sudanglo:But I don't uderstand why you would want to live in Bristol and commute to the Cotswolds for work. I can't seeing bombing up and down the M4 everday as much fun.

No, it doesn't sound like much fun at all. The point is, I'm looking for a job, and if someone offers me one, I have to consider it seriously, even if the commute doesn't look very good. I am also somewhat limited in that I want to live near a Jewish community, even if it means a longer commute.

I also don't particularly enjoy living in places where you absolutely need a car to get around. And if I move to the UK, I certainly won't have a car right away. I will need to go through the entire UK licensing process because a US driving licence doesn't convert. I suppose you could buy a car on a foreign licence but I'm not so sure that you could insure it.

Optimally, if I end up in the UK, I'd like to be somewhere like London or Manchester, big enough that you don't really need a car and you can commute on public transport. A large Esperanto community is a plus, since in a way I'd have some ready-made friends around.

Erinja, it was on the news recently here that Dyson intend to create 300 new jobs, of which 200 posts will be for engineers.

On the question of commuting, I can't know this, but I would be very ready to bet that most of engineers working at Dyson Headquarters live very close by, and constitute a lively social community.

My town, Ramsgate, has a pop of about 40,000, yet buses run every 10 mins in the day, and although less frequent at night are still running upto just before midnight.

Although many people have cars, public transport in England is well-used. I think I read that more people are using the trains now than in the 1920's. Petrol and diesel cost around £1-40 a litre, or around £6 an English gallon - which coupled with the road congestion may have something to do with it.

sudanglo:On the question of commuting, I can't know this, but I would be very ready to bet that most of engineers working at Dyson Headquarters live very close by, and constitute a lively social community.

Yes, I read a similar article about Dyson adding a lot of engineering jobs, in the Guardian, which is why I thought to apply.

Based on the phone interview I had, it seems like most people do not live in the town where Dyson is located, which has a population of only about 4600. Ramsgate is a major metropolitan area compared to Malmesbury! It seems like many employees live in Bristol, some live in Bath, and some commute from as far as London.

Malmesbury doesn't have a train station. It has no busses at night, on Sundays, or on public holidays.

Ah well, I lose my bet then, Erinja. Lucky I didn't put my shirt on it.

If there's a concentration of Dyson engineers in Bath or Bristol, you might be able to arrange a car-share for the commute.

sudanglo:If there's a concentration of Dyson engineers in Bath or Bristol, you might be able to arrange a car-share for the commute.

I was told in my telephone interview that there are some car shares, if you live in the right part of Bristol. I didn't ask about Bath. I would definitely go for Bristol over Bath, because Bristol has synagogues (a whole two of them, ooooh)

erinja:Does anyone know if there is an active Esperanto group around Bristol?

I am currently in interviews for a job with Dyson. No offer yet, but it's enough of a possibility that I'm starting to think about logistics. Bristol is the nearest city of any size to Dyson, which is in the middle of nowhere. I'm finding the idea of moving to a city where I don't know anyone a bit daunting; it's also nowhere near my relatives, all in the North. It would help a lot if I could get in contact with some local Esperantists to ask them some questions and not feel quite so isolated when I arrive.

I'm In Bristol!
Sorry for the late reply. Haven't been spending much time on lernu.net lately.

I wouldn't say there is an "active group" of esperantists, but helping out with muzaiko and meeting with the group from Cardiff quite often, I would consider myself an active esperantist.
Veronika, who started an Esperanto society here before me, has left (but still comes to Bristol sometimes) and gave me access to the society's mailing-list, but since I don't feel like I have enough time to manage a society, I haven't re-registered it at the university.
Anyway, there are at least 4 other esperanto-speakers here in Bristol as well, although I've only met 3 of them so far, and only meet one of them more or less regularly. :/

Am currently in a terminal, using the w3m browser, so it's a bit difficult to get all the correct contact info. Just a moment. Will be right back.

erinja:Someone e-mailed me with Veronika's contact info, so I'll definitely contact her if it starts looking like I'm going to be coming over there. I have a couple of other job possibilities in the works, so we'll see what pans out. I had an interview yesterday for a job as a US Patent examiner, which would be very cool if it works out.

How convenient is it to travel between Cardiff and Bristol? It looks like there's some inconvenient water in the way.

It's just about 1 hour by train between Bristol and Cardiff, sometimes with one change, sometimes with 0 changes.
By car, I have no idea, since I have none.

And yes, the Cardiff Esperanto group is definitely active, meeting at least once a month, with 5-7 people showing up every time. On Zamenhof day we were over 10 I think.

Here's the e-mail address of the "unofficial Bristol esperanto society": esperantobristol ĉe googlemail.com
( I even set up an event calendar: https://www.google.com/calendar/embed?src=espera...)

I'll send you my e-mail address as well through the forum.

Although many people have cars, public transport in England is well-used. I think I read that more people are using the trains now than in the 1920's. Petrol and diesel cost around £1-40 a litre, or around £6 an English gallon - which coupled with the road congestion may have something to do with it.

Yes, there is public transport, but compared to France and Germany, it's not as good. Especially the Bristol bus system! Tourists would be lost by themselves here. No maps, no indication of the upcoming station ( and a sign saying: do not disturb the driver) and multiple private bus and train companies!
At least they don't strike as much as in France. ^^

No maps, no indication of the upcoming station ( and a sign saying: do not disturb the driver)

Yes you are not supposed to talk to the driver while he is driving the bus.

But you can always ask him as you board to sing out your stop when the bus gets there, or ask another passenger who is local. As regards routes, all bus companies have downloadable route maps and timetables.

On the trains it is common for a sign to flash the name of the next stop and/or the next stop is announced over the PA, plus the stations themselves have large name-signs, easily readable from the train.

In my town, many bus-stops have illuminated signs showing the expected time of arrival of the next bus.

But you can always ask him as you board to sing out your stop when the bus gets there, or ask another passenger who is local. As regards routes, all bus companies have downloadable route maps and timetables.

So if you do not speak the local language and do not have internet access, you might have some difficulties. (maps at stations and inside buses just help a lot, at least when you use the same alphabet/number system (ex: latin alphabet + Hindu-Arabic numerals))

It is usable, but could be improved a lot.
I only used it alone to get from/to the airport and a few times with others, who knew which bus to take and where to get in/out. I usually just travel on foot or by bike.

The trains are allright (but taking the bus is cheaper, though slightly longer, at least for getting to/from London).

Anyway, Bristol itself is very nice.

I will definitely contact you if I end up over there for an interview, Lom!

It sounds like having multiple bus companies would be the biggest annoyance. That was the situation in Edinburgh when I visited a couple years ago, and it was quite annoying to have to check bus schedules for multiple companies to decide which one best met my needs for a given route.

It is very annoying to be on busses without electronic displays of the next stop. On the other hand, I have noticed that on busses equipped with those displays, the stop's name is sometimes displayed too late for you to do anything about it, which is quite annoying for someone unfamiliar with the area.