To be a bit envious of this lifestyle? (USA)

[ThePinkPonyClub]

I've just watched School Swap: UK to USA on Channel 4 and have ended up feeling a teensy bit jealous of the kind of lifestyle that's possible over there.

Even normal, non wealthy families seemed to be able to live really outdoorsy lifestyles where they can hike and hunt and boat amongst the gorgeous scenery. I feel like in the UK, even rurally it isn't possible as everywhere is so densely populated especially when the weather is nice. The weather is also a limiting factor!

I'm obviously not jealous of the MAGA/Trump craziness or the crappy healthcare and all the rest of the political stuff but purely the lifestyle side of things, it seems so much more possible to live in that free, outdoorsy kind of way.

And the schools seemed to have a much more positive, enthusiastic culture with things like school sports and dances, compared to the UK teens in their drab uniforms staring at their phones the whole time in their miserable, run down secondary school.

aibu? Anyone live this kind of life in the UK? If so, where?!

I've just checked Birmingham to Malaga in August and the prices range from €18 to €154, with a strong bias towards the lower end of that range.

18 euros!!!! Gosh.

Reindeer?!

No more presents from Santa for YOU then!

No, but there are plenty of blue states that are also quite sensible.

There were co-ordinated protests all across America the other day, Saturday April 5. I meant metaphorically open-mouthed.

@DdraigGoch Would you like me to reduce American cuisine to "basically about how many things you can do with high fructose corn syrup and lots of salt"?

Now you're getting it! What made you write the above is exactly how I feel when outsiders criticise America endlessly with no acknowledgement of any positives!

Obviously as an environmentalist I hate that it's so easy to fly but it's undeniable that travel is generally a lot cheaper in Europe than North America, even after normalising for distances and populations. In a number of other areas too - such as food and medicine - stiff competition keeps prices very low in the UK.

If it was intended as satire then it was far too convincing, it really looked like you believed it. Particularly the bit where you dug your heels in on "Europe is all Catholic with the same architecture" and repeated the claim over several posts.

The Americans are the nicest people - so warm and friendly. Maybe you've met the wrong ones! Most of the ones I've met have seemed lovely to me, as a Brit.

I do find a lot of it quite samey, although obviously not the same. And it is deeply Catholic. Not all Catholic, of course, but that's the history and heritage of much of the continent. 🤷‍♀️

Woopy do! Its the fact the constitution and laws are so weak he can just deport who he doesn’t like, choose the press he has in the Whitehouse, get rid of diversity programmes, dictate to unis what they reach, get rid of entire departments, hold everybody to ransom, make laws to protect himself…. and the American public just sits there. Nobody is brave enough to call him out on it.

@ThisFluentBiscuit now that’s simply not true Asa whole race.!! what you mean is the ones ‘you know ‘ in your social sphere and your area. I’ve met some total rude ass hats over there - be it in hospitality or in business- and certainly not all warm and friendly. Same is true anywhere.

I have to be honest, I'm basing this on some pretty distant memories. I'm sure if I travelled there again now, my memory would be refreshed and I wouldn't come away remembering it as samey.

Yes, I know, but what do you suggest we do? The press calls him out all day every day, and there are protests. Not sure why you think no one's calling him out! His actions have also faced legal challenges from judges.

Edit: He's gone quite mad. I genuinely wonder if he has dementia. Last time was no picnic either, but this is something else. I think many people who voted for him had no idea he was going to do all this. I take some comfort in telling myself that after this, I think it will be a long time until the reds get in again.

@DdraigGoch got to be Scandinavia - my H had a remarkable dish with reindeer in Norway - we had some amazing food when we lived in Denmark too -

I can only tell you my experience, which is that Americans are on the whole warmer than Brits.

What do you do? Are you in high-level corporate/senior management?

No; why?

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/11/australian-with-us-working-visa-detained-insulted-deported

“Are you deaf or just retarded?”

“Trump is back in town; we’re doing things the way we should have always been doing them.”

Yeah, this official sounds charming, doesn‘t he? Ian Foot (David Walliams' parody of a racist immigration officer) has nothing on this lot.

Over the next four years, "the wrong ones" aren't even going to pretend to be polite.

You sound like you've only ever visited a few places on the Med. Perhaps the place in the UK you grew up in was Portmeirion.

Finland, actually so not technically Scandinavia. Lovely people. I'm currently on the ferry to Tallinn to see if that is "samey" compared with Helsinki, Stockholm or Hamburg. Or Brussels for that matter. I've not found the stench of piss from the area around Midi station replicated anywhere else.

@ThisFluentBiscuit. I don’t disagree or doubt your sincerity but bear in mind my experience in living in Bath is lots of warm friendly people of all ‘classes’ , some very lovely Bathonians too who have always lived here but other posters on mumsnet ref Bath declare it stuck up and unfriendly - people who live round Wolverhampton ( when I lived there for a few years) always said ‘Black Country people are friendly and warm’ - I never found it remotely that way - it really depends on the luck of the draw, your circle and whether you live somewhere and are seen as a local I think - you live in a very liberal, educated and pretty well to do ( on the whole) state - I’ve not met many ass hats in Cali either and have been a lot ( the odd store owner and cabbie maybe and a few working at fuel stations ) - however I met a ton of rude abrupt ass hats in New Jersey, Philly and NY too - my working class original home town in UK - a right old mish mash there too - I do think hospitality and leisure places tend to be much politer in the US and a bit more in your face ref service, in general service is better - but I think the tipping culture is a big factor in that.

@DdraigGoch Europe has to be the most varied place on earth- if you factor in language, food, scenery and customs

thingcwith US is it does have the variety of scenery but it’s all the same language and to some extent similar food - so if anywhere has lots of ‘same y’ aspects it’s the US . I think that’s why Europe is full of US tourists- it’s the variety but within short and cheap travelling distances. My H loved Helsinki - I haven’t been -

Food-wise it can be quite samey - same fare in most supermarkets across the country, same (or similar) chain restaurants with similar menus…..
But when you get into regional foods? It can be glorious 😍
Cant remember the exact reason but it’s something to do with the water in New York does something to the pizza dough, which makes it the most incredible pizza.
Down in Louisiana/New Orleans?! An absolute flavour explosion everywhere you go. Gumbo, Jambalaya, seafood boils etc
Down south? The most amazing BBQ you’ll ever taste.
Down in Florida? The freshest seafood and authentic Cuban food.
Where I am, we have wonderful Mexican food. There’s a place we love that’s basically just a hole in the wall, looks like it probably hasn’t passed a health inspection in a while and it’s been owned by the same family for 50 years. To the point where if you look past the counter into the kitchen, the current manager’s Abeula is sitting on a chair, hand-rolling tortillas. That place is ultimate flavour town 😍

I preferred Stockholm to Helsinki to be honest.