I felt the same, the first 6 months in the UK were pretty awful and overwhelming (it didn't help it was partially during the darkness of winter). 4 years later, I am leaving when I die, and am eternally grateful for the midlife crisis that brought me here (from New York state). Northeast England is my ''home''. I LOVE that cities here still prioritise parks and green spaces, gardens, footpaths, etc. but I am also a smaller town/ village person at heart.
We have the likes of compasionate often Quaker factory owners like Cadbury and the Lever Brothers for towns like Bournville and Port Sunlight for inspiring other towns and cities to have green and pleasent places in them. Incidently they still do not have a pub or off licence, the residents have to travel outside of the town to find one.
My best friend arrived in the UK 7 years ago. He still doesn't speak a word of English. This may be due to the fact that he is Siamese... and a cat. Cheers Alanna, thank you for another fun little ditty.
From Ayrshire (SW Scotland) lived in Glasgow for years. The sky is grey. A lot. We call it "the grey tarpaulin". But walk two miles and bread rolls have a new name.
Regarding the weather, most North Americans don’t appreciate how far north the UK is. I live near Newcastle upon Tyne which is about half way up the main UK island, and there are small parts of Alaska and Hudson Bay further south than me!
My experience in England has been a limited one (though thinking back, it was 7yrs ago that I started visiting yearly, except Covid times of course) but I think I was also surprised by the rain stereotype. I think my main misconception was that the British people would be polite but unfriendly (I know, I know) Literally everyone I've met has been kind and warm and really helpful. Awesome as always, Alanna!
When my mum moved here (in the 1960s) she expected every man to doff their hat and when this didn’t happen she told her cousins their English teacher in Canberra had lied to them. I think this still rankles her to this day 😭 Thanks for this interesting list, Alanna!
I have watched your videos for a while now and have seen your journey, not just to Kent (the garden of England) but also into real adulthood (which is less about age than it is about experience). I'm glad that you persisted and created a reality that suits you.
Alanna I for one am ever so glad you decided to stay and post your RU-vid stuff. Your channel is hugely enjoyable and I hope you stay with us for ever.
Some of our expectations may be generational. At aged eight, I was packed off 7500 km to choir school in London. It was before we had tv in E Africa, and the only English I had heard was the BBC on the wireless. Shock, like you, of my three roomies, just one sounded like my English. He was from Berkshire. The other two were indecipherable at first - a boy from Northwest 🏴, and one from 🇫🇷 🙄🤔. In 1958 we had no movies either, and Nairobi was 12 hrs away, so at eight, having schooled in my local village up to then, I had never seen another "white" child (being an only, and tanned darker than many of my pals), so I was utterly shocked on arrival at London Airport to spy lots of white kids. Nobody had thought to warn me!
Like yourself, I was packed off to school aged 7, as was my older Sister, she to an all girls school, a big shock at first, some snobbery, cold showers and unheated dorms that were like ovens in summer and freezers in winter. If lucky might have seen Father once a year when he was on leave, often cut short if a 'flap' developed, Mother was continually in and out of Hospital with an incurable, even today, illness. Still consider them the best days of my life. All the boys had different accents and Nationalities but the one thing we had in common was our Fathers professions, not all the same service though, a lot of rivalry between the RN, Army and RAF kids, more so with the civvie ones which we tended to look down upon, shame on us.
On a trip back to where I was born (Dorset), I visited a thatcher doing a roofing display at a fair. Dorset has a lot of thatched buildings, and he explained how it was a viable roofing material, and the pros, and cons of it. I explained I lived in Canada, and would never be a customer, so he gave an honest description of his work. At a guess, about 40% of buildings there are thatched, which really surprised me. Like you, I had thought it would be only in the quaint, touristy areas. Nope; it is everywhere.
On the rainfall one, it might surprise you to know that the average annual rainfall in London is 615mm per year which is the same as Algiers, Algeria in North Africa. Lisbon, Portugal gets 774mm per year - much more than London. The difference is, of course, that London tends to get a little bit often, whereas Lisbon gets a lot all at once.
Re. variety of accents; I worked in Somerset in the 70s. My boss Jeff and George, his business partner, came from a village called Blackford. Jeff's wife spent all her life in Highbridge. She could talk to Jeff, OR talk to George, and understand either one. But if Jeff and George were talking to each other, she said it was like a foreign language. The killer? From Highbridge to Blackford is less than SEVEN MILES!
Alanna, from the busiest Cities to the quietest little village, from warm sunny days to cold wet & windy winter nights, from beautiful scenic views to dingy toilets in a Brighton night club the UK has it all and Adventure & Naps is a great place to come to join in the fun to & experience it.
Thats why i subscribed to you in the first place was your honesty and how frank you are! Good qualities to see in a youtuber! Plus your drink tasting videos are truly funny, keeps me coming back! you were the first foreigner reaction video that I found on youtube and your journey has been real fun! keep doing what your doing it works! lol!
Perfect timing just cooked up some fried eggs and chips with beans so I'm all set for the Tuesday upload which I always look forward to 🥳 so in the words of the lady herself Let's Go 🎉🎉
Yes, if people land randomly in the UK expecting a posh voice anywhere outside pockets of south-east England, they're in for a shock ! Alanna, I was convinced you were saying "there are places around the UK that don't have.....great cider."
Again Alanna another great video. In this country you can go from a small village to major city in a matter of minutes. Picturesque to bland buildings. I think for most visitors or people coming to live here, it is an eye opener. Especially the different accents that change every 18 miles(22KM). Keep up the videos and keep us laughing
I'm so glad you didn't declare defeat early on and return to Canada!!! If you had, I wouldn't have the guilty pleasure of your vlog to look forward to twice a week🙂🙂🙂Thank you for your fabulous work!!❤️
Can people please be aware there's the scam messages claiming to be Alanna on some comments asking to inbox them on telegram to claim a prize, DO NOT contact them, report the message to RU-vid, they are clearly scammers.
Living in Spain, just visited Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds with the family, each have their own accents. My son was born in Spain but when he speaks English, it's with a South London accent. This trip I treat as education for him....
"Way more overcast", could not have put it better myself. Glad your canuck boots have defrosted, and are now only damp. Very damp. I find the "winter" a challenge too. Chin up, you bring us valued smiles, Alanna.
Totally awesome video Alanna, I have no doubt a lot of folks can relate to your experience 😉. You're absolutely right, it's easy to watch TV and think it'll be just like that, also love hearing different accents, which, as you know, you also get in the US, although some folks need to come with subtitles - probably including me 😂
Your observations and comments totally resonate with my experiences and expectations when I moved here many , many moons ago. I wish your videos had been around then . Of course the internet wasn't around then. 😂👍
Nice video! I know what you mean about London. I always remember an evocative passage at the end of a book where a girl left a guy. She walks off and was "swallowed by the great brick maw of London."
I'm the same I'm a country type of guy whenever I go to a big city I just feel lost amongst the concrete it's always nice to visit but I'm so glad when I'm back with the trees and The Beaches and little coastal villages.🌴
This summer was so hot and dry in the UK, over 40 C, at least in the South. The fields were parched due to the drought, it reminded me of parts of Australia, with the crops dying in the dry soil. But then the rains came and everything began to flourish again, including those kind of self deprecating Brits who once again moaned about the weather. Some Brits really don’t know how lucky they are.
Great video as always. The same type of expectations go for the other way too, when folks from the UK move to Canada or the US. Of course, you already know that. 🙂
Great thoughts that only come with life experience, your wisdom is growing. Yes indeed, we're all aging every second, perhaps one of your episodes you could use aging software to show Alanna from 22 to 102 and still pumping out the utubes! 😊👍 Great job Alanna! Happy days & travels.
Beautifully wonderful video Alanna, perfectly imperfect Britain indeed, you must have worked hard on choosing your first topic, that set the tone so well, the fact that you used your own experiences and those of the people you play that/those games with online made the whole video inclusive in a very clever and informative way, you never make a duff video, but you always make videos that have a certain something that set you apart from others on RU-vid, it is also why you come across so well, insult a brit, be honest, you do this and we like you all the more because of it, you "for the most part" understand us and it shows. Take care :)
@@BobbieRockyBuster1415 I've seen this, are you southern?. I grew up in Leeds in the 80s and myself included always drinking/smoking out on the streets as young as 10, sometimes even younger. Not sure how it is now, cause of all this woke culture but I'm pretty sure kids/teens still do it
As with any undertaking I think it's always useful to take time to compare expectation with reality, so it was interesting to hear your analysis of your big life decision.
As you say Alanna, the only way to really get the reality is to try it. I definitely agree about London not being the place to be - I was born in a small village and have lived outside cities most of my life, although in contrast I worked in Central London for 25 years. I'd take life away from the city every time and twice on Fridays and these days I have to have a VERY good reason to go to the capital.
The only thing crazier than us brits is our weather! I remember what my late grandmother used to say when it pisse down, "its good for the gardens". I say that now myself! Keep up the good work Alanna 👍
I'm from the North East and it hardly ever rains, overcast yes, I used to say that we lived in a weather void. Now when I lived in Torquay for a couple of years, it rained EVERY DAY.
Fascinating insights Alanna, and all good examples of how countries can defy people's expectations. One thing I've always wondered is how the UK has actually lived up to your expectations, I think that would be an interesting vid too. Thanks again!
People (including me) rarely seem to realize that no part of the continental US is as far north as the southern most tip of the south of the UK mainland (the Lizard in Cornwall), and the north of the UK mainland is on a level with "some" of Alaska (not very much)
How often do you get identified as an American from the US? When I was in Europe, decades ago it was constant-and a big deal when I revealed that i was Canadia. Decades ago.
Alanna I didn't know that you streamed wow!!! I will definitely make plans to attend your streams!! Also thank you for your videos! I'm moving from America to the UK. My girlfriend and my brother (best friend) lives over there I consider them my family! I know that I belong in the UK but of course things aren't going to be easy and there are going to be hard ass times ahead! But stay the course everything will be alright!! Me and my girlfriend will be renting a flat in South London (Greenwich) I also plan on visiting the villages in the UK but I'm a city boy haha. I'm from Baltimore Maryland in the USA. Small towns aren't for me haha!! But I've no problem visiting them!
The Royal Borough of Greenwich* is a microcosm of the places Alanna talks about! It has a fantastic royal park and fabulous other open, green spaces, masses of history and historical sites (some on the banks of the Thames where the are also some beautiful old riverside pubs) and quaint shops and roads (check out Gloucester Circus). It also has less affluent areas and deprivation. Depending on where you are, it’s about half an hour to Charing Cross in central London by public transport. I hope you settle quickly and enjoy living there! * London is divided into 33 ‘boroughs’ (including the City of London) for the purposes of local governance.
@@tonywall8393 Oh wow I learn more and more about London and it's boroughs! Thank you so much for sharing this information! Yes I can't wait to move and start living haha! As Alanna said it's going to be some tough days and some stressful ones but it's going to be worth! 100% Me and my gf are looking at a flat near the DL rail station. If that rings any bells!
Coming from Kent, as I do, we seldom went to London because "It was full of foreigners". And that has been the case for many years. It's also bloody expensive.
You seem to embrace ageing well. Valuing the maturity and wisdom that only life experience can bring. When we moved to Australia from the UK we expected to see kangaroos in the main street. Reality is different.
But Alanna, in Canada your "run-down" areas have the bonuses of moose, elk, caribou, bears and poutine - none of which are in the UK apart from poutine which can be found at a Canadian restaurant in Covent Garden... Keep on amusing us please 👍
Tbh your expectations were pretty tempered lol. A lot of people move countries expecting to escape their problems or to totally change their personality.
Hi Alanna! I've learned something. Abbreviation text message FOMO - Fear Of Missing Out! I had to look it up, mind :) Way back in the 1970's, before we emmigrated to Tronno; I used to think Canada was like a wilderness with Mounted Police being the norm! But no, it was just like in the American Police TV series with big wide cars, skyscrapers and all that.
London seems beautiful, but I think I’d prefer living in one of the London boroughs. Maybe a nice mid point between London and Windsor great park. This is a dream of course. I just discovered your channel today, and I’ve been binge watching, as I had a realization just yesterday, that one day, I’d love to be able to live in England, and try for dual citizenship, maybe. I know it would take a lot of time and effort to get there, but I’ve been very into British culture and entertainment over the years, but I never considered moving there until it just hit me. I live in eastern Pennsylvania, and I do love it here, but for years I’ve imagined myself living in England.
I totally feel the same about London. It's a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't wanna live there. Also, I've no idea what you mean about thatched cottages, historic high streets and trendy cafes. I have never seen these things where I live.
Alanna - how true. I worked in Devon/Cornwall for 20 years. Thankfully I am Back in E. Yorkshire. Devon/Cornwall endure 50 per cent more rainfall than my hometown. Not for me. Glad you settled down and stayed with us. When I was your age I was anti- royalty. I have softened a lot. They do many charitable things and suck in thousands of tourists.
Hiya Alanna, I've recently subscribed to The RU-vid Channel, Johnny Strides, Johnny lives in Toronto, and does walking and cycling vlogs around Toronto, how many Tim Hortons is there? is there over 100, unless He goes to the same place all the time, in my bucket list is to go to Toronto, and go to A pub to see what its like, I think one pub is called The Rose and Crown, and watch a soccer match there at Tim Hortons what's a Double Double?, this is Choppy in Whitehaven, Cumbria, England
Hi Alanna, when you first came here, did you look for things that gave you comfort (stuff that reminded you of home) or did you just accept you were somewhere new and go with the flow. By comfort I mean certain foods, personal items with Canadian things like cups, cushions, pictures or bedding. It's interesting to know, I've never been outside the country but moved to a different and I'm almost comparing.
Oh, there is absolutely such a thing as a British accent. Calling a given accent a "British accent" isn't very specific, but then calling an accent "American" isn't particularly specific either. Boston and Piney Woods accents may not be quite as different (linguistically) as Exeter and Aberdeen, but they're definitely not quite the same, either. Yet it remains that both Brits and Americans can generally quite readily tell the difference between a British accent and an American accent, even if they don't know the differences between the other country's various more specific accents. (There are a couple of special exceptions, like the High Tider accent, which sometimes gets mistaken for British; but there are specific historical reasons for that, making it the exception that proves the rule.) R.P. is actually a very special case (or strange outlier, depending what spin you want to put on it), because it was originally exclusively an affected (i.e., fake) accent, but people faked it so much that eventually it ended up being native for later generations. And yeah, absolutely agree, big cities are neat to visit, but I would NOT want to live there. Cinci is great to visit. Toronto is great to visit. Chicago is great to visit. Cleveland is... better than Detroit, and the zoo is decent. But I would never want to live within an hour's drive of any of them. You want to talk about overcast, I can top anything you can say. I grew up in northeastern Ohio (lived in Canal Fulton but was regularly in Massillon, Norton, and Akron for assorted reasons. When I was in seventh grade, in '87, we moved to western Michigan, and by the time we arrived it was dark out. The next morning, I got up, looked outside, and got out my camera, because the sky was sky blue, and I wanted photographic evidence of it, because I was concerned that people wouldn't understand that I meant it was _literally_ sky blue. Up until then I'd assumed sky blue skies were an artistic convention, similar to drawing yellow lines radiating outward from the sun. I was not aware that it could actually happen, and I assumed it was very unusual, because where we lived in northeastern Ohio, the sky is grey. Always. Sometimes it's darker grey, sometimes lighter grey, but it's always grey.
Worried about the rain. Lol. Good one . It's raining now as I write this down. Yes We brits are worried about the rain. Most time ,the weather person get it wrong. Lol. And it's true , it's kinda gray most times. But when it's hot. It's hot. I don't like city's. When I was young and had jobs. It was fun. Now am more like you. Better to live in a town or village. Be safe . 👍😊
I agree, London is not a place I could live, but not because it's a big city. I grew up in one, but the lifestyle is too "high octane" for me. I always loved the English countryside. I still think it's the best in the world, and I'm sure if I had not emigrated to Oz I would have moved South West to more rural pastures.
In the 80s there were 3 movies on American TV depicting life after a nuclear bomb leveled a city - one of them was made in the UK and I think it took place in or near Sheffield. Subtitles were added for us Americans. I’m sure I would have missed a lot of the dialog without it.
@@betsytodd3511 I think that might have been a film called Threads. It was filmed in and around Sheffield and the nearby peak District. Unfortunately I can't comment on how well the accent is to understand as I live near Sheffield 😂
@@davebirch1976 Yes, I just checked Wikipedia and that’s the one. I had forgotten almost everything about it except that it had a young couple working on a house before the blast, and I had to read the subtitles to be able to follow their conversation. 😂
