jojosan

[QUOTE=YankeemovingAbroad;6181039]Thank you for your informative post and thanks to all who have responded to this thread.Its nice to hear that you find Scotland a place where foreigners will feel accepted and maybe even embraced.I kinda felt dating in the UK is the same as here in the States but just wanted to hear the view point of someone from there.I don't plan to work in the UK,it makes more sense to maintain my business here in the States.

I've lived in New Jersey and New York city and allthough I'm not a big fan of snowy weather still believe I'm pretty adaptable.So I don't think the weather in the UK would turn me off.Of course I'm saying that from sunny florida and our 89 degree tempts.I'm curious,do you think Brits or Scots have a strong opinion of Americans and how close is that opinion to fact?[/QUOTE]


Hi Yankee. The trouble with asking that sort of question is, you only often get the caricature type of response! ie Americans in gaudy clothes with cameras around their necks, speaking very loudly about the history of wherever they happen to be. Or the loud mouthed, lack of culture/manners Australian. Or the moaning Brit, not happy with their lot but not getting off their bum to do something about it...

All of these are extreme generalisations, with small bits of reality I should imagine!

So, I'll let someone else answer how Brits think of Americans... Generally positively I would think. Like most things in life, it's all about how you get on with other people around you....

Good luck with your plans!

YankeemovingAbroad

Interesting comments.Thank you for the input, it is helpful.7 in Scotland? Would that 7 equal a butt whipping or just overly agressive chavs who have been drinking but would verbally taunt and nothing more?Or looking on the potential brighter side, 7 would equal greater attention from the ladies because of the fact I'll be the only African American male in the whole of Scotland? Know which one I'm hoping for

Jumbo_Celcius

No, a 7 just means there 'aint many black fellas the further North you go!
I've got a black African friend who's never had any hassle. As mentioned, if a bunch of chav's are looking to "roll" someone if won't matter what colour you are.
An, unfortunately (for you), we do have African/Americans and African/Carribean Brits so you wouldn't be "unique" and will have to compete for ladies attention just like the rest of us

Also, as previously mentioned, if you're not working you won't meet many people so join a club, take a part-time job in a bar, talk to your neighbours etc and get a social network built up!
Being from a different country, people will be interested in talking with you.

Jumbo_Celcius

[QUOTE=YankeemovingAbroad;6181039]Thank you for your informative post and thanks to all who have responded to this thread.Its nice to hear that you find Scotland a place where foreigners will feel accepted and maybe even embraced.I kinda felt dating in the UK is the same as here in the States but just wanted to hear the view point of someone from there.I don't plan to work in the UK,it makes more sense to maintain my business here in the States.

I've lived in New Jersey and New York city and allthough I'm not a big fan of snowy weather still believe I'm pretty adaptable.So I don't think the weather in the UK would turn me off.Of course I'm saying that from sunny florida and our 89 degree tempts.I'm curious,do you think Brits or Scots have a strong opinion of Americans and how close is that opinion to fact?[/QUOTE]

As JoJo mentioned, it'll depend on what stereotype of American you are:

A loud Texan who wants everyone to hear his opinion

A gay man from San Francisco

A wannabe actor/actress from L.A

Bill Gates

George Bush

I'm only messing with you now!

But I'm sure you're a cool/slick East coaster after living in Jersey/NYC and will adapt quickly.

When you moving, you probably want to be around in Summer time when everyone is happy! If you want to go to Scotland, I'd suggest Edinburgh at first

P.S if you move to Scotland you will have to start drinking more (alot more) and start watching soccer (choose your team carefully and don't wear soccer shirts in the pub, it can cause problems, alot of pubs don't allow you in with them on! unless it's a Scotland national team soccer top )

dunroving

Although the UK is about the size of North Carolina, generalizing about the UK is about as accurate as generalizing about the US. Life in an inner city estate is not the same as life in sleepy Somerset.

Just last week, non-white immigrants to the UK were shown in a UK documentary describing how they had been persecuted, and a (white) householder described how he had bricks thrown through his windows on several occasions and was eventually severaly beaten up. For what? Renting rooms to Polish immigrants. These are just examples, but whether they are isolated examples I don't know. Immigration is definitely a hot topic in the news, and some sections of the public certainly have an "issue" with immigrants. But then you find rednecks everywhere in this world. I'd guess that being a black American would be less of a problem in London than some areas.

The best of the UK? Multiculturalism, beautiful countryside, vibrant cities, relatively decent standard of living, live entertainment (music, theatre, opera), free culture (museums, art galleries, etc.), a free press (though that's a double-edged sword), the NHS (it's FREE at point of service), fantastic TV documentaries and dramas.

Worst of the UK? Current economic situation for recent homebuyers, persistent rain, long, dark winter nights, too-liberal treatment of criminals and spongers, increasing gaps between the haves and have-nots, dreadful conditions in some cities.

YankeemovingAbroad

Thanks Jumbo

Wonderful post.I've never had a problem using the unique factor to my advantage.It can be a fun experience for people to see or be involved in something new & different for the first time.

When I spent 6 months in Argentina many years ago I was among only a handful of Blacks in that country and most of those very few were from Brazil,which made me stand out even more .

Every where I went in Buenos Aires I was treated like a rock star.Truely a unforgetable experience. Being a people person, I don't mind standing out at all,as long as the natives are inviting and friendly.Scotland could very well be a must see.

YankeemovingAbroad

[QUOTE=Jumbo_Celcius;6181130] Scotland is sounding more & more like a party place.This could be a very good match.Is soccer really taken so seriously that the wearing of a particular team jersey could start a fight in a bar or on the street?

Marmalade

You do know that Scotland is part of Britain, right

Jumbo_Celcius

[QUOTE=YankeemovingAbroad;6185386] Read the below:
I am ashamed of what happened in my country and do not condone this in anyway, it is only a small minority of idiots who do this, but it can (and does) happen.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/s...st/5151414.stm

Sherro

It is a sad state of affairs but this does happen, its the main reason why the FA cant arrange a regular England V Scotland football fixture, too bloody dangerous.

That said, a scottish lad wearing a scotland football shirt has probably equal chance of getting a good hiding in some English towns if he is caught off guard. But that is just Scotish/English rivalry, always been there, always will be.

I was quite nervous when i left the countryside to move to London as an early 20 somthing but soon realised it is probably the most tolerant place in the UK...obviously warring football fans discounted from that statement. Being caught between West Ham and Millwall fans is quite possibly the scariest thing I ever saw, it felt like hell unleashed....

Um, dont be wearing an England football shirt in Scotland then...

Jumbo_Celcius

Those events happened when the World Cup was on in 2006, I think the majority of the time it wouldn't happen, common sense is needed though, I wouldn't go out drinking in an English town with a Scotland shirt on, or go into a Rangers bar with a Celtic top on, or go into a Liverpool pub with an Arsenal shirt on, hence the reason alot of bars ban football shirts.
I find it embarrassing as we are neighbours and (due to our leaders making us unpopular in parts of the world) the UK needs to stick together, we don't need enemys on our doorstep
On the English side I hear comments like "we are subsidising Scotland" and on the Scottish side "our oil money is subsidising England".
These comments are usually from uneducated morons who take their "quotes" from the Sun newspaper. If I were in charge of the country I would ban The Sun, I've read the Scottish version and the English version and they contradict each other, we are called the "United Kingdom" and so should be "United"

king kong

We was in Coldstream in scotland for the rugby [scotland V england ] and we had a great time in the pub ,it had a great mixture of both .
Mind you the borders are a different breed and as they say '' they are scottish at their will and english by their pleasure '' .

king kong

[QUOTE=YankeemovingAbroad;6185386] It might be if you were wearing green and white in govan .

Marmalade

I have to dispute this, as I am from the Borders of Scotland, and have NEVER seen myself as any bit English in any way Nothing wrong with the English, but I am not one of them

username 34

In terms of being a black American in the UK of course there are places where you would be unique and places where you will be one of a number - and not necessarily just in large cities.

For example if you moved to the West country, to a village in Devon, I think its pretty safe to assume you may very well be the only black person in that village.

However if you go to Suffolk, somewhere like Bury St Edmunds, which is a town not a city, you'll find a deluge of black and white American servicemen and their families from the nearby US bases like Mildenhall.

Of course cities like London, Manchester, Brighton, Birmingham, Leeds etc etc will have the greatest mix of cultures and ethnicity and the "golden circle" of a 30 mile radius around London, where immigrants from predominantly the Caribbean settled in the 50's and 60's, close by Heathrow and then more family joined them, therefore giving these areas a huge black community.

Transportation - well the UK is full of bottlenecks. Great roads in many places and then the same jams every day in the same places. Roadworks are slow, rarely completed on time and timed to coincide with bank holidays on a regular basis.

The train system is underfunded by its private ownership, chronic overcrowding on the popular routes, regular works forcing bus journeys or cancellations. And the WORST thing is that with a drop of snow or high winds blowing leaves on the line the system dies .... its unable to cope with even the basic seasonal weather.

Buy a small CC car - 2.0 or under. Theres no need for more power and the taxation of cars above 2.0 is going mad. Petrol's expensive and not expected to drop in price. If you want a car that holds value - buy a used Toyota, Merc, Audi, some BMW's or volvo. If you buy Ford, Vauxhall, Korean makes etc they will be cheap, and cheap to repair, but will devalue much faster.

House prices are high still, I'd rent something and wait for a year or so until desperation has really set in for people needing to sell and repo's going up.

Living down south where I did I liked. We had Brighton 30 minutes to one side and Southampton an hour to the other with the south downs to the north, and the beach a mile south. I cant tell you about living anywhere else as this is where I spent the last 18 years of being in the UK.

Take advantage of the great restaurants, not the chains, but the local independants who do great food. The culture, heritage of the UK is so vast compared to the US its a joke - just take one saturday afternoon to have a lovely pub lunch in a 400 year old pub overlooking wonderful countryside - its great.