May 22, 2012

Anglophile Alert: Win a Dream Home in London

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This is a rather unique use of social media that I think is worth mentioning. A house that was featured on one of my Favorite British shows, Grand Designs, is being given away in a contest that anyone can enter! They've been trying to sell the house, but in the down economy, they can't find a … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the East: At Play in the Field of Gnomes

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Two things happened this week, I moved into a new home, and I bought my first garden gnome.  To be fair, I bought it ironically, but I'm now a gnome owner just the same.   And the most awesome thing about my gnome, apart from it's essential gnomeness, is the fact that it is powered by the sun, … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: Britain on a Student Budget

We received a message from one of our readers, Emily, this week. She had some questions about living in the North East: Hello fellow anglophiles! This email is mostly for Lisa, but I guess anybody could help me out! I am a student at a university in the Los Angeles area and starting in January of … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: And Bingo was its Name-o

I have known for a couple of weeks now that I wanted to write a post about social clubs, but I am having a difficult time describing the atmosphere of a social club because there is just nothing like it in the US. A social club is like a marriage of an American Legion club and your local dive bar. … [Read more...]

Dispatches From London: A Tiny piece of America

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I'm always a bit caught off guard when an American trend invades England. Three years ago, posh bowling alleys were springing up all over SoHo and cheerleading and line-dancing are available at the hottest dance studios in London. There's one I've been avoiding though, as I think it's almost too … [Read more...]

8 Things a British Ex-pat Might Miss About Britain

This really cool post comes via the excellent blog, A Brit out of Water - the tales of a British Ex-pat living in the USA. He recently waxed philosophical about 8 things he might occasionally miss about the UK. Here's a couple of my favorites: 4. You hear somebody saying that something is … [Read more...]

Anglophile Reviews: Someday My Prince will Come by Jerramy Fine

This Anglophile Review was written by my lovely wife, Jackie Thomas. Let me first start by saying, this is not the type of book that I would usually read. Jonathan handed it to me and asked me if I would review it for Anglotopia. I am not a huge fan of the “chick-lit” genre, in fact … [Read more...]

Anglophile Review: Postcards from Across the Pond

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First, a little disclaimer. Postcards from Across the Pond is written by Mike Harling, whom also happens to be a fantastic ex-pat columnist here at Anglotopia. That being said, he sent me his hilarious book for review. Mike's book is simply delightful. I love reading about the exploits of Americans … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the South: The Tax Man Cometh

It's April first, and to an American this means just two things: 1) when you arrive at work in the morning, you will be handed a big promotion that comes with double your current salary and a cushy, corner office (that would be the April Fools item), and 2) the Tax Deadline is drawing near. If … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: What it means to be an Expat

Several things this week have made me consider "what it means to be an expat" and some observations have come to my attention as I have pondered this. As usual, I will preface this by pointing out this is my personal experience and while everyone's experience is probably going to be different I … [Read more...]

Good Blog Post: 27 Banal Observations of a Recent Immigrant

I came across this excellent blog post across my Twitter feed the other day. Jane Copland is a recent immigrant to the UK and she recently wrote a post about some of her observations about living in the UK (specifically London). Many are spot on and hilarious. So, I thought I'd share the post with … [Read more...]

Google Streetview Comes to the UK

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I woke up to an exciting technological and Anglophile development this morning. Google Maps has finally activated the Google Streetview feature in the UK. And it's not just limited to London. After months of driving in circles, Google Streetview has come to 25 cities in the UK … [Read more...]

Dispatches From the South: A Bit of Tottie

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  In front of me, a narrow, cobbled street; behind me, an Inn built in 1660. To my left, a group of forty-somethings discuss the relative merits of Italy versus France as a holiday destination; to my right, a couple of (perhaps) twenty-somethings discuss the stoking new X-Box Cycle Racing game … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: My Top Ten Favorite British Products

I am doing this list as a countdown because it is definitely in ascending order of importance to my life, or rather the items are in order of the level to which I couldn't live without them . Britain really has the convenience thing down. In some ways I think the "convenience" influence is an … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: The Scrappiest Nation on Earth

My husband's uncle Colin is a taxi driver here in Hartlepool and I remember the first time I met him I thought he looked like he might have just been released from prison. Since this first meeting I have gotten to know him and I have found he is an incredibly sweet and caring man, and he's a handy … [Read more...]

Anglophile Rant: Britain’s Terrible Immigration Policies

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It's the ultimate Anglophile dream: living and working the UK. Unfortunately, in the current economic climate, this dream will be even harder to achieve for Anglophiles looking to hop across the pond and it bloody well pisses me off. Because of my Anglophilia disease, not a day goes by where I … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: Top 10 Most Peculiar Things About Britain

There are some aspects of British life that I just can't quite wrap my head around. It isn't in my nature to call things good or bad, just... different. Here is my list of the top ten things in Britain that I find very peculiar. I will let you be the judge. 1. No outlets in the bathroom This is … [Read more...]

Anglophile Review: The Anglo Files: A Field Guide to the British by Sarah Lyall

I'm going to be in the minority amongst my fellow Anglophile bloggers, but I liked The Anglo Files: A Field Guide to the British by Sarah Lyall. This book came out late last year and I got it for Christmas from my wife, who suffers through my Anglophilia with an understanding that borders on … [Read more...]

Dispatches From the South: Out and About in Horsham, England

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I live just two blocks away from the town centre, a statement sure to confuse everyone as the Brits don't know what a "Block" is and Americans don't tend to use the term "Town Center" on a routine basis.  (For some reason, I can only imagine it being used in a military context: "Captain, the … [Read more...]

Dispatches From the North: A Guide to the Northeast England Dialect

There seemed to be a strong response to my discussion of language and accents last week so I decided to expound on that a bit more. When I moved here I realized that I had two choices. I could either try and most likely fail to pick up the local dialect as quickly as possible or else I could be … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: A Holiday in the Lake District

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  I was unsure what to write about this week since there seem to be so many things going on, and none of them related to one another. Last week started with many in the construction and manufacturing trades going on strike, my father-in-law was on strike from his construction job and my … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the South: What’s the Difference?

When you first arrive in the UK, everything is, quite naturally, different.  The early days of your visit are filled with the exciting sounds of unfamiliar accents and the pleasing presence of alien surroundings.  Soon, however, these fade into the background hum of daily life, and then the real … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the South: British High Culture or Something Like That…

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  Here's the scenario: you're fortunate enough to be in Britain over the holidays. Your host tells you there is a traditional Christmas play being performed at the local theatre.  And you go.   What you find is a play in search of a plot with dialogue delivered at the expense of local, … [Read more...]

Dispatches from the North: My British Journey Begins…

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  I have been a resident of the UK for nearly 6 months, and although in comparison to my first weeks here I have definitely come very far, I still have so many things to assimilate to. Thinking back to my very first day here, I felt thrust right into the thick of it. After our wedding my husband … [Read more...]

Introducing our Second Expat Correspondent on the Ground: Mike Harling

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Even more fantastic news for Anglotopia! We now have a second American expat living in the UK who is going to write a weekly column! His name is Mike Harling and many of you may already know him from his already successful blog, Postcards from Across the Pond as well as his book of the same … [Read more...]

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