Jun
15
2008
Where to live?
Posted by: Lydia in Choosing our new home, tags: Brussels, dublin, london, Montreal, new homeMy very brilliant husband has received job offers as a lab head in Montréal and Ireland, and has promising job interviews coming up in London and Belgium. We are so over the Crazy USA, but not quite ready to return to Australia. Now, we must decide where in the world we want to settle down and buy a home together. We are spending three days in each city in July, and I must use that time to plan out at least the next decade of my life. It is exciting and overwhelming. On paper, it looks like Montréal and London are winning out over Dublin and Brussels, but we shall see if that changes when I visit these places in person.
| City | Brussels | Montreal | London | Dublin |
| Possible jobs | Clinical Trials; Research Officer; Publications Manager; Vaccine Registration Manager; Scientific Writer |
Clinical Trials Assistant; Scientific Librarian; Supervisor Production Services; Intellectual Property; Regulatory Affairs Coordinator; Director of Training |
Clinical Trials; Proposals Manager; Journal Editor; Science Advisor; Medical Writer; Public Policy |
Clinical Trials; Documentation; Scientific Programme Officer; Public Policy; Evaluation Officer |
| Weather | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % year above freezing | 86% | 58% | 82% | 94% |
| % year without rain | 37% | 61% | 27% | 36% |
| People | ||||
| Population | 1,350,000 | 1,600,000 | 7,200,000 | 500,000 |
| Population (greater) | 2,500,000 | 3,635,571 | 13,063,441 | 1,600,000 |
| Population density | 6601 /km2 | 4439 /km2 | 4761 /km2 | 4391 /km2 |
| First Languages | 59% Flemish 40% French |
71% French 19% English |
> 90% English | > 90% English |
| Foreign born | 13% | 23% | 30% | 12% |
| English speakers | 35.4% | 75% | > 90% | > 90% |
| French Immersion | Good | Good | Poor | Poor |
| % not religious | 35.4% | 16.2% | 28% | 4.5% |
| City | ||||
| Score as a world city | 8 | 4 | 12 | 3 |
| City brand ranking | 18 | 10 | 2 | 21 |
| University rankings | VUB (229) | McGill (12) U Montreal (93) |
Imperial College (5) UCL (9) King’s (24) |
Trinity (53) U College (177) |
| City entertainment | Some festivals | Festivals, plays, comedy | Festivals and plays | Comedy |
| Beauty of city | Beautiful | Beautiful | Beautiful | Average |
| Parks | 11
29 km2 |
1000 47 km2 10% |
1700 181 km2 39% |
39 4 km2 8% |
| Number of museums | 90 | 20 | 300 | 20 |
| Metro | 59 stations 32 km |
68 stations 66 km |
268 stations 400 km |
50 stations 150 km |
| Cost of living | ||||
| Cost of living index | 81.7 | 80.0 | 120.2 | 105.2 |
| Average house price | 258,662 euros | 242,000 CAD (152,430 euros) |
358,500 pounds (454,626 euros) |
427,000 euros |
| Childcare costs | OK | Low | High | High |
| Wages | Low | Good | OK | Good |
| Quality of life | ||||
| Quality of life index | 105.9 | 104.2 | 101.6 | 103.5 |
| Life Satisfaction | 243 (#28) | 253 (#10) | 237 (#41) | 253 (#11) |
| Personal safety index | 114.3 (#28) | 115.8 (#22) | ? (#69) | 117 (#17) |
| Travelling from the city | ||||
| Air connection ranking | 20 | 57 | 1 | 77 |
| Direct flights | 200 | 120 | 273 | 75 |
| Regional train system | Excellent | OK | Very Good | Poor |
Comments Off
Entries (RSS)