To remind those living in tourist areas not to assume people aren't local!

[GlummyMcGlummerson]

I was born and raised in Yorkshire, but spent my whole adult life living in Scotland.

I'm now back in my hometown, armed with a mild Scottish accent I accidentally picked up after 18 years living there . Went for a walk in a popular tourist area today, a 10 minute drive from my home, with my DC. I heard two sets of people grumble about people travelling to come to the Dales after they heard me chatting to the DC. There were also a few posts on local Facebook groups about our-of-towners - I may be paranoid but one said "One family came from as far as Scotland!" - so possibly referring to me!

I've also seen it on another thread too someone saying that people from the Midlands were in Devon this week. No mention of how they knew where they came from

Unless you actually ask them and they confirm they aren't locals, please don't assume. Some people do move to new places! And while I'm at it I don't actually think local areas "belong" to local people any more than they belong anyone else and I'm a bit when locals grumble about tourists.

Also I managed to snap a picture of a couple who grumbled at me. Bastards

[MarieQueenofScots]

I do find this Coronavirus Parochialism deeply depressing - I think it might always have been there, but now it's out of the box and some people think it's acceptable to voice it, I think that it'll take a lot longer to go away

Is it parochial to say "please think carefully, we can't accomodate loads of people right now"?

[YinMnBlue]

I do find this Coronavirus Parochialism deeply depressing

I am so depressed that isolated rur I do find this Coronavirus Parochialism deeply depressing - al areas with low infection rates don’t want my London levels of infection.,.. I wanna go for a waaaaaalk... wah.....why can’t we all come and cough all over the place?.....it’s not faaaaaair...wahWAH.

[TheHumanSatsuma]

We have lived in the South East for 35 years. Our children were born here.
We both have (different) no -local regional accents. My husband got fed up being asked everytime he went into one particular pub if he was on holiday and had he been here before.

[YinMnBlue]

Sorry, an unexpected c&p made its way into the post... KEEP OUT! No one wants unexpected c&p here!

[swimster01]

It's irrelevant anyway - we can go where we want within England

[YinMnBlue]

It's irrelevant anyway - we can go where we want within England

Yes we have our rights... we can take our city levels of infection into infection -free areas and do what we like! So there!

[YinMnBlue]

I have to say, all this makes me laugh.

The outrage at some attitudes amongst some communities.,,,

For years I have seen posts by black and multi/racial families concerned about parochial attitudes in rural /coastal / isolated areas. And those posters have been routinely told by many (not black or from multi racial families) that oh no, all is fine, no parochial attitudes at all anywhere, chip on shoulder... blah blah.

And now posters are experiencing resistance to their own presence it is a different story, MN is full of moaning about Cornwall or Whitby etc not currently being welcoming.

[swimster01]

Some cities have lower rates of infection than in the countryside - do your research!

[MoaningMinniee]

I don't think it's hysterical parochialism to not want visitors when the only publicly available loos in a ten mile radius are in the supermarket. There are already nasty bits of tissue behind a lot of hedges. All the beauty spots that have loos and picnic benches have had their car park gates locked shut. Yesterday there were several vehicles parked in passing places, which was a lot of fun when the milk lorry needed to pass a tractor and trailer. And someone had parked right across a gate that was the only access to a working woodland. That was also a lot of fun when the lorry came to pick up the logs that were felled two years ago and had been set to season.

[bigbluebus]

On the basis that I was born in a city where locals tend to have a very strong accent, but I don't have it (one of my DBs has moved back there and has most definitely picked it up again), then being brought up in a Welsh seaside town but again not developing the accent - although understand some of the language, I now live in a village where the mentality is, as mentioned by PP's that your are not a local unless you and your family have lived here since the year dot (even though I've now been here for 28 years and had 2 DC's here), I'm guessing that I'm not really welcome anywhere then!

One of the local Facebook pages from a community nearby was openly hostile to people who dared to enter their area to exercise during the start of lockdown - even though many of those people lived within a couple of miles away and some had even been born and brought up there and had never moved mor than a couple of miles away. We met one couple in their 60's in our village whilst we were out on one of our Boris walks who were very upset that they had been made to feel unwelcome in the area they had been brought up in and until recently, one of their elderly parents was still living there.

So it's not just people with accents who have moved who are being judged OP, there is a whole new level of hysteria about people who may dare to set foot within your rural area even though we are all in the great outdoors and live 'locally'. We even ventured to Wales on our bike ride the other day - we are 2 miles from the border - so within the rules I guess, as long as we don't do it more than once a day!

[Xenia]

Good points. However would all those walking on our private road - we allow it as an estate - we are nice like that - do read the signs 0 the residents pick up the dog waste, not the council, the residents pay £30k to resurface each road, the residents pick up all your litter (I was out there yesterday picking up a plastic medical glove (very carefully) off the ground by my house. These new walkers might well leave their own houses like a tip but please don't leave anything on this road or else come back tomorrow with black sacks and do a massive clean up as a thank you to the residents who allow you to come up here.

[emmathedilemma]

I even got a hostile response when I tried to book accommodation in a remote rural area for spring next year! I was thinking I might be helping the local economy a bit by committing to a booking and putting down a deposit but the response actually makes me not want to go now! I'm not sure how they expect their economy and businesses to survive as I expect a lot of the locals rely on tourism to earn a living.

[vanillandhoney]

It's irrelevant anyway - we can go where we want within England

You can, but I'm not sure why you'd necessarily want to.

I'm in Cumbria and we have some of the highest infection rates in the entire country, yet people have been flocking here since Boris' speech on Sunday - camping out overnight and all sorts.

Why would you willingly come and spend time in a virus hotspot just to look at some pretty scenery?

[viewfromthecouch]

Agree completely.

[YinMnBlue]

Some cities have lower rates of infection than in the countryside - do your research

We all know that.

But lots haven’t. Cornwall, Norfolk, for example, very low, both beloved of Londoners; very high,

Meanwhile Cumbria; very high, infrastructure and access hospitals: challenging.

It doesn’t undermine the principle that travelling about when we are trying to prevent infection just because we want a walk is not showing common sense or consideration.

[GiveItARestJosephine]

@Coffecak3 for everyone who wants to celebrate?

[longwayoff]

Oh Wales. No tourists and no EU dosh from next year as you've slung that out too. Oh, and no local economy to speak of. Enjoy the space.

[EffOrf]

Definitely no such thing as locally registers cars, mine was registered in Wales and I live in the East Midlands, places like Carshop get cars from anywhere, DHs was registed in Birmingham

[swimster01]

Because the risk of catching the virus outside is low; people have been confined to their local area for weeks; the government has eased those restrictions; walking in the countryside is good for mental health; not every area has beautiful countryside; and the virus may be with us for years to come.

[Picklypickles]

Oh gosh I'm in trouble then, I've lived in my village since 1989 but discovered at Christmas in the pub that there are still those who consider me NOT LOCAL because I wasn't "born and bred". I was looked up and down with much disgust!!

[Becca19962014]

I've been reported repeatedly for being a tourist (three times in seven weeks) and on one occasion fined and told to "go home"

I've lived here 25 years.

[ITonyah]

I live in a small village and whenever we see someone we don't recognise we scream "Stranger Danger!!!" at them and immediately post a warning on the village website

😂😂

[JustOneSquareofDarkChocolate]

I've got a very strong NZ accent despite living here 16 years. Will people assume I swam to the UK for a holiday?

[hoodathunkit]

I don't think it's hysterical parochialism to not want visitors when the only publicly available loos in a ten mile radius are in the supermarket. There are already nasty bits of tissue behind a lot of hedges.

Agreed

I can understand the not wanting visitors really I can. One of the reasons I have not walked to a beauty spot where I would enjoy a swim today, and I really need a swim, is that there are no public toilets there and I don't want to leave bits of tissue in a hedge.

Also it's a 2 hour + walk each way with no toilets, so the toilet thing is an issue for me.

I have a medical condition that necessitates me taking regular strenous exercise or I suffer terrible pain. I am in fairly horrible pain right now. Exercise in water is what i need but I can't jump on a bus and the walk each way is just too long especially with the lack of toilets.

By the time the toilets are open and I can jump on a bus my swimming options are likely to be restricted by cars full of tourists. By that time, due to my limited exercise options and resulting delcining health it may be too risky for me to take a dip.

Then there's dealing with the rage of the mostly elderly locals whose pre-existing perceived grievances with foreigners and incomers are at peak level. Many of my elderly neighbours completely ignore social distancing and one told me recently that he is tempted to try to catch the virus so he can get back to enjoying his life.

Feeling quite depressed about it today.

[Xenia]

Phew... just got back from my shop and back on the private road some walkers (they all seem to want to walk across the middle the road ) these two put out their hand to stop me as their dog had walked back towards my very slow car. I had already stopped to let it by. They must have thought I might have mowed it down.