British Expatriate Network

any UK mums in Poconos Pennsylvania ?

Hi dinan1, sorry I'm not in the poconos at all. The nearest one I know of to you would be Mich. She is a mum that comes on this board occasionally. She is south of you.

Then there are quite a few Brits in NJ and there are a couple that are just inside NYstate, near High point in NJ. )

I'm in NJ. We have been considering the poconos as a possible relocation in a couple of years but doubt if that is likely.

Do you like it there and how long have you been here?

Zed

Hi

Whilst not quite living near you (my local geography isn't too good), I am at least in Pennsylvania - we moved here a week ago. I have 2 teenage children who are about to start school in Topton. Does this help?

Just to vere completely off-topic, welcome to the US and Britnet, Judimo. D

Hi Judimo,
Yes Topton I think is south of AllenTown right? if so You are about 1 hour 20 mins away from poconos.

Zed and Ben yes Poconos is pretty nice place to live a bit hicky as in small towns with big wallmart hangout spot for local teens. But you get used to it. as long as I get cable and internet hook up I'm fine anywhere. But if you are used to New York fast pace life Poconos is much much sloooowwwweeeer pace of life. schools here are not great fall below national grade. Population is increasing ten fold since people moving out of NYC where Rents and parkingspot are so high.

Hi

Thanks for your reply, yes, I think we're about half an hour south of Allentown, just off Route 100.

We too are waiting for cable to be installed - it's been a wait as we've had to get things like this done through our sponsor as we don't have our social security numbers through yet, but we're getting there! Furnishing an empty house from scratch is very daunting (we left the UK quite quickly for my husband's job) and so didn't bring any furniture with us at all. It's a bit like when you get your first house but more daunting as you want everything to be as perfect as your last home.

Getting to know people around here is proving difficult as we're very remote and I have no idea where to start. The company my husband works for is very small so isn't experienced in bringing people from overseas and helping to settle them in. We're a bit "Billy No Mates" at the moment and rely on the internet, MSN and web cams!

I am beginning to wonder about the weather though - I know I was told it was like the UK but more extreme, but last night took the biscuit - it rattled the floor boards all night, and has flooded the basement and garden. Can't wait for Thursday's hurricane - give me a wet Manchester any day (joking).

Anyway, it's nice to chat to somebody who's been here a while, knows the area and is from England - do you miss it? I didn't think I would but I do - things like family and certain foods mainly.

Hope you don't mind be chatting on to a perfect stranger - write back if you want to keep in touch. Best wishes, Judith

hi dinan1 and judimo,

Judimo - hopefully you'll start to settle more as time goes by.

dinan1 - what you have said about the poconos are the things that put us off from moving there and I don't mean that in a rude offensive way. I imagine that with peole leaving NYC and NJ to move to the Poconos as its more affordable will indeed leave it unaffordable by the time we get the money together to buy a house.

Zed

Hi Judith
I'm Steve, my wife is Colleen. I hope you dont mind us writing to you but we too have just moved to pennsylvania and also feel like Billy no mates! I arrived for a new job alone in September and stayed 4 weeks before going back to Portsmouth UK to get Colleen. We've been here together 3 weeks. Exactly like you we rented an empty apartment and have spent too frantic weeks furnishing it and also trying to start a new job in a strange country.

Colleen is feeling homesick and now a little bored. We expected the community we moved into to be perfect to make freinds but we havnt seen anyone! The americans dont go out much without cars do they!

If its ok with you we'd like to keep in touch and exchange some new experiences about the move from the UK. We live near Lancaster which is about 30 mins from Denver, 45 mins from Reading, so I think near you. It would be great to hear from you

Steve & Colleen

Hi Steve and Colleen!

I'm Damien and I am moving to just South of Reading in about 6 weeks time, I am currently living in Southampton (UK not PA)

how have you settled in so far?

Steve & Colleen.

1. Welcome

2. No you can't get decent bread and cakes anymore.

3. Americans don't do friends.

Yes they do. They just do it at a rate comparable to a Devon village. You've been here ten years, you know your way around, but you're still not a local.
But generally, yes you're right.

Sat at the pool the other day, I realized I have more good friends here than I ever had in the UK. Or maybe that's 'cause I always take beer to the pool