“Off to my mum’s in the country” = every london family except us?!

[sellotape12]

Feels like every person we know in our neighbourhood in South London (and work) has departed for a huge family get-together in big country houses…except us! Is this a London bubble thing? Our street is deserted of cars and all our pals from nursery left yesterday to rural Marlborough/ Norfolk/ Cornish villages / Berkamstead. I always find it really fascinating to see their Instagram stories of smoked salmon and champagne or long walks in the countryside. I just didn’t grow up like that!

That is very true. I am currently staying with my parents (not in the UK). They are definitely not wealthy but have a comfortable home with a kitchen/living area that’s nearly as big as my whole house in London!

Yes, our road is near empty at this time of year. We have decamped too, back to Wiltshire and it is admittedly a huge country pile. Very lovely and lucky to be able to do so.

Haha, I'm in London and one of my mum friends announced that they were off to "the countryside" for Christmas... They are very posh... it made me laugh 😂

(I am also from "the countryside" but not a posh bit and if I wasn't staying at home would have just said I was going to see my parents)

It’s funny, living in the countryside walking the insta worthy gorgeous hounds it doesn’t feel too posh, just a bit cold and bloody muddy.

It's the best time of year to be in London. The quiet makes it seem even more like a film set than usual. We used to live in SE1 near London Bridge and loved Christmas week. But we got priced out and now live in the bloody country! Christmas here isn't magical at all.

I too chortled at the addition of .... or Berkhamsted 😂

DS2 and his girlfriend arrive from South London tomorrow. I have the smoked salmon and champagne chilling, and country walks planned. Had no idea it was such a Home counties cliché. I thought most people went for a walk and had a glass of bubbly at Christmas.

Well... my in laws are coming from Streatham to us for Christmas. We're in Croydon, does that count? 😁

The vast majority of people in London weren't raised here, so they go away to see family in their original hometowns. DH and I are very unusual in that we still both live within 10 miles of where we were born and grew up.

The neighbourhood (SW London) does empty out a bit. But I have a flat in Fulham we stayed one Christmas and I swear it was like half the neighbourhood disappeared! We are here though (last year abroad visiting family).

Definitely not in a posh part of London but we always stay here and love it. The fact a lot go away makes it feel really special to me. Most people I know are staying here but we are possibly a bit older 40s/50s and most want to be at home

This is an interesting thread to read. We live in one of those locations you mentioned, and DS is currently home from uni - and once he graduates will almost certainly land up working in London. So presumably he'll be one of those going to a rural Christmas 😁

Interestingly, although we're spending Christmas at home, we're going to the annual family gathering in London later this week - so rural people sometimes do the opposite of the Londoners who get away from it.

To update the champagne and smoked salmon as a nod towards luxury, I'm now "in the country" with a £3.49 pack of smoked salmon, champagne was £9.99 (Lidl) and the field at the end of my parents road is muddy!

Haha I think I do! Literally I would say 80% of the people I work with in my office in central London, and 80% of our neighbourhood friends (either existing friends or new nursery pals) have decamped to Dubai/ Norfolk/ the parental country home. Somebody we know is going to the Alps for two weeks over new year at place that is £1k per night 😯 I’m not saying I want all this stuff and I’m not saying I’m knocking it, it’s just interesting that there seems to be an assumption that we too are like that.

It almost goes without saying here that people go to their boomer parents who have a huge house in the countryside with an open fire, plenty of bedrooms and countryside walks. I have to tell people that we’re not. We’re just chilling at home with the Quality St and will probably visit my parents in the New Year, but they have a two up two down so we can’t stay there. We had lovely Christmases as children, (very little dosh) so it’s since moving to London I’ve been surprised at how extra some people are. There‘s an expectation in certain circles is that everyone is the same. Imposter syndrome basically!