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Brits. You can't take your spouse back to the UK anymore.
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Jaffazoid



Joined: 04 Dec 2011
Location: Ulsan
PostPosted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 11:27 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
The UK keeps making it easier and easier for me to consider living here long term.
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cj1976



Joined: 26 Oct 2005
PostPosted: Tue Feb 12, 2013 11:42 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
3DR wrote:
cj1976 wrote:
Parts of the country are comparable to Eastern Europe. High unemployment, violent crimes, lack of education, no life chances, almost no social mobility, racial tension, drug and alcohol problems, teenage pregnancy etc. I read an article comparing Glasgow to the former Soviet Bloc states and there are many parallels.


But...but...I thought the UK was nothing like the USA! A paradise even!


Nope. It's absolute shite. Just the thought of going back for more than a week depresses me. The only reason I ever go is because my family are there. If it wasn't for them, I wouldn't ever return.
I'm just being a grouch. The UK isn't all bad, but there are so many factors that make life uncomfortable and sometimes unbearable.
That article was in the Guardian, I think, so I will try to find it.
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aq8knyus



Joined: 28 Jul 2010
Location: London
PostPosted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 5:39 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Of course the UK is crap why do you think we went around invading and colonising country after country.

That being said I come from a pleasant market town in the country and frankly I have yet to find a nicer place on earth. Far too boring for a young person, but a great place to bring up kids and retire. I also lived in central London during Uni and again it is a wonderful place, although way too expensive.

I have met many Brits in Korea and a lot of them have had northern accents or were scottish, so I can only imagine how difficult life would be for them in the UK.
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fezmond



Joined: 27 Oct 2008
PostPosted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 5:46 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
I grew up in a quiet village in South Wales. Nice for the most part but completely boring. Head the 5 miles to Newport and it's a real shithole and the people are generally shitty too.

We're thinking of heading to the UK in a year but the new requirements mean that me and my wife would have to be apart and paying rent on 2 places at once for about 4 months. Whole situation sucks frankly but I'm not sure I can stand another year teaching non-stop.
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Whistleblower



Joined: 03 Feb 2007
PostPosted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 6:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
Well, having read quite a bit about the views on this thread, I thought I would add my 5 cents (or pence) to this. I lived in Korea for 3 years, returned to the UK for 4 and am returning to Korea for the long term with my wife and son. My wife is Korean (and holds a Korean and UK passport) and we are keen to get back to more permanent work.

We are keen to get back to Korea from the high cost of living. Who would really appreciate a free health care if you are left to on your own and the only drinking water is that from the vases in the hospital? Why would you want to live in a country where they don't know the difference between horse and beef? Why would you want to live in a country where they have literally opened the borders to Romanians and Bulgarians with no get out clause? I have been in the UK most of my life but I am shocked at how bad the country is starting to fold. The economy is in a terrible state, the Government are borrowing more than they get, the jobs market is in tatters and the people are running riot (quite literally).

I would be so happy to get back to a country (which is no means perfect itself) but offers permanent employment for those with the qualifications, able to earn some serious money and able to enjoy good quality of life. You may be able to earn �50,000 in the UK but are you gonna enjoy your life? I doubt it.

I am counting down the months till I get back to Korea in September this year.
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cam83



Joined: 27 Jan 2013
Location: Seoul, South Korea
PostPosted: Wed Feb 13, 2013 10:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote
aq8knyus wrote:
Of course the UK is crap why do you think we went around invading and colonising country after country.

That being said I come from a pleasant market town in the country and frankly I have yet to find a nicer place on earth. Far too boring for a young person, but a great place to bring up kids and retire. I also lived in central London during Uni and again it is a wonderful place, although way too expensive.

I have met many Brits in Korea and a lot of them have had northern accents or were scottish, so I can only imagine how difficult life would be for them in the UK.


I agree, this has a lot to do with it - I'm from London and it is by far the best city I have lived in (I lived in NYC for a few years before moving to Seoul). Every person I have met in Korea, who is from the UK are either from up north or just a pretty dull place for a 20-something year old. It's not like the UK suddenly became a s***hole, but student life often clouds peoples perspective.
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World Traveler



Joined: 29 May 2009
PostPosted: Sat May 03, 2014 6:33 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
The Floating World wrote:
American working class people even would dream of having the lives England's poor have, trust me.

There are opportunities for Americans if they are willing/able to move where the jobs are.

Williston has a jobless rate of just 0.3%, thought to be the lowest in the nation.

Signs everywhere in the Oil Patch proclaim: "Now Hiring".

With no college degree and little experience, it's possible to land a job with a six-figure salary as a wildcatter, living in a "man camp".

Walmart, for example, is paying shelf stackers $19.28 (£12) an hour - more than double its average national wage.

So, easy to get a job there and the pay is huge (sometimes including free housing), but the life there might not be good. But it is a way to bank a hell of a lot of savings. Those without a criminal record/ DUI on their driving record could make a lot of money as a truck driver/other driver in that area, too.
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northway



Joined: 05 Jul 2010
PostPosted: Sat May 03, 2014 6:56 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
World Traveler wrote:
The Floating World wrote:
American working class people even would dream of having the lives England's poor have, trust me.

There are opportunities for Americans if they are willing/able to move where the jobs are.

Williston has a jobless rate of just 0.3%, thought to be the lowest in the nation.

Signs everywhere in the Oil Patch proclaim: "Now Hiring".

With no college degree and little experience, it's possible to land a job with a six-figure salary as a wildcatter, living in a "man camp".

Walmart, for example, is paying shelf stackers $19.28 (£12) an hour - more than double its average national wage.

So, easy to get a job there and the pay is huge (sometimes including free housing), but the life there might not be good. But it is a way to bank a hell of a lot of savings. Those without a criminal record/ DUI on their driving record could make a lot of money as a truck driver/other driver in that area, too.


Totally ignoring the fact that the cost of living is insanely high there: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-01-25/north-dakota-oil-boom-brings-blight-with-growth-as-costs-soar.html. $20/hour isn't much if you have to outlay at least $1,000/month in rent, that's essentially New York. In fact, it's more: http://www.nydailynews.com/life-style/real-estate/average-rent-williston-n-tops-costs-nyc-article-1.1617187. $2,394/month for a 700 square foot one bedroom. There are jobs, but it's also not as lucrative as it's often made out to be, and I've read multiple stories of people who haven't ended up making nearly what they originally expected.
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World Traveler



Joined: 29 May 2009
PostPosted: Sat May 03, 2014 8:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote
I'm pretty sure people aren't moving there for the $20 an hour shelf stocking Walmart jobs. Those are for teens/people new to workforce who grew up in the area/people with criminal records. The real money is in driving truck or working on the oil fields. Many of the oil rig workers get free housing (meaning those costs are a non-issue for them). It's not just menial labor available, too. There are higher paid supervisory positions as well. But even those just doing regular general labor are often making more than $100,000 a year. Same with truck drivers.

Okie from Muskogee wrote:
World Traveler wrote:
Okie from Muskogee wrote:
he's been raking in big $$$$$ and saving a little over $9000 after taxes and expenses.

He's saving $9,000+ a month? (!_!) My God, that is good money. What is it he does exactly?


He's something like tools inspection crew for a oil company. I don't know the details of his job description, but he's working in a totally non-related field of his studies , that's for sure. Laughing

He's willing to line me up with his supervisor if and when I decide to head to ND.
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