Buffalo, NY to Essex

Hi I'm Ariana, moving from upstate New York to Rayleigh. Still playing the waiting game with my visa (really wish I has used the expedited service...) but will hopefully go over in September or October. I'm moving to marry and live with my fiance Tom. Stumbled across this site looking for some much needed visa advice, and I am so thrilled to see advice for what to pack, how to bring pets over, differences between the UK and US you would only know by living in the UK.  I have seen some similar forums, but this one is so organized- I've already learned so much in the past few days. I look forward to getting to know everyone!

Welcome to the forum .

Good luck with getting your visa - I'm sure it won't take too long, even without using priority processing (all the priority service does is put your application to the front of the line so it is opened ahead of other applications... it doesn't speed up the actual visa processing time) - and all the best for your move to the UK .

Thank you! I've seen a lot of people post their processing times with a turn around of 2 weeks or less with priority service, but I guess it really depends on how many applications there are to be processed, and of course the individual circumstances of each application. That does make me a bit less anxious thanks:) Sheffield received my application 5 days ago so we'll see.

Good luck!

PS: your username? Excellent.

Haha thank you. My fiance just saw Devin in London a few months ago, so I'm hoping the live music situation is similar to what I'm used to in Buffalo. I know it is hard for US bands to tour in the UK, especially if they aren't attached to a major label- but I will probably be able to see more UK and European bands that rarely come near my little corner of the US.

We've seen Devin in London four times, Australia twice, and NY three times.

I think you'll be very pleased with the live music scene out here. There really is a lot on offer.

Lucky! I have only seen him in Toronto but hope to add to that soon. I am really excited to check out all of the venues in London, and to be close enough to Europe to take advantage of all of the summer music festivals.

Just wanted to say hi and welcome! I moved from Buffalo NY to Essex just 3 weeks ago!

Thank you! How do you like Essex so far? And where in Buffalo are you from?

We live in Billericay, which I think is a very nice town. It is very walkable and an easy commute to London. The people have all been very friendly and welcoming. They always seem surprised that anyone would move from the States to be in the UK, which is the exact same reaction people had when my husband moved from the Uk to the US!!  I guess the grass is always greener!

I lived in South Buffalo most of my life, then in the Village of Hamburg for the last 5 years. Where are you from?

Well your town is about 12 miles from where I'm moving:-) I grew up in South Buffalo and West Seneca, and my family moved to City of Tonawanda about 10 years ago. I just gave up my gorgeous apartment on the upper West Side/Elmwood village area to move in with my family/pare down/start gearing up for the big move. Rayleigh is a walkable community as well, which is really exciting because I'm not entirely sure I want to drive in the UK. The public transport is lightyears ahead of what it is in WNY so it's possible to get by without a car.

You'll only be two train stops from me! What a small world.

Regarding the driving, I've only tried once so far, and it was later on a Sunday afternoon. When we buy a new car, it will have to be an automatic because this shifting with my left hand is way too awkward! Thankfully, my husband is a UK native and doesn't mind doing all of the driving for now.

Good luck with your move!   

I predict you will wonder why people here complain about the winters....

I don't actually mind the snow, I suppose because I'm so used to it. When I've visited here in winter I never thought it was too terrible, but it will be interesting to see how I react to more than 10 days of winter here. I sometimes think rain can be more discouraging to deal with than snow. 

I don't actually mind the snow, I suppose because I'm so used to it. When I've visited here in winter I never thought it was too terrible, but it will be interesting to see how I react to more than 10 days of winter here. I sometimes think rain can be more discouraging to deal with than snow. 

Actually, I think sonofasailor meant the opposite... there is almost no snow at all in winter in the UK .

Apart from last couple of winters, where we have had cold temperatures and significant snow (i.e. a few inches), I don't think England, especially the south of England, has had more than a couple of inches of snow per year in almost 15 years.

The temperatures can vary a lot year on year though:
- Christmas Day 2010, in Bristol (SW England) it was -6 Celsius (21F) and everything was icy (we'd had a few inches of snow the week before).
- Christmas Day 2011, it was 12 degrees (54F) and raining, with no snow in sight until about February

What people usually complain about is the fact that winters in the UK can be pretty miserable:

- it's dark by 4 pm and doesn't get light until about 8.30 am each day
- it always seems to be raining or drizzling, with dark/grey skies
- it's not usually exceptionally cold, but it's often damp and windy

A lot of people find they tend to feel more miserable during the winter because of the lack of sunlight, and it can be a bit difficult to get used to if you're just moved here... so several people here on the forum have invested in SAD lamps to help .