Could you happily retire to South Korea?

I usually find my thoughts drifting to the east coast, particularly Sandsend near Whitby, where I spent many happy family holidays when my children were young.

But since I’m not married to Elon Musk, I don’t have any hope, as even garden sheds in this so-called real estate hotspot fetch staggering sums.

And if I’m honest, Sandsend isn’t what it used to be. When we arrived it was still a thriving community populated by locals with only a few country cottages. Now it’s almost all second homes.

I’d never thought of it before, but perhaps we’d be better off joining the growing number of pensioners leaving the UK.

South Korea, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Vietnam are among the fastest-growing countries people are choosing to retire, the report said.

The Retiree Exodus Report, produced by online financial guide Investing Reviews, also placed Georgia and Slovakia in the top ten.

My friend’s son lives in South Korea and he loves it, but he’s in his twenties and when you’re that age there’s no stopping you.

Whereas I – I would find it all too much. If I were to retire abroad I’d like to learn the local language – also don’t let the Brits living abroad bother you. My grandmother lived in Mallorca for years and neither she nor her British friends could speak more than two or three words of Spanish.

I had never been good at languages ​​- my old brain was now unable to cope with the new one, which immediately threw up problems. It would take me a long time to understand our local bus and train timetables here in Yorkshire – I’d never get my head around the Korean or Lithuanian equivalents.

And also food. Can I buy Tetley tea, Aldi’s Benefit cereal and Longley Farm yogurt in Estonia? I remember my mum packing tea bags and Marmite and all sorts of things to send to my nanny in Spain.

One of the benefits of retirement is not being tied down to a specific place through work or school. But as you mature, new needs appear. Having lost my parents in the last couple of years, I am fully aware of the importance of living close to an office and a hospital.

When you retire abroad, you’ll need to dig deeper and look at the entire health care system. Is it comparable to ours? It’s probably better anyway. I read this week how wonderful Ukrainian health care is. Despite the war, you can still see a doctor if you need one – refugees even return for treatment.

Perhaps our broken health care system is one of the reasons retirees are fleeing abroad. Or it could be the value of houses. Selling here and buying in Vietnam will undoubtedly leave you with a huge surplus.

You might be able to trade a suburban condo for a plush Grand Designs overlooking a secluded palm-fringed bay. But there’s no point in having a look to die for if your nearest store doesn’t have your favorite Hobnobs.

I know people who have moved to a scenic spot in the UK that they visited as tourists, only to return when it didn’t live up to expectations. It’s much harder to come back when you’ve moved to the other side of the world.

I would like to be near my family and friends. My daughters live in London and I rarely see them as they are. I could not imagine that they would go to Latvia or through Poland on weekends.

People say Britain is on its knees or going to the dogs, and sometimes it seems that it is. But I still wouldn’t want to live out my days anywhere else.