Over the last few decades, wages in the UK haven't increased with inflation and house prices have gone insanely out of control. It's completely ridiculous.
If you watch Dan from iAllegedly, Gregory Mannarino, Gerald Celente,, Stansberry Research or any similar channels you will know that it's exactly the same in the U.S. Thankfully we don't have 10 minute evictions as in one State (so far) and the thing that shocked me were the tent cities including on the great icon which is Hollywood Boulevard. We're all 'riding the bomb' now so check whether we're one of the countries which is on the same list as the U.S. who are talking of bank bail-in's where your account is locked, you can't get your money out and that you are told that you are now a shareholder of the bank.
I love it when I hear these little idioms creep in like 'does my head in'. It reminds me of how my wife, who is French, has been here so long that all of these little phrases sneak into her language - absolutely adorable.
Hi Amanda: welcome, you have truly emigrated to the UK and become a Brit. Your menu of dislikes have all the hallmark of all the traits and characteristics of a typical British person. Your officially one of us. 👏 👏 👏
When you mentioned winter driving I knew exactly what you were going to say!! One tiny snowflake and Britain appears to grind to a halt. However, up in the Scottish Highlands they have snow ploughs with names (you can plot them on a map somewhere) and this is where the wildlife is fabulous; Scottish Highland cattle, deer, otters in many places, sea eagles and many different birds. Please visit if you're able, it's a beautiful place.
It’s the health and safety biased culture that we live in that creates the regulations that makes the train stop and have a very low speed limit if there is ice on the track. This is to prevent wheelspin which is now perceived as being dangerous by the nanny state however prior to these new regulations there was minimal stoppages / road speed restrictions during snow and either alike bad weather and the trains & buses ran. It’s the current rules and regulations that are the problem and the pansy culture that has infiltrated the system. It’s not the people it’s the safety regulations now in place. As for wildlife there are amazing national parks and forests trees contain copious amounts of wildlife that are an absolute pleasure to experience. If you live in around the city then obviously they won’t be as much. As for house prices it’s just the geographical location of the UK being in the centre of the world and also the financial centre that London is and the work and wages paid creates a scenario whereby house prices are driven up. House prices outside of major cities are lower or the same as yours in Pennsylvania.
Totally agree with you about house prices and parking. I’m surprised you didn’t mention the cost of fuel. It’s quite a distance but if you want to see wildlife I recommend some of the Scottish Hebridian islands.
You just have to visit a National Park. I'm a member of the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust and there's _lots_ of places we can visit, so maybe check out something similar where you live. I got a monocular for Christmas and can't wait to get out and about. I think the other thing is a lot of our wildlife is nocturnal and to see a fox crossing the road is a bit of thrill. I've never seen a badger though, but I have seen otters, muntjac deer, bat's, red squirrel (loads of greys!), rabbits, hedgehogs and even a quick glimpse of a pinemartin in Scotland. It is out there! ❤️🦊🐿️🦔🦇🐸🦉🦆🦅🐇🦡🐾🦢🦚🦭🦋💐
although your cost of fuel is insanely high compared to us it would nevertheless not be a serious concern because you don't have far to travel in any direction and you have a robust public transportation system. more than 40 UKs fit into the USA so we need cheap fuel cost for traveling.
The house price thing: investors. It’s mostly houses being scooped up by domestic and foreign investors and mortgage companies holding on to repossessions to wait for the market to increase. Climb to the top of any of those pyramids, you’ll find an MP.
Parking is a nightmare. Not only are parking prices extortionate, but because a lot of houses were built before cars were common lots of people have to park miles from their home…. Not actually ‘miles’, but you get my drift. 😊
Hi Amanda, one of the things to love about the UK is we're generally happy to admit we're not perfect - we can laugh at ourselves! That said, I think there a few things that might help you understand your UK home! We do have snow ploughs and salt trucks, but as you correctly say we don't often get weather extremes so we just don't need them as much! The whole 'films and TV not accessible' applies no matter where you are in the world. I guarantee that if you moved to the US you'd find the UK content harder to find! It's all about licensing for different countries, Netflix has to get different licences for every country, so that means every country has a different library on Netflix - and it's also why they make so much of their own content now. As for HBO, many HBO shows are simply shows from BBC, ITV or Channel 4 anyway, so you get them for free. But licensing is also the issue. Wildlife is available! Not as much as the US, as we've spent a few thousand years killing all the dangerous animals, and hunting others for food. However if you come to the Forest of Dean where I live you'll find loads of it, deer, beavers, wild boar, horses, etc. Houses price vary hugely as they do in the US, what you quoted for a 2 bed house is ludicrous to me too. I paid half of that for a 3 bed house up north, and the same as that for a 4 bed house in the forest. Roads have been around for hundred of years here so were never designed for cars. We'd rather keep the houses, the history and the fields than bigger roads, so we deal with one-way streets and restrictions on parking as the trade-off.
I hate to pay to park. I love our public transport systems but hate the prices. I hate how expensive housing (rent or buy) is. I'm happy with wild life, most of it is no trying to kill me.
We have a lot of exotic wildlife; pigeons, squirrels, badgers, feral drunks (best spotted on dole payment day), zombie crackheads (this genus is particularly prevalent in Manchester).
British and lived here all my life love England however the petrol and diesel prices have always done my head in absolutely extortionate and getting worse
@@samuel10125 actually it doesn't as we have one of the highest taxed fuel countries in the world. We are 58p per litre plus 20% VAT which varies depending on price...currently approx 29p so at the moment 87p of £1.43 per litre is tax. Of course oil increases affects all markets. Of course we cut that we increase something else
@@scottirvine121 Makes you wonder how the government are going to make the billions in lost fuel tax back on electric cars they will be enforcing by 2030
I live in the south of England, Farnborough to be exact. I walk my dog in the local woods and often see deer Roe buck and Monkjack . I also see Buzzards , red kits, greater spotted woodpeckers, tree creepers, kestrels and badgers . I admit though that our wild life has suffered massively due to farming practices, and you hardly ever see hedgehogs anymore. There is wildlife out there , just got to keep your eyes open more as it's not so in your face.
Have some red kites near me. Love seeing them flying about as anything like that is rare with me being in a city. Never realised how big they were until I saw one of them flying low once. The sound they make aswell. 😁
Living as I do in the inner suburbs of London, I don't recognise the point about wildlife: there are all manner of wild animals and birds (including waterfowl) within a mile or so of where I live, and my neighbourhood is overrun with foxes! Perhaps it's a city centre thing...
@@wessexdruid7598 Although re-introducing solitary wildcats into the Scottish Highlands is workable, (they are needed to cull the overpopulations of deer which overgraze and then starve) the Rewilding idiots who don't understand ecological balance want to reintroduce wolves (who hunt in packs) into the wild, -- despite that Wolves far prefer sheep to wild deer -- so much easier to find and kill. The sheep farmers will lose serious money in predated sheep and lambs for the "pleasure" of people seeing wolf-packs.
North of Scotland has best wildlife, wild cats, pine martins and golden eagles, the coast has dolphins and whales - it is wild and fabulous up here .....
One of the things that bothers me the most in the UK is the crazy lenient jail sentences. Every time some terrible person gets away with a very light sentence it makes my blood boil.
@@Brewermb It's much more complicated than that. For example, juries are much less likely to convict someone on their third strike, and they're less likely to plead guilty. Also, criminals on their third strike are more likely to escalate their offending. Why risk a life sentence for a burglary when you can do armed robberies for the same risk? And then you also have the greater incentive for criminals to eliminate witnesses - a rapist on their third strike is far more likely to murder the victim. Repeat offending is a complex phenomenon, experience shows you can't solve it with simple, populist solutions like longer sentences.
I don't like the winter when it's cold wet and it gets dark earlier, roll on summer where I live that means miles of golden sandy beaches aquamarine seas and little towns and villages on the coastline as good as anywhere in the Mediterranean.
Where is this earthly paradise ,Alan...??....Mrs C and I enjoy brisk walks on New Brighton promenade and same on West Kirby...sometimes we can watch 4 seasons unfold over North Wales or the Pennines or out over the Irish sea from the wirral on Thurstaton...cheers / slainte...
@@eamonnclabby7067 Hi Eamonn, I'd like to see the Wirral too (I had a friend from there at university), but I gather that the nice bits are expensive (including West Kirby and Thursaston). The Hilbre's famous for its birdwatching.
@@Treviscoe hello there...prices aren't too bad here in Birkhenhead Wallasey and Bebington ...especially for Mrs C and I on Nurses salaries...we, don,t feel we have missed out on not living in west wirral, there is a lovely RSPB reserve on the River Dee marsh, plus Parkgate is worth a look..especially for Fish and chips and ice cream..even in winter.
I agree with most of these. Except I actually like the weather here, I'm from northwest England I live in the countryside. Looking at the fog or mist over the hills in the distance looks beautiful to me, especially with the trees and a few types of deer I've seen in the distance we don't really have the same animals compared to the US but Ive seen red and gray squirrels foxes, badgers, hedgehogs rabbits, Hares an many more also the different types of birds like falcons, owls, types of song birds you would be surprised. Also you see a lot of types of farm animals here and the best thing about it no skyscrapers or anything blocking the beautiful views. You should move out of London to the countryside its way better than living in the concrete jungle.
I don't live in the UK anymore and the one thing I don't miss is the short days. I used to get up at 6am and drive to work in the dark and then leave about 4:30pm and by that time it was dark again. Where I live now (Thailand) it's light all year from about 6:30am to 6:30pm. Having said that some of the long summer nights in the UK are also nice.
Love to listen to your observations, and in this blog you just proved you really are now a Brit … sat there and agreed with every single point … Glad to have you on board
I've lived overseas on and off for the last 20 years (most of my adult life) and, I can honestly say, nowhere compares with Britain (or the bit where I live anyway). I love the weather. Nothing better than a misty morning walk with the dogs across countryside. It's also bliss to feel a cool breeze hitting your face having been away in a hot and oppressive climate for months and months.
I live in the Highlands and on my daily walks I can see badgers, kites, eagles, buzzards, hedgehogs, deer, seals, dolphins and...alpacas lol (they're obviously not native to Scotland but various places rear them up here for some reason). So yeah, definitely visit and see for yourselves :)
Amanda, it’s not us that are 5 hours in front, it’s the US that’s 5 hours behind…..obviously🤣🤣 Also I’ve been fortunate to have had 3 fox families bring up their babies in my garden in the last 5 years. When the young ones are strait out of the den they haven’t learnt to be scared of us and I’ve been able to take some decent pictures from only 1 metre away.👍
The bloody rain! Wont blame you for that. I often wonder why my ancient ancestors decided this would be a great place to live. It must have been a nice summer that year I guess
In my youth I had to dig through the snowdrift to get out of the front door and get to school. Ice used to form on the inside of windows. Fog used to be so dense that we had to feel our way along walls. Houses for ordinary people have always been tiny, my current cabin (too small to be called a flat) is so small that I have to go outside to change my mind. In the old days we didn't have to pay to park in most places but now the parking fees are payable everywhere, this is an easy way to make a fortune for the toffs. Places like Torquay, Newnon Abbot and Paignton are really just giant one way systems and you have to drive for miles extra to get to where you want to be, just yards away.
Winters are nowhere near as bad as they were in the 60's, 70's and 80's. I walked to work one morning in the coldest temperature ever recorded in England, -26.2C, Shropshire 1982.
Haha!!! My ex is American. This sounded a lot like her (but with a slightly different accent and she would have made this video longer lol) Sometimes on weekends we have school children packing your bags for you in my local supermarket and collecting money for charity. I pay them NOT to do it because they always put delicate or squishy things in the bottom of the bag with all the heavy stuff on top.
Here the thick mist/very fine rain, mizzle, is known as a soft day. "How's the weather there?" "Soft". An apt description compared to a force 9 and horizontal rain.
Brits learn from infancy to just wear what they want and pretty much ignore the weather. I think we have the best climate in the world, except for a few weeks in summer when it's too hot to move. We do have salt-trucks, known as gritters, but as the salt is devastating to plants and wildlife, we try not to use them unless we have to. I will bag things for customers if they seem likely to struggle, but if someone asked to bag my groceries, I would be very insulted. I also wouldn't want some stranger groping the goods, especially in the midst of a pandemic. The fact that Americans need everything done for them baffles me. It seems like they remain helpless infants for the whole of their lives. I was bagging groceries for my parents when I was six. You can always ask the person on the checkout to bag the stuff for you. We are happy to do it. Please, not HBO. It's rubbish. Netflix could do with a wider range, but frankly, we get too much US stuff on TV as it is. I love Supernatural, but most US stuff is terrible. Move into the countryside and you will get a lot more wildlife. We have hedgehogs! I think house prices are cheaper in the US because it's not a great place to live. Pollution is worse, you have barely controlled forest fires, no healthcare, you can be shot in the street for looking black and your climate is insane. If houses weren't cheap, who would consider staying there? Again, plenty of parking in rural areas. I have never understood why anyone chooses to live in a town. The one-way systems are needed because our villages existed long before cars did. When we all come to our senses and return to horses and bicycles, they can go.
@@irielion3748 ...not so sure on all the generalisations on pollution , house prices, forest fires and climate, etc etc ... kind of odd to label the entire US in one over all statement that is 47 times bigger than the UK, that would be like comparing London with Aberdeen, there's no comparison, just strange that you can generalise an entire country as somewhere people would not want to live ...Manhatten is very different to California, to Washington, to Alabama, to Nevada, etc etc , some extremely cheap to live in some extremely expensive to live in, much like Europe is ....where also we have forest fires in Greece, Spain , Italy etc ...just find it silly and a wasted comment when you make broad generalisations which a 4 year old could poke holes in 🤷
I bet you haven't seen The Squonk (Lacrimacorpus dissolvens) a mythical creature reputed to live in the Hemlock forest of northern Pennsylvania. ... The legend holds that the creatures skin is ill fitting, being covered with warts and that, because it is ashamed of its appearance it hides from plain sight, and spends most of its time weeping. The third track on Genesis's 1976 album A Trick of the Tail is titled "Squonk". The song recounts the legend of a hunter who captured a squonk and the creature is described as having a retiring disposition.
I am a Brit living in the Philippines - I have actually lived overseas since 1991. Apart from old friends and family, what I miss most is pubs, food, football, snow, scenery, free healthcare. Apart from that my life here is better in all departments.
@@mikecollins8936 Maybe, but still good to watch. I'm so gay I have a military background and 4 kids. I also bust my leg playing football and had 4 operations and 18 months in hospital recovering.
Weather forecasts are similarly unreliable. I understand it's not an exact science but you can look at the forecast over here and it will say sunshine, then look out of your window a second later and it's pouring with rain. The worst thing, for me, about winter driving is low sun. Snow/ice is one thing but not being able to see properly (yes, I'm aware of sunglasses...) is a different matter. Bag boys/girl is just laziness! I'm surprised Americans don't have someone to push their trolley around as well ;-) I think some supermarket staff do do this for certain customers but that's usually if they would otherwise struggle to pack the bags themselves. It used to be more common but I'm guessing it's something to do with staffing costs. For wildlife, I'd recommend the Lake District. There are loads of other places as well but you can see red squirrel and red deer up there and bird life you wouldn't see in other parts on England, plus it's just a beautiful area in general. One way systems/ring roads. You'd hate Leeds, the one way system was clearly designed to confuse "outsiders..." Public transport is possibly my biggest hate. Not the idea of it, just how it's run and how it functions (or doesn't...) in the UK. I won't elaborate as I could write an essay on what I think the problems are with it but one issue is the high cost for the generally poor service. I agree with you 100% on parking. Biggest racket going, that's if you can even find somewhere to park legally.
I was born and raised in the North of England. I know our weather is rather unpredictable, but if one is born into that sort of thing, one is kind of prepared for such unpredictability. I never thought it was such a bad thing. To be honest, thinking back to my childhood, I kind of only recall the sunny warm days. Regardless of the weather, I never remember having to stay indoors because of it. Sure we didn't get much snow in Winters, but that only made our snow days more special - and yes, we did get them.
Great video btw you can still tell that America is always in your heart. Also I can see that in the south you see absolutely naff all wildlife, I'd recommend Scotland for wildlife you can see stags and red squirrels etc
@@LADYRAEUK early August in the Highlands - the days are still long, the midges are gone, on the heights the autumn colors are starting up, it's not too busy but places are still open for business....
Hi Amanda, great clip. Bag boys/girls, used to be a thing but due to economics, most stores didn't see them as a justifiable expense (more interested in profits and management bonuses I expect.) Your observations about parking and one way systems is probably linked to space and the fact that quite a few towns date back 100's of years or so. For example, Brixham in Torbay is a fishing community, Totnes is a market town. Both have very narrow streets unfortunately one way systems are often the only way to keep traffic moving. Local councils have to charge for parking in order to make carparks secure. Sometimes the rates are stupidly high, as your probably aware. Don't get me started on parking in Hospitals. Keep up the great content. Have you checked out Only Fools and Horses Batman and Robin yet, classic (among so many from that show). Happy New Year to you and your family
I'd hate someone packing my shopping bags. How do they know how much weight I can carry or how I like which things be placed at the top? It would cost supermarkets more in staff wages to employ bag staff, this would lead to an increase in prices. Why do you think most supermarkets have self scan aisles? Yes, to reduce staff costs.
In the town I live in I see a fair few foxes around, especially with my rotating work hours. I’ve even seen them coming down my street and even down my drive and down the alleyway to my back garden. There are plenty of Red Kites in my county - their screech is something I hear quite often.
You remind me going to Florida as a kid on holiday with my parents back in the early 90's. Every day, without fail, at 5pm the sun would go and there would be thunderstorms and lighting. I loved it as I'd sit their watching the lighting hit the ocean but I remember wondering at the time just how consistent the weather was. It was like clockwork. It was completely alien to me being used to random weather cycles here in the UK
Lol.😂. When you said about that light rain that fogs your glasses. My grandmother, if you asked her if it was raining, would say "yes, it's that rain that gets you wet" . Lol.😂. No joke.
I also live in the northwest see lots of squirrels not so many badgers but I live on a housing but as Al Murrey says squirrels dont hunt you down in packs. Love your videos the old man
The bagging issue is a relatively new one. It used to be that either someone would come-over, or the checkout assistant would pack the bag for you item-by-item as she scanned them-in and while you make the payment. But it's becoming rare, especially with self-service checkouts now :(
Yes, even when there's no specific person helping with packing the person on the till usually asks if you want help with bagging up your shopping. Staff are usually trained how to correctly pack e.g. Not putting food in with toiletries.
I have to agree with all of that. I'm a Brit and love the UK, but the US is such a nice place to visit for a lot of the reasons you mention. The US is great for the range of environments; if you want deserts you have it, if you want snow and skiing you have that too. Want to take a 2000+ mile walk in the wilderness? Then the US is great for that. Every time I've been to the US I've had a great time and met some amazing people.
The weather in the UK does really suck. Portland, Oregon ain't great but at least we get proper summers. And by the way, Amanda, if Portland or Seattle get an inch of snow, the cities grind to a halt just like in the UK.
I'm British and I agree with the house prices - they're ridiculous in the UK. You get idiots saying that rising prices are great but the only winners are estate agents or lenders. I hate public transport in Britain - always late and dirty or overcrowded. In some countries the trains are clean and efficient. In fairness to the UK - you're unlikely to come across bears or anything really dangerous if you go for a walk in the countryside - unlike in the US or Canada where I used to live I was to nervous to go too far (esp after having bears in the garden)!!
@@kathrynwhitby9799 Kathryn you clearly have not been out and about here in Birkhenhead, our wildlife is 2 legged usually responding to names like Ba and GA ..Harry Enfield's affectionate spoof the Scousers might give you a clue...but you are right about the midges....
I don't know what the public transport is like where you live but apart from certain trains being crowded, it isn't like you describe where I live. I've even got on a train in Cologne and arrived on the coast of Mid Wales exactly when I expected to.
It has been said that the UK does not have a climate, it only has weather & lots of it. The Canadians that volunteered for service during WW2 said that the wind in the UK was lazy, that it did not go around but through one.
Definitely agree with you about driving in the snow. Also house prices are terrible here. My son and his girlfriend as with a lot of people are struggling to save for a house. It's such a shame. And yes I have gone down a one way street the wrong way!
@@LADYRAEUK good point, our daughter still lives at home for that very reason...despite having a great job / career...speaking of which might you be interested in doing a Teems with her ,she is currently seconded to Merseyside fire and rescue running a Prince, s Trust group for vulnerable young people...always looking for positive role models... she has an LFC legend doing a Teems ,and Mrs C is being roped in to deliver a food hygiene session...I,m in the frame to deliver Tai Chi...
A true story. Nichelle Nichols of Star Trek fame came to Belfast 15 years ago and while she was in the store she was visiting and doing a signing the weather was constantly changing. Sunny one second, thunder the next. She asked us if the weather was always like that. We said "Sometimes". We didn't have the heart to tell her it was freakish even by our standards. Just at that point we suddenly got the biggest hail shower we had ever seen.. She walked over to the window, grabbed a toy communicator and went "Hailing frequencies open Captain". Everyone laughed their arses off. . She never forgot it.. it was the freakiest day of weather I have ever encountered.
@@LADYRAEUK True but i have never encountered such freakish weather before or since. It was a Friday I remember and the weather was constantly changing all day. Thunder and lighting for 5 minutes, beautiful sunshine for 20 minutes and then more hailstorms.... it was surreal.... And it went on all day....
@@eamonnclabby7067 Even better than that, all I I know is that it was a Saturday and August 16th i think about 8 years ago and it was Tsunami rain for 12 hours with the worst flooding and damage we ever encountered... Cars were literally moving in the street because of the rain and the infamous image of some poor sod sitting on their car in the Sydenham Bypass as he and his taxi were washed away......
If you want to see some wildlife, I could recommend taking a family holiday in Northumberland, some of the most beautiful views and all sorts of animals to see!
@@rodgeyd6728 Your right mate! Although when they announced Alnwick was the best place to live in England in 1996, it started the slow but steady infiltration of the others!!!
Weather - could be worse - try Ireland, more wetter, more windy. But your experience in the SE of England is different to the NE or the NW, where the greater elevation makes various differences.
Hi! Amanda What's happening! Your so right about parking and driving in live just outside Oxford and driving is a real pain in the ass. Spend a lot of time sitting in traffic. I'm a 90s child and I hate the way are people are so paranoid in this country now a days. I can understand why with the way modern life is now. With t.v and the News. And now COVID. 90s life was a lot easier is this country and where happier and more friendly. I have lived in Scandinavia and life was so simpler than the UK. That is why I love your videos. You put a light hearted spin on things that you talk about. We need more people like that in life. Take care of yourself and keep Smiling!
House Prices, parking, lack of wildlife are all results of high population density particularly in the south of England. Governments want population growth because the economy appears to grow and they think they look good. But actually quality of life declines. This decline is disguised by technological improvements but happens none the less.
I love seeing hedgehogs. One summer night, I had my living room window open and heard scuffling outside. It was a hedgehog under my window. So cute! The snow issue drives me daft! One snowflake and we grind to a halt! Infuriating! 🏴
As someone from the UK who lives in Australia I totally understand the challenges with the time differences. Melbourne Australia is famous for having four seasons in one day.
I don't like the clocks going backwards and forwards as we gain and lose an hour. It never used to bother me but now my' aging' body clock especially losing an hour goes into confusion trying to adjust. Again that must affect keeping in touch with your family back in the US too?
@@casheloconnor8483 As someone who is an adopted son of Birkhenhead ,from Limavady originally and been Stateside a fair bit, the NHS as creaking as it is ,takes some beating..naturally biased as I worked there for 44 years...UK wins for me..had the opportunity to work in NYC...I guess living and working abroad would have its Challenges..maybe consider Australia or New Zealand too..good luck..
@@eamonnclabby7067 Is that the New Zealand that erupts every so often (or just drop bits off) or the Australia which contains nine out of ten of the world's deadliest whatevers ?
Hand on heart .i have never drove down a one street the wrong way in 40 years of driving. And i love packing my own gear in supermarkets .us brits love queing and the tuts make me go slower lol.. good one amanda ...😘😘😘
@@paulryan9640 I was privileged to work several times on the Radiotherapy and Oncology wards at Clatterbridge hospital here on the wirral...during my 44 years with the NHS..
Part of the problem with house prices is that rather than viewing a house as a home, it is seen as an investment and through simple demand and supply this leads to house inflation. A couple of years ago my neighbour sold their house to an investor in Hong Kong who has never visited the UK. I am not in London, but a market town in Suffolk. Neither of my children owns property, one pays rent of nearly £1,000 a month (a mortgage would be cheaper, but he cannot raise the deposit while paying rent) and the other lives on a boat.
Agree with most of that! I live in Cornwall and in my garden we’ve had deer, foxes, cows, sheep and a badger 🦡 that used to sleep in the house. In addition we have buzzards, bats, owls 🦉 woodpeckers etc…
Wildlife around the UK... Norfolk has plentiful seals, the best time to visit is October through to Jan for seal pups at Horsey Gap Beach. A real bonus is that they have pumpkin patches in the run up to Halloween too. The Norfolk Broads are great for birds too. Skomer Island off the coast of Wales in June is peak puffin season and they're adorable, these can also be found in Northumberland at Holy island. I've seen dolphins off the coast up near Inverness and some people have even spotted orcas. People can go shark diving off the Cornish coast, basking sharks are often spotted there in the height of summer. Countryside critters can include foxes, rabbits, hedgehogs, badgers, deer (quite a few varieties) and owls/kestrels/buzzards... in some parts even otters. You just need a lot of patience to spot them. I grew up in Somerset and WIltshire and saw all these countryside critters regularly (except for the otters)
Hi Amanda, as you mention living in the South, I'd recommend one or all of these for "wildlife"; The New Forest (Hampshire/Dorset), The Gower Peninsular (South Wales), and the Moors across Devon into Cornwall (South West)
The only wildlife on Dartmoor tends to be cows, sheep and Dartmoor pony's. Squirrels if you find the if wooded bits. There are deer here, but it's pretty rare to see them and really need to know where to look for them. If you're a bird watcher, then we get kestrels, buzzards and the entire variety of smaller birds. It's very rare to see foxes and your more likely to see them in a city TBH. Oh and the weather is even more questionable here than most of the UK
@@LADYRAEUK When you reach the South West you'll really know the true horror of one way streets - wide enough for one-and-a-half cars (or a small truck), no marked passing places and flanked by either stone walls or dense hedgerow... Joy !
As a Brit yep I agree on the weather its crap. At the moment winter is such a struggle and unpredictable all year round. Regarding Netflix all you gotta do is change your VPN :) Wildlife.. I live in Kent which is a mix of beach and countryside but like you say its where you live. House prices are a joke your right! I can't afford to move out my folks place, rent is too high and as for getting on the property ladder... Forget it. Parking... I park elsewhere and walk a little further it's only way to do it.
You have been away from the US for a while. Bag boys, or girls, are as rare as hen's teeth. One big difference here is that there are people that would not bag their own groceries if their lives depended on it. When I start to bag my own stuff (once a bag boy always a bag boy) people look at me like I've lost my mind.
Well we do have the term 'baglady' in Britain, a derogatory term referring to homeless woman who carries her possessions around, usually in supermarket bags.
As a Brit, the worst thing about living in the UK is the quality of the roads. Our random weather and highs and lows on daily basis makes the tarmac break up very easily, leading to pot holes (and then flat tires!)
To see wildlife and absolutely gorgeous scenery, Scotland. From my experience, the highlands are stunning, the beaches on the west coast are mind blowing. Isle of Skye is also worth visiting, it will take your breath away. I know you like the Lake District, think of Scotland like the Lake District on steroids.
Don't forget to pack plenty of fly spray and anti-septic for those midge bites its worst after the daily rains showers. They maybe wild ,I'd say furious..
Go to centre parcs in Suffolk and you 'll have deer and herons knocking on your patio door to be fed. There are rabbits, squirrels, munkjak, fallow deer, swans, ducks, and all sorts. At home, try putting some food out for the birds, and hedgehogs. Make sure you have gaps in your fences so animals can get in too. Glad you like it here.
Loved your take on this - always interesting to hear a furriner's kindly view! I spent fifteen or so years away from England and was shocked on my return at several things... the state of the roads - deep potholes or just badly patched lumpy surfaces and tiny parking bays. Far more serious though is the awful state of the local GP service, only two doctors for 12,000 people where just four years ago there were eight. Definitely don't like that.
I should count my blessings, three Doctor's Practices in the town each with four/five GP's and at least two nurses, not all on duty at once as need days off and the local out of hours service has to be covered, that also has a surgery and permanent GP's but is a few miles out of town. A small town of under 10,000. Same day appointments often no problem, emergencies, one can come at once and be seen without waiting or GP will come out. One can wait over 30 minutes for an Ambulance even if they are quiet as have about 30 miles to travel from the two closest stations, one in the City and one in a coastal town further West.
Hiya! The TV/Films issue is all to do with rights. I'm sure there are shows on UK Netflix that aren't on the US service. These services have to pay for the rights to show anything on their service. But the rights may not be available. For example, I think Amazon Prime has the rights to NCIS at the moment.
Amanda, if you want to see 'wildlife' in this country visit any town centre on a Friday or Saturday night around about closing time.
😂
Genius comment.
Animals behave better than the louts at closing time!
Hahahahahahaha classic comment come round eccles in Manchester loads off extinct wildlife
Absolutely agree Paul. 😆👍
Amanda’s first complaint is the weather!
She’s done it…
She is British…
She is one of us!
ONE OF US! ONE OF US! ONE OF US!
🤣😊
@@TheBaconWizard A good thing....tea anyone...???
@@eamonnclabby7067 pmsl
You got there before me.
Over the last few decades, wages in the UK haven't increased with inflation and house prices have gone insanely out of control. It's completely ridiculous.
👍🏻👍🏻
If you watch Dan from iAllegedly, Gregory Mannarino, Gerald Celente,, Stansberry Research or any similar channels you will know that it's exactly the same in the U.S. Thankfully we don't have 10 minute evictions as in one State (so far) and the thing that shocked me were the tent cities including on the great icon which is Hollywood Boulevard. We're all 'riding the bomb' now so check whether we're one of the countries which is on the same list as the U.S. who are talking of bank bail-in's where your account is locked, you can't get your money out and that you are told that you are now a shareholder of the bank.
Inflation is a retrospective analysis of costs.
It all started in 2008, with the banks,
@@rbrooks2007Is that even legal?
I love it when I hear these little idioms creep in like 'does my head in'. It reminds me of how my wife, who is French, has been here so long that all of these little phrases sneak into her language - absolutely adorable.
More heads done in...The Responder ITV..drug dealer ,Marco....yer doing, me ,ed in....now I wonder if Amanda can do that in a scouser accent....
Hi Amanda: welcome, you have truly emigrated to the UK and become a Brit. Your menu of dislikes have all the hallmark of all the traits and characteristics of a typical British person. Your officially one of us. 👏 👏 👏
No because very rarely do I think the weather stops me doing anything .. I love the British weather ..
I agree your a proper brit now sweetheart welcome .
@@terry3881 me too mate but I'm an enthusiastic outdoorsman sooooo 😂
I think she said she's made england her home, 🤔🤔,
@@kennethrollo7891 True: meant to be 'tongue in cheek ' 👍
"They do my head in" now I know you've been in the UK a good while! Just that phrase made me smile.
When you mentioned winter driving I knew exactly what you were going to say!! One tiny snowflake and Britain appears to grind to a halt. However, up in the Scottish Highlands they have snow ploughs with names (you can plot them on a map somewhere) and this is where the wildlife is fabulous; Scottish Highland cattle, deer, otters in many places, sea eagles and many different birds. Please visit if you're able, it's a beautiful place.
Trains grind to a halt due to:
The wrong type of leaves
The wrong type of snow
And now
The wrong type of light
Bizarre but true
Yes we do love naming our gritters and plows
Most cars in UK are on summer tyres all year round, which are hopeless in snow.
Don't forget the sea life around the coast, many porpoise, dolphins, whales, seals, Basking Sharks in the summer, even Orca if you're really lucky.
It’s the health and safety biased culture that we live in that creates the regulations that makes the train stop and have a very low speed limit if there is ice on the track. This is to prevent wheelspin which is now perceived as being dangerous by the nanny state however prior to these new regulations there was minimal stoppages / road speed restrictions during snow and either alike bad weather and the trains & buses ran. It’s the current rules and regulations that are the problem and the pansy culture that has infiltrated the system.
It’s not the people it’s the safety regulations now in place.
As for wildlife there are amazing national parks and forests trees contain copious amounts of wildlife that are an absolute pleasure to experience.
If you live in around the city then obviously they won’t be as much.
As for house prices it’s just the geographical location of the UK being in the centre of the world and also the financial centre that London is and the work and wages paid creates a scenario whereby house prices are driven up. House prices outside of major cities are lower or the same as yours in Pennsylvania.
After living in wa Australian for many years I grew to hate the constant hot weather and so being back for proper seasons is a joy
Totally agree with you about house prices and parking. I’m surprised you didn’t mention the cost of fuel.
It’s quite a distance but if you want to see wildlife I recommend some of the Scottish Hebridian islands.
Thank you!
You just have to visit a National Park. I'm a member of the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust and there's _lots_ of places we can visit, so maybe check out something similar where you live. I got a monocular for Christmas and can't wait to get out and about. I think the other thing is a lot of our wildlife is nocturnal and to see a fox crossing the road is a bit of thrill. I've never seen a badger though, but I have seen otters, muntjac deer, bat's, red squirrel (loads of greys!), rabbits, hedgehogs and even a quick glimpse of a pinemartin in Scotland. It is out there! ❤️🦊🐿️🦔🦇🐸🦉🦆🦅🐇🦡🐾🦢🦚🦭🦋💐
although your cost of fuel is insanely high compared to us it would nevertheless not be a serious concern because you don't have far to travel in any direction and you have a robust public transportation system. more than 40 UKs fit into the USA so we need cheap fuel cost for traveling.
For somewhere to view wildlife check out Richmond Park, deer everywhere and lots of bird life. You can picnic there to.
Thanks! 👍🏻
The house price thing: investors. It’s mostly houses being scooped up by domestic and foreign investors and mortgage companies holding on to repossessions to wait for the market to increase. Climb to the top of any of those pyramids, you’ll find an MP.
And prices vary wildly, depending on where you are. So to say that 'all' prices are crazy is not at all accurate.
It's the Boreigners
Parking is a nightmare. Not only are parking prices extortionate, but because a lot of houses were built before cars were common lots of people have to park miles from their home…. Not actually ‘miles’, but you get my drift. 😊
Hi Amanda, one of the things to love about the UK is we're generally happy to admit we're not perfect - we can laugh at ourselves!
That said, I think there a few things that might help you understand your UK home!
We do have snow ploughs and salt trucks, but as you correctly say we don't often get weather extremes so we just don't need them as much!
The whole 'films and TV not accessible' applies no matter where you are in the world. I guarantee that if you moved to the US you'd find the UK content harder to find!
It's all about licensing for different countries, Netflix has to get different licences for every country, so that means every country has a different library on Netflix - and it's also why they make so much of their own content now.
As for HBO, many HBO shows are simply shows from BBC, ITV or Channel 4 anyway, so you get them for free. But licensing is also the issue.
Wildlife is available! Not as much as the US, as we've spent a few thousand years killing all the dangerous animals, and hunting others for food. However if you come to the Forest of Dean where I live you'll find loads of it, deer, beavers, wild boar, horses, etc.
Houses price vary hugely as they do in the US, what you quoted for a 2 bed house is ludicrous to me too. I paid half of that for a 3 bed house up north, and the same as that for a 4 bed house in the forest.
Roads have been around for hundred of years here so were never designed for cars. We'd rather keep the houses, the history and the fields than bigger roads, so we deal with one-way streets and restrictions on parking as the trade-off.
I hate to pay to park.
I love our public transport systems but hate the prices.
I hate how expensive housing (rent or buy) is.
I'm happy with wild life, most of it is no trying to kill me.
Fair points 👍🏻
Plenty of wild life in Scotland.Wildcats,otters,red squirrels,red deer,pine marten’s,sea eagles.
👍🏻👍🏻
We have a lot of exotic wildlife; pigeons, squirrels, badgers, feral drunks (best spotted on dole payment day), zombie crackheads (this genus is particularly prevalent in Manchester).
Lol
@@LADYRAEUK here's,me thinking Manchester tart was a dessert...
Get yourself a VPN, then you can access US Netflix through your own subscription and HBO through your familiy’s back home.
The unpredictably of the weather is the only predictable thing about it!
True lol
British and lived here all my life love England however the petrol and diesel prices have always done my head in absolutely extortionate and getting worse
👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻
I think every country you go to has the same issue.
@@samuel10125 actually it doesn't as we have one of the highest taxed fuel countries in the world. We are 58p per litre plus 20% VAT which varies depending on price...currently approx 29p so at the moment 87p of £1.43 per litre is tax. Of course oil increases affects all markets.
Of course we cut that we increase something else
I was putting diesel in the tank yesterday and hit the £99 card limit before the tank was full 😠
@@scottirvine121 Makes you wonder how the government are going to make the billions in lost fuel tax back on electric cars they will be enforcing by 2030
I live in the south of England, Farnborough to be exact. I walk my dog in the local woods and often see deer Roe buck and Monkjack . I also see Buzzards , red kits, greater spotted woodpeckers, tree creepers, kestrels and badgers . I admit though that our wild life has suffered massively due to farming practices, and you hardly ever see hedgehogs anymore. There is wildlife out there , just got to keep your eyes open more as it's not so in your face.
Badgers have decimated hedgehog populations, since their protection.
Have some red kites near me. Love seeing them flying about as anything like that is rare with me being in a city. Never realised how big they were until I saw one of them flying low once. The sound they make aswell. 😁
Living as I do in the inner suburbs of London, I don't recognise the point about wildlife: there are all manner of wild animals and birds (including waterfowl) within a mile or so of where I live, and my neighbourhood is overrun with foxes! Perhaps it's a city centre thing...
@@wessexdruid7598 Although re-introducing solitary wildcats into the Scottish Highlands is workable, (they are needed to cull the overpopulations of deer which overgraze and then starve) the Rewilding idiots who don't understand ecological balance want to reintroduce wolves (who hunt in packs) into the wild, -- despite that Wolves far prefer sheep to wild deer -- so much easier to find and kill. The sheep farmers will lose serious money in predated sheep and lambs for the "pleasure" of people seeing wolf-packs.
North of Scotland has best wildlife, wild cats, pine martins and golden eagles, the coast has dolphins and whales - it is wild and fabulous up here .....
Sounds lovely 👍🏻
There's a saying where I live. " If you can see the Moors it's going to rain, if you can't see the Moors, it's already raining !!!!!
One of the things that bothers me the most in the UK is the crazy lenient jail sentences. Every time some terrible person gets away with a very light sentence it makes my blood boil.
Neil these lenient jail sentences, make us very angry to,
How much better it would be here (the UK), if we had three strikes and you're out (in prison), it would really cut down the re-offending rate.
@@Brewermb Well they've had that in the US for the last 25 years, and it hasn't been a success.
@@DavidAJones11 It must be some sort of a deterrent, what would it be like without it? We will never know.
@@Brewermb It's much more complicated than that. For example, juries are much less likely to convict someone on their third strike, and they're less likely to plead guilty. Also, criminals on their third strike are more likely to escalate their offending. Why risk a life sentence for a burglary when you can do armed robberies for the same risk? And then you also have the greater incentive for criminals to eliminate witnesses - a rapist on their third strike is far more likely to murder the victim. Repeat offending is a complex phenomenon, experience shows you can't solve it with simple, populist solutions like longer sentences.
I love the snow makes my garden look like everybody else's is 🌨
I don't like the winter when it's cold wet and it gets dark earlier, roll on summer where I live that means miles of golden sandy beaches aquamarine seas and little towns and villages on the coastline as good as anywhere in the Mediterranean.
Yes 🙌🙌🙌
Where is this earthly paradise ,Alan...??....Mrs C and I enjoy brisk walks on New Brighton promenade and same on West Kirby...sometimes we can watch 4 seasons unfold over North Wales or the Pennines or out over the Irish sea from the wirral on Thurstaton...cheers / slainte...
@@eamonnclabby7067 Hi Eamonn,
I'd like to see the Wirral too (I had a friend from there at university), but I gather that the nice bits are expensive (including West Kirby and Thursaston). The Hilbre's famous for its birdwatching.
@@Treviscoe hello there...prices aren't too bad here in Birkhenhead Wallasey and Bebington ...especially for Mrs C and I on Nurses salaries...we, don,t feel we have missed out on not living in west wirral, there is a lovely RSPB reserve on the River Dee marsh, plus Parkgate is worth a look..especially for Fish and chips and ice cream..even in winter.
I miss the Southern California weather so much. However, you can get all four seasons in Colorado too. ;)
I agree with most of these. Except I actually like the weather here, I'm from northwest England I live in the countryside. Looking at the fog or mist over the hills in the distance looks beautiful to me, especially with the trees and a few types of deer I've seen in the distance we don't really have the same animals compared to the US but Ive seen red and gray squirrels foxes, badgers, hedgehogs rabbits, Hares an many more also the different types of birds like falcons, owls, types of song birds you would be surprised. Also you see a lot of types of farm animals here and the best thing about it no skyscrapers or anything blocking the beautiful views. You should move out of London to the countryside its way better than living in the concrete jungle.
Ermmm, that's "hares"
I haven't seen any hairs, but have spotted lots of bald people. 🤣🤣
@@hellohandsome9875 Pardon, I write using predictive text.
@@terencedavis4141 🤣🤣
@@gazhawks5112 no prob,,,,,, maybe you can correct me sometime cos I never check my typing
Parking is a real rip off here.. And now Clean Air Zones CAZ makes it really difficult unless you have a fairly new vehicle..
I don't live in the UK anymore and the one thing I don't miss is the short days. I used to get up at 6am and drive to work in the dark and then leave about 4:30pm and by that time it was dark again. Where I live now (Thailand) it's light all year from about 6:30am to 6:30pm. Having said that some of the long summer nights in the UK are also nice.
Yes. Short days in winter is how we pay for long days in summer. 😀
Love to listen to your observations, and in this blog you just proved you really are now a Brit … sat there and agreed with every single point …
Glad to have you on board
I've lived overseas on and off for the last 20 years (most of my adult life) and, I can honestly say, nowhere compares with Britain (or the bit where I live anyway).
I love the weather. Nothing better than a misty morning walk with the dogs across countryside. It's also bliss to feel a cool breeze hitting your face having been away in a hot and oppressive climate for months and months.
A good proxy server/vpn enables you to watch domestic tv regardless of geographic location :)
You are complaining about the cost of parking - now you are a true Brit!
for netflix use a VPN and you can set your location to being in the U.S and hey presto you can access the U.S content from here in the U.K
👍🏻
I live in the Highlands and on my daily walks I can see badgers, kites, eagles, buzzards, hedgehogs, deer, seals, dolphins and...alpacas lol (they're obviously not native to Scotland but various places rear them up here for some reason). So yeah, definitely visit and see for yourselves :)
Oh wow I definitely will 😊👍🏻
Those herds of Haggis look dodgy?..oh no ....just tourists...
You see dolphins on your walk, i think you should stop walking when your feet start getting wet .
@@cookofdenton4190 very dry...
You see dolphins up a mountain? Think you have been drinking too many glasses
I'm 42 hours from getting on a plane to move to England, and NOW you post this??? :D
Amanda, it’s not us that are 5 hours in front, it’s the US that’s 5 hours behind…..obviously🤣🤣 Also I’ve been fortunate to have had 3 fox families bring up their babies in my garden in the last 5 years. When the young ones are strait out of the den they haven’t learnt to be scared of us and I’ve been able to take some decent pictures from only 1 metre away.👍
Lol 🤣😊
Have to agree, since time is measured from the Greenwich Meridian, here in London.
@@davidhyams2769 That's correct we tell everyone in the world what time it is even the Chinese..... That has never changed...
@@LADYRAEUK For 2 weeks a year the east coast is only 4 hours behind when you put the clocks back in October
Well GMT is the standard time frame so yeah the US is 5/8 hours behind
Spot on with the weather. We have over 100 words just for rain. That mist that fogs your glasses is called Mizzle ( a mixture of mist and drizzle )
Lol I’m going to start using that
The bloody rain! Wont blame you for that. I often wonder why my ancient ancestors decided this would be a great place to live. It must have been a nice summer that year I guess
If you use a VPN you will be able to watch US Netflix. Surprised nobody has mentioned the media in the UK.
Ah thank you! I’ll look into it
In my youth I had to dig through the snowdrift to get out of the front door and get to school. Ice used to form on the inside of windows. Fog used to be so dense that we had to feel our way along walls. Houses for ordinary people have always been tiny, my current cabin (too small to be called a flat) is so small that I have to go outside to change my mind. In the old days we didn't have to pay to park in most places but now the parking fees are payable everywhere, this is an easy way to make a fortune for the toffs. Places like Torquay, Newnon Abbot and Paignton are really just giant one way systems and you have to drive for miles extra to get to where you want to be, just yards away.
“I have to go outside to change my mind”.. I lost it 🤣
I hope you’re well John 😊
That is when we burnt a lot of coal. blocked out the sun and they say it creates global warming.
Try going round Leeds on the Loop, I defy anyone saying they understand central Leeds roads , it's one way systems are utterly diabolical 😂
Winters are nowhere near as bad as they were in the 60's, 70's and 80's. I walked to work one morning in the coldest temperature ever recorded in England, -26.2C, Shropshire 1982.
@@ianpodmore9666 Winters these days are more a cross between late autumn and early spring 🤷
30 plus years ago we did have bag people for shopping and bus conductors so the driver could concentrate on his driving
Haha!!! My ex is American. This sounded a lot like her (but with a slightly different accent and she would have made this video longer lol)
Sometimes on weekends we have school children packing your bags for you in my local supermarket and collecting money for charity. I pay them NOT to do it because they always put delicate or squishy things in the bottom of the bag with all the heavy stuff on top.
Here the thick mist/very fine rain, mizzle, is known as a soft day. "How's the weather there?" "Soft". An apt description compared to a force 9 and horizontal rain.
Brits learn from infancy to just wear what they want and pretty much ignore the weather. I think we have the best climate in the world, except for a few weeks in summer when it's too hot to move. We do have salt-trucks, known as gritters, but as the salt is devastating to plants and wildlife, we try not to use them unless we have to.
I will bag things for customers if they seem likely to struggle, but if someone asked to bag my groceries, I would be very insulted. I also wouldn't want some stranger groping the goods, especially in the midst of a pandemic. The fact that Americans need everything done for them baffles me. It seems like they remain helpless infants for the whole of their lives. I was bagging groceries for my parents when I was six. You can always ask the person on the checkout to bag the stuff for you. We are happy to do it.
Please, not HBO. It's rubbish. Netflix could do with a wider range, but frankly, we get too much US stuff on TV as it is. I love Supernatural, but most US stuff is terrible.
Move into the countryside and you will get a lot more wildlife. We have hedgehogs!
I think house prices are cheaper in the US because it's not a great place to live. Pollution is worse, you have barely controlled forest fires, no healthcare, you can be shot in the street for looking black and your climate is insane. If houses weren't cheap, who would consider staying there?
Again, plenty of parking in rural areas. I have never understood why anyone chooses to live in a town. The one-way systems are needed because our villages existed long before cars did. When we all come to our senses and return to horses and bicycles, they can go.
Helen you went off on some major tangents there!! 🤦🤦🤦😂
@@glastonbury4304 But it was a bloody good read, of which I pretty much agreed with :)
@@irielion3748 ...not so sure on all the generalisations on pollution , house prices, forest fires and climate, etc etc ... kind of odd to label the entire US in one over all statement that is 47 times bigger than the UK, that would be like comparing London with Aberdeen, there's no comparison, just strange that you can generalise an entire country as somewhere people would not want to live ...Manhatten is very different to California, to Washington, to Alabama, to Nevada, etc etc , some extremely cheap to live in some extremely expensive to live in, much like Europe is ....where also we have forest fires in Greece, Spain , Italy etc ...just find it silly and a wasted comment when you make broad generalisations which a 4 year old could poke holes in 🤷
I bet you haven't seen The Squonk (Lacrimacorpus dissolvens) a mythical creature reputed to live in the Hemlock forest of northern Pennsylvania.
... The legend holds that the creatures skin is ill fitting, being
covered with warts and that, because it is ashamed of its appearance it
hides from plain sight, and spends most of its time weeping.
The third track on Genesis's 1976 album A Trick of the Tail is titled "Squonk". The song recounts the legend of a hunter who captured a squonk and the creature is described as having a retiring disposition.
I am a Brit living in the Philippines - I have actually lived overseas since 1991. Apart from old friends and family, what I miss most is pubs, food, football, snow, scenery, free healthcare. Apart from that my life here is better in all departments.
Football, gay men running around in shorts.
Sadly, the UK doesn't get much snow nowadays, and when we do, it's gone in a day or two.
Literally everything you miss is everything to live for!
@@derwindhund116 Sadly? I would be happy never to see snow again. Snow is great if you are a Malamute.
@@mikecollins8936 Maybe, but still good to watch. I'm so gay I have a military background and 4 kids. I also bust my leg playing football and had 4 operations and 18 months in hospital recovering.
Weather forecasts are similarly unreliable. I understand it's not an exact science but you can look at the forecast over here and it will say sunshine, then look out of your window a second later and it's pouring with rain.
The worst thing, for me, about winter driving is low sun. Snow/ice is one thing but not being able to see properly (yes, I'm aware of sunglasses...) is a different matter.
Bag boys/girl is just laziness! I'm surprised Americans don't have someone to push their trolley around as well ;-) I think some supermarket staff do do this for certain customers but that's usually if they would otherwise struggle to pack the bags themselves. It used to be more common but I'm guessing it's something to do with staffing costs.
For wildlife, I'd recommend the Lake District. There are loads of other places as well but you can see red squirrel and red deer up there and bird life you wouldn't see in other parts on England, plus it's just a beautiful area in general.
One way systems/ring roads. You'd hate Leeds, the one way system was clearly designed to confuse "outsiders..."
Public transport is possibly my biggest hate. Not the idea of it, just how it's run and how it functions (or doesn't...) in the UK. I won't elaborate as I could write an essay on what I think the problems are with it but one issue is the high cost for the generally poor service.
I agree with you 100% on parking. Biggest racket going, that's if you can even find somewhere to park legally.
lol I know it’s incredibly lazy, but it’s helpful 🤣
Much better salaries and job opportunities in the US! Use a VPN to access USA Netflix HBO etc
I was going to say that as well ....lol
I was born and raised in the North of England. I know our weather is rather unpredictable, but if one is born into that sort of thing, one is kind of prepared for such unpredictability. I never thought it was such a bad thing. To be honest, thinking back to my childhood, I kind of only recall the sunny warm days. Regardless of the weather, I never remember having to stay indoors because of it. Sure we didn't get much snow in Winters, but that only made our snow days more special - and yes, we did get them.
That’s a great way of looking at it
Great video btw you can still tell that America is always in your heart. Also I can see that in the south you see absolutely naff all wildlife, I'd recommend Scotland for wildlife you can see stags and red squirrels etc
That’s brilliant! Thank you 😊
watch out for the midges though! 🦟
@@kathrynwhitby9799 Ah yes true
@@kathrynwhitby9799 they are pretty bad in the Breckon Beacons too...
@@LADYRAEUK early August in the Highlands - the days are still long, the midges are gone, on the heights the autumn colors are starting up, it's not too busy but places are still open for business....
Scotland, I visited Islay and Jura years ago. The wildlife was incredible.
Hi Amanda, great clip. Bag boys/girls, used to be a thing but due to economics, most stores didn't see them as a justifiable expense (more interested in profits and management bonuses I expect.) Your observations about parking and one way systems is probably linked to space and the fact that quite a few towns date back 100's of years or so. For example, Brixham in Torbay is a fishing community, Totnes is a market town. Both have very narrow streets unfortunately one way systems are often the only way to keep traffic moving. Local councils have to charge for parking in order to make carparks secure. Sometimes the rates are stupidly high, as your probably aware. Don't get me started on parking in Hospitals. Keep up the great content. Have you checked out Only Fools and Horses Batman and Robin yet, classic (among so many from that show). Happy New Year to you and your family
Happy new year to you and yours! 😊
Not yet but it’s on my list
I'd hate someone packing my shopping bags. How do they know how much weight I can carry or how I like which things be placed at the top?
It would cost supermarkets more in staff wages to employ bag staff, this would lead to an increase in prices.
Why do you think most supermarkets have self scan aisles? Yes, to reduce staff costs.
It's really humid here in the UK during the summer months.
In the town I live in I see a fair few foxes around, especially with my rotating work hours. I’ve even seen them coming down my street and even down my drive and down the alleyway to my back garden. There are plenty of Red Kites in my county - their screech is something I hear quite often.
Go to Lake District, Peak District or even the whole of Scotland, Wales, Ireland and Northern Ireland as a holiday
You remind me going to Florida as a kid on holiday with my parents back in the early 90's. Every day, without fail, at 5pm the sun would go and there would be thunderstorms and lighting. I loved it as I'd sit their watching the lighting hit the ocean but I remember wondering at the time just how consistent the weather was. It was like clockwork. It was completely alien to me being used to random weather cycles here in the UK
Our weather is totally predictable; either it's raining or it's going to rain.
Lol.😂. When you said about that light rain that fogs your glasses. My grandmother, if you asked her if it was raining, would say "yes, it's that rain that gets you wet" . Lol.😂. No joke.
Peter Kaye would agree...
I also live in the northwest see lots of squirrels not so many badgers but I live on a housing but as Al Murrey says squirrels dont hunt you down in packs. Love your videos the old man
😊👍🏻
The bagging issue is a relatively new one. It used to be that either someone would come-over, or the checkout assistant would pack the bag for you item-by-item as she scanned them-in and while you make the payment. But it's becoming rare, especially with self-service checkouts now :(
Bag Boys or Girls.? That's 1/2 the fun trying to beat the person on the till throwing your shopping down the shute before you can pack it.
Yes, even when there's no specific person helping with packing the person on the till usually asks if you want help with bagging up your shopping. Staff are usually trained how to correctly pack e.g. Not putting food in with toiletries.
Where do you come from? I'm 60 and never seen (or wanted) a bagging person in my life.
@@ianpodmore9666 Shropshire, and I am 47, and many supermarkets still provide the service albiet it's one guy/girl between all tills.
@@davidpage4005 lol I play that game too.
I agree with you about number one being the bad weather, the grey days of winter are what get me down every year despite me being born and bred here!
Try living where the weather never changes, the most boring places on the planet, variety makes Britain so special.
All four seasons in one day is great for speed tourists wanting the UK experience on the short time they are here.
Lol the Tourism boards could use that
Lol
🤣made my day
@@kathrynwhitby9799 and mine
Try a trip to the midlands and Cannock chase or nearer you the new forest xx
I have to agree with all of that. I'm a Brit and love the UK, but the US is such a nice place to visit for a lot of the reasons you mention.
The US is great for the range of environments; if you want deserts you have it, if you want snow and skiing you have that too. Want to take a 2000+ mile walk in the wilderness? Then the US is great for that. Every time I've been to the US I've had a great time and met some amazing people.
I agree, the US is great _to visit._
You couldn’t pay me to live there though.
Scotland gives you all that without the threat of being shot
Downside is that if you are not careful where you walk in the wilderness someone might shoot you for trespassing
A 2,000 mile walk is officially an expedition. It would take months.
I prefer a 10 mile walk with a country pub waiting as a reward for my effort.
The weather in the UK does really suck. Portland, Oregon ain't great but at least we get proper summers. And by the way, Amanda, if Portland or Seattle get an inch of snow, the cities grind to a halt just like in the UK.
I'm British and I agree with the house prices - they're ridiculous in the UK. You get idiots saying that rising prices are great but the only winners are estate agents or lenders. I hate public transport in Britain - always late and dirty or overcrowded. In some countries the trains are clean and efficient. In fairness to the UK - you're unlikely to come across bears or anything really dangerous if you go for a walk in the countryside - unlike in the US or Canada where I used to live I was to nervous to go too far (esp after having bears in the garden)!!
That’s very true, not much here that will eat you lol
@@LADYRAEUK - - - apart from midges - - - 😉😆
@@kathrynwhitby9799 Kathryn you clearly have not been out and about here in Birkhenhead, our wildlife is 2 legged usually responding to names like Ba and GA ..Harry Enfield's affectionate spoof the Scousers might give you a clue...but you are right about the midges....
I don't know what the public transport is like where you live but apart from certain trains being crowded, it isn't like you describe where I live.
I've even got on a train in Cologne and arrived on the coast of Mid Wales exactly when I expected to.
Sadly I am old enough to have paid off my mortgage. At least I get to live rent free.
Now with some supermarkets they have scan and shop which means your shopping is packed before paying.
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As Billy Connolly once said "If you look out of your window and don't like the weather, just wait 20mins". Lol.😂
Lol
He also said , there is nothing wrong with British weather, it’s the wrong choice of clothing 😂
It has been said that the UK does not have a climate, it only has weather & lots of it. The Canadians that volunteered for service during WW2 said that the wind in the UK was lazy, that it did not go around but through one.
Definitely agree with you about driving in the snow. Also house prices are terrible here. My son and his girlfriend as with a lot of people are struggling to save for a house. It's such a shame. And yes I have gone down a one way street the wrong way!
It happens to the best of us...
It’s a shame because it makes it hard for people to get on the property ladder
@@LADYRAEUK good point, our daughter still lives at home for that very reason...despite having a great job / career...speaking of which might you be interested in doing a Teems with her ,she is currently seconded to Merseyside fire and rescue running a Prince, s Trust group for vulnerable young people...always looking for positive role models... she has an LFC legend doing a Teems ,and Mrs C is being roped in to deliver a food hygiene session...I,m in the frame to deliver Tai Chi...
@@LADYRAEUK ps comms can go through Merseyside Fire and Rescue ..same surname..
In 50 years of driving I've never driven the wrong way on a one way street.
Old saying in the Lake District: If you can see across the Langdale valley it's going to rain. If you can't see across it, it's raining.
Having been there totally agree..
A true story. Nichelle Nichols of Star Trek fame came to Belfast 15 years ago and while she was in the store she was visiting and doing a signing the weather was constantly changing. Sunny one second, thunder the next. She asked us if the weather was always like that. We said "Sometimes". We didn't have the heart to tell her it was freakish even by our standards. Just at that point we suddenly got the biggest hail shower we had ever seen.. She walked over to the window, grabbed a toy communicator and went "Hailing frequencies open Captain". Everyone laughed their arses off. . She never forgot it.. it was the freakiest day of weather I have ever encountered.
Makes for a good story though 😊
@@LADYRAEUK True but i have never encountered such freakish weather before or since. It was a Friday I remember and the weather was constantly changing all day. Thunder and lighting for 5 minutes, beautiful sunshine for 20 minutes and then more hailstorms.... it was surreal.... And it went on all day....
Nice one Roger...as a native of Limavady I would agree ,that in Ireland especially one can experience 4 seasons in one day...
@@eamonnclabby7067 Even better than that, all I I know is that it was a Saturday and August 16th i think about 8 years ago and it was Tsunami rain for 12 hours with the worst flooding and damage we ever encountered... Cars were literally moving in the street because of the rain and the infamous image of some poor sod sitting on their car in the Sydenham Bypass as he and his taxi were washed away......
@@eamonnclabby7067 i have heard the term it's howling like a banshee think it's a term used in Ireland 🇮🇪
our weather is easy to undertand just asumme its going rain no matter how nice the weather is
Lol 🤣👍🏻
If you want to see some wildlife, I could recommend taking a family holiday in Northumberland, some of the most beautiful views and all sorts of animals to see!
🤫...shhhh! Don't tell people.
Anywhere north of Sunderland is good for wildlife.
Wales and the coasts too.
@@rodgeyd6728 Your right mate! Although when they announced Alnwick was the best place to live in England in 1996, it started the slow but steady infiltration of the others!!!
@@rord I blame Harry Potter for that 🤔
@@rodgeyd6728 me and my mate broke into the cast and crew tents when they were filming HP at Alnwick castle!
Weather - could be worse - try Ireland, more wetter, more windy. But your experience in the SE of England is different to the NE or the NW, where the greater elevation makes various differences.
Hi! Amanda What's happening! Your so right about parking and driving in live just outside Oxford and driving is a real pain in the ass. Spend a lot of time sitting in traffic. I'm a 90s child and I hate the way are people are so paranoid in this country now a days. I can understand why with the way modern life is now. With t.v and the News. And now COVID. 90s life was a lot easier is this country and where happier and more friendly. I have lived in Scandinavia and life was so simpler than the UK. That is why I love your videos. You put a light hearted spin on things that you talk about. We need more people like that in life. Take care of yourself and keep Smiling!
Thanks so much! I really appreciate it 😊
I like the weather - not too cold, not too hot (usually), and never predictable.
House Prices, parking, lack of wildlife are all results of high population density particularly in the south of England. Governments want population growth because the economy appears to grow and they think they look good. But actually quality of life declines. This decline is disguised by technological improvements but happens none the less.
Just had 3 inches of snow here in North Carolina. What I'd give for the states being prepared for snow like the UK :P
I love seeing hedgehogs. One summer night, I had my living room window open and heard scuffling outside. It was a hedgehog under my window. So cute! The snow issue drives me daft! One snowflake and we grind to a halt! Infuriating! 🏴
As someone from the UK who lives in Australia I totally understand the challenges with the time differences.
Melbourne Australia is famous for having four seasons in one day.
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I was scrolling through to see if anyone mentioned Melbourne. I agree with you.
🤣
You don't have to apologise for your complaints! Love to hear them!
She’s a Brit now though, complaining is what we do!
@@realburglazofficial2613 let's form an orderly queue...and then have a good old moan..
I don't like the clocks going backwards and forwards as we gain and lose an hour. It never used to bother me but now my' aging' body clock especially losing an hour goes into confusion trying to adjust. Again that must affect keeping in touch with your family back in the US too?
This should be a really short video cos everything is great 😁
Lol 🤣👍🏻
@@LADYRAEUK whould you recommend living in usa as i live in uk and want to move to usa
@@casheloconnor8483 As someone who is an adopted son of Birkhenhead ,from Limavady originally and been Stateside a fair bit, the NHS as creaking as it is ,takes some beating..naturally biased as I worked there for 44 years...UK wins for me..had the opportunity to work in NYC...I guess living and working abroad would have its Challenges..maybe consider Australia or New Zealand too..good luck..
Are you serious 😐
@@eamonnclabby7067 Is that the New Zealand that erupts every so often (or just drop bits off) or the Australia which contains nine out of ten of the world's deadliest whatevers ?
I missed you Girl and those's Old Soul Eye's of yours why i Watch? I love your Voice!! Dean (Soul) Toronto
Hand on heart .i have never drove down a one street the wrong way in 40 years of driving. And i love packing my own gear in supermarkets .us brits love queing and the tuts make me go slower lol.. good one amanda ...😘😘😘
Lol🤣🤣
Thanks paul! Hope you’re well 😊
@@LADYRAEUK not bad a bit of cancer at the moment ..hope your well .and have a great week 😘😘
@@paulryan9640 keep well ,sir, peace and love from the wirral...E
@@eamonnclabby7067 thats nice .thank you 👍👍
@@paulryan9640 I was privileged to work several times on the Radiotherapy and Oncology wards at Clatterbridge hospital here on the wirral...during my 44 years with the NHS..
Part of the problem with house prices is that rather than viewing a house as a home, it is seen as an investment and through simple demand and supply this leads to house inflation. A couple of years ago my neighbour sold their house to an investor in Hong Kong who has never visited the UK. I am not in London, but a market town in Suffolk. Neither of my children owns property, one pays rent of nearly £1,000 a month (a mortgage would be cheaper, but he cannot raise the deposit while paying rent) and the other lives on a boat.
It’s tough to get on the property ladder, it’s such a shame
Agree with most of that!
I live in Cornwall and in my garden we’ve had deer, foxes, cows, sheep and a badger 🦡 that used to sleep in the house.
In addition we have buzzards, bats, owls 🦉 woodpeckers etc…
Very impressive...we just have the warring tribes of the Wirralians here...I think they constitute the local wildlife...
Wildlife around the UK... Norfolk has plentiful seals, the best time to visit is October through to Jan for seal pups at Horsey Gap Beach. A real bonus is that they have pumpkin patches in the run up to Halloween too. The Norfolk Broads are great for birds too. Skomer Island off the coast of Wales in June is peak puffin season and they're adorable, these can also be found in Northumberland at Holy island. I've seen dolphins off the coast up near Inverness and some people have even spotted orcas. People can go shark diving off the Cornish coast, basking sharks are often spotted there in the height of summer. Countryside critters can include foxes, rabbits, hedgehogs, badgers, deer (quite a few varieties) and owls/kestrels/buzzards... in some parts even otters. You just need a lot of patience to spot them. I grew up in Somerset and WIltshire and saw all these countryside critters regularly (except for the otters)
This made me smile, not least because the odd word is spoken in such an English accent😆. Brilliant, keep going with the great content 👍
And so the assimilated Amanda becomes more British by the day....
Thanks so much 😊 stay safe!
@@LADYRAEUK thanks Amanda..you too ,and your family of course...E
@@eamonnclabby7067 "We are the British. You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile". 😄
I had to smile at "it does my head in"
One of us. One of us. One of us!
Hi I live in Australia but I was in the uk on holiday and could live in the UK quite happy
Hi Amanda, as you mention living in the South, I'd recommend one or all of these for "wildlife"; The New Forest (Hampshire/Dorset), The Gower Peninsular (South Wales), and the Moors across Devon into Cornwall (South West)
Thank you! I’ll check it out 😊
@@LADYRAEUK Also check out Exmoor in Somerset/ North Devon
The only wildlife on Dartmoor tends to be cows, sheep and Dartmoor pony's. Squirrels if you find the if wooded bits. There are deer here, but it's pretty rare to see them and really need to know where to look for them. If you're a bird watcher, then we get kestrels, buzzards and the entire variety of smaller birds. It's very rare to see foxes and your more likely to see them in a city TBH. Oh and the weather is even more questionable here than most of the UK
@@LADYRAEUK When you reach the South West you'll really know the true horror of one way streets - wide enough for one-and-a-half cars (or a small truck), no marked passing places and flanked by either stone walls or dense hedgerow... Joy !
As a Brit yep I agree on the weather its crap. At the moment winter is such a struggle and unpredictable all year round.
Regarding Netflix all you gotta do is change your VPN :)
Wildlife.. I live in Kent which is a mix of beach and countryside but like you say its where you live.
House prices are a joke your right! I can't afford to move out my folks place, rent is too high and as for getting on the property ladder... Forget it.
Parking... I park elsewhere and walk a little further it's only way to do it.
You have been away from the US for a while. Bag boys, or girls, are as rare as hen's teeth. One big difference here is that there are people that would not bag their own groceries if their lives depended on it. When I start to bag my own stuff (once a bag boy always a bag boy) people look at me like I've lost my mind.
The grocery stores I go to still have baggers. Dont seem rare at all to me
Well we do have the term 'baglady' in Britain, a derogatory term referring to homeless woman who carries her possessions around, usually in supermarket bags.
As a Brit, the worst thing about living in the UK is the quality of the roads. Our random weather and highs and lows on daily basis makes the tarmac break up very easily, leading to pot holes (and then flat tires!)
To see wildlife and absolutely gorgeous scenery, Scotland. From my experience, the highlands are stunning, the beaches on the west coast are mind blowing. Isle of Skye is also worth visiting, it will take your breath away. I know you like the Lake District, think of Scotland like the Lake District on steroids.
That sounds beautiful 😊
@@LADYRAEUK it truly is. You'll love Scotland. Shout if you need any tips on where to visit etc.
Don't forget to pack plenty of fly spray and anti-septic for those midge bites its worst after the daily rains showers. They maybe wild ,I'd say furious..
@@LADYRAEUK Scotland is beautiful, as is Wales.
Go to centre parcs in Suffolk and you 'll have deer and herons knocking on your patio door to be fed. There are rabbits, squirrels, munkjak, fallow deer, swans, ducks, and all sorts. At home, try putting some food out for the birds, and hedgehogs. Make sure you have gaps in your fences so animals can get in too. Glad you like it here.
Loved your take on this - always interesting to hear a furriner's kindly view! I spent fifteen or so years away from England and was shocked on my return at several things... the state of the roads - deep potholes or just badly patched lumpy surfaces and tiny parking bays. Far more serious though is the awful state of the local GP service, only two doctors for 12,000 people where just four years ago there were eight. Definitely don't like that.
They say we drive on the left of the road. They have it wrong - we drive on what's left of the road.
I should count my blessings, three Doctor's Practices in the town each with four/five GP's and at least two nurses, not all on duty at once as need days off and the local out of hours service has to be covered, that also has a surgery and permanent GP's but is a few miles out of town. A small town of under 10,000. Same day appointments often no problem, emergencies, one can come at once and be seen without waiting or GP will come out. One can wait over 30 minutes for an Ambulance even if they are quiet as have about 30 miles to travel from the two closest stations, one in the City and one in a coastal town further West.
Hiya! The TV/Films issue is all to do with rights. I'm sure there are shows on UK Netflix that aren't on the US service. These services have to pay for the rights to show anything on their service. But the rights may not be available. For example, I think Amazon Prime has the rights to NCIS at the moment.
Ah thank you!