Moving abroad has made me realise how bloody dire the UK is

[MattHancocksPrivateNurse]

We moved abroad 4 months ago and after the normal wobbles and adjustments I am now shocked at how different (and much better!) life is. We have considerably more spending money despite paying for private school and healthcare (which are much much better than the UK). It’s safer, considerably cleaner, better public services and much better food quality.

already I can’t see us ever going back and already want to explore somewhere new eventually! But if anyone is feeling low and despondent about the uk which we really were and gets an opportunity (or has a transferable job) I would 100000% recommend looking into it.

i wish we had done it 10 years ago tbh. AIBU to never come back bar the odd visit to see family and friends?!

I think as with most of the ME. You have the thoughts and actions you're just asked to refrain from acting on them.

Same 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

Oman and Israel were getting along with low level representation and a visit from the Israeli Prime minister until just a few years ago but then the second Intifada happened and those ties were cut.

Jewish people in Oman - of course there are. Not in great numbers but they do have a presence.

Gay people in Oman? There are.

Anyway in the interest of fairness I’ve just googled The Torahs stance on homosexuality and it makes very interesting reading. Perhaps you need to put your own house in order before pointing the finger at others.

They're British born and couldn't care less about "Jewish community".

Never happens in reality; “everyone” uses the NHS. I have in laws in Italy, been there 30 years, come back all the time to use the NHS, prostate checks, medical etc etc. never questioned. NHS tourism is very real. These two will be fine with they ever slink back.

Who hurries back to use the NHS? The NHS isn't known for speed of delivery medication. Usually delays means things get worse even cancers

But to MN the gulf is "evil" and "bad" and "how dare you even step foot in that land".

But as an individual, should you refuse to live somewhere where anyone is treated badly? Surely OP can just choose to treat her staff well, if she even has them.

That’s actually not true, the south has green mountains, dairy cattle and an amazing khareef season.

@MattHancocksPrivateNurse I can't believe an intelligent woman with daughters would find any ME country be a good place to live in. Hence I make my deductions.

How are people who don’t have well paid jobs doing there? I would judge any country on how the poorest and most vulnerable live.

Many women in the UK say they have at one point in time been afraid a man will kill them

Yes, but even in the north in winter the landscape (and weather) is very different and it’s not difficult to have a day out that features greenery.

Your honesty is refreshing, normally British people don't like it when people criticise the country. Just try and say the food is garbage and you'll get hundreds of angry little Englanders frothing at the mouth to tell you that Yorkshire puddings are actually the food of the gods.

Sorry but nothing Britain makes will ever compare to something like a good chicken Tikka Masala, for example.

The lessons your girls are learning now about their value and place in the world as women - and, yes, they will be learning this because they have eyes and ears - will stay with them far longer than their memories of bike rides in their community.

Not me.

If I had a choice, at a reasonable price, I would not choose the NHS as it is now. That said, my DH has been brilliantly looked after in several life/death incidents.

They make do without UC top ups that's for sure.

It’s not bitterness to care about the people who are mistreated and exploited so that the privileged can enjoy increased comfort.

So the people that keep the streets clean - where do they live? What kind of house? Do their kids get to go to school? What happens if one of them is taken ill?

I’m glad you’re enjoying Oman, but four months is still very much the honeymoon period. Life in an expat bubble, particularly in a comfortable compound, can seem rather glamorous initially, especially with a generous employment package. Whether that translates into a genuinely better quality of life over the long term is another matter entirely. Oman has its attractions, but also considerable limitations that tend to become more apparent with time. I’d perhaps give it a few years before declaring the UK such a dreadful place to live.

But the OP isn't gay so irrelevant

Especially from Italy... 🤔

I worked for a multi-national after graduating from university.

My first posting was to Aden at the height of the troubles. One night, the office was firebombed and the company evacuated me to Kenya.

I covered for a manager while he went back to Europe for three months, and I was then transferred to Lusaka (Zambia.) The Zambian company was then nationalised, and we were posted to Khartoum (Sudan) There had been a coup and the political situation was fragile, but the Sudanese people were wonderful and I got to travel throughout the country.

Khartoum was a wonderful experience, but once again, the company was nationalised and all expats were sent back to UK.

The Sudanese government paid off my contract in full, tax-free, and my wife and I took a fabulous 3-month holiday travelling overland to India, via Iran and Afghanistan, then returned to UK and "settled down."

The children inherited our genes. Our daughter lives in Hong Kong and our son lives in Canada.

Life is short - I enjoyed living on the wild side. We only live once.

@FreitagUs the poorest people will be farmers and their labourers. The same will be true in every country.

If Muslim majority countries are so wonderful, how come so many Muslims want to come to the UK? It won't be the weather. Maybe it is because we have an open, tolerant society.

With all due respect, I’d rather live in a country with better human rights and equal rights for women! Obviously what I place as important and what you do, differs vastly!