An update.....
May 14th 2012 | 11:18 am
#106
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 1,324
From: Near Kingston, Ontario
Re: An update.....
Congratulations Chris-I have family near Yeovil and that is an area that interests me- only concerns are getting a job!
May 14th 2012 | 11:27 am
#107
Forum Regular
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 260
Re: An update.....
To those who moved back recently, has Britain changed much in the last decade? Visually (just from looking at street photos), it almost looks somewhat more continental European than I remember, but then again, I've been in the US for almost a decade and haven't been back to Britain since.
Would you say the chav problem has got worse?
How has the huge influx of Poles, Latvians and Estonians affected Britain?
Would you say the chav problem has got worse?
How has the huge influx of Poles, Latvians and Estonians affected Britain?
I live in Lincolnshire in England and yes there has been a very large influx of Polish people in our area. Boston in particular has a huge polish community.
I live only 15 miles from Boston and only a small number of polish people have settled in my home town.
I would never say this is a bad thing as, as usual immigrants (hate that word) are willing to work harder than alot of their english counterparts.
But I'm sure others in the UK will blame all the countries problems on the immigrants.
May 14th 2012 | 2:01 pm
#108
Banned
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 860
From: Purgatory (PU, USA)
Re: An update.....
I think the UK is infinitely better than when we left. Average people are much more well-to-do than they were 20 years ago (they may be worse off than they were 5 years ago, but I missed the boom altogether). They travel more, so are more worldly and less insular. The immigrants have brought a new lease of life to the country. Food is SO much better with really top notch restaurants and even the pubs serving high quality food.
The worst pubs have shut down in many places, leaving only characterful places with good food and good customer service. Fresh, organic vegetables and fruit are in abundance.
Then some things are as they always were ... the people laugh a lot (and complain a lot). The royal family are still batty. The Tories are in power just as they were when I left, and are imposing cuts under the guise of addressing a crisis, the countryside is beautiful, people still eat cornish pasties and garden. Terry Wogan is still on the radio and Bruce Forsyth is still on the telly. Oh and Leeds United still suck
The worst pubs have shut down in many places, leaving only characterful places with good food and good customer service. Fresh, organic vegetables and fruit are in abundance.
Then some things are as they always were ... the people laugh a lot (and complain a lot). The royal family are still batty. The Tories are in power just as they were when I left, and are imposing cuts under the guise of addressing a crisis, the countryside is beautiful, people still eat cornish pasties and garden. Terry Wogan is still on the radio and Bruce Forsyth is still on the telly. Oh and Leeds United still suck
Terry Wogan is still alive? Wow!
I regularly look on skyscrapercity.com for recent images of Britain and it just looks a billon times more continental European than it did when I left, with the outdoor cafes and even the dress sense. As much as Brits fight it, Britain is basically a textbook northen European country. I just wish it'd shed the Euroskepticism and not be so insular at times.
I noticed on Google Street View that a number of pubs I used to frequent have now closed down or have been demolished. Is that a change in culture or is it because Brits are too skint these days to pop down the local boozer for a pint & a packet of Walker's (not a bad attempt for someone who has albeit lost his English accent)?
One major change - London finally has a skyline, 2 actually!
