Moving to the UK

[carom]

At the end of the month I will be moving to London, England.

I am looking for a place to live in West London. I'm thinking about the areas of Brentford, Chiswick, Ealing, Kew, and Acton. Does anyone have any suggestions or thoughts on these areas?

I'm also going to be looking for a job. A work visa is not an issue, but I know the economic situation isn't the greatest over there. I am hoping to continue my career but will be happy to take any kind of job. I would like to work in a pub if possible.

I am planning on laying fairly low for the first few months and take advantage of the attractions within the city and survive the olympics. Once I get settled and more established I am hoping to do some traveling throughout Europe. Does anyone have suggestions for things to do that are reasonably priced in Greater London and the UK in general?

I appreciate any input and ideas, thanks.

[Hemi-Cuda]

out of curiosity, what prompted the move? i don't think i could do a move to a different country without at least a job lined up

[carom]

My wife was transferred to her company's London office.

We don't have kids or own a house so figured a change of scenery would be nice.

[icarus]

I don't have an intimate knowledge of those places you list but my vague impressions of each as a SW Londoner are as follows:

Brentford - no idea where it is, no opinion
Chiswick - generally nice area, traffic congestion
Ealing - nice parkspace, strange mix between upper middle class suburbia and low-income minority population, was a flashpoint in last summer's riots
Kew - posh but transport limitations?
Acton - pretty good transport links, where Aussies too cheap to live in Shepherd's Bush live

Check out Gumtree--lots of quality landlords post flats on there. Avoid big lettings agent chains like Foxtons: they will rip you off big time. If you know the area you want to be in try to find small independent lettings agencies in the area (if you don't find anything on Gumtree that suits you).

Work can be tough to find, obviously depends on your industry and CV. If you're happy to work in a bar though there should be plenty of bar jobs around. You can find such listings on Gumtree as well. You may even find a pub you can live above (if you and your wife would be interested in such an arrangement).

You'll probably go through a few weeks of applying without get any or much response but don't get frustrated, just keep at it. Eventually everyone gets a whole lot of interviews/offers at once but takes some time for the interest to germinate.

Lots of free/cheap stuff to do in London and area. For one thing if you like being outside, London and the UK more widely has extensive public pathways. For another, most major museums are free.

[Flabbibulin]

My dad lives in Brentford right on the Thames. His office is fairly close as well. Decent enough area with some great activity on the Thames and easy access to the city via train. Richmond is the best of the lot, but Im not sure what sort of prices you would be looking at. Either way, Richmond is probably where you'll go for social purposes as the other areas dont offer much (ealing is ok as well for this). A lot of low flying aircraft in these areas due to proximity to Heathrow, but you get used to it.

[icarus]

Originally Posted by Flabbibulin

My dad lives in Brentford right on the Thames. His office is fairly close as well. Decent enough area with some great activity on the Thames and easy access to the city via train.

Oh I know where Brentford is, I've walked through there. A few small offices around, a couple little riverside parks, a music museum, some run-down looking pubs (although given its location it probably has a few nicer suburban pubs as well).

Richmond/Kew would be the nicest places to live I think but probably pricey. Acton would be best for public transport.

[carom]

Thanks for the input.

I will spend more time focusing on gumtree now. I haven't heard any good things about foxtons, everyone says don't expect to get any deposit back if you go with them.

I am not too worried about work for now, more about finding a place to live. I am going over next week (for a week) to try and find a place and get some things initiated, i.e. set up bank account, try and get an NI number, meet with some recruiting agents, etc.

I am really looking forward to the change but feeling overwhelmed right now finishing off at work, getting rid of a house full of crap, selling vehicles, and getting ready for the move. I think once i find a place to live and get over there everything will start to fall into place.

Are there many places to watch the nhl and other north american sports in London? Whats the best way to find food over there? anything like urbanspoon?

[VO #23]

Man, those areas are far out. If your wife is working in that area, I can understand why you'd want to live out that way. If she's in the City (or central London in general) I can think of more convenient neighbourhoods to live in.

I was in northwest London (Kensal Rise) for a year and it was awesome. Nice neighbourhood, pretty quiet and safe, relatively cheap to live, and great transport links (20 minute Tube ride to Oxford Circus). And not really that far off from where you are looking right now. Worth a thought, anyways!

[afc wimbledon]

Hockey coming on at from 11pm to 3am london time makes watching in a pub a bit of a non starter

[REDVAN]

Go to the Olympics.

[carom]

Originally Posted by afc wimbledon

Hockey coming on at from 11pm to 3am london time makes watching in a pub a bit of a non starter

I was thinking of afternoon games for NCAA football, NFL, and NHL.

Go to the Olympics.

I have tickets for track cycling finals events for the Olympics, I want to catch the speed walking finals also.

[vanisleflamesfan]

Oops... NM.

[Glass n Out]

I've been in London for about two months, unfortunately I don't know much about those areas but I live in Vauxhall and it's a nice area. Just stay away from Clapham.

You wont have a problem finding a job in a pub. They're on every corner, the employee turnover in the industry is ridiculous, so there will be lots of positions.

The two places I go to watch North American sports are the Sports Cafe (just west of trafalgar square) and the maple leaf in Covent Gardens.

[afc wimbledon]

Originally Posted by Glass n Out

I've been in London for about two months, unfortunately I don't know much about those areas but I live in Vauxhall and it's a nice area. Just stay away from Clapham.

You wont have a problem finding a job in a pub. They're on every corner, the employee turnover in the industry is ridiculous, so there will be lots of positions.

The two places I go to watch North American sports are the Sports Cafe (just west of trafalgar square) and the maple leaf in Covent Gardens.

Nuffin wrong with the Junction, some lovely pubs on the high street across from the common, and the last Northern Line to South Wimbledon on a Friday night is a bucket list experience