23.03.2016:

1) Doing business from Europe to the US is difficult, to say the least. We're selling our house in the states, and in theory, we can do it all via email and phone (and docusign.) Unfortunately, what it means is that we stay up till at least 11 every night in case something comes in via email or a call, and I'm up before 7 every morning in case I need to get on the phone with someone in the US. Luckily, we have an amazing realtor (james mcarthy at Windemere) who has been super flexible.

2) There are big challenges in moving to a new continent, but there are small ones too. It's always nice to get a win. I went to the doctor for the first time today. All in all, it was a great experience. Our doctor spoke good English, but his receptionists did not. However, we sorted out all of the new patient paperwork without too much fuss. And public healthcare is awesome (so far.) Suggestion for your first time: bring copies of your health history, medications and last test results. I went on my US doctor's patient portal and just printed out what I needed. Made the visit go much faster.

3) In the US, my doctor was rarely interrupted during a visit. Here, the doctor was harassed by his nurses throughout. smile emoticon He is an amazing multi-tasker.

4) No copay. (so far)

5) They have different dosages of common medications. Many are off just enough to be annoying. Trying to figure out how to get a similar dose is an exercise in multiplying and fractions. (Ok, I can get a 300mg, cut it in half (to try to get 145), or I can get a 160. 160 is probably close enough. )

6) They don't have all of the same medications, so finding something close is a weird exercise.

7) I can get 400Mb/s at my house for a very low price (compared to the states.) And I can get a static IP and a modem that bridges so I can use my own router and DHCP!

8) In the US. for cable.satellite, for all the channels, we paid an enormous amount for Directv. Well over $200/mo just on the channels. More for 'renting' the DVRs. Here, I'll pay < 80 euros.

9) There are so many options for cable and internet providers! In the US, we had one option for cable, and one option for Internet. Here, the deciding factor seems to be pricing, and they compete on that. (and high speeds.)

That's it for now. More to come.