Where have you made friends since being an adult?

[Musication]

I am very lucky in that I have friends who I love, but are geographically widely spread. Most of these friends I met at high school or university so we catch up every few months between busy jobs/kids etc. I have one friend near where I live that I met back when my DD was a baby, I have just returned from living internationally and having a bit of a hard time settling back down for lots of reasons. One thing that has been suggested to me is to 'make some new friends' to help feel settled, (as well as keeping the old!) so I have a bigger network here. I can see this is a potentially good idea but my kids are getting a bit older so I"m past the making friends at kid groups kind of things.
For sport I'm not good at a team sports sadly, I love to swim and do so but this is quite solitary. I am a musician by trade and do this all day so I'm not that keen to join a choir and do yet more music! I'm in my mid 30s and live in the South East if that helps with any suggestions! I'm not miserable and friendless and I count myself lucky that I have some fabulous friends, but local friends not so much and I can see that it might help me settle down a bit and not hanker after leaving the country!

I joined the WI when I was mid 30s, I found a younger focussed group & ive made loads of new friends through the group

Have a look and see what groups there are near you, they’re all different so it’s worth potentially trying a few - most will be starting to think about meeting in person again now.

All my friends have been made in adulthood (since leaving university) and here is where I met them:

Mutual friends
Work
Choir (sorry!)
Religious community - not a church (accept that's a bit niche)
Post-natal group
Running club

I think the best place to meet people is doing something social you enjoy, because you will always have something in common. Also, keep an open mind about ages - I have friends from 20s to 70s (I'm in my 40s).

When I moved to the UK I made some great friends at a pottery class I took. Maybe take a language class or art class? Or a walking/running club? Church is a good place to meet people if you are religious. Or volunteering.

Oh I hadn't considered the WI - thank you.
If music wasn't my job (mistake but that's another thread!) then I would join a choir but I just can't face it. I know they are fairly social.
I could consider a running club actually, I'm not brilliant but I'm okay!

University
Rugby club
Rowing club
Local pub

Tend to deliberately keep distance between my work and private life.

If you like swimming could you join an outdoor swimming group? There are loads on Facebook etc that organise meet ups.

@OldWivesTale

If you like swimming could you join an outdoor swimming group? There are loads on Facebook etc that organise meet ups.

I could work up to this but I'm terrible at being cold (6 years in a hot climate!!!)

Baby groups when the kids were small
Pta
Dog walking has developed a network of new contacts to chat to
A couple if neighbours have developed into true friends.
Also a couple of parents if my children's friends have also become friends.

OP, you will get as many different answers as there are people! We all have different hobbies and interests.
I have friends through church and my bridge club and table tennis club.
Why not take an evening class in a subject that interests you - maybe learning a language, so you will be interacting in conversation practice with your fellow students?
Or join an am/dram group. Or a rambling group, to enjoy local walks and chat. Or volunteer for something locally, such as litter picking with your neighbours. The possibilities are endless!

Good luck and if you have a chat with someone you click with, just say how would they feel about exchanging numbers and maybe going out for a coffee sometime x

I made life long friends in a drama group and I've recently joined a book group which looks like it has potential. Good luck!

@Musication

Oh I hadn't considered the WI - thank you. If music wasn't my job (mistake but that's another thread!) then I would join a choir but I just can't face it. I know they are fairly social. I could consider a running club actually, I'm not brilliant but I'm okay!

You can search here for a group & if they’re younger facing they’ll mostly have a social media/website presence so you can get a feel for what the group is like

www.thewi.org.uk/wis-a-z

Work
Mutual friends
School mums
Neighbours
Friends of DH’s wives/partners.

The school gates for me! I'm very lucky to have found 3 really lovely friends through my dd starting school 3 years ago.

Running club/ gym classes/ younger walking group have been great for me. Exercise and social stuff in one hit. Win win.

I just moved countries at the end of 2019, so lockdown and several house moves haven’t helped, and I haven’t joined anything, but I’ve met some great people at DS’s school — parents of his friends — and their friends, I met one person in a restaurant and she invited me for coffee, and I met another at an art gallery, got on well, and she invited us all around for brunch.

Work
Nursery parents
Neighbours

Work
On a plane
On a bus
School gates (one friend, lots of nice aquaintances)
Neighbour
Shop

I make friends in very random places

@elQuintoConyo

Work On a plane On a bus School gates (one friend, lots of nice aquaintances) Neighbour Shop

I make friends in very random places

Haha I love this. I've been on a lot of planes but not made a friend on one yet! Thanks it's great to see these replies sparks off a few ideas. I knew I'd get a lot of different responses - that's what I was hoping for! A language class is a good idea and one I'll look into today. I'm actually quite outgoing and good at getting chatting to people in general, just feeling very displaced by an international move this time so trying to remotivate myself to make a few new connections.

University (mature student)

@LawnFever

Sorry. Can I ask what sort of things you do at WI please?

Work
Walking the dogs
Through Husband
Through existing friends

I met my core group of girlfriends at the school gates as all our DCs were at the same primary. We're still very close 15 years later and all our DH's have become good mates too.

I met another good friend at work and even though she left several years ago, we're still close.

Unexpectedly, I have become good friends with DD's boyfriend's Mum because we share a love of reading and the same SOH.

Can't believe no-one has mentioned parkrun yet, either running or volunteering or both.

I'd second the idea of an outdoor swimming group - there are literally hundreds of people in our local groups and all very friendly, although certainly dominated by women of a certain age...

Work
University (I was a mature student)
Playgrounds
School gate
Through other friends/ partner