America to UK

britlocs

i think what he meant was, the only tipping there is,is at restaurants,exclusively.

We don't tip the bus driver,for example.

thegeordielass

I've never been to the US but some thoughts on what's been posted.

Re: tipping. I don't go out my way to tip (I'm a tight Northerner, mind. :P) unless the service is really good but common practice amongst my friends is generally to round your bill up and leave the change and not working out 5 or 10%!

Someone else mentioned shop assistants approaching you. I clearly look overly helpless as I can't walk in a shop (especially computer/electronic shops) without someone asking if I need help. There seems to be a divide on if we like it or not. I hate being approached - if I want help, I'll go find someone but I know people who will just stand there until they are approached.

I have a car I can't drive much atm because of an injury and I can get about pretty well just using public transport. Of course, it depends on where you live/want to go. Some of my favourite places have no public transport running to them (out in the countryside) so a car is useful. And you can park close to things - there's car parks next to the shops in city centres and then big malls like the Metro Centre have their own huge ones.

There's huge differences depending on where in the UK you live. Personally, I can't stand London: I hate the size of it, I hate it's so crowded, to me the people seem incredibly rude and the prices crazy. I live up in Newcastle which is up near the top of England and things are more relaxed here. You're far more likely to start randomly talking to strangers (usually moaning about the bus being late or the weather!) and as a general rule people are just more friendly and willing to make conversation. That's not just me saying it: I had some friends at Uni who moved up North from London after they'd emigrated here and they said there were shocked at the totally different lifestyle and friendliness of people. And yes, house prices are different. At an extreme example, £1million might get you a decent flat/house down there, up here you'd be able to buy a massive house with loads of land.

The weather is pretty rubbish and even though we're a small country compared to any of the US states, the weather varies a lot. For example, all my Southerner friends are currently talking about sun, heat and feeling like they're going to melt at 30-32 degrees. I'm sat here at about 20/21 awaiting the arrival of a thunderstorm. Go figure. lol. All thanks to the position of the jet stream I believe. I'd swear we've only had about 5 days of sun this year!!!

We aren't as overly patriotic as over there so you don't generally see flags flying everywhere (probably good for those of us who get annoyed seeing it upside down). I think this year has been a big exception with the Jubilee and then the Olympics. it's been nice seeing our flag everywhere.

Humour varies a lot too I think. I can't understand how anyone can find Ricky Gervais anything other then smug and smarmy and Miranda Heart isn't funny to me either! Then again, the only comedy I really find myself enjoying is older stuff like Blackadder or A bit of Fry and Laurie. I don't 'get' British humour either it seems. I think we do tend to be a bit of a sarcastic/passive aggressive bunch though!

Someone else mentioned it but we have TV licenses where you pay x amount a year which is what pays for all things BBC. We've got freeview now which still has the 'usual' channels (BBC1 and 2, ITV, Channel 4 and channel 5) and some extras but if you want a wider selection you'd have to get sky or virgin or something.

LisaJ2904

!

makemewannadie

We don't have the same tipping culture that the States has. We do still tip but only for exceptional service and it's normally between 5 and 10% of the transaction..

I wonder if that depends where in the UK you are. Most people I know always tip at restaurants, and a minimum of 10%. It doesn't have to be exceptional service. But exceptionally poor service would be a reason not to tip, or to tip less than 10%. I've never not tipped.

I generally don't tip at places unless I think they deserve it, it sounds harsh but for example... I went to get my hair cut last month and the lady just did her job, she wasn't overly friendly or great, so I didn't tip. I' Also i've once asked for the automatic tipping fee on a bill to be taken off at a restaurant once, I felt like such a b*tch but at the end of the day, it's not a legal requirement and i'm not going to tip someone for doing their job, i'm paying for whatever i'm getting already, I only tip if I feel like they've done a great job (:

ironanimal

We don't have the same tipping culture that the States has. We do still tip but only for exceptional service and it's normally between 5 and 10% of the transaction..

I wonder if that depends where in the UK you are. Most people I know always tip at restaurants, and a minimum of 10%. It doesn't have to be exceptional service. But exceptionally poor service would be a reason not to tip, or to tip less than 10%. I've never not tipped.

I generally don't tip at places unless I think they deserve it, it sounds harsh but for example... I went to get my hair cut last month and the lady just did her job, she wasn't overly friendly or great, so I didn't tip. I' Also i've once asked for the automatic tipping fee on a bill to be taken off at a restaurant once, I felt like such a b*tch but at the end of the day, it's not a legal requirement and i'm not going to tip someone for doing their job, i'm paying for whatever i'm getting already, I only tip if I feel like they've done a great job (:

I never tip. I'm too poor and stuff costs too much already.

_Elemenopee_

I have always wished to live abroad, the UK especially! All of these comments and honest, realistic reviews from those who have lived in both are making me wish I'd done so along long time ago.

It'd be hard to uproot a family (husband, wife, toddler, 2 dogs) and just go! But given the proper funds and half a chance at making it, I would! Has anyone done the move in either direction with pets? I could NEVER leave any part of my family. They're Yorkies anyway so don't they already belong? :laugh:

1985Andy

We don't have the same tipping culture that the States has. We do still tip but only for exceptional service and it's normally between 5 and 10% of the transaction..

I wonder if that depends where in the UK you are. Most people I know always tip at restaurants, and a minimum of 10%. It doesn't have to be exceptional service. But exceptionally poor service would be a reason not to tip, or to tip less than 10%. I've never not tipped.

Nope, I've lived in London, the North, the South and the East.. Always the same regardless of the class of people I'm with.
Personally I'll tip if the service is good, but tipping for the sake of tipping is stupid. If the service is good I'll tip.. Anything less I won't.

I've also lived all around the UK, and found what I said to be the case, regardless of the class of people I'm with. So I guess we've just hung out with different kinds of people, and have a different idea of what constitutes stupidity.

Then again, there is a difference between 'good service' and 'exceptional service'. Your first post made it look like tipping was the exception to the rule.

I don't think stupidity has anything to do with it. That is unless the two people have the same definition of the purpose of the tip. For me it's a reward for good service, not a required part of the bill. Therefore if you aren't polite or friendly but put the food on the table correctly do you deserve a tip? In my opinion no. Maybe in yours they do. Does that make one of us stupid?

Judging by the comments from the other people on here it seems that your approach is the unusual one in the UK.

opuntia

I don't think stupidity has anything to do with it. That is unless the two people have the same definition of the purpose of the tip. For me it's a reward for good service, not a required part of the bill. Therefore if you aren't polite or friendly but put the food on the table correctly do you deserve a tip? In my opinion no. Maybe in yours they do. Does that make one of us stupid?

You were the one who brought up stupidity. I hadn't thought it had anything to do with it - hence I said we probably had different understandings of what constitutes stupidity.

In my experience (which as you say, is unusual compared to the four British people here who've posted their experience) tipping is seen as the default rule, unless service is bad. And an unfriendly and impolite waiter would be giving bad service.

In your experience, not tipping is the default rule, unless the service is exceptional. So a different approach to mine. Different defaults.

I don't see either of these as stupid - just different cultural norms (and of course cultural norms do differ quite a bit within the UK). You said tipping for the sake of tipping is stupid. I don't agree. So we differ on what we consider stupid.

roachhaley

Hi there!

I'm a 19 y/o university student who moved to the UK a year ago.

I'd say the biggest difference for me was food and finding food at the grocery store I liked. The grocery stores in the UK have a VERY limited variety of things (compared to back here in the US), and if you need anything "American", be prepared to shell out lots of money for it, or not be able to find it at all. I've learned a lot of new recipes out of desperation from not finding what I wanted at the grocery store.

For instance, I kind of live off of frozen meals sometimes. They have a really small variety over here... mostly curry, or some variation on shepherds pie. You can only eat so much.

Another thing is obviously the transportation. I walk EVERYWHERE. And I commute two hours every day to get to school. That includes a walk, a train ride, and a tube ride. Sometimes a bus as well.If you don't get a car straight away (I dont have one), don't expect to do any major projects or have anything be convenient at all. For instance, I have to take a 40 minute bus ride to get to the pet store if I suddenly run out of something for my rabbit.

One great thing is.... all of the grocery stores deliver! YEP! I get my groceries DELIVERED! I also get almost everything I need off amazon, as it is way easier than trying to trek out and carry whatever it is back to the flat. The postal service here is really fast - most packages get here within 1-2 days, whereas in the US it can take 5-7 days IIRC.

Oh, and what someone said about the shops closing early is absolutely true... and it's very irritating at times. What IS nice, however, is that most of the shops are clustered together, so you can get your shopping done in one place

I can't think of much else... but if you move here, I'm sure you'll like it. There are lots of things about the USA I definitely prefer and miss, though

Which supermarket do you shop at? I don't know ANYONE barring my 95 year old grandmother who eats frozen meals, haha. If you haven't already, check out Marks and Spencers or Waitrose (Waitrose is amazing, we get our food shop delivered from there each week, but it's a bit pricey)

The shops closing early thing depends on where you live... the high street usually closes at 6 in my city, but there's a shopping complex about fifteen minutes outside of the city centre which opens until 9 each night. Ohh, my favourite thing is christmas shopping- where the high street and every shop opens until really late near christmas (: it's so festive walking around with all the christmas decorations at night in the cold and spending lots of money hehe.

We get all of our groceries from Waitrose or Ocado. You have not seen a variety of food until you've seen the mega grocery stores here.

AGGUK73

:noway: I can't believe a previous poster has dissed Mr Gervais & marvellous Miranda, how could you :sad:

Laces_0ut

:noway: I can't believe a previous poster has dissed Mr Gervais & marvellous Miranda, how could you :sad:

pump your breaks kid...someone spoke ill of Mr. Gervais? i did not know such a person could exist. my faith in humanity has just been dashed.

thegeordielass

:noway: I can't believe a previous poster has dissed Mr Gervais & marvellous Miranda, how could you :sad:

pump your breaks kid...someone spoke ill of Mr. Gervais? i did not know such a person could exist. my faith in humanity has just been dashed.

What can I say, I have taste. lol. Bad news, Laces_0out is I know a fair few people who don't like either - consider your faith in humanity vanished. Wouldn't the World be boring if everyone liked the same thing though?

ruurik

Either one is a dystopian future with a oligarchical regime, both are run by two of the largest terrorist organizations in the world so everything else comes down to weather and cost of living ;-)

I have lived in both and live in the UK now.

Peace

Ha! Best quote ever!

mirandamayhem

It's bl**dy expensive here, but then we don't know any difference so are used to it. UK is (was???) an amazing place. I'm not going down the political route but it defo isn't what it was NHS is amazing though (biased as I work in it), we are very fortunate to have it yet most British do nowt but moan about it. They don't call us the 'whingeing poms' for nothing

Oh & we have a wicked sense of humour, lost on the majority of the globe

That's not fair. I think the majority are grateful for the NHS. They may complain about waiting lists, and appalling doctors surgeries, but we still know we're lucky to have it.

UK....we don't have a summer season. We might have one or two days a year. Prepare to get wet. But so long as you know that, you won't be disappointed.:laugh:

melaniecheeks

Ricky Gervais.....:explode: sorry, can't stand teh guy. Not my type of humour at all.

Miranda, on teh other hand, I find very funny. But as been pointed out, everyone's sense of humour is different.

mirandamayhem

Miranda, on teh other hand, I find very funny. But as been pointed out, everyone's sense of humour is different.

:flowerforyou: why thank you!


Oh.

You didn't mean me.

melaniecheeks

I'm sure you are very funny too!

Go on then, give us a joke

mirandamayhem

How do you get lots of pikachu's on a bus?



Pokemon


ba dum tish

mirandamayhem

Oh, and why did the pokemon hide under your bed?





To pikachu

Kyrosh

Oh, and people tend to walk everywhere, most shopping is in the downtown core with no vehicle access.

I tend to drive to box malls but that just isn't the way in the UK.

Don't know where you got this from... You either take the car or the bus... People hardly walk here...