Hello Fchatters, I'm moving from Brazil to UK (Leamington Spa) in October. It will be a big challenge, as the cultures are very different, as well as the climate, cuisine and all other details. Not a Fcar owner (yet), and I'll have a simple lifestyle as Senior Engineer in automotive industry. Is there any tips and tricks that british residents here could share with me? Thank you all in advance, Victor
UK section as stated. I'm about 120 miles North of you, maybe a little more. I've visited Leamington on many an occasion. Typically British and what many Americans might imagine the UK is like everywhere if they have never been. It is a lovely place and the weather generally better than where I live. However it will be vastly cooler on the whole I would think from Brazil. I worked for Warwick University not too many years back. Worked closely with Rover (the university did anyway) and Jaguar (as it was then). I worked with a Steve Nevey, if you look him up he was with Red Bull (I assume it is F1 you are in) as an IT guy and one time designer. Eventually a business Manager after he went back to F1 after Warwick Univ. http://www.f1inschools.co.uk/latest-news/steve-nevey-takes-on-business-development-role-with-f1-in-schools/ Good luck with the move, hopefully you will enjoy what the UK has to offer.
Thank you Malc. No, not F1. I'll be in Ricardo plc, who does some consulting on F1 transmissions... So in the future who knows? I'll ask a moderator to move the thread. Thank you guys!
Nice area with pretty good access all over - kept vibrant by the students from the University When you arrive it will probably be about 10 deg c and its only going to get colder for the next few months unfortunately
Yeah, very different from brazilian winter (avg. low 13C, avg high 25C)... But when cold you can always add more layers. When hot, in the oher hand, you can reduce layers only to a legal limit... But I'll have to learn to deal with cold. Driving everyday in RHD is something that worries me a little bit.
Boa Tarde Victor, Bem-Vindo a Inglaterra. Não muito mais para dizer, queria apenas te desejar boa sorte com a jogada (I'm hoping my rusty Portuguese has got that last bit correct, I never learnt the verb for "moving" in a relocation sense!)
Boa Tarde Derek! Muito obrigado!i Seu português é realmente bom! But the verb "moving" in this case should be "mudança". "Jogada" would mean "play", but also made sense!
Do not worry about RHD .... because you are on the other side of the road but also sat in the other side of the car it all evens itself out and very quickly makes sense. I do quite a bit of LHD driving in Europe and after only a few hundred meters it becomes natural .... just pray you don't meet me coming the other way in the first 50 meters !
The driving on the wrong side of the road. I have many stories but only ever doing it short term (vacation and short business trips). I have never driven on the right for more than three weeks. In the short term as above, the steering being on the correct side for the country helps immensely however in my experience you need to remind yourself from time to time because if 'red mist' occurs you can end up driving on the wrong side. I've done it in the USA and Europe on a few occasions and one of them ended up not so favourable to all involved. I do think though, over time it becomes second nature.
It absolutely does... when I moved from driving in the UK to driving in Dubai it became second nature very quickly - to the extent that it felt odd coming back to the UK and driving on the left again. That said, I have spent many years travelling thousands of miles through the USA on vacation so I maybe did have a decent grounding. To confuse matters even more, I brought my LHD car home from Dubai with me so I now drive both RHD and LHD cars on the left here in the UK and the right in Europe lol
I started visiting the USA in 1988 and almost every year up until 2008 and riving each time. I went then back again on business in 2014. I too have driven a good few thousand miles there. Since 2010 I've gone to Italy almost every year and hired a car too. Plenty of practice but keep your head on what you are doing. After a couple of months I suspect you'll have forgotten all about driving on the right
I hope I can figure it out...And I don't intend visiting Brazil too often, so I believe I'll have plenty time to practice RHD driving... One thing that may be silly, but I am a little bit worried with diet in UK. I do not know a lot about what people eat on a daily basis, but surely not the brazilian rice and beans. But I'll survive I think...
You can get almost every type of food in the UK. If you just want to exist on Brazilian rice and beans I'm quite sure that will be possible, but if you want to be more adventurous you can probably find a Mexican restaurant or two - even around Leamington Spa. If you like Curry (Indian), American fast food or Pizza, you will get fat in no time.
Well, as I am going to live in UK, I'd like to merge in the culture. Just trying to figure out how to do it.
http://www.royal-leamington-spa.co.uk/las-iguanas/ I'm sure the people you work with will help you with the culture. Not something to worry about. Leamington is a nice place to live. My sister lived there for several years after university.
Thank you all for the support! Nice tips... I'll update more after my arrival! Yes, very good idea! Join me when I do it!
Or even the PHR (Prancing Horse Register for enthusiastic non owners). UK based car Forums are another good place to register.
Hi I travel up,that way a couple of times a month for work PM me if you want to meet up Regards Michael
I'll work and invest on it...give me some years. I'm lurking on Pistonheads...and enjoying. Michael, Thank you! I'll contact you after my arrival.
Dear Victor, First of all I'd like to congratulate you and send you best wishes, both personal and professional, for this new phase in your life. All the best to you! Being in the UK only last week, I think it's a wonderful place to live and work. It's one of my absolute favorite places on Earth. Supercarwise, strolling in central London for no longer than 10 minutes will be more than enough to grant you sights for sore eyes: Astons, Bentleys and 911s pass you by almost as frequently as a Ford Ecosport or a Kia Sportage in our beloved Brazil. Kindest regards and if you ever find yourself in Portugal, please let me know! Nuno.
Hello fellows, I`ve arrived few days ago and wow, what a lovely city is Leamington Spa. Don`t have much to say about London because i`ve only seen Heathrow and Paddington, nothing more. I was worried about the cuisine, but as stated before by other colleagues I`m finding wherever I want. All people who I`ve spoke were super polite, I do not have any complain about anything yet. Hope the honeymoon with the country doesn`t end too soon. Thank you very much Nuno. I am really excited with this new chapter of my life. Next time you`re in UK let me know via PM. Best Regards, Victor