USA to UK relocation guide

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  • BusterBoy0

    And aluminium is pronounced ALOOMINEEUM not ALOOMENUM.

  • zarb0z0

    While we're on the topic, shall we take a moment to clear up some pronunciation issues you American dolts seem to share a bed with?

    row=argument Rhymes with "Ow, this argument hurts my feelings."
    short-lived=short LIVE'd. Not "livv'd." Rhymes with five, not livv
    premise=an idea
    premises=more than one idea, pronounced prem-is-ezz
    premises=a location, pronounced prem-is-ess
    premises=more than one location, pronounced prem-is-eez
    aluminium=al-u-min-eeyum
    nuclear=new-clear
    primer=priMMer; primer is paint or the thing that goes boom

    what other mispronunciations...?

    • thames, schedule, advertisement, garage, zebra, shrewsbury, shropshire, pecan, respiratory (the last one I must credit all those coronavirus briefings I watchedcherub
    • lie-sess-ter square?
      wore-sess-ter-shire sauce?
      erbs?
      hans_glib
  • BusterBoy0

    They might not let you in.

  • zarb0z1

    Corrections thusfar (working aft):

    nAught=zero; nOught is US&A laziness
    aught=the years between 2000-2010 or 1900-1910 except...
    zed-aught-six=Z06 instead of...
    .30-06=thirty caliber from 1906
    fucked off=left; departed; quit
    pissed off=passed out from the drink
    pissed=drunk
    taking the piss=joking; ridiculing
    dual carriageway=Motorway (with a solid median)
    carriageway=a smaller motorway without a solid median
    chav=A Very Specific Type of White Trash Whose Definition Exceeds The Editorial Standards of QBN or Even The Sodding Sun, Four Foxegg.
    shattered=stunned
    hwyl=goodBYE in Welsh
    hylô=hello in Welsh, sometimes with the O dragged on, just like yanks do when being overly friendly or wanting your dosh
    bore da=good morning in Welsh
    cheers=standard departure AND toast AND IDon'tSeeHowThisIsAnyDifferentFr...
    quid=buck; both are informal ("loan me ten bucks"="spot me ten quid")
    p=pence/pennies; £2.30 is two pounds, thirty p, or "two and thirty" and in the City Center, "two-thirty"; a post might be 50p.
    pants=pants; seriously, wtf: knickers are panties
    breeks=pants
    tea=1600 daily; 4:00PM; traditionally tea and a digestive, just as likely a Snickers and a Rockstar these days
    cuppa=cup of tea
    housing options=in this context, Section 8

    and I'll add a couple:

    council house=tenement housing slightly different from Section 8
    dosh=petty cash / pocket change / traveling money
    match=footie game
    test=cricket match
    try=rugby touchdown
    supporter=paying fan, usually with season tickets
    schemer=know-it-all/fake leader. It's because the tarted-up supporter who leads chants at a match is called the schemer
    mustard=good, when compared to...
    pants=bad, when compared to above
    tip=dump (trash/garbage/recycle)
    on the dole=taking unemployment benefits
    dole queue=unemployment line
    faggot=tied up bundle of sticks
    dick=steamed cake
    pussy=feline felidae
    tit=imbecile
    cock about=screw around
    sod off=fuck off; go away
    sodding=fucking (adj., not v.)
    shagging=fucking (v., not adj.)

    I've half a mind to do an entire post of British Vitriol on form to teach tanks onna swear mission.

    hard to read some of this though. Surely there's a travel brochure or book or something less childish than this. Some of it's mad.

    mad=crazy/silly/stupid

    Also, there's a spectacular difference between Hackney/Brackney/Cockney slang and casual terms in, say, Ipswitch or Woking or even the rest of London. Those will be dramatically different from Liverpool or Newcastle.

    • Hey, look, QBN limits words that are too long. I Don't See How This Is Any Different From Cheers In American is what I typed.zarb0z
    • mad? What's mad about it? You do realize the thread was meant to familiarize yanks with the British system, not teach you lot about your own culture right?cherub
    • I couldn't do the 2nd one if I tried.cherub
    • Btw good call on the quid=buck thing. I do understand what a quid is. I did not translate into American english correctly.cherub
    • The schemer stuff is confusing. I heard supporter a few times and just connected it to being a casual fan of the club. This makes me fear there is a whole...cherub
    • lot football culture that I was never even exposed to. My missus hated both rugby/football then coronavirus struck so I never got to go in person, only the pub.cherub
    • Which is confusing, the schemer @ the match or the schemer in the office? The chanting bloke is akin to that one Raiders fan (you know what I mean)zarb0z
    • And, I think it's mad because you've skipped quite a bit of more basic differences that are more helpful and went right to the "funny"zarb0z
  • cherub0

    last of the word list.

    mingin=stinking, ugly
    cow=fat girl
    burd=chick, girl
    nought=zero
    nil=nothing
    bang on = right on
    prime minister's questions = weekly press conference where Boris has to defend himself in the house of commons
    fucked off=pissed off
    chips=french fries
    crisps=potato chips
    ring someone = call someone(on cell phone)
    snog=to make out / kiss
    shopping trolley = shopping cart / buggy
    pram=baby carriage
    dual carriageway=highway / interstate
    wank(er)= jerk(off)
    thick=stupid
    chav=white trash
    knobhead, bellend=dickhead
    shattered=exhausted
    gutted=brokenhearted
    lush=awesome
    cwtch/cutch=snuggle type hug
    butt= bud / friend

    and last but certainly not least, the welsh greeting. It's hard to write but it's something like:
    hiya!
    but pronounced like high yuuuu

    and it seems to me like a contraction of the words "hey you". It just means hello, good morning , hi.

    • chips = french fries
      crisps = potato chips
      :)
      Nairn
    • Not sure I've heard of 'butt= bud / friend'
      .
      In Scotland they used (do?) end a lot of sentences with "...but".
      Nairn
    • Like "I dunno what am doin, but"
      As a pseudo-sassanach kid spending my summers there, it confused the shit out of me.
      Nairn
    • Butt is a welsh thing, I heard "alright butt?" on the streets plenty. Coming from America where we hear "bud" alot, and have a beer called "bud light", "butt"cherub
    • doesn't sound foreign. They just pronounce the "d" as a "t". There is even a thing in linguistics called drift, it's common to do that even in yr own culture.cherub
    • I've spent a fair bit of time in Wales, my Mother in Law is Welsh, my partner is half Welsh, never heard Butt, perhaps it was a local to where you were thing.fadein11
    • Ah, apparently it's a Swansea thing. Interesting as my mother in law is from that neck of the woods. I will try it out on her next time :)fadein11
    • Wait, you'll try out butt on your mother in law?

      /twat
      Nairn
    • Come to think of it maybe Butt is like micro-slang.. only a handful of ppl are using it but still gets reputation as being used widely. Shouldn't be on the listcherub
    • lol nairn, and yes cherub, that's what I said, but it does seem legit.fadein11
  • DaveO0

  • zaq-1

    maybe UK is not the best place to relocate afterwards:

    "
    The current UK government is a nationalist, ideology driven mess highly akin to the Trump movement. The party purged a substantial number of their more moderate membership and attempted to remove the UK parliament from equal footing with the executive and turn it into a lower chamber with no mandate to do so from the electorate.

    They now have a massive majority, around 5 versions of Fox News gifting them widespread support and the country is on it's knees with a botched covid response. Things are bad in America - but they are also extremely bad in the UK.

    Right wing Populism is laying waste to established democracies. It's gotten to the point now that England's sad slow march into idiocy is going to cost them the Union. Scotland looking very likely to leave and probably pretty imminently and Northern Ireland seems to be aligning more with Ireland these days so it's all gone a bit tits up.
    "

    • "5 versions of Fox News"

      Where was this published?
      webazoot
    • Just move to somewhere lovely like Portugal. UK as of 31 Dec 2020 will be effectively a bigger pile of shite than it is currently.shapesalad
    • No way Scotland will leave. Had it chance in 2014 and shat it. Current SNP leadership more interested in tranny rights than independence.Doris_McSquirter
    • if only these things were unique to the UK in the European context. We're not that diverged from France and Spain, certainly, other EU members too.Nairn
    • nngh.. 'France and Italy' even.Nairn
    • I think Germany is overdue a populist jolting schism - there's a certain dutiful, befeared pragmatism in the population that's holding it back. For now.Nairn
    • Which is to say, where the US leads, the UK follows, and Europe too in turn.Nairn
    • This is pretty accurate aside from "5 Fox News" - our media is bad but even at its worst it rarely gets that bad aside from the The Sun and Daily Mail.fadein11
    • @doris - 'No way Scotland will leave'.
      May I ask where you're from, or if you've spent any practical amount of time in Scotland?
      Nairn
    • Am Scottish neebs.Doris_McSquirter
    • After Brexit there's no way will major consitutional change be decided by a referendum in the UK.Doris_McSquirter
    • Current SNP leadership arent really into Indie anyhow. And there are big scandals in the offing for Nilkla & co...Doris_McSquirter
    • Dunno, man - I'm from a non-independence background and i see it differently. I don't live there, so could be massively mistaken. Every time I go there though?Nairn
    • And, if you're Scottish and, presumably, an old-timer QBNer - who the fuck are you? lol
      DIGITAL PASSPORTS, NOW!
      Nairn
    • Mainly relating to the Salmond inquiry (which started today) but also re SNP financies. Money 'ringfenced' for IndieRef2 has been spent by "Mr" Sturgeon.Doris_McSquirter
    • They should have thrown Salmond under the bus years ago.kingsteven
  • cherub0

    It costs nothing to register, but you technically aren't supposed to access the NHS on a 6 month tourist visa, according to the Home Office. The reason for this is in the UK there is a legal concept called "leave" and this is where it gets complicated. You can have "leave to enter" (like I did) but not "leave to remain" (like I didn't have but wish I did lol). "Leave to enter" means simply, the home office says you can COME IN to the UK but not necessarily stay. "Leave to remain" means you have permission from the home office which will allow you to stay past the all important 6 month period (for first time visitors to the UK). In other words, you have a right to be there.

    "Leave to remain" is connected to the NHS such that, since you have leave to remain you can access social services such as the NHS, and you'll be able to apply for a national insurance number.

    These things are important for establishing what we might call "residence" in the US.

    • Once you have established yourself with a local adress, a local GP, ect... it will make the difficult process of getting a current account much much easier.cherub
  • DaveO4

    A few notes form an Englishman abroad – been in New York for ten years now and am feeling quite decoupled from England, for better or worse.

    Here goes:

    If you are moving there from New York be prepared to get paid phenomenally less for what you do, but have a cheaper cost of living in general.

    Don't ask British people if they know the only British person you know. I have once met a John Smith from Manchester, but i can almost guarantee its not the same one that you once met.

    Be more of a 'Jerry Seinfeld' American (sarcastic) than a 'Jerry Springer' American (earnest). Brits love dry humor, and it will get you VERY fucking far.

    The C word is not quite as taboo in the UK – go nuts with it, but temper your useage when you return home to the states.

    USE THE EU PROXIMITY. I lived in the UK for 28 years and never once appreciated how much was on the doorstep. Within three hours you can either be in Norway, Italy or morocco. Its a gift i never used and i regret it now I'm n New York.

    Go to Scotland. It fucks.

    Learn how to cook a roast and put your own spin on it. You will make MANY friends through hosting on cold rainy Sundays.

    Don't watch Eastenders. It's trash.

    Get a car, because trains are blindingly expensive for what they are and they are rarely on time.

    Go to cities like Oxford, Cambridge, Bristol, York. They will blow your mind by how beautiful they are.

    Watch Little Britain – it contains the best index of British stereotypes and humor for a quick crash course.

    Be prepared that everyone will tell you that you can't do something. People in the UK love to be naysayers. Use your American sense of blind optimism to get things done and prove them wrong.

    Read the FT and fuck the rest. British newspapers are so obviously political and full of tabloid trash or subjective opinion pieces.

    Get used to cold damp winters and summers without AC.

    Enjoy drinking outside on the endless summer evenings that stretch on way past 10pm with the sun still lighting up the horizon.

    Say hello to the white cliffs for me. I do miss it from time to time.

    • Be one of the GOAT comedians not a washed up trash TV host who does insurance ads now. Yeah ok done!nb
    • :)nb
    • Little Britain is hilarious. I was told not to watch Corrie or Eastenders and I didn't.cherub
    • But never try to combine the buying a car thing with driving into the centre of Oxford. I'm not making that mistake for a third time.webazoot
  • cherub0

    innit=isn't it
    yank=derogatory term for American
    pish= some scottish thing I assume it means piss
    mon= to cheer for?
    nick=steal
    cheers= thank you? I hope it means thank you because that's how I was using it for 5 months lol
    missus=the wife, girlfriend
    GP= General Physician / doctor
    NHS=National Health Service. There is no American equivalent to the NHS, yet it is really REALLY important. Reason being, if you get sick while you are visiting the UK you might need to see a GP. You cannot do that until you are registered with the NHS. Therefore I recommend you register with the NHS asap. It's based on where you live, which GP office you will be assigned to.

    • GP practice, just sayinghans_glib
    • or surgery, at a pinchhans_glib
    • Thanks for the correction :) Another note about the NHS: the home office is putting a premium on people who are willing to use their medical skills to volunteercherub
    • ...for the NHS. So keep that in mind, it looks good on your visa application if you plan to come to the UK to volunteer for the NHS to fight coronavirus.cherub
  • cherub0

    @nairn: food is cheaper in the uk as long as you prepare it yourself. at worst(takeaway), it's exactly the same. look below, these are cardiff prices for a thai entre(average £9), and a cookie shake(£3.99). At current exchange rate, that's $11.23 for the entree, and $4.99 for the shake. Compare that shake price, with the cost of a flavored frappe or fruit smoothie at my local coffee shop - $5.

    but like I said, that's only true for takeaway. Buy it at Sainsbury's, Tesco, or Coop and it's cheaper, even after you factor in the conversion rate.

    So much so, it makes me jealous what you pay for food. The pound has awesome buying power, I don't care what anybody says. The pound is king of europe.

    The tenner I brought back with me is my favorite thing I brought back from the uk. I showed it to some Americans in Houston and they were amazed lol.

  • cherub0

    I was told by my American friends who had traveled abroad, that the uk would be prohibitively expensive. In my experience in southern wales, that for the most part was not true... at least when compared to prices in the US.

    There are 4 things that I noticed that were outrageously expensive in the UK. If you can dodge buying these 4 you'll be alright.

    (In order of outrageousness)
    train tickets
    petrol
    fags
    football tickets

    Keep in mind. I'm not a native, so go easy on me. But this is what I noticed.

    • I wrote "football tickets" but I meant rugby tickets.cherub
    • Train tickets can be cheaper if you buy in advance. Buy on the day though and yeah - outrageously expensive.Nairn
    • I imagine you found food more expensive too? I get the impression food in America is super-cheap.Nairn
    • Also, your experience in Wales would be different to that of the typical tourist going around London and Edinburgh, neither of which are particularly cheapNairn
    • And you've hit upon exactly why I didn't go to London or Edinburgh. My heart was saying go to London! go to Hyde Park! Go see the Scottish coast! But my walletcherub
    • was saying Go chill with the sheep in Wales! So I went with the sheep lol.cherub
    • Next time, do Edinburgh if you can - it's a very European-feeling city. LDN's a 'global capital' which .. well, has its negatives.Nairn
    • Friend of mine who moved to the US some years ago wants to move back to the UK but doesn't see how due to cost of housing here & some US medical debts they havewebazoot
    • Rural Wales is certainly cheaper in pubs and for eating out compared to most of the UK.webazoot
  • cherub0

    I figured out why the British love drinking tea so much. I mean, besides it being delicious, it was once a luxury that could only be afforded by the upper class.

    • Hmm, not sure about that - beer and wine have been drunk in Northern Europe by commoners for at least a thousand years.Nairn
    • the brits have always loved any foreign comestibles - tea, coffee, wine, lager, curry, basil, pineapple, sugar, pepper, etc etc.hans_glib
    • if you go to northern scotland, you can see why - pre funny forinn food it was all turnip, swede, grass....hans_glib
    • were those foreign foods traditionally more expensive?cherub
    • Wales had leeks as their native vegetable and leeks make me wretch lol.cherub
    • yeah, maybe best not to say that in waleshans_glib
    • I wouldn't, but they take rugby more seriously than any other thing. I tried to buy tix for judgement day then coronavirus struck.cherub
    • It was also brought to Britain from the portuguese... from Catherine of Braganzashapesalad
    • fuck's sake - whe I read this this morning, i absolutely read 'booze' not tea. Wtf?Nairn
  • Doris_McSquirter1

    Portmerion is nice.

  • Beeswax0

    Wales means Ian Rush for me

  • cherub0

    "I'm still trying to get my head around how Wales could be better than Texas."

    Wales is the butt of every joke, and I tend to side with the underdog in a David and Goliath type way.

    Besides, for someone from the states all the castles are kinda rad. I like the idea of walking around Dr. Who's stomping ground lol.

    Took some photos. None of England tho, I never got to see England while I was there except paddington. I'm still upset about that.

    • first couple of pics are proper wales alright: green, grey, rain.hans_glib
    • My missus would apologize incessantly about the weather. Once I adjusted to it, I grew to like uk weather. Now I miss it.cherub
  • fadein113

    If you get homesick, just visit Stratford upon Avon, fully of yanks any time of year.

  • Nairn1

    I'm still trying to get my head around how Wales could be better than Texas.

    • It's greener, for sure.Nairn
    • maybe he's sick of sunshinemoldero
    • I gave up after reading
      "the nice part – Scotland"
      raf
    • that wasn't op, tbf raf.

      you well? how's the lil'un?
      Nairn
    • I don't know much about Wales, but I know it's not Texas.CyBrainX
    • Thanks, fun and dangerously smart, Nairn.raf
  • breadlegz0

    If you're a Peaky Blinders fan, come to Birmingham... we still dreess and talk like Thomas Shelby.

  • kalkal1

    If we're talking about mixing in btw, drop the whole shire thing. I mean like when you might say Derbyshire or Nottinghamhshire. This isn't lotr, don't pronounce it like "spire". Say it like "sha" - Also Derby isn't like desrtruction derby, it's like darby... so Derbyshire is "Darbysha" - Nottinghamshire is "Nottinghamsha"

    • And it's not 'Ed-in-boro', but 'Ed-in-bruh'.

      And anyone that pronounces the word niche as 'nitch' gets sparked pronto.
      monoboy
    • Em-brahNairn
    • C'mon. We aren't savages.

      Hullo. Youd've had yer tea.
      monoboy
    • Luckily this didn't come up. But if it did, I would FOR SURE have walked right into some shite! lol. Because I didn't know any of this.cherub