sebastiano's activity

I wasn't ready for that. well, yes, i live in italy since 74.Previous to living in the Marche lived in Milano in Lombardy.Due to work and other had the pleasure of visiting almost all of the country (apart from things one knows and reads about). i really do like both the regions (piemonte/emilia romagna) Both are fairly low classed for sismic risks except perhaps for the southern part of Emilia in the Appennines.I would say the warmest/mildest part considering both  regions would be in the area extending from Bologna towards the coast. The coastal towns however are very busy with a fairly massified tourism between may and early september but inland there is very pleasnt rolling countryside with fruit farming etc. road comunications on the main axis of emilia romagna are good probably better than other places in italy,and you can travel thru the region also easily by train.Bologna itself is the most important railway junction in the country and you can catch trains to almost anywhere going from there.it also has an international airport. thru the region themain towns are infact aligned along the main rail line,the main state road (via emilia) and the motorways A1. -A14 etc.these towns which include Parma -Reggio Emilia- Modena -Bologna - Forlì -Faenza are all in their own right lovely well run,good services and facilities ( above average for the country) as are health services.The people generally are very pleasant and quite outgoing ( also compared to the piemontese). The region vants one of the highest standards of living in italy ,so along with the people a lovely albeit rather rich cuisine makes it a pretty desirable venue by even european standards.Most larger italian comunes (municipalities) have on their web sites demographic information,climatic information like average rainfall,hours of sun etc etc which is one way of getting direct information before one even goes there on the Emilia -Romagna regional government web site there is lots of other info ranging from business,agriculture,industries,culture etc and is an interesting way of building up a more complex picture also of the eventual opportunities.However much i like piemonte especially the area of le langhe, personally ,i would tend to prefer Emilia Romagna as offering that something extra especially considering from the point  of view of someone moving there from abroad....don't know if that helps at all, because you'll know full well that everyone is different,but as mentioned i'm not ringing my own bell because i don't live in either of the regions so i think this was all quite impartial as one can be.good luck....antonietta.

that is a very difficult question.both regions have some terrrible places and some fantastic places,both have equally prestigous cuisine,both have a high standard of living,by italian standards, a hefty slice of italian business/industry/agriculture goes on in both.i don't think it's easier or harder for work in either,both have good roads and adequate comunications.maybe the problem is not so much emilia vs piemonte but town vs. country because,as in any italian region it is very difficult to aspire to graduate level employment or activities unless one is in one of the larger towns or cities,it could prove therefore equally difficult to work living in the countryside in either region.at the end of the day one has to choose on the basis of personal preference/ experiences opportunities etc.of course people who live in either will extol the virtues of one rather than the other but it depends where in each you are considering because both have mountain areas,plains,big cities,small towns,rural environments,differing climatic conditions within both.In piemonte you could be up some mountain around Cuneo or on some rice plain near Vercelli or in a palace in the centre of Turin.In Emilia you could be in the centre of Bologna or Parma,enjoying the mild Adriatic climate of Rimini or up some Appennine mountain near a ski resort...maybe you have to reduce the size of the research to areas you know or like to be more precise or to give better advice,good luck.

i agree with Ram. In fact,if only for the reason that you pose the question would induce me to suggest that you should try and live for six months in both,maybe renting as ram says they couldn't be farther apart in terms of  their spirit,culture,food,people,climate,conditions etc it would be like saying either Liverpool or Canterbury.....

hi, yes, i agree with sibillini.particularly high in the uk are these famous comuting costs.but then all that tends to become details if the only parameter is that of cost of living vs.salary then probably the best choice would not be the uk anyway. i agree that really one should make an overall evaluation and consider seriously quality of life factors.For example i know people who live in what are considered very pretty traditional market towns in the uk and they refer to me that it is not considered even safe to "go into town" on a saturday evening due to all the manic binge drinking youths at least we don't have to put up with that kind of thing here.I know a little your area Piacenza and environs are very pleasant,it's quite a well off area,services aren't bad,easy to get to Milano etc...personally i'd stay there rather than blighty....

presuming one makes all the normal adjustments to your house..like good quality double glazed windows with shutters,think about decent insulation in the roof and if it's not an old house the walls too,think about reasonable heating systems that are feasable in terms of cost.don't open up traditional small old windows to get "panorama windows" as some do, this is just an enormous heat loss and we don't spend time sitting indoors looking outdoors anyway.dont break down all the old internal walls to make designer style open plan houses it just doesn't work and will cost a fortune to heat,in fact you never will.i know people who did this they spend their time in a one room+kitchen up stairs which they can heat because they can't afford to heat all the open plan down stairs,like other people who put in a costly underfloor system in an open plan place which procured them a 1.500 euro gas bill in fifteen days!wear clothes..we put on increasing layers of clothes during the year and start shedding layers as the weather gets warmer... keep internal doors and shut them after you go thru ( remember your dad saying "this house is not a stable shut the door"...as adriatica says it's not as simple as just buildings it's about how you live..don't expect to be able to heat rural buildings to the habitual temperatures i witnessed in the uk where you can wear a t-shirt inside in winter..put up with 18-21° it's enough actually.

hi john,i always like your posts but this one you surpassed yourself...agree entirely..now i want the gold star cos i got to the end.

it was announced on the radio the other day how many thousands (2.980)of full time new nurses are required by the national health system here.of course language would be an issue but i've noticed they are hiring polish/brazilian and other nationalities to try to fill the gaps.my modest suggestion would be try to get a position in a good university hospital with a good reputation as the possibilities also of advancement are better and everything else.apart from the bigger better hospitals in the north there are also some very good hospitals in central italy like Ancona,Perugia,some Roman hospitals etc,the south is another story however.like nursing everywhere it's a lot of underpaid hard work but as a public employee there is job security,and other advantages which these days are not to be underestimated.in the meantime get your qualifications translated properly and any important relevant referencesgood luck.

Penny's right about the tv i mean,however as one may easily get distracted by images with all the semi nude women on it i'd certainly recomend the radio Radio 3. is a good intellegent channel with interesting subjects and people whospeak well on serious subjects (probably difficult especially at the begining) but worth it because one is forced to listen with out the aid of images....

hi there abruzzo, i usually try to keep out of discussions on this theme but it was getting more interesting.i mean it wasn't just the usual winghing about marmite or something.I agree with what you are saying.Regarding the business of "fitting in" this interestingly is not just an issue for say brits/germans or other nationalities (although of course language is at some point an issue.I see,for example that people from elsewhere in Italy (forestieri o quelli di fuori etc) can curiously have just as hard a time if not even more so than foreigners.I recently accompanied some Venetian guests who had come here on their motorbikes who wanted to get them washed (!?) to the place who would do this the owner who knows me asked me to stay so i could explain things to the Germans !! he wasn't being funny he really thought they were foreigners.W e have some gay friends who have "fitted in" very well all they "had to do" was avoid any form of effusions in public which whilst for the most part being totally acceptable in Roma would not have been conceivable to people here.As has been said there are not a few people around here who have never received any significant higher education,have never actually been anywhere outside of their immediate environs,have never had any consistant exposure to other cultures,languages,foods,to city life and those of a certain age can still perfectly remember life under the feudal farming system of mezzadri which went on until as late as the eary 1960's.Reactions of doubt,suspicion,curiosity or even some animosity in that context are pretty well understandable.But as you and others have remarked it does not take "great efforts" to overcome these "reactions" people here tend to "judge" outsiders not so much by their national identity rather more by what they actually DO. so people who say hello to everyone they meet is a good start,cultivating a good rapport if possible with neighbours is also important, turn up at the numerous local funerals ,at least to those where you know the family involved, it's not necessary to participate IN the church it's sufficient to kiss the bereaved when they come out.cultivate positive relations with local shops and suppliers etc.Another very important thing is to tell people exactly who you are and why you are there because in the meantime they will have elaborated bizzare stories as to who you are or what you do or why you're where you are so tell people when there is an occasion exactly the truth as these things can get out of hand.it is not a good idea to go raving on about how wonderful things are elsewhere,the wonders of london or in my case was milano as people haven't been there and it can seem that our little realities are being highlighted for their backwardness.The bottom line is that rural comunities almost everywhere including parts of the USA,parts of wales,scotland,france are just as closed perhaps in that light our areas are or can be considerably more tolerant and welcoming.i even met an english person recently who lives here and has settled in well who fled from the scottish croft they had purchased due to the animosity of the local population....... 

yes,you're right about customer service etcthey and other replies equally right about the complexity of calculation which includes NOT ONLY usage butthe following: energia fornita (supplied energy) divieded into three distinct sections ,day energy-night and weekend energy-energy losses (?) then "ulteriri corispettive e oneri aggiuntivi" ( other and additional costs) which features: componentsdisbt (?) debits forbuying/selling (?)green packet(?) then "dispacciamento" which features 7 cost lines (to do with distribution (?) then "uso della rete" ( use of the network) three more cost lines,then imposte with 2 more cost lines including (for me an additional provincial tax) and a national tax (again?) then the total then added VAT on everything including the taxes at 20%- only then the grand total so you see i think very few even in enel would be able to calculòate your real usage costsI would suggest that youget an elecrician to install an unofficial counter to the guest section of the house and make a tariff which covers your costs.