Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

Is it cold now? :rofl:

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

kelbelinoz

12C yesterday in Oxfordshire.. Its warm to us as we lived in Canada for a number of years and I just checked its -22C where we used to live.

We prefer the UK climate, even though you get cloudy and rainy days. At least you do not need your own oil well in winter for the heating oil and power plant for A/C to be able to sleep at night.

I found it funny being back in the UK and seeing people wearing hats and gloves at 10C, whereas we just wear a sweatshirt or fleece when outside.

I assume Brits really have not much to worry about in life if they go on about the weather. I assume at +40C and -40C you worried about how your going to survive/deal with it and get on with it.

hudd

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

[QUOTE=hudd;5972612]kelbelinoz

12C yesterday in Oxfordshire.. Its warm to us as we lived in Canada for a number of years and I just checked its -22C where we used to live.

We prefer the UK climate, even though you get cloudy and rainy days. At least you do not need your own oil well in winter for the heating oil and power plant for A/C to be able to sleep at night.

I found it funny being back in the UK and seeing people wearing hats and gloves at 10C, whereas we just wear a sweatshirt or fleece when outside.

I assume Brits really have not much to worry about in life if they go on about the weather. I assume at +40C and -40C you worried about how your going to survive/deal with it and get on with it. Hudd


Wow, that is cold!!! -22!!! the worst we have to contend with here is extreme heat, new year it did not drop below 40 until 5 oclock in the morning!!
Dream like to some people that have never experienced it, but hellish to live with! Not really my idea of quality living to spend all summer indoors with air conditioning on!!
We are looking forward to returning to England and the lovely gentle seasons that it has to offer. I have realised that English are to occupied with the weather and let it determine their lifestyle! I will be more than happy to spend time outside grey skies or not.... at least we won't have to bathe in fly spray or 30+ sun cream!!
Happy to hear you are enjoying England, refreshing to those that moan continually about it, and want to escape at all costs. :thumbup:

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN... weather
 

We seem to be lucky around Southampton - someone told me that it is because the Isle of Wight creates a kind of pocket so that we don't usually get VERY cold weather and rarely see snow or ice. We had nearly two weeks of frosts overnight followed by cold sunny days. Now it's mild and a little damp so I can leave my long johns and heavy gloves off when I cycle.

The odd thing about Australia for me is the way that people go on about the summers and 'the outdoor lifestyle' but the weather is far more pleasant in the winter. In Sydney that means cool, even cold nights followed by lovely sunny days when it can get up to near 20 degrees C, wonderful for outdoor activities like bushwalking and cycling. How are you supposed to enjoy them when it's up near 40 degrees and it feels like there's a hairdryer a inch from your face whenever you go outside?

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN... weather
 

Exactly...no outdoor life-style in summer really, maybe winter yes, much better.

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

sum up Great Britain .....

its expensive
its got wonderful countryside
the average weather (days per year rain, cloud, drizzle etc) is crap
its expensive
bank holidays are great
its hopefully feeling better after the Blair years
its expensive
its expensive
its expensive
its like playing the lottery with what you get - is your local school on the danger list, is your local hospital a condemned, understaffed, cesspit?

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

I've never found it expensive but then I'm paid in pounds sterling not third world currency!

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

you dont find cars expensive, the fact that you pay more than almost any other country for them?

you dont find petrol costs expensive??

you dont find house prices expensive??

you dont find clothing/electronics/sports equip expensive (bearing in mind that Brits flock to places like the states PURELY to go shopping for these things??)

FACT - UK is expensive, its not an opinion, its a fact of world economics, whether you like it or not

we get paid in pounds sterling too .... sorry to burst that little bubble of yours about the 3rd world currency.

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

Diesel has just reached £1.20 a litre in Chi!!!!

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

:eek: my point exactly ..... BLOODY expensive!

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

Sum up Great Britain.....

Drystone walls and Hedgerows - two sights to gladden the heart and bring a tear to my eye.

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

ooh I forgot ....

great Indian restaurants :thumbsup:

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

I love Britain because:
It is home
People know what I'm saying when I'm saying it, there's no need to hold up on the slang
We can moan about what we like freely
Proper food
Sunday roasts
Good TV
Good music
Pubs
Professional customer service (usually)
People who have a clue what they are doing
Common sense
British beaches, complete with arcades and ice cream :D
You can walk anywhere you like without people thinking it is because you are too poor to afford a car.
You can be eccentric without being judged for it, if you want to have a funny 5 minutes you can go for it.

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

Oz when you take into account the poor wages is much more expensive than the UK, I had to work 6 days a week in Perth just to have enough to live:eek:

Re: Sum up GREAT BRITAIN...
 

One can only generalise of course, but I would say that as a homogenous and still mainly monocultural society (despite relentless campaigns to make us believe otherwise), Britain is a very different kettle of fish from all the other new world nations. So Australia, Canada, NZ and the US have much more in common than they have with Britain. Having said that I would argue that Brits and Canadians are quite similar in their way of thinking, as are the Americans and Australians in their thinking.

While Britain shares some of the same problems as these other nations, I would make the case that it also has some fairly unique problems (at least relative to the other new world nations), and also many virtues of course, such as relative cultural and linguistic homogeneity, many job opportunities all within commuting distance of one another, and proximity to Europe.

The bad news is that Britain is chronically overpopulated, and this is leading to many serious problems such as seriously over-priced housing ( I am aware of Australian house prices), desperate gridlock on most roads every day, crumbling transport infrastructure, lack of personal space in shops and on streets and parks, long queues everywhere and a general malaise when it comes to social interaction with one another.

Another thing, in my personal view, which is causing difficulties is a general lack of direction that is obvious for the British people to follow, thereby robbing them of a lot of inspiration about the future. For one thing, most Brits understand that Britain is no longer a proper democracy (by old definitions at least) and neither is it a proper sovereign nation, and in my opinion this has made many Brits feel like they are powerless to shape their country's future. This is slowly turning the whole nation into what a few decades ago was only found in really run-down areas of low-employment, which is to say people giving up and not caring about their country. While I have encountered this attitude in certain poor parts of Canada, generally my experience of Americans and Australians is that they have a great deal of optimism about their nations' futures (where misplaced or not!)

Also the weather is pretty uninspiring, although if you grew up with it you should be able to handle it. 40+ weeks of cloud and rain every year isn't a lot of fun. Damp is really unpleasant, and so much more pervasive and depressing than extreme heat or cold. People from as far apart as Finland and Greece have asked me how we live in such damp all the time.

But despite the above, I don't think there is a huge difference of quality of life between these nations, and I don't think Britain is a poor choice to live in at all; it depends on what you want out of life. THe one thing I would add though is that I feel Britain (or any cold country for that matter) is probably not a great place to grow old in, and I feel this is supported by the large number of Brits shifting to Spain and Provence every year to retire.

Just a thought.