsen, Chicago· Chicago

Fast, bilingual care at a fraction of ER costs

After my expensive emergency room visit, I started using an urgent care clinic near my home for non-emergencies. When my son had an ear infection on a Saturday, we were seen in 40 minutes. Staff speak Spanish and English, which helps my family. With our insurance, the copay was 50 dollars, compared with the hundreds of dollars an ER visit would have cost. They have an X-ray machine and can do stitches for simple cuts. They cannot handle serious emergencies, and the clinic gets busy in winter during flu season. I recommend knowing where your nearest urgent care is before you need it.

Short waiting times

Transport

TTC Toronto· Toronto

It gets me to work, but not always on time

I take the TTC subway and a bus every day to my work in North York. When it works, it is fine, and I like that I can tap my bank card or PRESTO card. But delays on Line 1 happen too often, and in winter buses can be late or full. Some stations have broken escalators or elevators for weeks, which is difficult with shopping bags. At night I sometimes feel unsafe on certain platforms. The monthly pass is expensive for my salary. I am happy there is a two-hour transfer window, which helps with errands.

Contactless and PRESTO payment

Two-hour transfer window

Frequent delays

Broken escalators and elevators

Destination

London· London

World-class museums, high prices and changeable weather

I spent eight days in London as a visitor. The free museums are extraordinary: I could have spent a week in the British Museum alone. Getting around was easy with contactless payment and daily caps on the Tube and buses. Parks like Hampstead Heath and Regent's Park are a real highlight. But London is expensive, even compared with US cities. My hotel near King's Cross was 145 pounds a night, and meals in tourist areas were overpriced and average. The Tube was hot and crowded in July. I enjoyed it, but I preferred Edinburgh and Manchester for atmosphere and value.

Free world-class museums

Easy contactless transport

Expensive hotels and food

Destination

Toronto· Toronto

Welcoming and diverse, but housing costs are painful

Toronto is one of the most diverse cities in the world, and as a Filipina I never feel out of place. There are Filipino stores, churches and restaurants in Bathurst and Wilson, and people from every country on my bus. Healthcare through OHIP has been good for me. The problem is money. Rent takes more than a third of my salary and I only have a room. Groceries have become expensive too. Winter is long, but the city keeps working and I bought good boots. If you have a job that pays well, Toronto is a great place to build a life. If you are on a lower wage, be ready to share housing and to budget carefully.

Very diverse and welcoming

Strong community networks

Transport

Deutschlandticket

Incredible value, as long as you avoid long-distance trains

I have had the Deutschlandticket since it launched. For one monthly price I use the U-Bahn, S-Bahn, trams and buses in Berlin, plus regional trains everywhere in Germany. I have taken it to the Baltic coast, Leipzig and Dresden on weekends. My employer contributes through the job ticket version, so I pay less than 40 euros. The price has increased twice, and it does not cover ICE or IC trains. Regional trains are often crowded on summer weekends and delays are common. Cancel by the 10th if you want to stop the subscription.

Covers all local transport nationwide

Cheap with employer job ticket

Destination

Kyoto· Kyoto

The best city in Japan for students

Kyoto is calm, beautiful and full of universities, so students are everywhere and the city is built for us. I cycle to class along the Kamo River every morning. Rent is lower than Tokyo: my student apartment is 38,000 yen a month. Temples and gardens are free or cheap on weekdays, and Osaka is only 30 minutes by train when I want a bigger city or job fairs. The downsides are the tourist crowds in central areas, humid summers and cold, damp winters in old buildings. Part-time jobs are easy to find if you speak some Japanese. For a student, I cannot imagine a better place.

Affordable for students

Employer

Private English and French academy (hagwon), Busan· Busan

Lovely students, long afternoons and last-minute changes

My academy teaches children and some adults. The salary of 2.6 million won plus a housing allowance is standard, and they have always paid on time, which is not guaranteed in every hagwon. The Korean staff are kind and helped me with my residence card and bank account. However, timetables change with little notice, and classes run until 10pm. Paid holiday is limited to 11 days, and I was asked to work on one public holiday. Parents can be demanding about results. It is a decent job if you want to experience Korea, but ask current teachers about hours and overtime before signing.

Salary always paid on time

Helpful Korean colleagues

Destination

Berlin· Berlin

Creative, affordable by Western European standards, but the admin will test you

I have lived in Berlin for five years and it still surprises me. The tech scene is huge and English works at most startups, so getting a first job is realistic without fluent German. Public transport is excellent and the Deutschlandticket makes it cheap. Parks and lakes are everywhere in summer. The downsides are real, though. Finding a flat is brutal, appointments at the Bürgeramt and Ausländerbehörde can take weeks, and winter is long and grey from November to March. Service can feel blunt until you learn that it is rarely personal. There is a big African community, and I found church, football and good jollof within six months. Overall a great city for curious people who are patient with paperwork.

Large English-friendly tech job market

Destination

Singapore· Singapore

Safe, efficient and delicious, but not cheap

Singapore works. Transport, government services, banking and healthcare are all efficient, and it is the safest place I have lived. Hawker food is cheap and excellent, and Changi Airport makes weekend trips around Asia easy. Taxes are low, so savings grow quickly on a professional salary. The costs are rent, alcohol, cars and international schools. A room in a condo is around 2,000 dollars and a family can spend a fortune on school fees. The heat and humidity never stop. Social life takes effort because many expats leave after a few years, but clubs and running groups help a lot.

Extremely safe

Efficient public services

Healthcare

Medicare (Australia)

Simple enrolment and good cover for permanent residents

As permanent residents, our family enrolled in Medicare at a Services Australia centre two weeks after arriving. We brought passports, visa grant letters and proof of address, and received our card number the same day. Many GPs in our area bulk bill children, so their visits are free. Adults sometimes pay a gap fee of 40 to 50 dollars at our clinic. Public hospital care has been good. Dental and most physiotherapy are not covered, so we added a private extras policy, and waiting lists for some specialists are long.

Quick enrolment

Free public hospital care

Destination

Melbourne· Melbourne

A brilliant city for families

We moved to Melbourne with two children and have not regretted it once. Our suburb, Coburg, has a great state primary school, parks on every corner and a strong community feel. The trams and trains cover most of the inner suburbs, and the city has excellent libraries, playgrounds and free events. Coffee and food culture are as good as everyone says. Healthcare through Medicare has been straightforward. The negatives: rents are high and the rental market is competitive, grocery prices are higher than the UK, and the weather really does change four times a day. Being far from family in the UK is the hardest part.

Family friendly suburbs