To hate living in Manchester (and North in general)

[ILikeMilk]

Moved here four years ago to be with DH, and I still cannot get used to it. We are in a nicest area of Manchester, and it is still feels very provincial and boring. I dream about living in London, but DH does not want to look for a new job. I feel like there is no point and don?t want to decorate the house, make friends, etc, I just fantasise about being in London every single day. There is not much to do here, no nice streets or galleries, not much to do on the weekends as a family. I went to London this weekend, it was so painful to come back. Does anybody else feel this way?

We live on the coast now with lots of beautiful walks just minutes away. But when we lived just south of Manchester there was always lots to do for a weekend walk. There was a large concentration of NT properties and we always liked the long walk from Lyme Park through the woods to Poynton. The boys could walk ahead and explore at leisure. There was so much for families to do up there. It's more difficult here and involves lots of driving.

Of course there will also be lots to do in London but I'm not sure how reasonable it is to hold up an affluent suburb on the outskirts of a city against the country's capital. I'd compare Hale to somewhere like Guildford or St Albans; 800k for your terraced house, nationally renound state schools and a Jojomamanbebe on the high street.

we always liked the long walk from Lyme Park through the woods to Poynton

Woods and parks? How very provincial. She started this thread to complain about lack of buzz of a capital city in Manchester and people are sending her to woods and parks. Who in their right mind wants to go to woods and parks in a constant cold wet weather with a toddler in a pushchair?

It's the 'buzz of a capital city' that's missing in Hale, Manchester and the North in general. How dare suburban Cheshire not be like Chelsea? Everywhere else in the country has that capital city buzz, it's just the windswept and forever-raining North that lacks it and Manchester's the very worst, closely followed by Hale.

I always lament the lack of capital city buzz when I visit cities which aren't capital cities. Maybe I will move to suburbs of one of said non capital cities and then moan about it. I'm sure I'll be easy to welcome.

Well her more recent posts have been complaining about nowhere to walk without bumping into the motorway.

And of course it doesn't have a capital city vibe. That's why I said it was far more like Guildford or St Albans. I've lived in and around all 3 as well as in London and she is without doubt comparing apples and pears.

If she wants the special buzz you get from being in the heart of a capital city then only a capital city will do but to post comment after comment about how dire it is to live in the North in general is frankly, ridiculous.

I hated living in both Guildford and StAlbans but I wouldn't have posted about how awful I found them on here and complained about the SE as a whole because others would rightly have jumped on me, pointed out how lovely and desirable they are and told me that perhaps they just weren't for me rather than that they were shit places to live. And if course, they would have been right.

to post comment after comment about how dire it is to live in the North in general is frankly, ridiculous.

Completely. Had it been a bit more 'I'm feeling homesick and have realised how much I really enjoy having all the national museums etc close by' I think people would have been more understanding.

But what's actually happened is just lots of stuff about how rubbish 'the north' is and how they just can't even manage to deal with having to go a bit out their way for things. The way some of the posts read you'd think Manchester was the arse end of nowhere. As a result, the entire thing reads like some snobby suburban socialite who wants to wander and drink overpriced coffees in trendy cafes.

As Tuckers said Manchester isnt London but its never claimed to be but it has its own charms and theres still loads to and also has some beautiful surrounding countryside but i expect Op just doesnt want to like Manchester ah well.

Frankly, I like the fact that you can't walk round Manchester for 5 hours without hitting a motorway (not true of Liverpool, by the way!) - who the bloody hell would want to?

I'd never move from here. Liverpool is fantastic - the old buildings and the layout remind me so much of New York before it became the ultra-modern and tourist-y city it is now. In fact, did you know Central Park is actually based on Sefton Park? London never used to be the big city it is now - in fact Liverpool was often thought of as the famous city of Britain.

Plus, the fact that Cunard and the White Star Line were based in Liverpool says a lot about how much people respected it...

Liverpool might have been a great city once, it isn't anymore.

I think Liverpool is still a great city to visit as a tourist. I agree about the New York similarities.

I love living in Liverpool. I think it's a great city.

Hahahaha OP you are either pulling everyone's chain or a you are a very blinkered human being.

We live in a v posh part of London. I can't wait to move my DC somewhere where they won't have smoked the equivalent of a cigarette just by going on the tube or walking through the city centre. That is, when you can walk without 8,000,000 other people getting in the way.

Places like Kew Gardens are pretty enough but always rammed at the weekend and get boring pretty quickly. It's nothing in comparison to having the Peak District on your doorstep as you do in hale.

You sound like a perma-tourist, tbh!

I moved the other way last year, from London to Liverpool and I absolutely love it here. There's so much to do, I've got amazing local independent shops where they know who you are and talk to you, the beach is ten minutes walk from my house, it's 15 minutes on the train into the city centre. Liverpool has some amazing restaurants and bars, and the best bit is it's only £9 in a taxi home rather than the £50 it used to cost me in London.

Hi IlikeMilk, you probably posted this message ages ago but I thought I'd reply anyway. You sound like a fish out of water and I'm sorry to hear it. Hale is actually quite far out, and I would agree it is very different from London. If you don't relocate back down south then perhaps you could consider living in a different part of Manchester. The city centre has got absolutely tons of interesting/cultural/classy/alternative stuff going on, but it is actually not particularly easy to get to from Hale. Have a look at areas that are more accessible to the city centre and prioritise places that have stuff that you like, whatever that may be. Hope you find somewhere you feel settled, it is important to feel settled I think, you can't 'force' yourself to be happy, but you could try to be open to liking other areas up north before you write it off. Hope you work something out.

Hale is a bit dull but Hale isn't Manchester. Manchester is a bloody fabulous city, as is Liverpool. And has the friendliest people you'll find anywhere. Plus it's much safer tham London.

Seriously OP you're downright rude and attention seeking - 'sh*thole'? Get back in your box love. If you don't like it then Get back down to London- Manchester and surrounding areas have wonderful areas for walks, amazing places for family time (Dunham Massey, Tatton Park, Lyme Park in your area alone) and wonderful people. The beauty of North Wales, the Peak District and the Lake District are all in your doorstep. Go out, find it. You might like it.

Zombie! Though the OP did update in Feb '17

It's like comparing apples and pears though. London is massive compared to Manchester. Three or four times the population.

It's also a matter of preference. When people say 'vibrant' they usually mean multicultural, and Hale/Altrincham isn't particularly so. Much more white middle class. I suspect the OP was just living in the wrong part.

Haven't been to Hale for years but it was dull even back then. But it's not really Manchester is it? It's a bit like living in Brentwood and saying London is boring. Why don't you move closer into town?

YABU

The best thing about London is Euston station, from which one can rapidly head back up north.

Hi there, your comments resonate for me, I moved to brighton some years ago from London and found it incredibly hard to settle, despite trying really hard to meet people. I am kind of settled now but it took time and a lot of effort, you have to push on through. If you find one good female friend it makes all the difference. My husband and I broke up in Brighton and I was all alone and it was blooming tough. I was wondering if you are projecting unhappiness onto Manchester that is actually about something else? Just a thought but might be worth talking to a therapist to get a really good idea of what this is about for you before you make any huge decisions. Perhaps you and your husband could talk to someone together. I actually love Manchester because it’s a big city, whereas brighton is a tiny town. But it all depends where you live and when you relocate it’s easy to end up in the wrong area. Maybe you need to consider a new area of Manchester? You can guarantee you can find like minded souls in Manchester it’s just finding them. There might be local meet ups etc but you have to be open to giving it a try. Believe me I know exactly how lonely it can feel, and London is a fantastic city and nothing compares if you love big cities, but Manchester is so much cheaper and you can actually enjoy going out instead of being broke, London drains your money! I think the key is really exploring what your unhappiness is about as I am not convinced it’s all about Manchester, I hope you find happiness xxx

If I'd carried on living up North, I would've committed suicide without a doubt. Even now thinking about my time there makes me weep buckets of tears. Oh my God.

I didn’t enjoy living in Manchester and found there to be nothing to do. Admittedly I didn’t drive so I didn’t get the benefit of surrounding areas. I did think the People’s History Muesum was great though.

Liverpool always had plenty going on though.

How many times is this thread getting bumped?!

London has some real shit hole places. Lived in London and Manchester and Manchester is a much better place to live in.

Oh, this thread is back. Kind of like seeing an old friend you lost touch with that you never really liked much anyway and now it's just awkward trying to make polite conversation.