Look at the thousands of American ex-pats scattered around the world in sizable communities.

There is a magazine and web site called "International Living" that is dedicated precisely to that.

In the past I used to look at what areas the Brits were congregating. I went to Majorca for that reason. Ex-Brit civil servants has the highly developed tastes that came with their positions, but lack the bucks to enjoy the same standards of living on thier own.

Hence, they scout out the spots where they can get the best bang for their buck as far as quality of life issues were concerned.

Today the Euro has such a bang, that it is holders of the buck that are seeking comparative advantage in quality of life issues.

Bush has managed to donate a 40% drop in the purchasing power of the dollar v the Euro during his watch at the helm. This means Brits are no longer the barometer for bargain living; Americans are.

Publius