Cyprus-Forum.com

[kurupetos]

and a few on the forum who are (like me and Corruptos ) a bit challenged when it comes to Spelling..

it is BRITON with one T ,,,,

Sorry, I'm not a Brittton.

[cyprusgrump]

and a few on the forum who are (like me and Corruptos ) a bit challenged when it comes to Spelling..

it is BRITON with one T ,,,,

There - not their if you are getting picky...

[alemoro]

And one more thing, Cyprus is southern Europe and is more similar with Greece, Italy, Spain, Malta and Portugal. It is not similar to Sweden or other northern and central European countries. Have you ever been to Cyprus or at least another southern European country before?

Cyprus similar to Italy?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Have u ever put ur feet in Italy to say smth like that????????????
Luckyly, Italy, has nothing to compare with this small island.....nothing at all!!!!!!

[alemoro]

Hi folks,

I am from the U.S., and planning a move to Europe, and am trying to decide where would be the best fit. I am 40 years old, with 1 child and 1 on the way, so I want to settle in a country that is family-friendly. My wife is Russian (though a U.S. citizen) and got me thinking about Cyprus.

In looking at the Cyprus govt website, it would appear we would go under the category F visa, as I have a U.S. government pension that would probably total around 3500 Euros a month. I also will want to work over the Internet for clients in the U.S., which should provide a decent income in addition to the base. Does this sound like a reasonable option? My wife is a housewife, so I need to make all the money

Anyway, I am planning a 2-week trip in April to check things out. My children I would want to put in Greek schools, as the whole purpose of this endeavor is to get my children fluent in as many languages as possible, in addition to living in a good place with access to much of the culture and history that fascinates me.

By the way, is Cypriot Greek completely understandable, and vice versa, with Greek Greek?

Also, what are the better areas to live that may be more relaxed and cheaper? I do not usually like the most crowded places for living--though do not like the "sticks" either. I would want to find a place that I could have the biggest house that I could get either built or acquired almost new.

Finally, in the long run, in coming under the F visa, is citizenship an option after 5 years? There does not seem to be anything against it from the government regulations, but as always I know that people that have been through this sort of thing are the best to ask.

In advance, I thank you for your time and wisdom.

Why Cyprus?
There are so many other countries in Europe....with culture, life and better lifestyle
If you will come here with your kids, first of all i suggest u to buy a tank to walk with them on the roads....... Here cypriot are used to leave cars parked, illegaly, on the sidewalks...and u have to step on the road...This is the safety cyprus....
And if u just think to have a minimu cultural life here...well..better to buy lot of books, stay at home and read....Nothing t do here...cypriot seems they are not interested at all in culture...
Friend.......listen to me.......cypriot is not a place where to live and growth kids

[CBBB]

and a few on the forum who are (like me and Corruptos ) a bit challenged when it comes to Spelling..

it is BRITON with one T ,,,,

Your a Anglo saxon.

Are you green with envy?

I am British which I know includes the some Irish Ancestry (on my father's side from my greatr great gandmother) and otherwise probably an amalgam of the original neolitic settlers and later incomers, including the Anglo Saxons, none of whom, according to the most recent studies, over all, seem to have individually added more than 5% to the British Gene pool or 15% in total.

I can see your Irish ancestry coming out here!

[kurupetos]

And one more thing, Cyprus is southern Europe and is more similar with Greece, Italy, Spain, Malta and Portugal. It is not similar to Sweden or other northern and central European countries. Have you ever been to Cyprus or at least another southern European country before?

Cyprus similar to Italy?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Have u ever put ur feet in Italy to say smth like that????????????
Luckyly, Italy, has nothing to compare with this small island.....nothing at all!!!!!!

I agree. Cyprus is much better than all mentioned countries above.

[johbee]

I'm from the US and have lived in Limassol for just over 22 years. You really should consider carefully what you're getting yourself into. The cost of living here is at least double what it is in the States, of course depending on where you are in the US. Could be as much as three times! People are, in general, not so friendly and getting anything done is nearly impossible. The infrastructure is a mess and the cost of living goes up and up. The government just blew up it's own power station so the price of electricity has gone even higher. (It was the highest in Europe already) Not only that but because of the lack of electricity the water supply is in serious trouble, again...... As a foreigner you will be treated as a second class citizen. If you need a car be prepared to pay three times what you would in the States for one. Also the gas is about $7.00 a gallon and milk is over $8.00 per gallon. I spend a thousand Euros a month on private lessons for the kids, about 800 on food, add in the car tax, insurance, electric bills, phone bills, sewer charges, garbage collection fees, etc., etc. and it cost me around Euro 5000 to survive in paradise. My kids are a bit older though. They speak fluent Greek, but the education system is so bad here that you have to educate your kids after school. i.e. pay the same teachers who babysit during the day to actually teach them something in the afternoon. Unless of course you want to pay between 10,000 and 15,000 for private school. The one good thing Cyprus had going for it was that it was a safe place to live. With the influx of undesirables that's not the case anymore. I've recently installed CCTV and security systems throughout my property. My advice to my kids is to study Stateside and never look back. My oldest is in Boston already earning almost as much as I do fresh out of college. I would have been long gone were it not for my stubborn Cypriot wife. If you have bags of cash it can be a decent place to live, but Euro 3500 won't go far. And if you're looking to buy a house, stay in the US and with the same money buy three. Rent two and use the income to pay for the third. If you're up for some real adventure and prepared to face ridiculous challenges then go for it. Good Luck.

[CBBB]

I'm from the US and have lived in Limassol for just over 22 years. You really should consider carefully what you're getting yourself into. The cost of living here is at least double what it is in the States, of course depending on where you are in the US. Could be as much as three times! People are, in general, not so friendly and getting anything done is nearly impossible. The infrastructure is a mess and the cost of living goes up and up. The government just blew up it's own power station so the price of electricity has gone even higher. (It was the highest in Europe already) Not only that but because of the lack of electricity the water supply is in serious trouble, again...... As a foreigner you will be treated as a second class citizen. If you need a car be prepared to pay three times what you would in the States for one. Also the gas is about $7.00 a gallon and milk is over $8.00 per gallon. I spend a thousand Euros a month on private lessons for the kids, about 800 on food, add in the car tax, insurance, electric bills, phone bills, sewer charges, garbage collection fees, etc., etc. and it cost me around Euro 5000 to survive in paradise. My kids are a bit older though. They speak fluent Greek, but the education system is so bad here that you have to educate your kids after school. i.e. pay the same teachers who babysit during the day to actually teach them something in the afternoon. Unless of course you want to pay between 10,000 and 15,000 for private school. The one good thing Cyprus had going for it was that it was a safe place to live. With the influx of undesirables that's not the case anymore. I've recently installed CCTV and security systems throughout my property. My advice to my kids is to study Stateside and never look back. My oldest is in Boston already earning almost as much as I do fresh out of college. I would have been long gone were it not for my stubborn Cypriot wife. If you have bags of cash it can be a decent place to live, but Euro 3500 won't go far. And if you're looking to buy a house, stay in the US and with the same money buy three. Rent two and use the income to pay for the third. If you're up for some real adventure and prepared to face ridiculous challenges then go for it. Good Luck.

Sounds good, you have been here 22 years and can't find a decent thing to say about the place!

Why are you here?

[johbee]

Used to be a great place to raise a family. Safe, friendly, no crime, no drugs. That's changing though. Don't get me wrong it is a beautiful place, but the cost of living and the pathetic government in place now is pretty scary.

Why am I here: "I would have been long gone were it not for my stubborn Cypriot wife."

The things you do for love.

[diablogun]

I'm from the US and have lived in Limassol for just over 22 years. You really should consider carefully what you're getting yourself into. The cost of living here is at least double what it is in the States, of course depending on where you are in the US. Could be as much as three times! People are, in general, not so friendly and getting anything done is nearly impossible. The infrastructure is a mess and the cost of living goes up and up. The government just blew up it's own power station so the price of electricity has gone even higher. (It was the highest in Europe already) Not only that but because of the lack of electricity the water supply is in serious trouble, again...... As a foreigner you will be treated as a second class citizen. If you need a car be prepared to pay three times what you would in the States for one. Also the gas is about $7.00 a gallon and milk is over $8.00 per gallon. I spend a thousand Euros a month on private lessons for the kids, about 800 on food, add in the car tax, insurance, electric bills, phone bills, sewer charges, garbage collection fees, etc., etc. and it cost me around Euro 5000 to survive in paradise. My kids are a bit older though. They speak fluent Greek, but the education system is so bad here that you have to educate your kids after school. i.e. pay the same teachers who babysit during the day to actually teach them something in the afternoon. Unless of course you want to pay between 10,000 and 15,000 for private school. The one good thing Cyprus had going for it was that it was a safe place to live. With the influx of undesirables that's not the case anymore. I've recently installed CCTV and security systems throughout my property. My advice to my kids is to study Stateside and never look back. My oldest is in Boston already earning almost as much as I do fresh out of college. I would have been long gone were it not for my stubborn Cypriot wife. If you have bags of cash it can be a decent place to live, but Euro 3500 won't go far. And if you're looking to buy a house, stay in the US and with the same money buy three. Rent two and use the income to pay for the third. If you're up for some real adventure and prepared to face ridiculous challenges then go for it. Good Luck.

Thanks for the information It is good to get the bad with the good.