# Moving to Greece



## Jo_knaggs

My partner (age 41) and I (age 34) are looking at selling up in the UK and moving to Greece, probably Rhodes or one of the larger islands. 
We have a long list of questions, most importantly we need to find out about employment opportunities that will afford us a modest lifestyle whilst enjoying being out of the rat race that is the UK. Any help or guidance would be most appreciated. 
Thanks in anticipation...


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## barb

Jo_knaggs said:


> My partner (age 41) and I (age 34) are looking at selling up in the UK and moving to Greece, probably Rhodes or one of the larger islands.
> We have a long list of questions, most importantly we need to find out about employment opportunities that will afford us a modest lifestyle whilst enjoying being out of the rat race that is the UK. Any help or guidance would be most appreciated.
> Thanks in anticipation...


Hi, 
I am also new to the forum, 
we moved to greece when we were about the same age as yourselves. my kids went to school there.
If i can help? drop me a line and i will try my best.
Regards,
Barb.


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## greekwedding

I think you will be able to find a lot of information in these forums. If you have any other questions, just ask them and someone can answer.


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## katieangel

Hi my husband and i want to move to rhodes with our two young sons aged 6 and 3.could anyone tell us about the education system and further education in rhodes.


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## barb

Hi, dont know about Rhodes but in Zante my son went to a small village school when he was 6yrs. There wasn't any English schools. None of the teachers spoke English, my son learnt Greek very quickly.


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## Daisybeck

*starting a business in Greece?*

Hi everyone,
I'm a researcher for a UK based TV company and I'm working on a programme which follows British families as they move abroad to start a new life, ideally setting up their own business.
I know that many of you have already made the move but if you know of anyone who is also considering starting a new life abroad then please feel free to pass on my contact details or get in touch for more information.
Any help much appreciated.
Kind regards
Alida 01132623342
[email protected]


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## Ali

I would like to advise you to keep options open. My sister has lived in Grecce for 12 years, myself only 3. (both Uk raised, with greek husbands). Recently i lost my job as an english teacher because my greek was not good enough! The ministry of education require a paper this year to prove greek ability in order to teach. 
Money is not an issue (if you can teach, private lessons can bring in enough money). It is important to get in to the system (pentions and health). If you want to retire here. 
I dont know if i can help you, but perhaps i can offer you some contacts


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## Redruth

Hi, I'm moving to Crete this year and would like to know how much Greek Health insurance costs and how I go about getting it. Thanks. Ruth


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## panniepance

barb said:


> Hi,
> I am also new to the forum,
> we moved to greece when we were about the same age as yourselves. my kids went to school there.
> If i can help? drop me a line and i will try my best.
> Regards,
> Barb.


Hi Barb, how old were your children when you moved, and to which area of the island?

The reason I ask is that we are thinking of moving to the Kalithies area of Rhodes with our 3 year old son. My husband and I have lived there for a period before but I know nothing about the education social facilities available for a 3 year old.

Any advice you can offer would be most welcome! Thanks


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## Andrew44

*We too are moving from UK to Paros Island*

We are moving to Paros and I know a lot about setting up if I can be of any help.









Jo_knaggs said:


> My partner (age 41) and I (age 34) are looking at selling up in the UK and moving to Greece, probably Rhodes or one of the larger islands.
> We have a long list of questions, most importantly we need to find out about employment opportunities that will afford us a modest lifestyle whilst enjoying being out of the rat race that is the UK. Any help or guidance would be most appreciated.
> Thanks in anticipation...


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## estelle0720

Hi, I am a Greek American, born and raised in the states, my husband is Athenian. We moved here with our 3 children in August. Its been difficult getting adjusted. My kids are 20 ( in college) 15 in first year lykeio, and 11 ( 5th grade) I speak fluent Greek, my oldest also, my other 2 speak good conversational greek, but they have been doing much better than I or my husband expected in school. We would love to meet other American or English speaking families in the same situation here in Athens. We are moving to Kalamata in August. 
Thanks and Good luck to everyone considering a move here or who has already moved!


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## Howard Lewis

Hi just read your message.


Anything you need to know about Rhodes feel free to message me


regards

Howard
[email protected]


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## Considering a Move

We are considering a job offer in Athens and have 3 young girls. Can you give any advice on moving to Athens? Anything we should do once we relocate to help ease the transition? What schools do your children attend?


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## estelle0720

Considering a Move said:


> We are considering a job offer in Athens and have 3 young girls. Can you give any advice on moving to Athens? Anything we should do once we relocate to help ease the transition? What schools do your children attend?


Hi ,
First tell me where you are relocating from....if you're kids dont speak any greek, i recommend they go to private school. my kids are pretty fluent in greek so i just sent them to public school. it was pretty difficult and still is. they have tutors to catch up to the other kids. all in all, they have kept high grades which surprised me. another thing, what part of athens are you looking to move to? just like every city, there are nice parts and not so nice parts. we are leaving athens, and moving to kalamata , its much cleaner smaller and more suburban... as a young woman, i loved athens because of the night life, now as a middle aged mom, i dont like it as much, and things have changed here. 
One nice thing, is the kids here welcomed mine with open arms. they made friends quite easily. If there is anything else you need, let me know.


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## Considering a Move

*Thanks*

We will be moving Agia Paraskevi. We have been there many times before and while it is not considered the city of Athens it is still pretty busy. My children do not speak the language... we are working on that. We currently live in the US and have Greek family around the city. I am glad to know that your children have made friends. Even though we mothers tend to worry about everything, kids somehow get down to the business of living and not worrying so much. I hope to have my kids speaking Greek before we leave the US. I will work very hard to keep up with them!
Can you tell me what, specifically, you found were your biggest challenges moving to Athens? How did you cope with them? Tutors also, where did you find them?
Thanks again.


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## shirley ruane

Jo_knaggs said:


> My partner (age 41) and I (age 34) are looking at selling up in the UK and moving to Greece, probably Rhodes or one of the larger islands.
> We have a long list of questions, most importantly we need to find out about employment opportunities that will afford us a modest lifestyle whilst enjoying being out of the rat race that is the UK. Any help or guidance would be most appreciated.
> Thanks in anticipation...


Hi 
we are moving to crete september are u interested in sharing experiences
Regards Shirley


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## Considering a Move

*Sure...*

Shirley,
That would be great. I am not sure that you will be leaving the rat race exactly! But if you don't mind the much slower pace it does sound appealing to enjoy the islands. Have you found any information about jobs from your original post?


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## estelle0720

Considering a Move said:


> We will be moving Agia Paraskevi. We have been there many times before and while it is not considered the city of Athens it is still pretty busy. My children do not speak the language... we are working on that. We currently live in the US and have Greek family around the city. I am glad to know that your children have made friends. Even though we mothers tend to worry about everything, kids somehow get down to the business of living and not worrying so much. I hope to have my kids speaking Greek before we leave the US. I will work very hard to keep up with them!
> Can you tell me what, specifically, you found were your biggest challenges moving to Athens? How did you cope with them? Tutors also, where did you find them?
> Thanks again.


Aghia Paraskevi is nice. We arent that far from there. Its still a pretty busy place. Tutors are everywhere. We have a young woman that comes to the house and the girls just adore her. Its not difficult to find someone to teach them Greek. Athens also has a free Greek speaking class for non speakers that move here. I can find out for you. The biggest challenge for me in Athens is the noise, traffic, the dirt. People are pretty rude. But I have found that when I am pleasant and smile their attitude changes dramatically. I have come to terms with the fact that I will always be homesick. I miss my life in the U.S. But there are so many beautiful places to visit in Greece, when we leave Athens for the day, and go somewhere quiet and with nature surrounding us, I don't regret the move for one minute. Again I will stress, if you can afford to send your kids to an English speaking private school then do it. Schools here are filthy, my kids were shocked at the condition of their schools. They were pretty depressed in the beginning, my older daughter never leaves home without hand sanitizer. The education system is in need of an overhaul and its not coming anytime soon. All kids go to frondistiria, they can cost anywhere from 300 euro to 700 euro a month. its tutoring in a classroom, and thats where they actually learn. so again, private school would probably be your best bet. I can't wait to leave Athens. I am a product of the suburbs North of Chicago so the city for me will always be something of a shock.
Let me know if there is anything else.


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## Considering a Move

*Thank you...*

Thank you so much for the great information. It is my impression that as Athens got ready for the Olympics they made a concerted effort to clean things up. We have been going there for almost 20 years and have thoroughly enjoyed our trips to the islands and inland. We are fortunate to have some knowledge of the city, but your characterizations and information were most helpful. While we will be moving there for a job, I am wanting to have my eyes WIDE OPEN to what we will encounter. It is hard to gain a true picture while staying in Athens for a month at a time, with years passing inbetween. Things are much better there now than 20 years ago, but I completely understand your perspective. If you have not left the city when we arrive I will email you and perhaps we can meet so you can give me some more "pointers". Thanks again. 



estelle0720 said:


> Aghia Paraskevi is nice. We arent that far from there. Its still a pretty busy place. Tutors are everywhere. We have a young woman that comes to the house and the girls just adore her. Its not difficult to find someone to teach them Greek. Athens also has a free Greek speaking class for non speakers that move here. I can find out for you. The biggest challenge for me in Athens is the noise, traffic, the dirt. People are pretty rude. But I have found that when I am pleasant and smile their attitude changes dramatically. I have come to terms with the fact that I will always be homesick. I miss my life in the U.S. But there are so many beautiful places to visit in Greece, when we leave Athens for the day, and go somewhere quiet and with nature surrounding us, I don't regret the move for one minute. Again I will stress, if you can afford to send your kids to an English speaking private school then do it. Schools here are filthy, my kids were shocked at the condition of their schools. They were pretty depressed in the beginning, my older daughter never leaves home without hand sanitizer. The education system is in need of an overhaul and its not coming anytime soon. All kids go to frondistiria, they can cost anywhere from 300 euro to 700 euro a month. its tutoring in a classroom, and thats where they actually learn. so again, private school would probably be your best bet. I can't wait to leave Athens. I am a product of the suburbs North of Chicago so the city for me will always be something of a shock.
> Let me know if there is anything else.


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## Panman

*Rhodes*

Dear Anyone,

I recently came across your expat forum as I have been doing some research on moving to Rhodes permanently with my wife and 1 year old son. I was wondering if you could help me out in making a decision since, I assume, you are of English descent living in Rhodes. My wife and I are both of Greek descent but born and raised in Canada. We have had enough of the rat race type lifestyle here and also want to do what is best for our son. I am a carpenter with a university degree in History and my wife an art conservator with a degree in English. We are both fluent in Greek as well. We would like to know if it is difficult to find employment; especially in this economic crisis. We were also wondering how welcoming the locals are to foreigners as permanent residents; are they helpful, friendly etc? Are there full time English schools for children? What is the healthcare system like in Rhodes? Which town would you recommend living in for a family such as us? We would really appreciate hearing from you and would like to thank you in advance for your time and efforts.



Thanks again,

Peter


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## Familyof4

*Hows it going?*

So I read your post and I see it was posted quite a while back. My family and I are looking to move there due to my husbands job. I was just wondering how things are going for you know. We live in US and there's so much research to do. Have teens and it's just so overwhelming. 
Just wanted to see how you were doing.


Sincerely

Edith


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