Positives about the UK…

[Tembo]

To be honest I don’t think I’ve ever disliked the UK as much as I do now. Right now, I’d happily just leave.

However, I feel I should try and focus on the positives of this place seeing as I’m stuck here for now. So, what do you think is good about the UK?

I’ll start - the comedy. I’ve not quite seen the same abroad. I like the self-deprecating sarcastic humour.

Food - With such a large mix of cultures, you can get all sorts of food, and good quality too. Especially in London. I love it.

Disabled access - I think this is very good in the UK. Continental Europe is still not as good as us with this I think. Most places have steps to enter the shops / restaurants, whereas in the UK disabled access is pretty good. Certainly not perfect, but better than most places.

Scotland - Incredible scenery there, including some of Europe’s last true wilderness areas. It’s incredible up there. I feel more European in Scotland than I do in Kent.

TV and music - Britain has done very well in this department! Although you can listen/watch this pretty much in any country.

I kind of feel everything else is a bit shit though, so please help convince me otherwise

[biscuits]

[biscuits]

Haha just kidding!

Forests - maybe they're not comparable to the forests in other countries, but they're alright!

Seasons - it's nice to break up the year into sections and once you've had enough of one season along comes another. They give people something to look forward to. Our seasons seem different in how they're unpredictable.

NHS - we're very lucky to get "free" healthcare even though everyone complains about it, we've got it much better than many other countries where people struggle to get any access to affordable healthcare.

Cheeses - nice cheeses

Lovely scenery - for walks and picnics

Lots to do - you're never too far from a beach, the countryside, a city .... so much variety in what you can do for a day out

Great venues - for small gigs

Wildlife - hedgehogs, foxes, mice, birds, insects - I love them all.

Places that you can visit for free - museums, galleries, parks, nature reserves, temples, cathedrals

[newbs16]

Some historic places you can visit for the day, there are some lovely castles or stately homes that have been taken over by the national trust, or English heritage charities.


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[choirgirl]

Thumbs up to what's already been said.

Oceanic climate - one of the best

Never that far away from friends and family even if you move to a different part of the UK

Lovely old buildings

[Dougella]

Cups of tea, our love of queuing and complaining about/discussing the weather.

Also I second Scotland.

[Tembo]

Originally Posted by biscuits

NHS - we're very lucky to get "free" healthcare even though everyone complains about it, we've got it much better than many other countries where people struggle to get any access to affordable healthcare

Cheeses - nice cheeses

Totally agree with these two.

Originally Posted by Dougella

Cups of tea.

Oh yes. I’ve yet to find a decent cuppa in continental Europe. They just don’t get it!


I will also add - FREE TOILETS. I was so desperate for a pee in Germany once, I lept over a turnstile in a Burger King. Even in a Burger King you have to pay for the toilets! (Not that I did) And they weren’t even nice. Still quite a few free public toilets in the UK. And if you can’t find one, a Wetherspoons is good for the toilets. Literally the only thing they’re good for.

[Appear]

Hitler didn't take it.

No guns.

Turkey Twizzlers came back.

That fresh smell in the air on a cold morning.

Thatch.

It birthed SAUK.

[Jam do Bronx]

Remind me which country invented dogging? Was it Bolivia? Maybe Indonesia? I know it wasn't Uzbekistan. Perhaps it was Senegal? Let me know, I'll wait.

Stand the f*ck up and salute our flag.

End of story.

[limey123]

Having lived in northern Europe (and loved it) and the US, I think here could be worse. I (generally) feel safe here and have easy access to lots of history and culture. If you like European culture, though, accessing it from here has defo got harder since Brexit. It's a green and pleasant land we live in and overall we're a reasonably civilised nation.

[anxiouslondoner]

You can get around a lot without a car - at least in some parts of the country like the South East.
I know there are places with better public transport systems but there are also a lot worse.
Most random people are helpful and will talk to you, if you ask.
We do cater quite well for vegetarians and vegans, though it could be better.
We have some very pretty countryside and some very picturesque old towns with lots of history, castles all over the place. And pubs. Don't forget the pubs!

[Rocket Spud]

^^^ We had a French intern for the Summer. He said it was commonplace in work to greet your colleagues with a handshake and a kiss for the women, everyday. We spoke about it for a bit and you could tell he was underwhelmed with how we do things. This was halfway through his stay and i kinda felt sorry for him a little so i started shaking his hand each morning, lol. Of course i've heard about some of the social norms for certain countries but when someone's telling you it actually happens you kinda reflect a bit. Needless to say i'm quite happy with the way things are!

[Dougella]

Oh, comparing us to the US, we have good safe gun laws and free, legal access to women's healthcare and sexual healthcare.

[Jam do Bronx]

^ A world class sexual healthcare is necessary with all the dogging.

[Dougella]

^ Indeed. Also the forests and woods and rural carparks that facilitate such activities.

[Jam do Bronx]

I would say that we don't have the same kind of homelessness problem in this country compared to a lot of others. There seems to be several levels of safety nets before someone reaches the stage of actually being homeless. I've been to countries where homelessness was an acceptable part of society, and no one gives a sh*t if you're homeless.

[cymruambyth26]

It wouldn't be me if I didn't say Wales was one of the best things about the UK.

I also like that we have an NHS free at the point of use and I drink a lot of tea so I would agree with cups of tea.

We have a really good football pyramid in the UK with promotion and relegation.

[Amara 94]

Constant internet and electricity in most built up areas
No earthquakes or tsunamis
Mostly lgbtq accepting

[LittleMissMouse]

Originally Posted by Rocket Spud

^^^ We had a French intern for the Summer. He said it was commonplace in work to greet your colleagues with a handshake and a kiss for the women, everyday. We spoke about it for a bit and you could tell he was underwhelmed with how we do things. This was halfway through his stay and i kinda felt sorry for him a little so i started shaking his hand each morning, lol. Of course i've heard about some of the social norms for certain countries but when someone's telling you it actually happens you kinda reflect a bit. Needless to say i'm quite happy with the way things are!

I used to have to do that in Switzerland. When you get into work in the morning the first thing you have to do is go round and shake everyones hand. I had one colleague who didn't like anyone though so she would shake everyones hand then get a wet wipe and stand there infront of everyone with a look of disgust on her face and dramatically wipe her hands clean.

[Moksha]

For me, it’s the cultural and intellectual history. The U.K. is one of the most intellectually stimulating places in the world. It feeds the imagination like nowhere else (with the possible exceptions of Italy, France, Greece...maybe India).

For example, when I walk around Cambridge, it gives me such a thrill to think that Darwin, Newton, Wittgenstein, Nabokov, Milton, Tennyson, Wordsworth, Byron, Stephen Hawking, Sylvia Plath, etc all studied there. That it’s the place where DNA was discovered and the atom was first described. And that’s all within one small town! If you are interested in history, literature, science and ideas, you could never get bored of the U.K. Bath means Janes Austen, Liverpool means the Beatles, the Yorkshire moors mean the Brontes, Oxford means Oscar Wilde and Tolkien and CS Lewis, and so on. Then there are the historic buildings, from Roman walls to medieval cathedrals, to Shakespeare’s birth place to the British Museum (where Karl Marx spent his time).

Actually, the best way to appreciate the U.K. is through the eyes of an intelligent outsider (like Bill Bryson). American academics and writers, for example, will often move here for exactly the reasons I’ve just given - because it fires their imagination.

Also, I quite like the changing seasons, the variety in the weather, the humour, the lack of giant spiders and snakes. And, compared to most places, the police are generally decent and civilised (in many countries they are corrupt).

Of course there is loads of stuff I hate - how crowded and noisy it is, the horrible little houses all squashed together, the horrific traffic, the gloomy winters. Still, that’s for another thread.

[Jam do Bronx]

Speaking of forests, I recently found out that technically London is classed as a forest.

In fact, while it might not always seem like it, London is so packed with foliage that it's technically a forest. That's according to a United Nations definition that states that a forest is anywhere that's at least 20 percent trees. London's a respectable 21 percent.

[Rocket Spud]

Originally Posted by LittleMissMouse

I used to have to do that in Switzerland. When you get into work in the morning the first thing you have to do is go round and shake everyones hand. I had one colleague who didn't like anyone though so she would shake everyones hand then get a wet wipe and stand there infront of everyone with a look of disgust on her face and dramatically wipe her hands clean.

Hahaha, wow, what a piece of work! She disliked people for sure or she just didn't like the ritual and physical contact? I do think it's a bit over the top. We do have low standards though. Like, it's often the case here where you have a few colleagues who barely acknowledge your existence, let alone say 'good morning'

[Tembo]

something else I have thought of is - public footpaths! On the continent, for some countries it seems public access to the countryside is either less easy to access, or confusing to work out where is publicly accessible or not.

Some interesting replies here so far, thank you. Definitly reminds me the positives of the UK. However there’s a few points here which probably arn’t unique to the UK and apply to most places. For example, I find people have been friendly and exceptionally helpful in most countries I’ve been, such as in Belgium. And particularly in Eastern Europe, especially Slovenia.

Originally Posted by LittleMissMouse

I used to have to do that in Switzerland. When you get into work in the morning the first thing you have to do is go round and shake everyones hand. I had one colleague who didn't like anyone though so she would shake everyones hand then get a wet wipe and stand there infront of everyone with a look of disgust on her face and dramatically wipe her hands clean.

That sounds horrific! I think my workplace has the right balance, and presumably it’s similar to most places here - when you first see people in the morning just a ‘morning’ or ‘you alright?’ will do. It’s friendly and polite, but not too intrusive. Of course, sometimes I’d rather not even say hello to people and just come in and get on with it but then I’m not a morning person (or a people person)

Originally Posted by Existential Jam

Speaking of forests, I recently found out that technically London is classed as a forest.

I knew London was very green, but didn’t know this fact! Interesting!

[SpectralOwls]

As crappy as things are right now, I still think it's in a better state than the US is right now... :') So there's that at least.

-No Guns and better control of weapons in general. The best thing about it IMO. I don't have to feel scared if I confront someone about something. Over there it's like, you never know who has one and who is unhinged enough to use it. When me and my husband went back to Portland for a visit in May, we took the transit back to my mom's town and the whole time I was pinching him to keep him awake in case any drug addicts come on to rob us (Portland has been pretty bad post-COVID regulations). :/ You really have to be alert on the defensive always over there. One of the biggest reasons I decided on moving here, the other being:

-Free or cheaper healthcare - Everyone knows how awful it is in the states so I don't really need to say much here lol.

-Great parks - Just nearby me within walking distance is a really nice little park with kid's play structures and even workout machines! I've never seen that before and I think that's amazing! Just in general there seems to be a lot of parks everywhere.

-Not completely reliant on car culture - Though I think other countries do this better of course, it's not as bad as most states in the US at least. I guess I am pretty optimistic that the infrastructure can improve here more easily. Would love to see a larger embrace to a biking lifestyle like in the Netherlands, and I think it's bound to happen more in the cities here I feel like.

-General preservation to historical buildings and sites - I love this about the UK. It's so cool to see old buildings preserved with so much history. I'm a total nerd and love visiting sites and learning everything about them. We just went to the Hell Caves here recently and it was amazing. I never knew that Benjamin Franklin had ties to this town haha.

-Alone. mentioned no earthquakes here and yes! I've thought about that. Where I lived there is a constant threat that "the big one" will happen some day since it's on a fault line. :X I kind of have a weird phobia of earthquakes, and I would constantly find myself looking up at the ceilings of buildings and thinking like: "Hmm if stuff fell down would I be squashed?" Guess I don't have to worry about that here. XD

-Diversity - There's so many different types of people here from different cultures and backgrounds. I love that.

-I like the climate here. It's similar to where I moved from. Can't wait to really experience more of the natural scenery here. I'm looking forward to going to Scotland.

[Your Mum]

Noel Edmonds doesn't live there any more.

[SpectralOwls]

@Nanuq - I love your post. We are actually thinking of going to Scotland this weekend, but it's a very last minute idea since it's the first time my husband has finally been able to get two days off... :/ We probably will end up doing something more local though. Someday we will have time!

[Jam do Bronx]

Originally Posted by Your Mum

Noel Edmonds doesn't live there any more.

At his age, hopefully it won't be too long before he's not living at all.

[Rocket Spud]

What what.. ? Has Noel been cancelled?

[Stepford]

Originally Posted by Existential Jam

At his age, hopefully it won't be too long before he's not living at all.

Why would you want someone to die? That's a disgusting thing to write...

[anxiouslondoner]

I don't know what Noel Edmonds has been up to lately* but I feel a bit sorry for him, he clearly lost his mind at one point. I mean you look back at Noel's House Party and it's easy to laugh at it now, but it was the 80s. And even Deal Or No Deal. I mean it's terrible TV but people liked it. OK there was that prank show where someone died; horrible stuff but I don't think he was responsible in any way. But then he did have a bit of a breakdown, charging people to give motivational phone calls to their cat, and other weird things. It's a bit sad.

*if it turns out he's been secretly a Nazi war criminal or some other terrible thing then this post is automatically void.