We spent 2 summers testing out living in different European countries. A year later, we're happily settled in our top pick.

"I mean the place you're proud to be part of, to describe to people who've never been, to bond over with strangers you've just met. If I'm honest, my husband Cody and I started our search for a new home from vastly different perspectives: I'm a Guyanese-American Black woman raised by Caribbean parents in an eclectic corner of North Jersey."

"Cody, the firstborn in a blended, mostly evangelical family, jumped at the chance to leave rural Indiana as soon as he was able. He craved walkability, third spaces, and access to culturally diverse communities. We met nearly 12 years ago in North Carolina and, for a while, found some common ground in Durham."

"When remote companies became our sole source of work, we found ourselves with the freedom and opportunity to do what we hadn't before: travel overseas. Soon, we began to wonder if home might exist outside the contiguous US. We'd never been to Europe, so we took two months in the summer of 2023 to travel to Paris, Nice, and Cassis, France; Brussels, Belgium; Amsterdam, Netherlands; and London, England."

A Guyanese-American Black woman and her husband from rural Indiana embarked on a two-month European journey in summer 2023 to explore potential homes outside the contiguous United States. Coming from different backgrounds—she valued independence and cultural diversity from growing up in New Jersey near New York City, while he sought walkability and diverse communities after leaving rural Indiana—they initially found common ground in Durham, North Carolina. When remote work became available, they traveled to Paris, Nice, Cassis, Brussels, Amsterdam, and London, experiencing diverse cities with distinct linguistic, cultural, and climate characteristics. They appreciated Amsterdam's bicycle infrastructure and café culture while adapting to each location's unique environment.

Read at Business Insider