Does anyone like living in the US?
 

Hello, this is my first post so apologies if I'm going where you've all gone before.
We are moving to the US next year....Pennsylvania. Husband has been offered job, new company doing everything, immigration lawyers ready to file for H1-B next April, liasing with company's relocation dept for move next Oct etc. etc. Found this website and have been reading the threads and you all seem to want to come back to the UK!!!!!! Someone tell me something good....please....

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

We like living here and don't want to go back:)

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

I'm living here and have no intention of going back :)

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

While in the US at first... I hated US and wanted to go back to UK....Then I settled and didn't want to return to UK but had to. LOL

I cannot compare the two countries.... They both have good and bad.....

The only way for you to find out is to go for it and see.... Better if you have an open mind and no preconcieved ideas, then you can decide for yourself...

If I had read the posts on here before we left I wouldn't have gone to the US... LOL Then again I would have read all the negative ones.... :rolleyes:

:D :D :D

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

Well.. I'm beginning to wish I hadn't read some of the posts on here ..LOL.
We are going with very open minds. We know we'll be homesick at times but there will be so many new things to enjoy .....we hope. No family left here in UK so no big emotional ties but it is a bit like being on a rollercoaster.
Imagine choc-a-holic middle daughters face when she tasted her first US chocolate (brought back as a present).LOL

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

I think like Honeymommy says, a lot of things really depend on you keeping an open mind and embracing the new lifestyle.

It is very different, but then I'm in Texas and I think Texas is quite a bit different from the rest of the country.

I find my way of life is not much different in that I have four children, and wherever I live in the world I will still have the school runs, the homework to help with, the day to day looking after a family etc that I've always had.

I guess the main difference is I'm living my life in a bigger house than we could have had in the UK with better weather and a nicer car :D

Our younger children have settled in with no problems but my eldest daughter doesn't like it that much. I feel though if we lived anywhere that wasn't quite so fond of Pres. Bush and had less religious people she would have fared much better.

I've missed my family the most by far, and if you don't have that much in the way of family I think you will stand a better chance of getting used to things over here.

It is a bit of a rollercoaster the first couple of years, I've certainly been up and down but overall America offers us the things we need in our life right now and I'm considering it to be a bit of an adventure.

I think if you have the opportunity to do it, it's certainly worth a try.

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

All I can say about a post like this is that I'll only give you my opinions based mostly on my experiences. Consider it truthful (as someone who lives in the US as opposed to someone who's not lived in the US or only visited the US for vacations).

I won't gloss over the negative aspects of life in the US. Neither will I only post solely about the positive aspects of US life.

Just prepare yourself for a different life. At the same time, try to identify the similarities between the US and the UK (this'll be fun! :) ).

You make no mention of having children. If you have children, their adjustment to life should be your major concern. If they're unhappy, the whole family will be unhappy.

My view on PA? I've only been to Pittsburgh for business. Spent a week there. Hung out with coworkers after work too. Pittsburgh is not for me. Could've ended up going there after spouse relocated back to the US. Despite the lure of an automatic job (at least for my spouse), we didn't move there. I was in Pittsburgh in April (97) and it snowed one evening, in April! Couldn't believe it.




NC Penguin

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

Yeah, I'm happy here. You must realize that the US is a vast country. If you want to live in a small liberal town like I do, then you can. You want trucks and guns - no problem. It's all in where you live. I love the mountains, skiing and being far away from large crowds of people. (NM probably has about 1/60 of the population density of the UK.) You won't catch me moving to Florida, Southern Cal or the Bible Belt. You may catch me moving back to the Pacific Northwest or elsewhere in the mountain states. I came here with a one-way ticket to a place I'd never been before, and I've never looked back. I've been to continental Europe more times than to the UK since I came to the US. So if a job came up in Switzerland, all bets are off. But I don't miss the UK that much.

At the risk of offending some resident posters, you'll probably recognize that any time you get an expatriate community together within another country you're going to hear a whole lot of bitching and whining. They'll always talk about the things they miss and the things that are not right in their new country of residence beacuse they have an audience that understands their backgrounds and is sympathetic to their needs. If Brits run out to their American friends and start complaining about these things, they'll likely not be too welcome. Here we all have a forum to let off some steam.

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

it's 38 degrees F here.

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

Your situation is different. You are having your hand held throughout it all, so you won't have to worry about the things that many DIY immigrants have to.

I don't imagine, for example, that this company is going through all of this sponsorship for you (it is a massive pain in the arse for them, and they wouldn't do it if you weren't special) and then going to leave you in the lurch without health insurance. And I bet they are going to pay for you to move all of your stuff. And no doubt help you find schools for the kids and all the rest of it. Not to mention pay a proper salary.

Your experience will be completely different from the experiences of people who DIY it. So, don't worry and look forward to it!

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

I'm staying, if that makes you feel any better :)

Sadly there are alot of Brits that come over thinking the grass is greener and all that bollocks. You reap what you sow really! if you have loads of family, have health problems or tend to get homesick whilst on a 3 day camping holiday to the Devon, then it may be a big mistake.

If you love taking life by its hairy gonads, taking the piss out of yanks, arguing over George W, eating excessive amounts of food, enjoying different climates, driving gas guzzeling cars, living in "southfork" sized homes, earning a "decent" wage, and enjoy sports, then please come over as you will love it here :D as many of us do!

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

This country has some of the best natural scenery you could ever hope to see.

Also, they make really good ice cream.

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

Me too! :) :D :D

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

To be honest, if my wife wasn't american I wouldn't live here.... BUT

things that are better

1 bedroom flat in the UK Vs 5 bedroom house here

48f with rain in London Vs mid-fifties sunny in Nashville (right now)

Porsche Boxster Vs Porsche 911

People do more in the weekdays evenings over here compared to UK (for me at least)

Go to a lot more sports/music events now

No state income tax in tennessee & being able to write off state sales tax against federal income tax $$$$ :D



things that are worse

Not having access to the cultural differences that Europe offers - and no BS about USA having so much diversity - I've been all over the usa and going from Illinios to California its not like going from Spain to Germany

Appalling healthcare system

Archaic banking system

Putting on weight (despite light beers)

Christian fundamentalists in Jesusland who think gay marriage and abortion are worse than 1100 american soldiers being killed for no good reason

No cheapie airlines ike sleazyjet and ryanair.... (southwest not cheap enough!!!)

Re: Does anyone like living in the US?
 

Yes to all of those things so we are very lucky. But we have found that the people my husband will be working with are very surprised that things are done differently in the UK. When we ask a question about,say, local taxes they assume that we must know because it must be the same here. But we are really looking forward to it. :)