[kidomo]

god help us all

[AverageExcellence]

(Original post by Christianlady)
Ok,

That's sad.

I for one hope that eventually, Ireland will be reunited peacefully, if the Irish people (both in Ireland and Northern Ireland) desire.

There was a time in the USA you know, where the United States almost split. I am glad they didn't, but sadly it took war to reunite the North with the South. It saddens me the grave injustices and cruelty and murder/rape on both sides, however. War is so ugly. I wish there had been a way for the USA to stay United that didn't take a Civil War to keep the States together.

Its a little bit hypocritical that you promote unification and secession from the UK of NI but america repressed the confederacy from having its own self determination.

Typical american double standards

[Joker370]

As a whole we quite like Americans, it's just because we know that you have kind of succeeded us as leaders of the world that we tend to make a lot of American jokes! Ireland is in general a more laid back and welcoming country than England, but you'd find much of England to be friendly - just in the bigger cities people are more brusque, not because you're American, but because its a more fast paced stressful life . Hope that helps.

[silverbolt]

(Original post by Christianlady)
Another poster asked about me studying in England. I would like to study in the UK someday, but not exactly in England. As a descendant of British immigrants, the UK does intrigue me. I would love to learn Gaelic someday, but the study of the English language also fascinates me, since it is the official language of the USA (although the dialects in the USA are different than the dialects in the UK).

So I am curious. How are Americans treated in the UK? I personally have never been. My Mom and sister went, and they fell in love with Ireland. They did not get to go to Scotland. My Mom found people with her maiden name, which she loved, and felt right at home. She said the people were very friendly and nice. She said she did not experience the same friendliness while touring London, England. Is it possible that she did not because she is American?

How are Americans who study at universities around the UK treated? If they mind their own business, are they accepted? If they are patriotic to the USA, are they condemned/made fun of/despised?

It is fascinating to me how I personally have felt a lot of hostility against me on this forum because of my beliefs, as well as because of the country where I was born. It would be cool to know if those who are hostile are mainly residents/citizens of the UK. That would be a good thing to study.

Since I love to study and write, I am going to write about my findings to the responses both on this thread, and the one about what the people in the UK nowadays think about the US's Independence Day, because they are topics that personally interest me.

People are naturally diverse, and it is interesting to see who is friendly, and who is hostile, and why.

Thanks.

my biggest gripe with you is your holier than thou attitude as if your better than everyone else of differing (or no) faiths - which amounts to nothing more than "nah nah nah nah nah my gods better than your god *rasberry" and other such childish outbursts.

And Americans do not speak english you speak American English with its dumb down spellings (its spelt doughnut) and your silly changing of names - faucet for instance - tap was too awkward so what did you do? Took the french word - for tap. Ok sidewalk ill give you that makes more sense than pavement (please note this paragraph was intended with a large amount of irony)

If you come to Ireland do not refer to anything as quaint - American tourists (as well as being so obviously American tourists) are not only brash arrogant and downright rude describe everything as quaint. Its really irritating

[Christianlady]

To all the kind people on this forum,

Thanks for your polite conversation, and thanks so much for those who answered the question of this thread. I wish I could write each one, but I really have to go. I spent too much time as it is.

I am still interested in going to the UK, particularly Northern Ireland, to study for a short period. I would like to see how it is. I would also LOVE to study Gaelic!!!

It is true that oftentimes, some people are more rude anonymously online than others are in real life. For those who are offensive and call me troll and so on, I forgive you. I won't cruel and mean to you however, and I have just decided to no longer respond to anyone who is rude.

[Origami Bullets]

(Original post by Christianlady)
So then the issue is not really the UK at all, but rather the division between Irish people, depending on religion and politics?

To some extent, yes, but the UK put its troops into Northern Ireland during the Troubles. Depending on who you listen to, that was either to maintain law and order, or it was to actively fight the IRA paramilitaries. Very few Unionists like people from GB, because of what happened during the troubles, and very few Irish people refer to the town of Londonderry as that - they call it Derry instead, because they don't want the association with England.

Anyway, it's a deeply complicated and highly contested subject, and it's probably best not to comment on the situation whilst in Ireland unless you have at least a basic understanding of it.

[hahastomp]

(Original post by Christianlady)
Another poster asked about me studying in England. I would like to study in the UK someday, but not exactly in England. As a descendant of British immigrants, the UK does intrigue me. I would love to learn Gaelic someday, but the study of the English language also fascinates me, since it is the official language of the USA (although the dialects in the USA are different than the dialects in the UK).

So I am curious. How are Americans treated in the UK? I personally have never been. My Mom and sister went, and they fell in love with Ireland. They did not get to go to Scotland. My Mom found people with her maiden name, which she loved, and felt right at home. She said the people were very friendly and nice. She said she did not experience the same friendliness while touring London, England. Is it possible that she did not because she is American?

How are Americans who study at universities around the UK treated? If they mind their own business, are they accepted? If they are patriotic to the USA, are they condemned/made fun of/despised?

It is fascinating to me how I personally have felt a lot of hostility against me on this forum because of my beliefs, as well as because of the country where I was born. It would be cool to know if those who are hostile are mainly residents/citizens of the UK. That would be a good thing to study.

Since I love to study and write, I am going to write about my findings to the responses both on this thread, and the one about what the people in the UK nowadays think about the US's Independence Day, because they are topics that personally interest me.

People are naturally diverse, and it is interesting to see who is friendly, and who is hostile, and why.

Thanks.

We don't really like you kind and we hate patriotic americans as much as anyone can hate anything. However, if you pretend to be Canadian, you're all good and welcome with open arms (along with some tea)!

[silverbolt]

(Original post by No Man)
I think you might be interested in reading about the IRA, (which sums up the past conflict of the Northern Irish/Southern Irish pretty well) although Ireland might reunite with Britain eventually, due to its current economic meltdown.

No. No we wont.

(Original post by Christianlady)
So then the issue is not really the UK at all, but rather the division between Irish people, depending on religion and politics?

It goes far beyond that - Ireland has had problems with Britain for centuries considering its forced occupation and such lovely charachters such as Oliver Cromwell and his actions there. Then theres the 1798 rebellion and more recently the 1916 rising and then the civil war (which arose partly out of the 1916 rising), thankfully nearly all of its issues are gone -though NI and ROI will be separate for a long time to come. Ireland has its own problems and the UK is sick of listening to the North

(Original post by Origami Bullets)
That's the sort of comment that can get you into a lot of trouble on either side of the Irish border. I'll try to explain this in as succinct a way as possible.

The Republic is predominantly Catholic, and NI is predominantly Protestant.

The predominantly Catholic IRA have been shooting people, blowing up places (both in Ireland and in GB) and committing atrocities for decades, in the hope that NI could become part of the republic. With the Good Friday Agreement, there has been a reduction in (but not elimination of) violence, and the terrorist IRA has morphed into the political party Sinn Fein. There are, however, some people who wish to continue the fight, and they have formed organisations such as Real IRA, Continuity IRA and RAAD (the latter more to do with drugs than politics, but it has many of the same people, who consider kneecapping to be all part of a good afternoon's fun). People who want NI & RoI to become one are often called Unionists.

On the other hand, most Protestants want NI to remain part of the UK, because they don't want to be joined with a predominantly Catholic country. If there was significant support in the North for becoming a part of RoI, then a referendum would be held, and if it was passed then the UK government would respect the outcome of that referendum, and allow NI and RoI to become one. Just to prove that the UK government would respect that decision - Scotland is holding a referendum on independence in 2014, which could see Scotland splitting away from the UK and becoming a separate country. If it is passed by a majority of voters, then the UK government will allow that to happen.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Troubles

Anyway, you wouldn't do too well to announce the above opinion loudly in a Belfast pub.

and nice completely unbiased and subjective post. not at all designed to demonise catholic republicans. Not to mention that its incorrect. Sinn Fien was started in 1905 by Arthur Griffith which is awhile before the troubles. Its present design headed by Gerry Adams formed in 1970 nearly thirty years since the good Friday agreement.

Oh and no one who was a decent person respected and condoned the Real IRA (both sides of the border) - their cause was lost with their first atrocity. Plus the north is hardly a clean innocent little darlin either - and nor is the UK in regards to IReland

[prog2djent]

I would suggest, if you come to England, travel round the North West, North East, and South West. Londoners are generally horrible people, they hate anyone who isn't from London, and even then, North Londoners hate the East end, and west Londoners hate the south Londones. And, like the US, there is a big North/South Divide, despite the fact ours is completely geographical and yours is more concerned with Landlocked "Bible belt" states against the North East states, or university states, and the Western sea Boards (Cali, Oregon, Washington), so I suppose the N/S divide over here is strictly geographical AND cultural whereas in the US it is just the Culture, since it isn't really north vs south at all.

If you want to go to any countryside areas the best place, in my opinion, is in the County Of Cumbria in the Lake District, as well as Yorkshire and the Pennines within it.

As for the rest, well, I would say the "south" or home counties (between London and the midlands) are very much like N.East states in the US, New England, Conneticut and the like.

Avoid Birmingham and South Yorkshire as much as possible (its OK guys, I'm from Yorkshire I can say that) they are our version of Detroit and Philly. If you enjoy seeing abandoned warehouses, mills, manufacturing plants, a generally "grey" feel, then I suppose it is the place for you haha.

[Veni Vidi Fugi]

We're not actively unfriendly in London and the South. There's just a culture of apathy and a certain level of being reserved. It would be best to not think of yourself as an American and instead consider yourself as a student. Literally nobody cares about the War of Independence, by the way. Oh, and cynicism is deeply embedded in the culture, too.

[Veni Vidi Fugi]

(Original post by prog2djent)
I would suggest, if you come to England, you travel round the North West, North East, and South West. Londoners are generally horrible people, they hate anyone who isn't from London, and, like the US, there is a big North/South Divide, despite the fact ours is completely geographical and yours is more concerned with Landlocked "Bible belt" states against the North East states, or university states, and the Western sea Boards (Cali, Oregon, Washington).

If you want to go to any countryside areas the best place, in my opinion, is in the County Of Cumbria in the Lake District, as well as Yorkshire and the Pennines within it.

As for the rest, well, I would say the "south" or home counties (between London and the midlands) are very much like N.East states in the US, New England, Conneticut and the like.

Avoid Birmingham and South Yorkshire as much as possible (its OK guys, I'm from Yorkshire I can say that) they are our version of Detroit and Philli.

In fairness, Bernard Shaw's observation that "It is impossible for an Englishman to open his mouth without making some other Englishman hate or despise him" still rings true. We're not horrible in the South-East, honest! It's just that everybody hates everyone else :P

[prog2djent]

(Original post by Veni Vidi Fugi)
We're not actively unfriendly in London and the South. There's just a culture of apathy and a certain level of being reserved. It would be best to not think of yourself as an American and instead consider yourself as a student. Literally nobody cares about the War of Independence, by the way. Oh, and cynicism is deeply embedded in the culture, too.

Nah, Cynicism is deeply embedded in the North, elitism and snobbery are embedded in London, which I suppose, in some way, overlaps.

[prog2djent]

(Original post by Veni Vidi Fugi)
In fairness, Bernard Shaw's observation that "It is impossible for an Englishman to open his mouth without making some other Englishman hate or despise him" still rings true. We're not horrible in the South-East, honest! It's just that everybody hates everyone else :P

My first expirience of the South, which was Norfolk, compared with London and Essex, would seem like a more warming place, but I was laughed at beacuse I don't say my A's like a complete muppet,

Bath does not have a double A and an R in it.

Baarth.

[Emaemmaemily]

(Original post by prog2djent)
My first expirience of the South, which was Norfolk, compared with London and Essex, would seem like a more warming place, but I was laughed at beacuse I don't say my A's like a complete muppet,

Bath does not have a double A and an R in it.

Baarth.

That's just our accent. You were wrong for being laughed at; me and my friends (from all over the place) laugh WITH each other over the difference in accents, it can be quite amusing.
I'm from the midlands, and so feel like I'm sat in the middle of the North/South stuff, and have a mix of an accent.

[Origami Bullets]

(Original post by Christianlady)
Another poster asked about me studying in England. I would like to study in the UK someday, but not exactly in England. As a descendant of British immigrants, the UK does intrigue me. I would love to learn Gaelic someday, but the study of the English language also fascinates me, since it is the official language of the USA (although the dialects in the USA are different than the dialects in the UK).

So I am curious. How are Americans treated in the UK? I personally have never been. My Mom and sister went, and they fell in love with Ireland. They did not get to go to Scotland. My Mom found people with her maiden name, which she loved, and felt right at home. She said the people were very friendly and nice. She said she did not experience the same friendliness while touring London, England. Is it possible that she did not because she is American?

TBH no tourist in central London gets a wonderfully friendly reception - the city's landmarks and full of them taking pictures of each other and asking slightly cretinous questions ("was Buckingham Palace built pre-war?" etc.) It's just how it is - and anyway London isn't like the rest of the UK - if you get out into the 'real' UK then you'll find that people are a lot friendlier.

How are Americans who study at universities around the UK treated? If they mind their own business, are they accepted? If they are patriotic to the USA, are they condemned/made fun of/despised?

If they want to get along with people, and don't start engaging in "my country is better than your country"
type arguments (which will generally just get a "sod off where you came from if you don't like it" type response) then they will get along fine. There was an American girl in my year at school, and she made lots of friends and did well.

It is fascinating to me how I personally have felt a lot of hostility against me on this forum because of my beliefs, as well as because of the country where I was born. It would be cool to know if those who are hostile are mainly residents/citizens of the UK. That would be a good thing to study.

The British tend to be a lot more reserved in terms of expressing their religious beliefs. Only 18% of people are practicing members of a religion (according to Ipsos MORI, which is a reliable polling organisation) - and that includes Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Sikhism etc. combined. The rates of Christianity in the UK are far lower than that in the US, with regular church attendance standing at 6%, and the average age of churchgoers rising - it is currently 51. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religio...dom#Attendance In contrast, Gallup reports that 41% of people in the US regularly attend a religious service.

Anyway, you can see from this that the UK is a much less religious country than the US, so your audience, when talking about Christianity, is likely to be rather less receptive. We tend to like to keep our religion to ourselves, and people (almost exclusively evangelical Christians) who preach on the streets are almost universally disliked - not because of what they''re saying, but because they do it in a way that means others cannot avoid listening to it.

As the saying goes - religion is like a penis. It's fine to have one, it's fine to be proud of it. But don't wave it around in public, and definitely don't shove it down my child's throat.

Since I love to study and write, I am going to write about my findings to the responses both on this thread, and the one about what the people in the UK nowadays think about the US's Independence Day, because they are topics that personally interest me.

To be honest with you, very few people in the UK even have an opinion on US Independence Day. We're not bothered that the US has its independence (or any other country to be honest - let's not forget that the British used to own 25% of the world's landmass - as they said - the sun never sets on the British Empire.

Like Thanksgiving, it's got very little relevance to us - just as Guy Fawkes Night has very little relevance to Americans.

[Linzikins]

Tbh I don't think being American is the reason people won't like you.


Fruit loop

[tehFrance]

(Original post by Christianlady)
Is it possible that she did not because she is American?

How are Americans who study at universities around the UK treated? If they mind their own business, are they accepted? If they are patriotic to the USA, are they condemned/made fun of/despised?

Since I love to study and write, I am going to write about my findings to the responses both on this thread, and the one about what the people in the UK nowadays think about the US's Independence Day, because they are topics that personally interest me.

Yes she was American thus hated by everyone... god you are a self-involved lot aren't you.

Fine. Yes, if they mind there business and don't do as several have and butt into a convo some guys are having then impart their stupid advice that no one asked for. You'll be made fun off.

No one cares about your independence day over here, just like no one cares about your other self-invovled holidays... okay that is a lie, the one people middy care about is Thanksgiving and that is only if they follow the NFL.

[Origami Bullets]

(Original post by silverbolt)
and nice completely unbiased and subjective post. not at all designed to demonise catholic republicans. Not to mention that its incorrect. Sinn Fien was started in 1905 by Arthur Griffith which is awhile before the troubles. Its present design headed by Gerry Adams formed in 1970 nearly thirty years since the good Friday agreement.

Oh and no one who was a decent person respected and condoned the Real IRA (both sides of the border) - their cause was lost with their first atrocity. Plus the north is hardly a clean innocent little darlin either - and nor is the UK in regards to IReland

It was as potted a history of the Troubles as I could possible give. The Republicans have committed some of the worst atrocities that occurred during that time. Heck, if one of their bombs had gone off, I wouldn't be sat here today typing (or sat anywhere, for that matter). That's not to say that the British or the Protestants were somehow little beacons of innocent light - of course they weren't. No one is in war.

Sinn Fein is widely regarded as being the political wing of the IRA - whether it existed before that or not.

Feel free to give your own potted history of the Troubles.

[Gales]

Considering your ignorance, I really wouldn't recommend visiting.

[prog2djent]

(Original post by Emaemmaemily)
That's just our accent. You were wrong for being laughed at; me and my friends (from all over the place) laugh WITH each other over the difference in accents, it can be quite amusing.
I'm from the midlands, and so feel like I'm sat in the middle of the North/South stuff, and have a mix of an accent.

I honestly don't care about anybody's accent its just when the english language is messed up that grinds my gears.

For example, being from a Town where, instead of "are you going to the pub", or "are you off to the pub" which is OK I guess, you hear ... "you off't pub tonight" . Like I say, I don't care about accents as long as someone can understand you. The way people from essex say "like" or "girls", being "loiyk" and "giws"