AIBU to not be entirely excited about this?

[VaginaPagina]

I had been looking for a job for ages with no success. About a week ago, I was finally offered a job. It's a great company and pays reasonably well.

So I should be happy right? Well, I am happy and I have no intention of turning it down. I feel like I can really do well with this job and I loved the culture of the company.

Except that I am also secretly a little disappointed and sad :(

I'm a London girl- I studied here and lived here for 5 years and I love it. I don't want to leave London :( Especially not to go to Glasgow which is where this job is.

No offence intended towards anyone who lives in Scotland, but I am so apprehensive about moving there! It's too cold

I also found it a bit boring when I went there. Granted, it was only for a day but it felt like a month.

To make matters worse, I don't know anybody at all in Glasgow (or Scotland for that matter) and this means that I will be very lonely.
My parents live in a different country entirely and that was already hard enough to deal with, but now I have to move away from my mates too.

I know I'm being a big baby about this but I really wanted to vent!

Anyone with similar experiences? How did you deal with it?

I'd also appreciate any advice from people who currently live in Scotland. I've been told that it might be better to live in Edinburgh and travel to Glasgow for work. Does that sound feasible?? I haven't been to Edinburgh yet, but a lot of my mates said it was better than Glasgow

Well, you sound like a Londoner to me OP

Anyway, I'm sure you'll have a ball in Scotland and you can plan amazing weekends away and get to know the country well.

Glasgow's nickname (one of them anyway) is No Mean City, which is a reference to a book, from the 30's I think, which focused on the gangs and hardmen of the city. As far as I'm aware there is a gang and knife culture within Glasgow but in all my time here I can honestly say my only experience of it has been on the news.

I think Glasgow's 'hard' image is something that some Glaswegians play up to a certain extent, the city can seem strangely proud of its perceived hardness. The Daily Record is constantly idolising local gangsters in pull out supplements

The city certainly has its social problems, and crime definitely exists but not to the cartoonish degree that it?s portrayed in the media.

You will stay safe as you would in any city by being alert and not walking through dodgy neighbourhoods after dark.

One if the possible reasons for Glasgows rep is because its compared to Edinburgh? (There are of course other sizeable cities in Scotland but G & E are very close to each other). Compared to Edinburgh, Glasgow comes off as rough. Compared to other cities in the UK? Probably not so much. There is drug, knife and gun crime there much like most other cities. Was it Kevin Bridges (a Weegie comedian) who said that if a gun goes off in Edinburgh you know it's 1 o clock?!!! (A reference to the cannon that goes off each day at Edinburgh castle to signal that its 1pm).

One of the reasons, not 'if'.

I moved to Glasgow after 28 years in London! I absolutely love it. It's small enough to get around easily, there's tons going on in terms of galleries, bars, restaurants, great shopping, theatres, concert halls, it's own underground (tube), NHS prescriptions are free, eye tests are free. I wouldn't commute. You can get a lovely flat bang in the city centre, or in the west end. It does get a tad cold and rainy in the winter but then you just dress appropriately. I would google the official Glasgow websites and take another look. I don't regret it and I would never move back to London.

Jeez I used to wander round steaming at 3 in the morning and never saw a whiff of trouble. Probably not advisable anywhere however ...

Me either primallass, I still do from time to time!

Hand on heart I've never seen anything scarier than a couple of stupid guys scuffling. Not trying to say Glasgow is a haven of peace and tranquility, it isn't but it's no worse than any other UK city and on the whole trouble is avoidable.

Um, I do believe that NHSScotland is better than England...

As has been said, Glasgow's rep as "No Mean City" stems from the knife-gangs of the 30's. Of course there is crime, but there's crime in London too, I hear. You're no more at risk in Glasgow than you would be in Edinburgh.

Well, first off, you're absolutely right - London is the greatest city on the planet. And I only limit my remark because I haven't visited any other planets. Yet.

However, Glasgow can be fun. There's interesting and quirky things to do, it's easier to get to something Out In the Country for some breaks. Absolutely not a long-term problem. Just go there, bide your time and if you really still hate it, move back with some lovely work experience under your belt!

Ooh, and can I have your London flat when you're gone?

Square sliced sausage. That's reason enough to live in Scotland. Can feel my arteries clogging and my mouth watering just thinking about it.

Square sausage is made of pink polystyrene.

Square sausage is the food of the gods.

Square sausage is divine. We bring back a half block whenever we visit and use it for dirty Saturday morning breakfasts.

I always bring some home when I visit my nan. Cant get the bread rolls the same down here though :(

Ugh, Morton's Rolls, burnt to a crisp and very face scratchy.

Hi,

I've lived in the US, London, Edinburgh & Glasgow. Glasgow is a great city. If you are young and sociable, into shopping etc then Glasgow is perfect.

Compared to London which is quite vast, if you live and work centrally there is always something going on if you are open to meeting new people (through work etc). Glasgow, and particularly the West End is becoming more and more cosmopolitan. My weeks are filled with dinners out in the hundreds of great restaurants, casual cocktails and shopping after work, yoga, open mike nights, dressed up clubbing, farmers markets etc (not that these things are the epitome of cool- but really whatever I want to do and could have done in a big city I can do in Glasgow). I'm in my mid-20's and have a great social life through work and just meeting people at the gym or clubs, Glasgow is a really friendly place. I have friends from London who are planning to move up as they think its easier to socialise (as there's no tube dramas to get home).

I would recommend Glasgow over Edinburgh- Edin can be quite a university town, a bit dull, nice to visit but doesn't have the same atmosphere as Glasgow. 100% agree- do not commute, you will struggle to make friends and will have no time to socialise! And think of all the travel costs you will save.

One thing I would say, and please don't take this the wrong way.....please don't take the concerns from this thread with you to Glasgow. There is nothing worse than someone moving to a town and making it obvious that they think their previous city was superior. I mean honestly, I've worked with enough Londoners who have made comments such as 'oh, I thought I'd get stabbed here', 'oh, it's difficult to understand the accent' and 'wow, I didn't know there were black people in Scotland'. It's not endearing.
As someone said, it's not the other side of the world! Don't you think people think London is dangerous, run by gangs and drug dealers?? It's just stereotypical nonsense.

Sorry for the essay, but I think if you moved to Glasgow and really tries to know and love the city- you absolutely would! It's a great year for the city coming up! I'm due to move on next year and I'm pretty sad about it actually!

Beeyump - you can't just say that. You need to present evidence. And there is none.

More beds per person, more staff per person, and more money in NHSScotland If it's not better then it should be, basically.

I have a friend who I met at uni in Glasgow, she moved here from N. Ireland. She's currently living in London for work, and she can't wait to come 'home'.

I love Glasgow. I love travelling but there's nothing like coming home. There are some not so nice places but that's the same everywhere. To me, it seems a bit ridiculous to worry about moving from London to Glasgow over crime - doesn't London have much more crime than anywhere?! It's not something I encounter in my day to day life at all.

Very proud to be Glaswegian!

Glasgow is fabulous. Do not commute from Edinburgh-you'll be exhausted. It's a lovely friendly city, the weather thing is a bit silly IMO (yearly average temps maybe two or three degrees cooler than south east?). And the NHS? Er, i think they have better services and much shorter waiting times due to less pressure on services (6 million people in Scotland versus 50 million in England!).
Come up and get to know it. It's great. Live in the West End or Shawlands/South Side if you can. Good luck!

Crime - you can find the crime figures reported for a postcode online -(looking to see what effect me moving would have on my car/house insurance) lots out there and a google will find them ...but for July figures are ...
My current post code (naice area -East coast Scotland ) no of report crimes - 0
My parents small town in North west England - 15 (mainly antisocial behaviour)

My London SW4 postcode (Brixton/Clapham) - 1900+
West end of London - 4300+
Glasgow west end postcode - 2!
And you are worried about crime !!!!!!

Congrats on the job and on the opportunity to move to Glasgow! It's a great city. Don't try to commute between Glasgow and Edinburgh. I did it for almost 2 years. Although it's a commute of less than an hour, at peak times, the trains are often delayed. Plus the carriages are so busy, you'll often be standing for the hour commute. Live in the city centre of Glasgow, the west end or pockets of the south side and you'll have much more fun.
I flat-shared through my 20s and it is a good way to meet people when you're new to the city. The west end, the city centre and Shawlands have lots of opportunities for flat sharing.
Register with some events websites and you'll have a ready-made social life eg itison - it's a bit like GroupOn but includes lots of info on different free events too.
There are lots of evening and weekend classes too if you want to learn any new skills or start a hobby - or just meet people with similar interests. Check out the university websites to see the range available.
Good luck for the move and your new career!