Are You Happy Living In The UK?

[Cheeky Monkey]

Lived in the US for five years but had to come back here after splitting with the other half so that I would be in my daughter's life. Many great things about living abroad, but many Brits just try and recreate a mini Blighty abroad, have little or no contact with the locals and slag them off at every opportunity so why bother going in the first place?

 

[shingle]

as for Chavs and scum . . . .theyre everywhere, your just not familiar with them elsewhere

The whole World has pondlife, but UK pondlife is in a class of its own. The difference is, overseas doesn't have the mindless violence we have. When they beat the shit out of you, it's for a reason!

Yes Zeiteist

Would have to agree, this is one of my few gripes about living in the uk. But by and large , its still a great place to live.

 

[m20gull]

Lived in the US for five years but had to come back here after splitting with the other half so that I would be in my daughter's life. Many great things about living abroad, but many Brits just try and recreate a mini Blighty abroad, have little or no contact with the locals and slag them off at every opportunity so why bother going in the first place?

I have no idea. I love living here, if for nothing more than regular trips to see the Albion. I can see the attractions of living abroad, we have hopes of skipping to Italy when the boys have flown the nest, but taking Britain with you? What's the point?

 

[Gwylan]

I love it here you won the Lottery of life if you were born an English man...

I do find it paradoxical that the bloke who said that originally spent nearly all his life in Africa.


I'm interested in knowing what people who live abroad do for a living? Are they just filthy rich and live on the investments or do they work for a living. I've investigated working abroad before, but found it impossible to get a work permit for the US and opportunities for foreign correspondents are limited.

I have thought of living in Europe many times, but as a journalist, I'd find it harder to get a job than most people. It's not a question of learning another language (I already speak French and German pretty well), it's learning another language well enough to write in it, a much harder thing to do.

There are loads of things I like about Britain, so I wouldn't leave to get away from the place, It's just that I'd like the experience of working somewhere else .... but I suppose I never will now (sigh).

 

[Man of Harveys]

I have thought of living in Europe many times, but as a journalist, I'd find it harder to get a job than most people. It's not a question of learning another language (I already speak French and German pretty well), it's learning another language well enough to write in it, a much harder thing to do.

Depends what kind of journalism though...I looked into this a few years back when I wanted to move to Paris. Basically, if it's financial PR type stuff, apparently a lot of companies might want you as much for your English language skills as for your French.

I still really fancy it when I finally spawn - having been brought up abroad for quite a long time myself, it's a fantastic - and free - education to receive which has been hugely valuable later in life.

 

[berkshire seagull]

I have to say this country is getting worse and worse and full of shit,so given the opotunity i would certainly move abroad.

 

[Uncle Spielberg]

Its a myth that the UK is the best country in the world to live in. Its a shit hole !. You get sod all for your efforts and are beaten down by the government if you get ideas above your station and try and make a good living for yourself.

If you work hard and a professional person in the USA the least you would expect to come home to every night is a 4/5 bed detached house with a swimming pool and as much as you could eat and drink with a 50 ft long car in the driveway.

 

[Gwylan]

Its a myth that the UK is the best country in the world to live in. Its a shit hole !. You get sod all for your efforts and are beaten down by the government if you get ideas above your station and try and make a good living for yourself.

I thought you were just beaten down by the bookies, GG.

 

[Cheeky Monkey]

Join the Foreign Office Gwylan, Brit tax payers would burst a blood vessel if they could see the kind of overseas properties FO staff live in for nowt and the ridiculous lifestyle. One single bloke I knew in Washington lived in a $1m house rented by the Brit Government. I used to wake up in the morning, draw the curtains and there'd be a crew of gardeners in the garden doing the mowing/weeding etc. Salad daze indeed.

 

[trueblue]

Football and family keep me here. That's it. The rest I could leave behind without a thought.

 

[Incredigull]

 

[Rambo]

I was 30 last week.
I am having an early mid-life crisis. I really want to get out of the boring mundane life I live.
Maybe moving abroad could be the answer.
I earn a good wage but am certainly not as well off as I should be. Most is taken in tax and extortionate cost of living.
The Uk is not all it is cracked up to be.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I've long been working out why - seemingly uniquely - the UK has so many ugly chavs in garish tracksuit bottoms and stupid caps spitting and shouting around the place

Iwas sort of thinking the same sort of thing tonight walking up Preston Drove on me way home from work. There were all these senior citizen gentlemen in immaculate whites intensely playing bowls, just really getting into and enjoying the game, not fackin this and fackin that, just being quiet and modest and having a rare old time with their mates. Simple pleasures and good times. They were that age that if you were to sit any one of them down and drag it out of them, they'd bashfully tell you about heroic deeds and personal tragedies and comradeship that make decent people what they are. Weird to think that somewhere down the line there's going to be a whole generation of poisonous low-IQ chavs roaming around aged sixty still spittting and shouting at the world in general.

 

[Cadiz Seagull]

I can't speak for other parts of the world, only really for Spain, but if you are looking to come here and find a job, then that is likely to be difficult unless you (a) speak the language pretty well and (b) have a specific skill that is in demand.
However, if you are prepared to work for yourself, try something new, set up a business, especially something serving the expat community then there are definite possibilities. The internet has made lots of things possible - I see lots of clients who come here to buy property who will be doing some sort of work using the net. OK they won't be earning what they do in the UK, but they don't need to.
If you have some imagination, some go in you, are prepared to try something new then there are lots of possibilities around. But if you expect to get a job doing what you do in UK but employed by a Spanish company then except in certain circumstances you probably won't find one.
Some people see this as a problem, and that's fine. Some people see it as an opportunity and end up doing something they've never done before and never expected to. I came out here and set up an estate agency (something I'd never done before), made a success of it, sold out because I was working too hard and now have 3 part time businesses, all using the net. One is starting to work well, the other two are not yet fully operational, but they will be. And in the meantime I make enough to survivce and live a better quality of life than when I was back in UK.

 

[driddles]

My Dad emigrated to Canada in 67. So I have spent most of my life in Canada. I do get to make several trips to the Uk.

Thank god Dad emigrated. I love England as it is a beautiful place, but the people are becoming unbearable! In 21 years of drinking in bars in Canada I have never been in a fight - never even been close to one. Yet fights in England seem to be a regular occurence. I can't think of one recent holiday where my wife and I have not at least felt violence was close by. We've seen at least one fight in each of the last 3 UK holidays. THIS IS NOT NORMAL PEOPLE! Sane people do not go around looking for fights.

 

[Lord Cornwallis]

I've been living abroad for the last 3 years. Have always planned to come back but the longer away I am the less I want to. I love England, but I now also love some other places and I have a better life there.

At the end of the day the biggest decider is the standard of living you can get elsewhere and for the price. The UK is just TOO expensive.

Also, when I first went away, stuff like pubs closing at 11 didn't seem such a bad thing...after a while without that nonsense when I go back it does my head in.



and just to annoy all the twats who can't bear to hear a word against blighty....the thing I dislike the most about the UK and Europe as a whole (yes we're a European nation) is the agressiveness of people. I was back in England not 24 hrs 2 weeks ago sat in a pub garden on a fairly nice sunny day and two cocks were squaring up to each other...at lunchtime! f*** OFF.

That about sums it up for me too.
Everything has it's price, I miss my family and the Albion, but in 13 years away I've noticed the change in the UK. Everyone seems pissed off at the world and you feel it could kick off any minute, no matter where you are.
I enjoy coming back for the country pubs, the Downs, the seafront, but don't think I'll ever live there again.
America gives me a good existance, there are things I dislike about the people, but again everything has a price and when in Rome.......
Having said that, my aim is to move to Spain within 10 years to go into semi retirement and be back closer to the family and have a bit of sun on the old bones.

 

[Wardy]

My wife keeps talking about us moving to Austrialia. Every time she brings it up i point out a vitial bit of information......

It's a long way to come for home games though love...........

 

[Gwylan]

Depends what kind of journalism though...I looked into this a few years back when I wanted to move to Paris. Basically, if it's financial PR type stuff, apparently a lot of companies might want you as much for your English language skills as for your French.

I still really fancy it when I finally spawn - having been brought up abroad for quite a long time myself, it's a fantastic - and free - education to receive which has been hugely valuable later in life.

I know it's possible to move: I know a couple of people who have moved abroad who had some, but limited, language skills and have survived.

It's not easy though. Perhaps, like Cadiz Seagull says, it would take a change of career - although I'm not sure what else I could do.

Like I said earlier, I don't have a pressing reason to move. I like Britain, it's got football, cricket, decent beer and Marmite. I don't understand people who say it's got violent. I live and work in London and in 23 years here I've never been in a fight, seen a fight or felt threatened in any way. Take a look at crime statistics, the US is far more violent as are several European countries: the UK is just above halfway in the league.

No, if I went abroad it would be because another country would have something more to offer not because I wanted to leave here.

 

[Dick Knights Mumm]

I am happy where I live. I worry about my kids and where they will live though. Probably abroad as they won't be able to afford a house.

The one thing I would like, is more warm sunny evenings.



Tell me though - isn't it full of foreigners in these places ?

 

[north stand falmer]

I hate the UK. Mr Blair is a dictater. We are tax to the hilt. The country is full of asylem seekers. It's getting a complete and utter joke. The only people who call our country great are those smelly ayslem seekers.

I'm merry and am off to the land of nod.

Just glad I'm in Thailand and south east asia for 12 months.