5 things that surprised me after moving to Europe permanently
By: Kasia Pod
Tags: 5 Things, Europe, Relocation, Moving To Europe, Poland

Croissants & pastries, fantastic coffee, narrow stone streets & beautiful architecture. How moving to Europe surprised me in ways I didn’t expect.

I grew up first generation in the United States in a very Polish neighborhood of Chicago. For the majority of my childhood, my parents were just 20-something year olds trying to navigate the American dream. Growing up, I spent most of my summer vacations in Poland, traveling there alone from an early age. I therefore thought I knew Europe quite well… until I decided, in my mid 20s, to move there permanently.

Living in Europe can be quite easily romanticized. Every place has it’s good sides and bad, and although I wouldn’t change my life here for anything in the world, here are 5 things that I didn’t expect would surprise me about living full time in Europe.

1. The Amount of Red Tape

Imagine red tape so bad, that time spent in an American DMV seems like a distant paradise. When I first moved to Europe, I was living in Italy. It took me THREE months to get my ID card. Each time I went to l’ufficio anagrafico del Comune, it turns out, I was missing a document (each time a new and different one, may I add).

Fast forward to today, I pretty much roll my eyes at anyone who complains about the DMV. All jokes aside, rule #1 when moving to Europe, is to prepare to be incredibly patient when it comes to administrative tasks such as getting your ID card or opening a bank account. Prepare for it to be a long, painful process (that you likely need a day of PTO for!).

2. The (Un) friendliness

Europeans have a mysterious je ne sais qua to them that makes it especially hard to read what kind of mood someone is in or if they even like you. I knew this about Europeans, and, admittedly, I had many people tell me I have the same manner to me, even before crossing the pond.

But it goes without saying that a “hi! how are you?” to a complete stranger makes you… untrustworthy in their eyes. Most deep rooted European tendencies are for people to keep to themselves, and open up only to their close circle of friends and family. Therefore, don’t be surprised if a fellow passer-by on the street completely disregards you, as if you don’t exist. You are not likely to get a smile or wave hello.

This can, at first, feel as a stark contrast to the super friendly, super extroverted average American person. But in time, I have learned to appreciate the honesty of it all.

3. Customer Services

That brings me to my next point. I find this one to be the hardest for my parents to comprehend whenever they come back for a visit, as they have been in the U.S. for 31 years now and are used to feeling prioritized when it comes to customer service.

Customer services, for the lack of a better explanation, simply doesn’t exist in Europe. You are not likely to find restaurant waiters bending over backwards for you as they do in America (such as automatically refilling your drink or bringing you the check promptly after you finish eating). It’s also not common to tip, or to tip well, so I leave you to make your own conclusion on that one…

This doesn’t only apply to hospitality. I remember one time when my WiFi was down, and I did not even get a sorry, ma’am upon calling the hotline. There was no rush to resolve my issue and I spent the better part of the day disconnected from the world (GREAT excuse to stop my WFH day and commence my favorite activity, couching).

4. The Work Schedule

Speaking of work, the U.S. is commonly labeled as a workaholic population. Time is money, baby! Hustle, hustle, hustle! Am I right?

Upon moving to Europe, I was really let down when my work-life balance seemed to tip more towards the work side of things. I imagined my days to be spent working a maximum 7 hour shift, filled with plenty of office coffee breaks. Ok, I have to admit, there were many coffee breaks, but when the office coffee is that good…

But seriously, Europeans work really hard. It’s true that European laws typically dictate a hefty amount of vacation days, that most people utilize. However, the 35-hour work week is a total myth, in my experience. In fact, I feel like I work more than ever in the corporate world. Between accommodating to the U.S. timezones for meetings, to coordinating with global stakeholders, to the realities of the European market (which is very complex and competitive), work days are long and those 26 annual days of vacation, well deserved if you ask me!

5. Social Benefits

“But Kasia, wait, did you say you have 26 days of vacation per annum?”

You read that right! In Poland, by law, corporations must provide 26 days of paid time off to each full-time working employee. In addition, tax-payers are incredibly protected by the law. This includes, but is not limited to, unlimited paid sick leave, 52 weeks of paid maternity leave, and free universal healthcare. Most European countries offer a similar social package.

Some of those benefits are better than others. For example, 52 weeks of paid maternity leave is virtually unheard of in many countries worldwide. However, free universal healthcare usually means mediocre care, long wait times, and high tax rates - you can’t have it all. To give you a flavor for what I’m referring to, when I got a doctor’s recommendation for a septoplasty last year, I waited 13 months for my surgery date.

IN SUMMARY, every place on Earth has it’s pros and cons. There is no perfect country to live in. We as humans are so incredibly adaptable! The things that may surprise you at first, will no longer grab your attention with enough time passed. So if you are thinking of making the leap, just remember, that each experience is a chance to learn and grow, so spread your wings, and fly!