Up North - Down South

I think we would be classed as being 'up north' and our weather is often lovely - as it is again today (21 degrees, clear blue sky and sunshine) and not a breathe of wind. Downside: I could smell exhaust fumes when I went shopping earlier so a nice breeze would be good.

Hollydaze and KatyK I was born in Birmingham too and when I went back a little while ago I thought how it had improved since the 1950s.

Only problem we had was being treated very badly at The Botanical Gardens, where I had fond memories from my childhood, but wouldn't return even if I was given a free ticket.

I live in a lovely part of the Thames Valley, but I still hanker for dear old Brum.

Holly - the city has many problems as most do but the powers that be have made the city centre really nice. I've lived here all my life and it's my home so I love but in the past the city centre was pretty awful. You can have a whole day out there now on a sunny day, strolling by the canal, stopping at a pub or a cafe along the way. You could be anywhere really It's like most cities in the UK now. Last week we spent a weekend in Liverpool and that was lovely too.

and Nankate - sorry posts crossed

I'm from the Isle of Wight and loved the mild climate. I now live in a very dry part of East Anglia where the summers are often hot and sunny which suits my arthritis. Winters can include some severe frosts but for me that's better than damp.

We're ideally situated for visiting DS in Staffordshire and DD2 in Hampshire as we're close to good motorway links

You're not in Norfolk, then, merlot. Norfolk people say, "What's a motorway?"

We hint got none o' them fancy mo'er ways but, come this autumn we shud hev a Dewel Carridgeway all the way London. Fur them duzy fuels what really want t' go there.

I have been staying in the South for the past week near Maidenhead and visiting Sussex and areas in between. The weather has been amazing and it is good to be back near to my origins but I can't get used to the 'busyness' of it all. I have been battling the M4, M25 and the M23, listening to constant aircraft overhead and being frightened to death by passing trains the length of which I have never seen before! So many people, so much traffic, so much everything and everyone is in such a hurry and most of them seem to be bad tempered and impatient. It has really made me appreciate home even if it is cooler there! I think it does you good to be removed from your comfort zone once in a while if only to concentrate the mind and help you to see what really is 'your' place. What has also amazed me is the amount of 'money' in this area. Ok, there is wealth in my area, but not on the scale I am witnessing down here. Even if I wanted to return to the SE, I couldn't afford a comparable house or lifestyle so maybe I will just sit tight for now

Nkf

Nfk you have reminded me of the summer of '68 when a friend and I went fruit picking near Wroxham for our summer jobs. The accommodation was youth-hostel style and the food execrable, but what sticks in my mind is trying to work out what the farm worker who was responsible for instructing us was actually saying.
The only thing we could understand was 'raaaaaaaaaahspberry baaaaaaaaaahskets'

Marmight I know what you mean. We frequently go to the south visiting friends and family, and enjoy it, but home seems so peaceful in comparison. Even the journey into Newcastle City centre is quick and never seems to involve heavy traffic.

Nfk, we moved down to Norfolk for a couple of years in the 70s. We lived in a holiday chalet on Oulton Broad for a couple of months, December and January, until the house we were buying in Stalham was finished.
We had to ask a local where the site was, and were told to carry on until we reached a wide road. We were expecting a dual carriageway, but it was literally a wide road compared to the narrow road we were on.

When we first moved away from the South and went back on occasion, I used to get all excited to see a motorway again! I would be saying aloud 'Cars! People! Look!' I know exactly what you mean, Marmight. My daughter lives in Maidstone and London seems to be creeping slowly down that way.

We revisited my Grandmother's house near Maidenhead and it had all changed so much that I barely recognised the area.

We lived in Norfolk for seven years 78 - 85. I really liked it there, partly for its proximity to the sea and partly because I made lots of friends there. The downside was that we were at the end of all the worst roads in the country, though that could be seen as an advantage! Here in Cheshire, we are off the main motorway system, but can reach it in 15 minutes. Best of both worlds. Oh, and it's not flat!

One good thing about Norfolk is that it's got the only wind turbine that you can climb up ( I'm sure someone will correct me if there's another) and you can see three cathedrals when you are up there.

janeainsworth The only thing we could understand was 'raaaaaaaaaahspberry baaaaaaaaaahskets'

Love it!

Having lived in the Hebrides for 8 years I have forgotten what a motorway looks like, I live on a single track road, even though it is an A road. We have no traffic lights, roundabouts or any kind of parking meters.

KatyK and NanKate

I love the canal areas of Birmingham city centre. It all changed so much after I left so I have trouble now remembering place names. There is one area with a statue of working men, near a big shopping mall type thing - outside there, there were some Caribbean men playing steel kettle drums and shoppers stopped to listen and some of us, I mean them, even had a little reggae dance with the men - who very good fun about it and came and danced with us, I mean, them - such a lovely atmosphere. Some fabulous restaurants too and the canal boats. Ah, sigh - I miss all of that.

I agree NanKate - you can take the girl out of Brum but not the Brum out of the girl (or something like that), I miss it too

newist

Having lived in the Hebrides for 8 years I have forgotten what a motorway looks like, I live on a single track road, even though it is an A road. We have no traffic lights, roundabouts or any kind of parking meters.

We only had one set of traffic lights here (Isle of Man) until a few years ago and then they sprung up all over the place. We had one roundabout (in Douglas) and then, one morning they were everywhere and the locals had no idea how to use them - the garages loved it it was a bit like the SAS train of thought: he who dares wins! No parking meters here either (you just put a disc up in your car saying what time you parked and as long as it isn't raining or it isn't too windy, the parking attendants will check the discs lol)

I used to drive on motorways quite happily but I'd be scared to do that now with so many cars and the speeds.

Oh HollyDaze you have made me laugh, Thank you. I can just imagine the Chaos it would cause. I can see people going round and round the roundabouts.

Holly My sister has just come back from an overnight stay in Manchester and said she had great difficulty in ordering a glass of white wine in a restaurant. The Mancunian waiter couldn't understand her Brummie accent (although I don't think it's very broad). She said to him 'could I have a glass of white wine please' and he hadn't got a clue what she was saying. She had to repeat it four times! He apologised. That made me

durhamjen the windturbine is indeed in Norfolk, in Swaffham. I keep meaning to go up it, but know it will kill me! I love living here, it's beautiful, but my oldest and best friends and my daughter all live in mid-Kent. I would return to the Weald like a shot if I could afford it, in the area between all the motorways that is still unspoilt. I shall just have to hope for a lottery win. And buy a house with some nice big shady trees in the garden and air conditioning.

I went up it, janer, a few years ago, but could not do it now. My grandson wants to, though, so I'll have to take him soon. The garden is good to sit in while the family go up. You have to stop at the landings every so often on the way up. The guide gives you a bit of information while you are getting your breath.

That doesn't sound so bad, then. Maybe I should do it soon before my hips and knees give way entirely.

I love North Yorks, Durham and Northumberland but have lived my adult life in and around Sarf London probably because DH is a Sarf Londoner and he thinks our capital city is the best place in the world, never mind England/UK!.
I do like London. I love its vibrancy and cosmopolitan and cultural opportunities but I am content to live 30 miles away from it now I do not have to work there.

We are close enough to visit the city regularly but quieter and cleaner here! I would have happily moved north east (& am quite tempted to go to Scotland if they go their own way!!) However I would have had to leave DH behind!

No, they're more disorganised than that newist! I want you to empty your thoughts and concentrate only on my words ( ) - ready? You approach a roundabout (mini ones, we can't afford the big ones) and they sit behind their wheels eyeing each other like they're in some cheap spaghetti western, you can see them go into gear then lose their nerve and still they sit there (you can tell the English or Scottish people as we tend to get very irritated at this point). Then two of them will try to go at the same time then slam the brakes on - driver three on the roundabout thinks 'I can make it now' nope, cause driver one or two have thought 'to heck with this' (that's when the collision happens. Then they noticed that the 'comeovers' (that's us) actually indicate - but they don't really pay attention to the indicating and will indicate left or right when they actually mean they're going straight ahead but think that indicating will work as there is no right or left turn to be taken - I'm sure you can imagine the panic when a driver does indicate to go all the way round a roundabout