Is the UK’s weather massively underrated?

[simmo]

Its the perfect balance.  We rarely have days when its unbearable.  Here in the south its perfect.

[Marisawright]

On 28/12/2020 at 23:20, simmo said:

Its the perfect balance.  We rarely have days when its unbearable.  Here in the south its perfect.

I always remember going down to live in London after I graduated (from Aberdeen) and being absolutely stunned by the weather.  Compared to Scotland, the warmth and sunshine were great.

I miss two things about the UK.  One is the closeness to Europe for holidaying.  The other is the weather (in the south).  I'm not one for baking in hot sun.

[Toots]

I've worked in one of the wettest areas of the UK - the Lake District and one of the driest  - Norfolk.  The weather never really bothered me in either of them and I worked outdoors.  The winters could be a bit harsh and there was a lot of snow in Norfolk.  I worked for a year in London and it had one of those very hot summers which I found stifling and unpleasant.  It was a relief to get up to Scotland to see Mum where it was much cooler.  The UK's weather is variable depending on where you live but it is usually never extreme.

 

 

[calNgary]

Its been snowing 'up North' this last few days, my brother sent me a screen shot of his car temp gauge when going to work yesterday (albeit early hours of the morning) and it was minus 3, stuff that, ive been here too long to cope with those temps now,lol. I would like to go to the snow with the kids as the youngest doesnt remember it at all , if it was only for a few days as i just seem to feel the cold too much nowadays to stay in it any longer. 

 Cal x

[MARYROSE02]

Snow and ice is fun when you are young but the older you get the more scarier it becomes?

[calNgary]

2 minutes ago, MARYROSE02 said:

Snow and ice is fun when you are young but the older you get the more scarier it becomes?

Im scared of the cold more than the sledging or skiing,lol.. 

Cal x

[MARYROSE02]

I was thinking about leaving work in England at 930pm on winter nights and how, even with de-icer or whatever it is called, it took ages to clear my windscreen. Some of the blokes there used to take off like those blokes I've seen in some motor races? They RUN for their cars, desperate to be first out of the carpark and were able to see through an inch or two of clear screen!

[newjez]

4 minutes ago, MARYROSE02 said:

I was thinking about leaving work in England at 930pm on winter nights and how, even with de-icer or whatever it is called, it took ages to clear my windscreen. Some of the blokes there used to take off like those blokes I've seen in some motor races? They RUN for their cars, desperate to be first out of the carpark and were able to see through an inch or two of clear screen!

Ford fixed that.

[newjez]

On 29/12/2020 at 21:43, Toots said:

I've worked in one of the wettest areas of the UK - the Lake District and one of the driest  - Norfolk.  The weather never really bothered me in either of them and I worked outdoors.  The winters could be a bit harsh and there was a lot of snow in Norfolk.  I worked for a year in London and it had one of those very hot summers which I found stifling and unpleasant.  It was a relief to get up to Scotland to see Mum where it was much cooler.  The UK's weather is variable depending on where you live but it is usually never extreme.

 

 

Thinking of going on holiday in Norfolk this year. I worked in Norwich for a while. Loved it.

[Toots]

Recent photos of the snow in parts of Scotland.  Caspar the wee West Highland enjoying himself in the snow and a full moon over the Biggar Hills.

 

[simmo]

 

6 hours ago, MARYROSE02 said:

I was thinking about leaving work in England at 930pm on winter nights and how, even with de-icer or whatever it is called, it took ages to clear my windscreen. Some of the blokes there used to take off like those blokes I've seen in some motor races? They RUN for their cars, desperate to be first out of the carpark and were able to see through an inch or two of clear screen!

My car has a heated front window screen it takes less than a minute to clear frost,  heated steering wheel and heated seats.  Not keen on the heated seats as they make you feel like you have messed yourself.  And no its not showing off - its a little corsa but somehow packed with goodies.

[newjez]

1 hour ago, simmo said:

 

My car has a heated front window screen it takes less than a minute to clear frost,  heated steering wheel and heated seats.  Not keen on the heated seats as they make you feel like you have messed yourself.  And no its not showing off - its a little corsa but somehow packed with goodies.

I had a Volvo in 95 that had heated seats. I liked them because the heat was instant, and you didn't need to wait for the main heater to get warm.

Saying that, we have a scenic ATM and it heats up pretty quickly. BIL has a ford focus with that mesh stuff in the window which removes ice in no time.

Most "standard cars" have heaps of extras nowadays. Some of them better than others, but I do like the way you can always leave the lights on and not have to worry about it.

[Tulip1]

7 hours ago, newjez said:

Thinking of going on holiday in Norfolk this year. I worked in Norwich for a while. Loved it.

There are many beautiful places in Norfolk to visit.  

Edited January 3, 2021 by Tulip1

[Tulip1]

1 hour ago, simmo said:

 

My car has a heated front window screen it takes less than a minute to clear frost,  heated steering wheel and heated seats.  Not keen on the heated seats as they make you feel like you have messed yourself.  And no its not showing off - its a little corsa but somehow packed with goodies.

My sons car has heated seats and I don’t like then either. It just doesn’t feel right having a warm bum. Warm car yes but not a warm bum, it’s just weird. 

[Tulip1]

22 minutes ago, newjez said:

I had a Volvo in 95 that had heated seats. I liked them because the heat was instant, and you didn't need to wait for the main heater to get warm.

Saying that, we have a scenic ATM and it heats up pretty quickly. BIL has a ford focus with that mesh stuff in the window which removes ice in no time.

Most "standard cars" have heaps of extras nowadays. Some of them better than others, but I do like the way you can always leave the lights on and not have to worry about it.

I like never having to think about lights being on too.  I still use de-icer sometimes when I’m going to work because I can’t hang about but cars have certainly come a long way in terms of heating up quickly and my cars blowers are very fast.  

Edited January 3, 2021 by Tulip1

[ramot]

42 minutes ago, newjez said:

 

Saying that, we have a scenic ATM and it heats up pretty quickly. 

Sounds lovely, The view from my local ATM is pretty dull !!

[simmo]

4 hours ago, newjez said:

I had a Volvo in 95 that had heated seats. I liked them because the heat was instant, and you didn't need to wait for the main heater to get warm.

Saying that, we have a scenic ATM and it heats up pretty quickly. BIL has a ford focus with that mesh stuff in the window which removes ice in no time.

Most "standard cars" have heaps of extras nowadays. Some of them better than others, but I do like the way you can always leave the lights on and not have to worry about it.

That's what mine has. Tiny mesh worries in the windscreen. Very fast.   I have set the headlights to flash on unlock, handy when you forget where you are parked.

[proud preston]

On 16/09/2020 at 04:53, Red Rose said:

Never too hot, never too cold, doesn’t rain that much (not like Vancouver anyway), hardly snows, September is always beautifully sunny, we do have occasional flooding but nothing extreme. If nothing else, it is fairly variable. I lived in Perth, WA for a couple of years and granted it’s a lot sunnier but the weather there was mind numbingly boring because every day was the same: blue sky, no clouds, big yellow blazing ball of sun, day after day after day!!!

Ha ha- yes - here in Qld it’s like being in The Truman Show- it’s blue sky and sunshine every single day. The leaves are always green and on the trees. I’m ecstatic when there is the odd anomaly and it’s grey sky. I don’t say this though as it reinforces that I’m the archetypal whinging Pom. 

I never recall the weather getting me down in the UK - in fact I’d be excited and appreciative of the odd clear blue day, cosy and peaceful on a grey rainy day, motivated to walk for miles on a cold, icy Winter day, intrigued on a foggy day ............

[MARYROSE02]

2 hours ago, proud preston said:

Ha ha- yes - here in Qld it’s like being in The Truman Show- it’s blue sky and sunshine every single day. The leaves are always green and on the trees. I’m ecstatic when there is the odd anomaly and it’s grey sky. I don’t say this though as it reinforces that I’m the archetypal whinging Pom. 

I never recall the weather getting me down in the UK - in fact I’d be excited and appreciative of the odd clear blue day, cosy and peaceful on a grey rainy day, motivated to walk for miles on a cold, icy Winter day, intrigued on a foggy day ............

Well, "blue sky and sunshine every single day. The leaves are always green and on the trees?" And, so far, 6 months on, no lock down.

I can imagine not a few people in the UK, especially in the midst of a Covid-19 100 per cent lock down winter thinking, "I'll have some of that. It sounds just like Spain."

[MARYROSE02]

As I write, I'm sitting in the cafe with my brother.  No, he has gone to the beach 400 metres from our apartment.  The cafe is packed with people enjoying lunch *NO MASKS.

Outside the wide open doors to the cafe a palm tree's fronds are "waving" in the slight breeze, the sun is shining,  the temperature is about 28 degrees C. Horrible is all I can say.

[Freemantle]

European weather does not phase me in one instance! I love the cold, frost, snow, rain but  dont do wind!  Heat is ok if I dont have to venture out in it and the air conditioning is kind to me . My husband puts a beanie on and a sweater when he comes back to Fremantle from up north!

[Guest AltyMatt]

I left UK in January many years ago. I  remember standing on the train platform at Blackheath for my morning commute - it was still dark and I could feel the cold through the soles of my feet. I arrived in Sydney to a balmy summer.

I much prefer living in a warmer climate but enjoy trips to the Snowy Mountains in winter or Blackheath (NSW) to see the autumn leaves. Nice to visit, but don't want to put up with the damp and darkness for months.

[FatCat]

On 16/09/2020 at 04:53, Red Rose said:

 I lived in Perth, WA for a couple of years and granted it’s a lot sunnier but the weather there was mind numbingly boring because every day was the same: blue sky, no clouds, big yellow blazing ball of sun, day after day after day!!!

Speak for yourself!

Every day was the same: blue sky, no clouds, big yellow blazing ball of sun, day after day after day

SOUNDS PERFECT TO ME............

I absolutely adore that kind of weather, and makes me feel happy to live in that environment

If I wanted to experience British weather again. I would return to Britain or live in Melbourne.

 

Funny actually. I adore hot weather. But my Aussie work colleague hates hot weather and is quite irritable in it, she is really only contented in winter or rain. I say we must have both been born in the wrong countries.

 

[Freemantle]

9 hours ago, FatCat said:

Speak for yourself!

Every day was the same: blue sky, no clouds, big yellow blazing ball of sun, day after day after day

SOUNDS PERFECT TO ME............

I absolutely adore that kind of weather, and makes me feel happy to live in that environment

If I wanted to experience British weather again. I would return to Britain or live in Melbourne.

 

Funny actually. I adore hot weather. But my Aussie work colleague hates hot weather and is quite irritable in it, she is really only contented in winter or rain. I say we must have both been born in the wrong countries.

 

I do prefer colder climates, love snow, ice etc. I have had to adjust my daily life by getting up early, doing the housework and gardening before showering for work and then a late siesta before enjoying the cooler evenings. My wardrobe is easy, t shirts, shorts and flippies.. time for a garage sale!!

 

[ramot]

I wonder if there is an opposite syndrome to the SAD syndrome? I like a warm consistent sunny climate with blue skies, and after the last three  3 days of dull wet  weather grey cloudy skies 🌧 ️ with no sign of the sun  I am already depressed!!