54% of Brits want to emigrate!
04 August 2006, 02:09 PM
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Originally Posted by eClaire
You're not the real Jack Sparrow. He doesn't talk like that.
Not boarding your ship!
Not boarding your ship!
04 August 2006, 02:44 PM
#63
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"According to a new survey by the Institute for Public Policy Research, 54% of Britons have contemplated moving overseas. I don't want to be rude, but it would be nice if they stopped talking and started packing. Then the remaining 46% might be able to get boxes at the opera. We could stretch out in our underwear and singalong to Che Gelida Manina with a bucket of greasy chicken on the spare seat, without (and this is the crucial part) having to listen to 54% of the population moaning about how Britain is going to the dogs and boring everybody with stories of how they're going to set up a bar for expat golfers in the Algarve.
What makes that 54% want to leave? A complicated picture emerges from our follow-up study here at Clerkenwell University. Apparently, 33.5% of that 54% cite the weather as the chief reason. Of that 33.5%, 10% complained it was too hot, 15% too cold, 32% complained it was too hot and too cold, 15% too dry, 15% too wet, while the remainder said they wouldn't really be happy whatever the weather. It is impossible to please some people - and with a bit of luck they will be pushing off shortly and become somebody else's problem......"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1836922,00.html
What makes that 54% want to leave? A complicated picture emerges from our follow-up study here at Clerkenwell University. Apparently, 33.5% of that 54% cite the weather as the chief reason. Of that 33.5%, 10% complained it was too hot, 15% too cold, 32% complained it was too hot and too cold, 15% too dry, 15% too wet, while the remainder said they wouldn't really be happy whatever the weather. It is impossible to please some people - and with a bit of luck they will be pushing off shortly and become somebody else's problem......"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1836922,00.html
04 August 2006, 05:26 PM
#64
Originally Posted by Brendan Hughes
"According to a new survey by the Institute for Public Policy Research, 54% of Britons have contemplated moving overseas. I don't want to be rude, but it would be nice if they stopped talking and started packing. Then the remaining 46% might be able to get boxes at the opera. We could stretch out in our underwear and singalong to Che Gelida Manina with a bucket of greasy chicken on the spare seat, without (and this is the crucial part) having to listen to 54% of the population moaning about how Britain is going to the dogs and boring everybody with stories of how they're going to set up a bar for expat golfers in the Algarve.
What makes that 54% want to leave? A complicated picture emerges from our follow-up study here at Clerkenwell University. Apparently, 33.5% of that 54% cite the weather as the chief reason. Of that 33.5%, 10% complained it was too hot, 15% too cold, 32% complained it was too hot and too cold, 15% too dry, 15% too wet, while the remainder said they wouldn't really be happy whatever the weather. It is impossible to please some people - and with a bit of luck they will be pushing off shortly and become somebody else's problem......"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1836922,00.html
What makes that 54% want to leave? A complicated picture emerges from our follow-up study here at Clerkenwell University. Apparently, 33.5% of that 54% cite the weather as the chief reason. Of that 33.5%, 10% complained it was too hot, 15% too cold, 32% complained it was too hot and too cold, 15% too dry, 15% too wet, while the remainder said they wouldn't really be happy whatever the weather. It is impossible to please some people - and with a bit of luck they will be pushing off shortly and become somebody else's problem......"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1836922,00.html
04 August 2006, 07:10 PM
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I cant get my head round some of you saying you miss the pubs ?? 
Oz is not short of pubs that's for sure.
The atmosphere is great on every one I went into over there (north east to south east and Central)
People go to enjoy themselves and socialise, not just to get wankered!
Isn't that a good thing ???
Unless you are one of the sad ******* who do go out to just get **** faced
Andy
Oz is not short of pubs that's for sure.
The atmosphere is great on every one I went into over there (north east to south east and Central)
People go to enjoy themselves and socialise, not just to get wankered!
Isn't that a good thing ???
Unless you are one of the sad ******* who do go out to just get **** faced
Andy
04 August 2006, 07:55 PM
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Originally Posted by Fuzz
I cant get my head round some of you saying you miss the pubs ??
Oz is not short of pubs that's for sure.
The atmosphere is great on every one I went into over there (north east to south east and Central)
People go to enjoy themselves and socialise, not just to get wankered!
Isn't that a good thing ???
Unless you are one of the sad ******* who do go out to just get **** faced
Andy
Oz is not short of pubs that's for sure.
The atmosphere is great on every one I went into over there (north east to south east and Central)
People go to enjoy themselves and socialise, not just to get wankered!
Isn't that a good thing ???
Unless you are one of the sad ******* who do go out to just get **** faced
Andy
I agree, ozzy pubs aren't any different...full of loud mouted drunken yobs that stare at any foriegner that dares walk into "thier" bar
Not that would ever have bothered me, mines a pint of VB, mate
04 August 2006, 10:47 PM
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Originally Posted by Wurzel
I moved out to Germany over 6 years ago and I still love coming home! infact I am driving home tomorrow for a week, the grass is not always greener on the other side.
If the grass isnt greener, then Wurzel come on down
04 August 2006, 10:49 PM
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Originally Posted by Brendan Hughes
"According to a new survey by the Institute for Public Policy Research, 54% of Britons have contemplated moving overseas. I don't want to be rude, but it would be nice if they stopped talking and started packing. Then the remaining 46% might be able to get boxes at the opera. We could stretch out in our underwear and singalong to Che Gelida Manina with a bucket of greasy chicken on the spare seat, without (and this is the crucial part) having to listen to 54% of the population moaning about how Britain is going to the dogs and boring everybody with stories of how they're going to set up a bar for expat golfers in the Algarve.
What makes that 54% want to leave? A complicated picture emerges from our follow-up study here at Clerkenwell University. Apparently, 33.5% of that 54% cite the weather as the chief reason. Of that 33.5%, 10% complained it was too hot, 15% too cold, 32% complained it was too hot and too cold, 15% too dry, 15% too wet, while the remainder said they wouldn't really be happy whatever the weather. It is impossible to please some people - and with a bit of luck they will be pushing off shortly and become somebody else's problem......"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1836922,00.html
What makes that 54% want to leave? A complicated picture emerges from our follow-up study here at Clerkenwell University. Apparently, 33.5% of that 54% cite the weather as the chief reason. Of that 33.5%, 10% complained it was too hot, 15% too cold, 32% complained it was too hot and too cold, 15% too dry, 15% too wet, while the remainder said they wouldn't really be happy whatever the weather. It is impossible to please some people - and with a bit of luck they will be pushing off shortly and become somebody else's problem......"
http://www.guardian.co.uk/g2/story/0,,1836922,00.html
04 August 2006, 10:53 PM
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Originally Posted by popeye
Well goodbye then. I'll give you a lift to the airport if you'd like.
As for those "Quality of Life" surveys, what a load of crap. What exactly is the criteria? Vancouver has rubbish weather most of the year and if my visit there is anything to go by, holds the world record for number of homeless people wandering the streets. What about people who don't live Lonon but in the UK countryside or anywhere else? Is their quality of life worse than someone in some dreary Aussie suburb? I think not. Who did they ask about how great Sydney is? Aussies? No biased answers there then. Believe those surveys and you'll believe anything.
As for those "Quality of Life" surveys, what a load of crap. What exactly is the criteria? Vancouver has rubbish weather most of the year and if my visit there is anything to go by, holds the world record for number of homeless people wandering the streets. What about people who don't live Lonon but in the UK countryside or anywhere else? Is their quality of life worse than someone in some dreary Aussie suburb? I think not. Who did they ask about how great Sydney is? Aussies? No biased answers there then. Believe those surveys and you'll believe anything.
04 August 2006, 11:03 PM
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Originally Posted by Suresh
I remember a great quote along the same lines from "Trainspotting" I can paste it here if anyone would like me to do so?
04 August 2006, 11:58 PM
#71
Quite true
Originally Posted by _RIP_
It's called irony ya radge smackheed
TOMMY: Doesn't it make you proud to be Scottish?
RENTON: I hate being Scottish. We're the lowest of the fu cking low, the scum of the earth, the most wretched, servile, miserable, pathetic trash that was ever shat into civilization. Some people hate the English, but I don't. They're just w ankers. We, on the other hand, are colonized by w ankers. We can't even pick a decent culture to be colonized by. We are ruled by effete arseholes. It's a ****e state of affairs and all the fresh air in the world will not make any f ucking difference.
Whatever it is, it's damn funny
05 August 2006, 10:39 AM
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Originally Posted by Suresh
TOMMY: Doesn't it make you proud to be Scottish?
RENTON: I hate being Scottish. We're the lowest of the fu cking low, the scum of the earth, the most wretched, servile, miserable, pathetic trash that was ever shat into civilization. Some people hate the English, but I don't. They're just w ankers. We, on the other hand, are colonized by w ankers. We can't even pick a decent culture to be colonized by. We are ruled by effete arseholes. It's a ****e state of affairs and all the fresh air in the world will not make any f ucking difference.
Whatever it is, it's damn funny
05 August 2006, 11:40 AM
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Hi Akuma,
I hope you really enjoy your time in Niigata. It's a beautiful part of Japan and you've got some awesome skiing/boarding on your doorstep come the winter
Japan undoubtedly has low crime, much lower than the UK, but it isn't crime free. In my three years there two friends (one living in Tokyo and the other a small town in Aichi-ken) has their homes burgled. I had friends who had their bikes nicked and I there were roads I knew of where you would frequently see burned out/trashed cars.
Earlier this year I noticed the start of shell-suit culture in Nagoya (it should be illegal for pretty Japanese girls to wear shell suits) and the Japanese themselves are really worried about a sizeable percentage of Japanese youth who have rejected the workplace and just bum around listening to hip hop and the like.
And the Japanese are having to face up to the demographic time-bomb and working out how to permit the immigration of probably millions of workers in the next 10 - 20 years.
And before you talk about how the NHS as a joke, what will a serious illness or medical procedure cost you in Japan, even if you have insurance? I had the worry of being uninsured for a while and it's not a nice feeling.
Don't get me wrong, I love Japan. But I just wanted to make some points to show others that the grass is not always the colour it appears from a distance.
Car-wise though it's pretty good, cheaper cars, 100 RON fuel, no insurance penalties for modifications, low risk of getting it nicked and skyline roads (just forget the taxes, toll fees, bureacracy, draconian speeding penalties if you are caught and 60-80kph limits on country roads 
)
Back in the UK now, I can't say it seems all that different than when I left. I work with a very international bunch of people, French, German, Italian, South African, Australian, Turkish, Indian, Greek.... it's great.
The irony of people emigrating because of immigration is too funny for words. I hope they apply the same standards to themselves when living overseas as they do to immigrants coming here (like learning the language etc).
Regards,
BIJ
I hope you really enjoy your time in Niigata. It's a beautiful part of Japan and you've got some awesome skiing/boarding on your doorstep come the winter
Japan undoubtedly has low crime, much lower than the UK, but it isn't crime free. In my three years there two friends (one living in Tokyo and the other a small town in Aichi-ken) has their homes burgled. I had friends who had their bikes nicked and I there were roads I knew of where you would frequently see burned out/trashed cars.
Earlier this year I noticed the start of shell-suit culture in Nagoya (it should be illegal for pretty Japanese girls to wear shell suits
) and the Japanese themselves are really worried about a sizeable percentage of Japanese youth who have rejected the workplace and just bum around listening to hip hop and the like.And the Japanese are having to face up to the demographic time-bomb and working out how to permit the immigration of probably millions of workers in the next 10 - 20 years.
And before you talk about how the NHS as a joke, what will a serious illness or medical procedure cost you in Japan, even if you have insurance? I had the worry of being uninsured for a while and it's not a nice feeling.
Don't get me wrong, I love Japan. But I just wanted to make some points to show others that the grass is not always the colour it appears from a distance.
Car-wise though it's pretty good, cheaper cars, 100 RON fuel, no insurance penalties for modifications, low risk of getting it nicked and skyline roads
(just forget the taxes, toll fees, bureacracy, draconian speeding penalties if you are caught and 60-80kph limits on country roads )Back in the UK now, I can't say it seems all that different than when I left. I work with a very international bunch of people, French, German, Italian, South African, Australian, Turkish, Indian, Greek.... it's great.
The irony of people emigrating because of immigration is too funny for words. I hope they apply the same standards to themselves when living overseas as they do to immigrants coming here (like learning the language etc).
Regards,
BIJ
Originally Posted by Akuma
We've already gone! Japan for the next couple of years (Hubby on contract).
We originally left the UK (south) in 03 for a year in France, Then went back to the UK and moved up north (cheaper property & hubby is from the north)
Did a year before we got naffed off with it all again and looked for a job abroad, Japan seemed like the obvious choice cos we lived here for a bit 6 years ago.
So here we are, loving every second of being in Japan. There is no crime (I mean theft etc) I can leave the house & car unlocked and never even worry. Most people when they go shopping leave the car running! There are no chavs of any form. No groups of kids with nowt to do stood on street corners. The kids here are at school for 8am til 7pm including Saturdays, they don't have time to **** about!
When lads tinker with their cars in Japan, they tend to do it properly on Nissan Silvia's, Skylines and most probably have 400bhp - not ****e Max power Saxo's and the likes! Although they do have 'Car dress up' clubs
Here we're called 'Gaijin' (foreigner) but we're totally accepted as we try very hard to speak Japanese and live by Japanese standards. We're a bit of a novalty and we get stared at loads, especially our blonde 4 year old son - It's like being celebs!
There is so little I miss about the UK, I can't even say family, as my parents live in France & Sister in law lives in Spain.
House prices in the UK are just plain scary, along with the cost of fuel etc The NHS is a joke and then there's Blair but that's a whole different subject!
Who knows where we'll go next, but I doubt very much we'll come back to the UK for good when there are so many other lovely places to live!
Ok, you can wake up now
Akuma
We originally left the UK (south) in 03 for a year in France, Then went back to the UK and moved up north (cheaper property & hubby is from the north)
Did a year before we got naffed off with it all again and looked for a job abroad, Japan seemed like the obvious choice cos we lived here for a bit 6 years ago.
So here we are, loving every second of being in Japan. There is no crime (I mean theft etc) I can leave the house & car unlocked and never even worry. Most people when they go shopping leave the car running! There are no chavs of any form. No groups of kids with nowt to do stood on street corners. The kids here are at school for 8am til 7pm including Saturdays, they don't have time to **** about!
When lads tinker with their cars in Japan, they tend to do it properly on Nissan Silvia's, Skylines and most probably have 400bhp - not ****e Max power Saxo's and the likes! Although they do have 'Car dress up' clubs
Here we're called 'Gaijin' (foreigner) but we're totally accepted as we try very hard to speak Japanese and live by Japanese standards. We're a bit of a novalty and we get stared at loads, especially our blonde 4 year old son - It's like being celebs!
There is so little I miss about the UK, I can't even say family, as my parents live in France & Sister in law lives in Spain.
House prices in the UK are just plain scary, along with the cost of fuel etc
The NHS is a joke and then there's Blair but that's a whole different subject!Who knows where we'll go next, but I doubt very much we'll come back to the UK for good when there are so many other lovely places to live!
Ok, you can wake up now Akuma
05 August 2006, 11:50 AM
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Originally Posted by Shark Man
...mines a pint of VB, mate
I thought pubs over in Oz were better than a lot you find here (this was when we had to close at 11pm...), the bars stayed open to some rediculous hour, plenty of live music being played and the people generally friendly although a lot of people were backpackers in the city... English blokes trying to start fights mainly...
Found some great bars in Perth, Noosa, and Melbourne amongst others, and these were full of locals rather than backpackers.
Now one bar we ended up in did Roo Burgers, now where do you get a pub in the UK that does that!!
05 August 2006, 02:01 PM
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Originally Posted by stilover
I'm one of them. This country is turning into a imigrate ridden, tax burden'd, police state sh1te hole of a country.
Every thing HAS to be PC. Criminals have more rights than the victims, and unless you welcome every race/colour the world has into your front room, you are classed as a Racist.
Get me out of this Sh1te hole !!!!!!!!!!!!
Every thing HAS to be PC. Criminals have more rights than the victims, and unless you welcome every race/colour the world has into your front room, you are classed as a Racist.
Get me out of this Sh1te hole !!!!!!!!!!!!
It is a bit of a worry with the problems in Lebanon and Iraq however i feel the UK is more likely to get targetted than Dubai is.
There are good opportunities for work and education for kids. The schools are reported to be better than most in the UK. Kids are taught respect and do not **** about in school.
No drugs, no drug problem (yet), you get caught with a 'g' of anything and look at 4 years inside. Get caught importing and look forward to seeing out your days in jail - oh and no Sky tv in prison out here.
No drinking assocoated crime, getting pissed is not a problem but take it onto the streets and you will be for it!
Drink drive and expect 1 month in jail for a first offence along with your head and eyebrows shaved off. Th think the cops do the shaving for fun!
Get caught kiddie fiddling and expect life, or a death sentence.
Get caught robbing or stealing and expect jail time, keep doing it and expext to loose a hand!
subsequently, a lot of the crime that the UK see's on a day to day basis Dubai does not.
Whilst Dubai is not exactly paradise and has some issues i feel safer walking down the street at night here than i did in Northampton.
I would rather be in the UK if the UK was a better and safer place.
05 August 2006, 02:38 PM
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Originally Posted by Brit_in_Japan
Hi Akuma,
I hope you really enjoy your time in Niigata. It's a beautiful part of Japan and you've got some awesome skiing/boarding on your doorstep come the winter
Japan undoubtedly has low crime, much lower than the UK, but it isn't crime free. In my three years there two friends (one living in Tokyo and the other a small town in Aichi-ken) has their homes burgled. I had friends who had their bikes nicked and I there were roads I knew of where you would frequently see burned out/trashed cars.
Earlier this year I noticed the start of shell-suit culture in Nagoya (it should be illegal for pretty Japanese girls to wear shell suits) and the Japanese themselves are really worried about a sizeable percentage of Japanese youth who have rejected the workplace and just bum around listening to hip hop and the like.
And the Japanese are having to face up to the demographic time-bomb and working out how to permit the immigration of probably millions of workers in the next 10 - 20 years.
And before you talk about how the NHS as a joke, what will a serious illness or medical procedure cost you in Japan, even if you have insurance? I had the worry of being uninsured for a while and it's not a nice feeling.
Don't get me wrong, I love Japan. But I just wanted to make some points to show others that the grass is not always the colour it appears from a distance.
Car-wise though it's pretty good, cheaper cars, 100 RON fuel, no insurance penalties for modifications, low risk of getting it nicked and skyline roads (just forget the taxes, toll fees, bureacracy, draconian speeding penalties if you are caught and 60-80kph limits on country roads )
Back in the UK now, I can't say it seems all that different than when I left. I work with a very international bunch of people, French, German, Italian, South African, Australian, Turkish, Indian, Greek.... it's great.
The irony of people emigrating because of immigration is too funny for words. I hope they apply the same standards to themselves when living overseas as they do to immigrants coming here (like learning the language etc).
Regards,
BIJ
I hope you really enjoy your time in Niigata. It's a beautiful part of Japan and you've got some awesome skiing/boarding on your doorstep come the winter
Japan undoubtedly has low crime, much lower than the UK, but it isn't crime free. In my three years there two friends (one living in Tokyo and the other a small town in Aichi-ken) has their homes burgled. I had friends who had their bikes nicked and I there were roads I knew of where you would frequently see burned out/trashed cars.
Earlier this year I noticed the start of shell-suit culture in Nagoya (it should be illegal for pretty Japanese girls to wear shell suits
) and the Japanese themselves are really worried about a sizeable percentage of Japanese youth who have rejected the workplace and just bum around listening to hip hop and the like.And the Japanese are having to face up to the demographic time-bomb and working out how to permit the immigration of probably millions of workers in the next 10 - 20 years.
And before you talk about how the NHS as a joke, what will a serious illness or medical procedure cost you in Japan, even if you have insurance? I had the worry of being uninsured for a while and it's not a nice feeling.
Don't get me wrong, I love Japan. But I just wanted to make some points to show others that the grass is not always the colour it appears from a distance.
Car-wise though it's pretty good, cheaper cars, 100 RON fuel, no insurance penalties for modifications, low risk of getting it nicked and skyline roads
(just forget the taxes, toll fees, bureacracy, draconian speeding penalties if you are caught and 60-80kph limits on country roads )Back in the UK now, I can't say it seems all that different than when I left. I work with a very international bunch of people, French, German, Italian, South African, Australian, Turkish, Indian, Greek.... it's great.
The irony of people emigrating because of immigration is too funny for words. I hope they apply the same standards to themselves when living overseas as they do to immigrants coming here (like learning the language etc).
Regards,
BIJ
Personally I find Japan so much better that the UK for many reasons. I didn't actually say Japan has no crime, but it has nothing like the UK has!
As for the UK NHS vs Japan's healthcare - you couldn't be more wrong! I speak from personal experience. 2 weeks before moving to Japan I discovered a health problem my GP said it would be up to 10 weeks before I would be see by a consultant. Within 2 days of being in Japan, we were registered with in the health care system of which we pay £15 per month for 3 of us.
As soon as we were registered I booked an appointment with a consulant, I was seen within a week. I went to the clinc at 10 am and by 12.30pm I'd had 4 different medical tests/procedures - I'm very pleased to say I was also given the all clear. Just 2 and a half hours and for all of the above it cost me £15 on the day!!! There was not a hope in hell of me being offered that level of treatment at that speed in the UK! I've spent longer in the waiting room in the UK! I have absolutely no issue with the Japanese healthcare system.
But we live as the Japanese do, we're fully registered and in the system. We're not living on the fringe of society with private 'gaijin' insurance. We speak Japanese, not fluently but enough to get by and yes, we're still learning (the Kanji is a long way off but the hiragana's fine!) and our 4 year old goes to the local youchien (nursery school)
Yes we might be 'immigrants' but we live as Japanese, hence we've accepted.
So for us the grass is greener - if it wasn't, we wouldn't be here!
Akuma
06 August 2006, 01:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Akuma
Within 2 days of being in Japan, we were registered with in the health care system of which we pay £15 per month for 3 of us.
What you're paying for health insurance doesn't sound right to me, I was paying way more than that for just me. It was the regular Japanese health care system I was enrolled in and I have visited a Japanese hospital and paid for treatment and drugs. Maybe there are different rates in different parts of Japan
Glad you're enjoying it out there, will probably be returning for a holiday in a couple of months when the temperature and humidity subsides
06 August 2006, 05:20 PM
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Originally Posted by Paul Habgood
I am currently working in Dubai. I plan to bring the family out by the end of the year. We plan to stay for between 5-10 years if all goes to plan.
It is a bit of a worry with the problems in Lebanon and Iraq however i feel the UK is more likely to get targetted than Dubai is.
There are good opportunities for work and education for kids. The schools are reported to be better than most in the UK. Kids are taught respect and do not **** about in school.
No drugs, no drug problem (yet), you get caught with a 'g' of anything and look at 4 years inside. Get caught importing and look forward to seeing out your days in jail - oh and no Sky tv in prison out here.
No drinking assocoated crime, getting pissed is not a problem but take it onto the streets and you will be for it!
Drink drive and expect 1 month in jail for a first offence along with your head and eyebrows shaved off. Th think the cops do the shaving for fun!
Get caught kiddie fiddling and expect life, or a death sentence.
Get caught robbing or stealing and expect jail time, keep doing it and expext to loose a hand!
subsequently, a lot of the crime that the UK see's on a day to day basis Dubai does not.
Whilst Dubai is not exactly paradise and has some issues i feel safer walking down the street at night here than i did in Northampton.
I would rather be in the UK if the UK was a better and safer place.
It is a bit of a worry with the problems in Lebanon and Iraq however i feel the UK is more likely to get targetted than Dubai is.
There are good opportunities for work and education for kids. The schools are reported to be better than most in the UK. Kids are taught respect and do not **** about in school.
No drugs, no drug problem (yet), you get caught with a 'g' of anything and look at 4 years inside. Get caught importing and look forward to seeing out your days in jail - oh and no Sky tv in prison out here.
No drinking assocoated crime, getting pissed is not a problem but take it onto the streets and you will be for it!
Drink drive and expect 1 month in jail for a first offence along with your head and eyebrows shaved off. Th think the cops do the shaving for fun!
Get caught kiddie fiddling and expect life, or a death sentence.
Get caught robbing or stealing and expect jail time, keep doing it and expext to loose a hand!
subsequently, a lot of the crime that the UK see's on a day to day basis Dubai does not.
Whilst Dubai is not exactly paradise and has some issues i feel safer walking down the street at night here than i did in Northampton.
I would rather be in the UK if the UK was a better and safer place.
What's the new plan for land reclamation in Dubai? I see there are two 'palms' at the moment, and the earth is due. In baharin they're doing a strange fish/horseshoe type affair...
http://www.3dtotal.com/team/intervie...mages/main.jpg
and a seahorse too...
http://www.bahraingateway.org/view/i...%20project.jpg
that's one of the exciting things about the middle east. They're not affraid to do crazy things which look amazing.
07 August 2006, 12:11 AM
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Originally Posted by stilover
Do they not have pubs is Oz ??
Last edited by OzzyWRX; 07 August 2006 at 12:15 AM.
07 August 2006, 12:53 AM
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Originally Posted by Brit_in_Japan
I hope you don't think I was having a go at you, I was just trying to make the more general point to others that the grass always seems greener from a distance.
What you're paying for health insurance doesn't sound right to me, I was paying way more than that for just me. It was the regular Japanese health care system I was enrolled in and I have visited a Japanese hospital and paid for treatment and drugs. Maybe there are different rates in different parts of Japan
Glad you're enjoying it out there, will probably be returning for a holiday in a couple of months when the temperature and humidity subsides
What you're paying for health insurance doesn't sound right to me, I was paying way more than that for just me. It was the regular Japanese health care system I was enrolled in and I have visited a Japanese hospital and paid for treatment and drugs. Maybe there are different rates in different parts of Japan
Glad you're enjoying it out there, will probably be returning for a holiday in a couple of months when the temperature and humidity subsides
You're right about the grass not always being greener, we lived in France for a year and it wasn't all that we hoped for - not a problem, we just altered our plans
If someone isn't happy living in the UK, then do something about it! I don't have time for people who moan about where they live but don't do anything about it! And before anyone says it - no we're not rich! We made a choice to change the way we lived, it took us years to plan the move to France and a lot of hard work. We were £££ in debt when we left the UK and by the time we moved back, we were debt free (apart from a small mortgage).
Loads of peole said 'sorry France didn't work out' blah blah.... As we said in reply - 'I did work out - we got rid of our debt and we know that area of France wasn't for us!' At least we got off our butts and tried & we learnt some very good lessons. The biggest was learning to do without! It's surprising how little money we actually needed to live. It certainly changed the way we lived on our return to the UK.
This stint in Japan is short term - but it will enable us to make the next move, getting rid of the mortgage. Once that's gone, then we'll decide what we want to do next and where we want to do it. As much as I adore Japan, it's not a place that we can stay in forever - the visa dictates how long we get here! Whatever happens, we'll find somewhere we like - who knows how long it will last though, perhaps we're just like nomads and will keep moving.
I guess in life there are those who are happy enough to sit and moan and there are those who do something about it! For all the 'No going back' stories of failure and people who laugh at them - at least they tried!
I'd rather be a trier than a talker
(The Japanese health insurance is based on your previous years tax, as we didn't pay tax last year we only have to pay the base amount this year. It will be more next year though. One things for sure, you never escape paying tax, where ever you live!)
07 August 2006, 09:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Akuma
One things for sure, you never escape paying tax, where ever you live!)
Love the rest of the post though - my thoughts exactly
08 August 2006, 03:05 AM
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Brendan,
I guess I meant the tax comment in a Benjamin Franklin way....
'In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes'
But don't get me started on life quotes.....I'll be here all day banging on about life not being a dress rehersal and all that jazz!
I guess I meant the tax comment in a Benjamin Franklin way....
'In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes'
But don't get me started on life quotes.....I'll be here all day banging on about life not being a dress rehersal and all that jazz!
08 August 2006, 10:51 AM
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I emigrated from London last year to Texas due to my wifes job. At first I wasn't keen, although we got straight into it, bought a house within a month, a couple of dogs, and tried to settle down quickly. After about six months I was getting very homesick, and at every opportunity I'd tell any American who wanted to hear how great London is and how great Great Britain is, "we have it so right" etc etc!
I am now in my third week of being back in the UK, I'm over for a couple of stags and weddings.
I was really excited to be coming home, but as soon as I got into the terminal at Gatwick I started to wish I hadn't bothered.
I was remembering all the best things London, and completely forgetting all the bad things! The pollution, for a start, I couldn't breathe when I got to Victoria! Everyone is miserable as sin and sour faced, despite the lovely weather a few weeks back. I was still in the habit of smiling at people, which people in Texas do! The prices are out of this world, I'm rapidly getting through my quite large budget! The place is filthy, when you actually stand and look at the place, everywhere has a layer of black grime!
I loved living in London, but it's only my family and friends I miss now, and within a few days of being back in town I was homesick for Texas, which surprised me greatly!
I am now in my third week of being back in the UK, I'm over for a couple of stags and weddings.
I was really excited to be coming home, but as soon as I got into the terminal at Gatwick I started to wish I hadn't bothered.
I was remembering all the best things London, and completely forgetting all the bad things! The pollution, for a start, I couldn't breathe when I got to Victoria! Everyone is miserable as sin and sour faced, despite the lovely weather a few weeks back. I was still in the habit of smiling at people, which people in Texas do! The prices are out of this world, I'm rapidly getting through my quite large budget! The place is filthy, when you actually stand and look at the place, everywhere has a layer of black grime!
I loved living in London, but it's only my family and friends I miss now, and within a few days of being back in town I was homesick for Texas, which surprised me greatly!
08 August 2006, 11:18 AM
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Originally Posted by 2000TLondon
I emigrated from London last year to Texas due to my wifes job. At first I wasn't keen, although we got straight into it, bought a house within a month, a couple of dogs, and tried to settle down quickly. After about six months I was getting very homesick, and at every opportunity I'd tell any American who wanted to hear how great London is and how great Great Britain is, "we have it so right" etc etc!
I am now in my third week of being back in the UK, I'm over for a couple of stags and weddings.
I was really excited to be coming home, but as soon as I got into the terminal at Gatwick I started to wish I hadn't bothered.
I was remembering all the best things London, and completely forgetting all the bad things! The pollution, for a start, I couldn't breathe when I got to Victoria! Everyone is miserable as sin and sour faced, despite the lovely weather a few weeks back. I was still in the habit of smiling at people, which people in Texas do! The prices are out of this world, I'm rapidly getting through my quite large budget! The place is filthy, when you actually stand and look at the place, everywhere has a layer of black grime!
I loved living in London, but it's only my family and friends I miss now, and within a few days of being back in town I was homesick for Texas, which surprised me greatly!
I am now in my third week of being back in the UK, I'm over for a couple of stags and weddings.
I was really excited to be coming home, but as soon as I got into the terminal at Gatwick I started to wish I hadn't bothered.
I was remembering all the best things London, and completely forgetting all the bad things! The pollution, for a start, I couldn't breathe when I got to Victoria! Everyone is miserable as sin and sour faced, despite the lovely weather a few weeks back. I was still in the habit of smiling at people, which people in Texas do! The prices are out of this world, I'm rapidly getting through my quite large budget! The place is filthy, when you actually stand and look at the place, everywhere has a layer of black grime!
I loved living in London, but it's only my family and friends I miss now, and within a few days of being back in town I was homesick for Texas, which surprised me greatly!
Interesting, i have been home for a few days at every six weeks or so and found exactly the same.
08 August 2006, 11:33 AM
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Originally Posted by Paul Habgood
Interesting, i have been home for a few days at every six weeks or so and found exactly the same.
The crime in Houston, (which is the fourth largest city in the US, I think a population of about 6 million with a sprawling area the size of Israel) is much, much lower than in London. However, there is visible segregation is Houston, and there are huge divides between rich, relatively well off, not very well off, and poverty stricken. Obviously, in the not so great areas, there are fatal shootings every day and the news is littered with reports of armed robberies, policemen being shot at, etc etc. On the other hand, in the middle class and above areas, there is practically zero crime.
Burgularies are very rare, as Texans still have the right to bear arms and shotguns are sold over the counter at Walmart starting at $79! There is a level of respect, maybe due to the gun rules, and people don't drive around screaming at each other or blasting horns and waving fingers because you didn't accelerate the instant a red light changed to green!
You can walk around car parks late at night, albeit in the nice areas, and not have to look over your shoulder. The police are very responsive, and don't spend all day playing with speed guns, but they actually patrol residential areas and will respond to a house alarm literally in a minute or two.
Obviously the downside to American policy is that the nice areas are kept very nice, and the poor areas are generally ignored.
At first I was very paranoid that we were moving to the Wild West, but I feel much happier and safer with my wife being alone in Houston than I would if she were alone in London........ Plus we have two Rottweilers, a 500,000 stun gun and several cans of long range mace around the house, just in case!
08 August 2006, 11:39 AM
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Originally Posted by Brendan Hughes
And that mace works, doesn't it?
08 August 2006, 11:41 AM
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Originally Posted by 2000TLondon
I can understand that, I loved Dubai when I spent a few weeks there in 2001.
The crime in Houston, (which is the fourth largest city in the US, I think a population of about 6 million with a sprawling area the size of Israel) is much, much lower than in London. However, there is visible segregation is Houston, and there are huge divides between rich, relatively well off, not very well off, and poverty stricken. Obviously, in the not so great areas, there are fatal shootings every day and the news is littered with reports of armed robberies, policemen being shot at, etc etc. On the other hand, in the middle class and above areas, there is practically zero crime.
Burgularies are very rare, as Texans still have the right to bear arms and shotguns are sold over the counter at Walmart starting at $79! There is a level of respect, maybe due to the gun rules, and people don't drive around screaming at each other or blasting horns and waving fingers because you didn't accelerate the instant a red light changed to green!
You can walk around car parks late at night, albeit in the nice areas, and not have to look over your shoulder. The police are very responsive, and don't spend all day playing with speed guns, but they actually patrol residential areas and will respond to a house alarm literally in a minute or two.
Obviously the downside to American policy is that the nice areas are kept very nice, and the poor areas are generally ignored.
At first I was very paranoid that we were moving to the Wild West, but I feel much happier and safer with my wife being alone in Houston than I would if she were alone in London........ Plus we have two Rottweilers, a 500,000 stun gun and several cans of long range mace around the house, just in case!
The crime in Houston, (which is the fourth largest city in the US, I think a population of about 6 million with a sprawling area the size of Israel) is much, much lower than in London. However, there is visible segregation is Houston, and there are huge divides between rich, relatively well off, not very well off, and poverty stricken. Obviously, in the not so great areas, there are fatal shootings every day and the news is littered with reports of armed robberies, policemen being shot at, etc etc. On the other hand, in the middle class and above areas, there is practically zero crime.
Burgularies are very rare, as Texans still have the right to bear arms and shotguns are sold over the counter at Walmart starting at $79! There is a level of respect, maybe due to the gun rules, and people don't drive around screaming at each other or blasting horns and waving fingers because you didn't accelerate the instant a red light changed to green!
You can walk around car parks late at night, albeit in the nice areas, and not have to look over your shoulder. The police are very responsive, and don't spend all day playing with speed guns, but they actually patrol residential areas and will respond to a house alarm literally in a minute or two.
Obviously the downside to American policy is that the nice areas are kept very nice, and the poor areas are generally ignored.
At first I was very paranoid that we were moving to the Wild West, but I feel much happier and safer with my wife being alone in Houston than I would if she were alone in London........ Plus we have two Rottweilers, a 500,000 stun gun and several cans of long range mace around the house, just in case!
08 August 2006, 11:48 AM
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Originally Posted by 2000TLondon
Ha, forgot about that! I'm over the affects now, cheers!!! Will mess around with the stun gun when I get home!
Good man. Next week will be hopscotch with the mantraps. We'll get you to the Darwin awards yet!