City life versus the Country Living

[PigsinSpace]

I am debating whether we should just move out of London to somewhere nice in the country.

In one way I would miss the lifestyle (having shops so close by, friends a stone's throw away, such a choice of things to do) but in another way, i find it so hectic, the noise, pollution, constant airplanes, parking fines!.

Where is nice to live outside of London. Can anyone convince me to move or would I be mad?

You'd be mad. Village people stare - still hate it 15 years down the line. They make no attempt to hide the fact they are staring at you. Weirdest thing ever.

I think one thing you will miss if you are in a very rural area would be your friends. They may not visit as often as you think. Shops and things can be solved by internet shopping and then a few visits a year into a nearby city.

I think even living in the country there are things that will irritate (bad public transport, constantly bleating sheep, the locals ) but the quality of life may be better.

Going back many years now (early 70's) my parents moved to a very rural part of Ireland. My dad loved it but my mum had 3 young kids, few friends and she missed good conversation with people on her own wave length because a big percentage of the people living there were older and more set in their ways.

I hanker after the kind of counrty living I remember as a child but am not sure I am ready tomake that move.

I'm not doing a good job of convincing am i

I live in Sussex, in the country and as much as I love to visit London, I could not handle the noise, pollution, expense and lack of green. Yuk.
Round here, the children can run for hours in the woods, or in fields. They meet up with their friends on the village green and have races round the pond and often someone will offer to sit and watch (chiefly to make sure they don't fall in) so I can go and have coffee with a friend, or do some chores at home. There's an amazing sense of community, and shared responsibility for children, dogs etc and the last time I was ill, a neighbour left a big basket of cooked meals and snacks so I didn't have to cook for the family.
Also, I don't spend anything like the money I used to when I lived in the centre of a town, as there just isn't the constant drip drip of a coffee here, tube there, magazine etc.
I think my kids are much healthier and definitely far more hardy and active, and just looking at the views is good for my soul.
And trips to Harvey Nichols are so much more precious when they only happen rarely!!!

Ohh piginspace we are having the same discussion at the moment!

I hate London....I live in a house worth nearly half a million that is like a shoebox with a garden you can barely swing a cat in (not that I ever need to swing the cat you understand!)the kids rooms barely fit a bed and wardrobe. We have planes zooming over our heads at all hours. The local schools are blardy awful, putting it nicely. The ds are never going to be able to play out as it isn't safe enough (some lad got stabbed at the end of our road a few weeks ago...and we live in a nicer area too!!) When I try and order a pizza or go to the hairdressers or buy something in a shop I struggle to find someone who speaks english....I could go on forever..

Big house with fields and chickens sounds so appealing!!!!!! Im sure its got its downsides too....

Jenna

We've just made the leap - we've not moved yet (date set for 6 weeks tiem) but I am really looking forward to it.
If the villagers stare, I'll stare back

We moved to a village (from JennaJ's part of London I think ) last year and it's great. Have not been stared at at all!
Trying to think of downsides.......ummmm.......

I didn't like London when I lived there - it's full of people passing through, on the make.

I think the quality of secondary schools is the clincher. Get out now, for the sake of your kids!

I was brought up in a rural area and moved to London for uni, I knew would not settle there once I was reday to have my children.

I am now back where i was brought up loving the rural life again
DH is a city lad at heart and everyone told him he would be bored stiff living here but he loves it, when we go back to Lodon we are struck by how dirty,grimy and smelly it is.

Have you seen that scene in An American Werewolf in London where the 2 american boys walk into the Slaughtered Lamb pub on the edge of a village in Yorkshire?

Well that's what all village pubs are like.

And when a fire engine goes past with its siren on, everyone stops what they were doing to stare at it.

OK. I take the comment about the fire engine but I'm so glad we moved out of town 8 years ago.
My children have definitely benefitted from moving. They were 5 and 8 when we moved so don't miss the bright lights of the city and have been able to be more independent because there is less traffic and fewer people to be wary of.
Now they are teenagers it is a boon because they don't roam. We are a mile from the village and 3 miles from town so it is generally too much effort for them to just go out and hang around in the evenings. They tend to only go out when they have somewhere to go.
The downside is that I spend a large part of my evenings being a taxi but I do think they are less likely to drink too much if they know I'm going to pick them up.
I'd definitely say go for it. The younger your children are when you move the less they will complain about it.

You know, its not a choice between London and tiny villages ! There are these things called towns that have cinemas and restaurants...

Sorry - pet peeve of mine that Londoners only have a view of London or really, really rural

We have lived in a nice city (Cardiff) where you could do everything and anything, but loads of green space, very clean, and at the time, cheap, in a small town 30 miles from London where you could be in the city in an hour, and now in Worcestershire which is cheapish, green and lovely. Our town is small, but still has a community cinema, choice of restaurants etc, and we can be in Birmingham centre in 40 minutes. Parking is free, or 10p for 3 hours in the carparks.

I grew up in a small town, and we are still not ready for village life - maybe next move.

We are in the process of looking for our dream house in the country at the moment. I was brought up in a very rural area and loved it and miss it. Buuuuut ... I am worried that I will miss the convenience of city life (I am v. lazy) and all the easy things that we can do with the kids.

Also all the driving I will have to do for the school run ...

But I am good at being by myself and don't need to have constant friends round (although they're welcome to stay for a weekend )

So we're doing it. If it all falls apart, we can always move back

cmotdibbler has a good point too. You don't need to go for the full-rural.

Agree with cmotdibbler, it doesn't have to be the arse end of nowhere. We moved from a v London life to a town in the SW. It's lovely, and there's loads to do for kids, and even a couple of shops that sell frothy coffees.

I wouldn't want to be in a village with a small child, and have to drive to do anything, but the town suits us perfectly - we have a community, things to do, but are out of the manic getting and spending of cities. And the houses are so much cheaper that I don't have to go back to full-time work (the reason for our move in one sentence there...)

We moved from London 7 yrs ago, and we still miss it. But there are good things too. The kids wouldn't go back, they have freedom, far less stress, lots of pets...beautiful countryside and coast...
We miss, like minded people and their conversations -(much of the talk in the country is about stuff like whether it's a good day to hang out the washing,) decent food ( occasional good pub, but no good ethnic food) galleries, theatre etc, tho'if you travel, it's a bit better, and you can get to see the latest films without booking, because no-one else bothers.
And yes, you do get stared at; particularly if you look urban, or don't wear a lilac anorak or your children wear black.
Provincial racism is rife as are right wing views generally.

When we go back to visit, we so excited by the things in the shops, and being able o talk in more than a whisper in cafes...

Ahh , all close to my heart.

It's a big decision , huge. But you have more creative time and spend less money, and both those things are good; your priorities as to what makes life good change I reckon.

My heart just sinks when I see babies being pushed around in buggies in London - right at exhaust level, with tarmac and concrete everywhere.
And nametaken - have you moved to League of Gentlemen country?!
Or do you walk around with "We're better than you, thick country types!" T shirts on?!

Yes I do sometimes think I've strayed into The League of Gentlement LOL.

Having finished moaning, I will say that your money will go much much further in a village than a city. And, life is much much nicer for children.

I left London seven years ago. I live in a country idyll. It's very different to the city but I really like it. I did all my city stuff already - I don't want to go clubbing and I was never that interested in shopping. We eat out a lot here and there are tons of great restaurants. You can drive and get out of second gear, you can park your car without having to buy a ticket.

In terms of village life though you have to get involved or choose not to participate at all. After some initial reluctance I threw myself into it and now it's fab, I've made some great new friends (many of them city escapees) changed some of the lesser aspects of village life and generally grown fond of some of the more eccentric types you get out here.

The only thing that pisses me off now are the farking tourists taking photos of my house

We moved out of central London to the Midlands about three years ago. I grew up in a small village and was happy to move back to one, but where we are now there is no shop and you do have to drive almost everywhere. I have gradually made friends but few in walking distance - it does take a while.

Most people even in villages don't live in the big house with an acre of land and chickens - they live in modern estates or miniscule cottages. I think villagers are rightly suspicious of incomers who buy up the best houses and then don't get involved in village life at all. But if you have kids that shouldn't be a problem.

granny- I found that too.
Where we live ther tends to be one or two massive houses in the village- usually owned by the Doctor's family, or a big businessman, and then the cottages, with old retired people, then the council houses who's mum's clean the houses of everyone else.
It's really divisive, the class system is alive and kicking. And everyone is expected to know their place within it too.

We don't live in a village, so it doesn't affect us as much, but I find it quite horrifying....there are exceptions tho'- ther eare villages that are full of arty incomers, or retired colonels...

Someone wrote "bugger off back to London" on a questionaire dropped through their letterbox .

Another happened to mention that they had grown up in the area, and returned; someone said to her- "Why didn't you tell us? We'd have talked to you if we'd known"

But it's not all League of Gentlemen.....

Dibbler, I live in the same county as you and don't find it to be 'cheap' and the parking def isn't bargain basement stuff ! The green space is good though

The thought of village life fills me horror, I'm afraid.

NDP- Its relative - we lived in Sussex before and the house price difference was huge. We do live in rather a dinky town - theres even free short stay parking right on the high street. The normal parking rate is half what we paid in our previous small town, but we are on a special rate at the moment as the road works were thought to have the potential to depress business.

We obv live in diff areas of the county . I wish there was free parking here !

I live in the bit between Evesham, Upton and Worcester