Everyone is moving to the same 3 countries... here’s why I didn’t

Hey, Johannes from GearUpYourLife here...

And today, after finally moving into my apartment and receiving my residency card here in Bulgaria, I wanted to answer the most asked question I’ve been getting from you guys via email:

👉 Why Bulgaria?

And also:
👉 Why even leave Germany in the first place?

And at the end, I’ll also quickly share 6 products that arrived during my first Month here and I already tested them, even took some of them with me to Plovdiv (the oldest continuously inhabited city in Europe), and I’ll give you a quick first impression.

🌍 Why I left Germany

For me, this actually wasn’t a hard decision.

I’m in a very lucky position because, I finished my studies as an elementary teacher as an 23 year old and now I work online, which allows me to travel and live pretty freely.

And I want to be very clear:

👉 I don’t hate Germany
👉 I don’t want to “escape” it
👉 I actually love Germany and I’m still proud to be German

But over the last years, I started to feel like my personal freedom was slowly becoming more limited.

Whether it’s discussions about military service again, or unclear regulations about traveling longer periods, I just felt like this isn’t the direction I personally want for my life.

And then there were the practical things:

• I paid around €1,200/month for an apartment in Cologne
  → that’s over $17,000 per year just for a base I only used 4–6 months

• As a freelancer, even if you earn very little, you still have to pay for your health insurance ( health insurance is free only for not independent Persons )
  → around 25% of your income
  → and it doesn’t even fully cover you worldwide

• And yes, taxes are high at 45% + many other costs adding on top , but to be honest:

👉 That alone would NOT have made me leave

Germany still has huge advantages, and I would have stayed for those.

🤔 Why Bulgaria?

This is the interesting part.

At the beginning, I had 4 real options:

• Argentina (my favorite country in Latin America)

• Spain

• Switzerland

• or a Balkan country

Spain is actually very personal for me, because my father was born there, I speak Spanish, and I’ve always loved the country.

But when I looked into living there officially, I realized:

👉 It comes with almost the same challenges as Germany, just in nicer weather, cities and culture 

Argentina was a big one for me, especially Buenos Aires.

I love that city.

But at the end of the day, I still have my family in Germany, my mom, my grandparents and I want to be able to be there within a few hours if something happens.

Living that far away long-term so more than 9 month a year just didn’t feel right.

Switzerland…
Honestly, just too expensive and less travel time.

So that left the Balkans, a region that I think is incredibly underrated.

My favorites were:

• Croatia

• Bulgaria

• Greece

• and even Serbia

Croatia is beautiful, but:

• difficult immigration rules

• complicated business regulations for an example if you sell any Kind of of digital product or Art even if it generates only 1$ per year, you need an physical warehouse. Just as an example !

• and not great international connections

So that didn’t work for me.

Greece was actually my first choice.

I spent a month in Corfu and a month in Athens, met with a lawyer, and seriously planned to move there.

And I loved it.

But:

👉 I didn’t qualify for their tax programs
👉 and renting as a foreigner is extremely difficult

So in the end, it didn’t work out.

🇧🇬 Why Bulgaria made the most sense

In the end, it came down to Serbia vs Bulgaria.

And Bulgaria just made more sense.

• Much lower cost of living

• Simple residency requirements (main life base here)

• EU country → easier setup for me personal

So, I now have a 2-room apartment in one of the best areas near Burgas, close to the beach, fully furnished, with pool, parking, and security…

👉 for €615/month all-in

And $17/month for very fast Wi-Fi.

But it’s not just that.

You have:

• cities like Sofia and Plovdiv

• coastal towns like Nessebar,Warna and Sozopol

• nature like the Rila Lakes or Pirin National Park

• even ski areas like Bansko

And location-wise, it’s perfect:

• Greece right next to it

• Turkey close by (I’m really excited to explore more there)

• and even Istanbul within reach whats important for international Travel ! 

• Romania and moldova , places where i never been to yet.

Plus:

👉 I was able to drive here and bring my car
👉 and I can easily visit my family anytime

And to be honest, what i like the most:

👉 the people

On my second day, my car battery died before I had to go to the migration office.

I asked a random guy if he knew what is better here taxi or Uber…

And he ended up:

👉 jump-starting my car
👉 AND coming with me to the office to help translate

That kind of moment just sticks with you.

🎯 The Bigger Picture

I truly believe this region has massive potential.

And I want to be part of it.

Not just live here, but also show you places that people don’t talk about as much:

👉 Bulgaria
👉 Romania
👉 Serbia
👉 North Macedonia

Places that are still underrated even places like croatia and greece who are well more known, but maybe not for long.

📦 Quick Product Updates (Week 1)

Now quickly to the 6 products I’ve been testing this week:

• I traveled with a new Tomtoc setup
  → the 40L Navigator backpack + 3.5L anti-theft sling
  👉 both feel very promising, especially the backpack

• I tested a portable display from Blackview
  👉 interesting concept, still figuring out the real use case
  (disclaimer: sent by the brand, but doesn’t change my opinion)

• the gum foldable toothbrush
  👉 for around $2 it’s literally just a normal toothbrush you can fold, what is great
  👉 extremely solid, but only really worth it if you care about saving real space

• Blackout stickers
  👉 super simple, but honestly great
  👉 for the price, I can recommend them

• Anker Nano 5-Port Travel Adapter
  👉 this one is really interesting
  👉 might replace a lot of my current setup
  👉 will be featured very soon

🎬 And if you’re in the mood for something a bit more fun (and a bit less “essential”) 👀

After last week’s video where I showed you the only travel essentials I actually bring on every trip, I just uploaded the complete opposite:

👉 12 Travel Accessories I Don’t Need… But Always Bring Anyway

It’s not just about the absolute must-haves this time, but more about the items I personally enjoy using while traveling.

So yeah… a bit more fun, but I think you’ll still find some really useful stuff in there.

And I have a feeling…
this is one of those newsletters you’ll remember.

Safe travels
Johannes

PS:
Of course If you want to see the complete Opposite the Only 12 Essentails i always Travel With (if you haven’t watched it already), feel free to check out :

👉 The ONLY 12 Travel Essentials I Pack Every Single Trip ( 2026 )