LIFE: 10 Things I Miss About The UK

Continuing from last weeks reflection on being in the US for the last two years, I thought I'd share a post reflecting on the little things that I miss from the British homeland. Try as I might to not miss things, there are bits and pieces that I do have an aching for.

Train Service - now I know the British rail service has it's issues but when we look at the bare facts, the fact that you can get between cities with a decent service is something I took for granted. As someone who loves train travel I wish it was easier to do the same in the US. It is if you don't live between the East Coast and Chicago. Those of us in Michigan have to do the six hour train journey to Chicago if we ever want to travel across to Washington or New York or even south to say New Orleans. Yes really, you have to go west to go east, or go the long way through Canada.

Curvy Roads - probably an odd thing to miss, but straight roads bore me. As the passenger in the car I love to watch the world go pass but straight roads make the time drag.

The BBC - The British person in me craves the BBC, to me it's the best news source and while I appreciate having BBC America, it's not the same. I miss the random BBC 2 documentaries, Question Time (yes really) to Sunday night drama and the 10 o'clock news.

Reserved British Nature - sometimes America is a little bit too in your face. It wants to share everything with you - baby showers, car stickers about their kids being honor students, to death, politics and especially religion. I miss religion being a private matter - one you don't throw in everyone's face, consider yours to be better then someone else, judge someone because of it, I could go on. 

Food - While British food culture doesn't have the best reputation outside of it's coastline there are certain things I miss; proper fish n chips, sausage rolls, quavers, mushy peas, custard, angels delight, mince pies, biscuits (aside from Oreo's they don't really exist) and proper sausages to name but a few ...

Marks and Sparks - There is nothing that compares to M&S, anywhere. It was my go to shop for pjs, underwear, birthday and Christmas gifts to their food - did I mention how tasty the food is. If I could ship an entire truck load of food from M&S here, I would. 

The NHS - enough said.

Christmas Food - from mince pies to Christmas cake and puddings, they don't really exist here and trying to find decent mincemeat for mince pies last year was just a bit of a challenge. It's hard to have Christmas without the basic Christmas food you're raised with.

History - I guess I took it for granted just how much history the UK has right there, buried and established, from forts, Roman Walls to castles. I was spoilt growing up so close to York that there is breathing, living history around every corner. I miss it even more when I consider if we ever have children they won't grow up having that tangible history of seeing castles, huge cathedrals to Roman roads.

Seaside - although I live in the Mid West, beside the Great Lakes (which happen to be the largest collection of freshwater lakes in the world don't you know) I feel extremely land locked in the US. Growing up an hour away from the seaside in the UK, you get accustomed to salt water, the sea air, fish and chips and rock pools. That all seems a world away even though there's sand and shells just down the road beside the lakes.

What do you think you'd miss from your homeland if you moved countries? Or have you moved and what do you miss the most?

Photographs all my own - York Minster from the walls // Wharram Percy Deserted Medieval Village, East Yorkshire // Flamborough Head, East Yorkshire