Grew up in Devon, now living in Bournemouth on the South Coast. Not a bad little town, a somewhat transient population consisting of students and holiday makers, but within 1/2 hour of the New Forest which has just become a National Park and only an hour or so from London. Spend most of my weekends in the forest where the sight of ponies wandering round amongst the houses and pubs, wild fallow and red deer and beautiful birds of prey are pretty much the norm. I sometimes forget how lucky I am.

mmmmm..... Champion.... Tanglefoot... Black Sheep... Hobgoblin.... mmmmm

mmmmm.... tea.... cream.... scones.... jam...... summer.... mmmmmm

Went to some lovely little villages in Yorkshire Dana. The wheel came off our van (yes, while we were driving) in Hawes so spent a few days there (after fixing it ourselves on the road... AA my arse) and (apart from the obligatory Wensleydale trip) we ventured out to do the Three Peak Challenge (Whernside, Pennyghent, Ingleborough), ended up camping on Whernside which was really scary, trying to keep thoughts of wild moor cats and Yorkshire Rippers at bay. Overall impression of the Dales (sadly didn't get to the North York Moors) was very good: some excellent pubs, top notch beer and would definitely visit again. :thumbsup:

:confused: I don't understand. Am I missing something very simple? I hate it when I do that.

Woohoo!! My family was born and raised Manchestarian, but my Aunt, Uncle and their children went to Paignton, and I spent several months there in my teenage years. It was gorgeous!! They owned a B&B in Torquay. I found the people MUCH friendlier in The tri-cities region than Cambridgeshire.

Ahhh Manchester, my spiritual home. I am originally of Mancunian stock but have defected over the border to Yorkshire. I now live in the foothills of the Peninne Mountains.

Catwoman, that list of beers reads like my perfect saturday night :P Add a large glass of Waggledance and I am in seventh heaven. The area you visited is gorgeous ! If you ever find yourself on this side of the Pennines again I can heartily recommend a walk around Gordale Scar and a visit to Bolton Abbey ( 12th century semi intact and still used abbey)

One of the things I adore about Yorkshire ( and Lancashire come to think about it) are the placenames. You can really see the Danish heritage in the names.

Onyx, people in Cambridgeshire dont like foreigners .....by foreigners I mean people not from Cambridgeshire. :P Or perhaps I am being unfair.....maybe that's my own prejudice ...... Being born in the north gives one an innate disdain for southerners and vice versa:P Unless we're in the company of strangers at which point we unite in our xenophobia

Catwoman--where abouts in Devon?? I am a hopeless Hughes/Plath junkie. They lived in North Tawton, near Exeter. I believe Hughes' widow, Carol, still lives at Court Green.

I think xoxoxoBruce is referring to how the American GI's of WWII woo'ed the English girls; chocolate and nylon stockings for their legs! :)

Phew, while since I've been here. Never seen anything like that article but I've seen plenty of full of it half pissed yanks getting verbally bitchslapped after mouthing off in some of the city's better bars, always a good laugh.

The amount of brits here seems to be going though the roof.

London or the Cellar? :D Good to see you, Jag!

Yeah! Hi Jag!

The only people I know in Cambridgeshire are foreigners... in fact, most people who live in Cambridge proper are foreign.

Cellar, I'm sick of London already and I haven't even managed to bribe a BT engineer to connect my phoneline before the sun starts expanding and swallowing the earth in a firey demise.

See? Switzerland wasn't as bad as you thought. I am eagerly awaiting a return reply on my asylum request from my Aunt just in case things go sour in November. So how do you get on the Net? Broadband? Cable? The University?

Net cafes and uni for now, broadband whenever BT get sorted. London's good fun but the weather is going to get me down. Good luck with the asylum, there's a referendum about to come up over easing up citizenship requirements that looks like passing, I"m sure they'll be willing to take skilled political refugees.

Not at all Toad to answer your leading question, phrased a bit like the infamous 'Are you still beating your wife?' I hooted when I read that article which is, and take it from a Londoner, tripe and onions from start to finish. People on London busses DO NOT JOIN IN ANYTHING. Ever. I was in London this past weekend and went shopping with a friend in the Greenwich Craft Market, five minutes walk from the Cutty Sark dry dock. We went for lunch in the Meeting House restaurant and shared a table with a delightful family on holiday from Chicago who told us they were having the holiday of a lifetime and only wish they had made it here before. They were bowled over by the friendly reception they have recieved wherever they've been. I was there having this conversation, I think the article you pointed us to Toad is bunkum. Prats writing and publishing trouble making crap like that, are trying it on. On a recent TV programme here an American comedian said that the moment it suits the people of the US to stop needing an English theme park the US will nuke the UK as practice. We know it's rubbish and it got a laugh. I personally suggest you ignore the other piece.

BobfromAmerica
 

Hello to all the good people of Britain. So sad to see so much hatred on this and other u.k. boards I have read. Regarding the London Guardian e-mail campaign in Ohio and the nasty replys by many people I can only say please do not judge all americans by the statements of a few idiots. Safe to say that despite our many differences over the Iraq war(I am a republican and support the war ,while most brits do not) the majority of americans,myself included, have always felt love and respect for the british people. Bush will probably be re-elected for reasons other than the war.(taxes,farm policy, jobs,etc.) so please don't think we americans have all lost our minds.While Bush is far from perfect, John Kerry is an absolute joke. As a member of the u.s. senate for the past 20 years he has done little to nothing and during the campaign has changed his position on every issue almost daily,and don't even get me started on his loud mothed wife! Imagine what the Heinz family must have thought when John Heinz brought that piece of work home to meet the family! Well,I've rambled on long enough,just wanted to let you all know that not all americans are jerks,most of us DO realize what a great and true friend we have in Britain,and we thank you for your friendship. I hope to visit your beautiful country someday. God bless and peace to all in the u.k.

For those citizens of the UK and other nations who frequent this (American based) board, I would like to second this sentiment. http://www.cellar.org/images/smilies/wink.gif

I'm too tired to rant. For someone oozing love and respect, he certainly has a thoughtful opinion of Senator and Mrs. Kerry. He sounds like Rush Limbaugh when he's off his meds.