Brits in Charleston SC
 

Any Brit's/Scots in the Charleston SC area?

Hi all. It's been a long while since I came on here and I intend to use this site more often.

Just wondering If any Brits live in the Charleston SC area? I actually live in Summerville which is about 20 miles from Charleston. I moved here in Dec 2009 (K1 Visa) and now hold a 10 year GC.

I have come across a few Brits in my time here but not too many. Just also looking into any feedback on anyone in this and surrounding area on what they do, whether It's trying to find Scottish/British food, Highland Games(I've been to the one in Mount Pleasant twice) any sort of British culture and I'm sure you miss it across the pond.

Cheers all

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

The only highland games in the area is in Mt. Pleasant (usually held in September at Boone Hall). I think the next closest one is in NC somewhere. My husband has been here since 2003. We are only now getting around to doing the citizenship papers, lol! The pub Madra Rua serves Irish food. It's located in the historic Park Circle area in North Charleston (not too far of a drive from Summerville). There are local pick-up games of soccer listed on spoccer.com (whoever shows up plays, young and old). If I can think of anything else to help you I'll do another post. My husband and I don't get out an awful lot as he works two jobs and is pretty exhausted much of the time.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

I think the one your on about in NC is Kings Mountain. There is also an Irish Pub in West Ashley that sells an Irish/Scottish breakfast but for the hell of me, I can't remember it. They serve black and white pudding, potato scones etc.

Boone Hall is lovely, been there on plenty occasions. I think I'm more surprised than anything else that I haven't bumped into more Brits since I moved here in 2008, as I used to work for the Post & Courier, I was out and about a lot.

I appreciate your reply :D

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi

There is a Highland Games in Greenville SC in the spring at Furman University havent been my self but have been told its very good.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

I'm in Summerville too - there is a new Madra Rua opened on Main Street that's quite nice

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi, Me and my husband John have just moved to SC in Charleston. I am really enjoying my time here in America, but it has been a long time since I have had the chance to have a chat with somebody from the UK, other than using Skype.

I would love to get a group of British people together to have a few drinks at a pub and make some friends. America is great but it is always nice to hear a familiar accent. If you are up for going for a drink please post on the forum and we can try and arrange to meet up.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

Cheers

Laura :thumbup:

(PS. No swingers or weirdo’s please)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Count me in for a meet-up.
I so miss hearing english spoken!

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Great, let’s try and get a group of us together and arrange a meet up. Looking forward to meeting up soon. :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

I am in Myrtle Beach so would be interested if you guys arranged a meetup.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Good to know. So far it looks like we could get a group together. We live in Charleston, SC. I will think about arranging a get together and come back to you with possible dates and times. :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

I am going to be moving to the Charleston/Mt Pleasant area in a few months. If anyone starts any Expat meetups I'll definitely be up for joining when we move down.

I've heard about the Scottish games in MP and I am planning on going to have a look see. Never got around to checking out the Scottish Society here in Indy.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Some friends and I are coming down the weekend of March 31 to Charleston to do the Cooper River Bridge 10K Run. Wont be much of a night Friday as we will be carb-loading but Saturday night promises to be a night to remember. If you are in town that night - come join us.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Well you might be running, but I'm going to walk up and skate down!!!:rofl::rofl:

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Sarah,

That's good news. I am going to try and organise a few get togethers soon. Look forward to meeting you and your husband.

Cheers

Laura :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hubby is deployed and I am travelling right now, but should be back in N.Chas' by early May. We would be interested in a meet-up of Brits too, so will keep an eye on this thread:)

Also know a couple of other Brits we have dinner/drinks with, that live on Johns Island, so will bring them along too.
huggs Kim x

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Kim, We would love to meet you and your husband and friends. I am going to try and organise a get together for the beginning of February and will post something on the forum this week. So just keep checking back to see what's going on.

The more the merrier.

Cheers

Laura :D

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi, that’s impressive stuff doing the Cooper River Bridge 10K Run. Good Luck with that! Thanks for the invite, if we are in town we definitely will come and join you and your friends. Cheers Laura :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

My OH is in Mt Pleasant/Daniel Island just now for work. He comes back on Friday. He likes rollerblading and took his blades for this trip. He is enjoying his time down there and thinks me and the kids will like it too. Just got to work out the logistics of it all and find somewhere in our budget to live! Be good to meet some fellow Expats when we get down there. We have made friends with a fab group of Brits here and will be sad to go, but looking forward to meeting new people and new experiences in SC.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hey Sarah, It must be hard at times being away from your OH. We both enjoy roller blading too. When I lived in Vienna, Austria there was a large park especially for roller bladers that I used to go to.

I know what it’s like trying to plan everything out, as I was in a long distance relationship with my husband. He was living in MN and I was living in Austria. That was hard but we got through it!

The cost of living in Charleston can be quite pricey, it depends what you’re looking for property wise and whether you want to be down town or in a subdivision such as Mount Pleasant or on one of the islands.

We’re going through the Green Card application at the moment, what a stressful process. Hoping that everything will go through without any problems fingers crossed!

Would be happy to show you both around Charleston once you are settled.
Good Luck with the move.

Look forward to meeting you all when you move to SC.

Laura :thumbup:

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Folks,

Would anyone be interested in meeting up on Saturday 4th February for meal/drinks at the Irish Pub called Madra Rua in North Charleston? See link: http://madraruapub.com/

Around 7:30pm

My mobile number should you need it is: 843 901 5580

Looking forward to meeting you all!

Laura :-)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Mount Pleasant is a great place to be if you have school age kids, the schools there are among the best in the State. Pricey as far as housing goes though and the Dorchester school district 2 has good schools too, Summerville is in their catchment area and is a good living area and a lot cheaper. I allways advise people moving to try and find a nice rental for the first year, it will give you chance to get to know the areas better and decide where you want to purchase. We rented in Mt.P. because our Son was going into his senior year and we knew we didn't want to live there after he finished school. We moved into a rental in North Charleston, almost half the price and it's a nice quiet neighborhood. N.Chas' has a pretty bad reputation for the most part, but if you look North of the base (charleston afb) there are some nicer parts.
Good luck with your move, if you need any help with anything, just holler:)
huggs Kim x

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi All,

I still intend to organise the below get together. Unfortunately, I need to change the date from Saturday 4th February to Saturday 18th February.

Sorry about that.

Thanks

Laura :cool:

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi

We are also moving from the UK to Charleston on 1st April - my hubbie and I and our 3 kids (5,7,10) for work. Flights booked and visa sorted now just attempting to find somewhere to rent in Mount Pleasant. Would be interested in meeting up when we descend.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi, We would love to meet up with you, your hubbie and kids when you have settled in Mount Pleasant. We live in 'Montclair', which is a gated community opposite the 'Town Centre' shopping centre. Mount Pleasant is mainly made up of gated communities. There, are also other gated communities such as 'Crickentree' you could try. Here are the links: http://montclairpoa.com/ and http://www.apartmentguide.com/apartm...kentree/14144/. Good luck with the apartment search. :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

We have decided to move to MP sooner than expected. We found a townhouse that we are going to rent for a while. It is cheap and cheerful and will do until we either find somewhere else or get our GC and are in a position to buy. We are planning on moving down the last weekend in February. So much for it being the middle or end of March!

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Congrats on finding a town house in Mount P. Where in MP is it? Let me know when your settled. Would love to get together with another fellow Brit! I miss the accent and all kinds of things. I have a meal planned for the group on Sat 18th Feb you should come along? :thumbup:

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

All being well, we should be in MP by 25/26 Feb. We are moving into a townhouse near MP town center, close to Mathis Ferry Rd.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Folks,

I have added the meet up at 'Madra Rua' on the 18th Feb to the 'Meet Ups' calendar.

Cheers

Laura :-)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Sarah, Mathis Ferry is not far from where we live. I will make sure that there is an event organised with the BE for sometime in March.

NB. If anyone has suggestions for another meet up after the 18th Feb, then please post it on the forum. :D

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hey guys,

I'm visiting Charleston from the 20th of March to the 25th of April - my girlfriend lives on James Island, and I'll be seeing her and 'working from home'.

I'd love to meet up with some Brits in the area to have a chat about life in South Carolina. I've a view to move to Charleston in the next 12-18 months and would love to know a little more!

I work in software Sales & Marketing, and it would be great to meet similar professionals! I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to sales in America.

Similarly, let me know if there is anything I can bring over for you! From Yorkshire tea to actual Cadburys!

Luke

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Luke,

We are fairly new to the area to. My name is Laura and I am originally from North London and my husband’s name is John.

We moved to the States due to John's job. We have lived in Mount Pleasant for the last 6 months and would be happy to meet up with you both.

Perhaps we could meet for drinks in the Mount Pleasant area on Saturday 31st March?

Thanks for the offer of bringing some English treats; you can get Cadburys over here and fairly decent English tea too.

Laura :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi All,

First post here, so be kind :) We are not exactly British expats, but my OH and I relocated from Ireland in the past year and are living in Mount P. , so hopefully that qualifies us to post here??

I have met a few British people here since we moved and some Irish too. I would say the British community is bigger than you would first think, although still relatively small.

Did the first meet up take place? how did it go? Also, are there any others planned, as I'd be definitely interested in dropping in to say hello?

Brendan

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Brendan:)

Welcome to the forum, I am in Canada at the mo' visiting friends, but we live in N.Charleston, we lived in Mt.P for a year when we first moved to SC in 2010.
Of course you are qualified to post here:) Not sure about the meet up, but I think there will be more planned, I am hoping so because we will be back in SC around May 10th and was planning on turning up at one after that!

Jump in on the US forum and say hi to all the other expats around the US:)
huggs kim x

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

We moved to MP this past weekend. Currently sat waiting for Comcast to connect my internet. Looking forward to next meet up whenever it is. My kids started school today. My daughter found out there is another English kid in her class.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

That's great Sarah:thumbsup:

Hope your kids settle in pretty quickly, they are great schools! Did the BIL turn up yet? lol. We have comcast there too, no issues with them so far:fingerscrossed:

Good luck with the unpacking, hope to see you in April sometime:)
PS, if you go into harris teeters there on the 41, be sure to say hello to Monika for me in starbucks;)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

The weather yesterday in Mount P. wasn't the most welcoming for your first Monday morning in SC. Today, however, is a more what it has been like lately.

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

The weather has been fine so far but then I am Scottish and have just left Indiana winters! Not been to Harris Teeter yet but think I will. Went to Publix on Sunday and spent close to $200!
Kids start going to school by bus tomorrow and I thought I'd check the pickup time. It is 6.40am!! The schedule I had said it was 6.55am. School seems ok but it's clear the school district we just left has a LOT more money than this one!

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Yeah, the prices of groceries in Mt.P are a lot higher than in N.Charleston, I think we are saving close to a thousand$ a month by leaving Mt.P (between rent, groceries, utilities etc) I think it's just expected that people living in Mt.P have more money to spend. We were there only for the high school, to be honest I found most of the people there boring and snotty. Maybe that was just me, others say they are friendly and welcoming?

My Sons bus picked up around 7am, but that was HS. they do tend to pick up early, but they finished early too.

I know that the schools in that district probably spend more than pretty much any others around, I'm surprised that you have a different impression, I think the magnet school in Charleston may spend a little more, i'm not sure.

If you decide to join the city data forum for Charleston, you will quickly learn that there is a big 'keeping up with the jones's' thing going on between Mt.P and Summerville!:lol:

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

Hi Brendan,

That is not a problem the more the merrier.

We also live in Mount P and are fairly new to the area, we moved here due to my husband’s job. My name is Laura and my hubbies name is John.

Yes, the first meet up did take place I organised the evening, although we were running late ourselves. When we did turn up we could not see anyone. Admittedly, we had a small banner with the group’s name on our table.

The meet up was to an Irish pub called 'Madra Rua' located in Park Circle. It was quite dark in there which made it hard to find anyone. Never the less we ended up staying for a drink and some tasty fish and chips.

Hope the next meet up works out better, sorry if the last one was a bit of a flop. I did try! :)

Re: Brits in Charleston SC
 

I have been to Madra Rua a couple of times - the last attempt was an ill-fated effort to watch Ireland V France in the Rugby, but the game was called off due to the frost.
Always lots of stuff going on around the City, so there is generally no shortage of events happening. the city paper comes out mid-week and has a good listing of things to do.