Allan Oakley
03-24-2006, 02:25 AM
Don't put Brits off -- they like us
Orlando Sentinel Published February 12, 2006
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Seems some of our local British property owners and visitors are on the verge of a little tea party these days. And I don't mean the dainty, dignified variety usually presented on their vacation-home patios.
I'm talking the angry tea-dumping Boston kind, fueled by paying taxes to a government that's grown increasingly hostile.
Some Brits who have owned homes in the Four Corners and Kissimmee area for more than 20 years -- paying property taxes all the while -- have found visiting so burdensome in recent months that they are sadly pondering telling Disney good-bye and heading to Spain.
I find it sad, really. I like having the Brits around.
Let's consider for a minute you're going on vacation to London and taking the family. You've owned a flat there for 20 years and have been going three or four times a year for several weeks at a time. You pay your taxes, and in a way, it feels like a second home.
Many people you know clamor for business visas that would allow them to go there and live full time, but you like your life here and just want to visit there to relax a bit.
But then, rules change because of the terrorists and war and all that. The bobbies (police) get mean. They start calling you "aliens." The airport -- three or four may be involved in your travels -- becomes an hours-long ordeal.
When you arrive in London, the drivers license you've had for years, you now discover, must be renewed each time.
The wait in the London drivers license bureau takes up a good portion of one of your vacation days.
Plane ticket prices have soared as jet fuel prices drive airline costs up. Costs of the attractions aren't cheap. The overall sense is you really aren't wanted in London anymore.
You alien, you. Where are your papers?
Sadly, this is the experience of some of our Brit friends these days. While some appreciate the security measures, others say there must be a more efficient way. I agree.
One Brit property owner who has had a house in Kissimmee for 20 years said he used to get 15 to 20 inquiries a month about renting but now only about one or two a month. He thinks the hassles are part of it.
I hate to hear this, because the Brits are fun to have around. I love how they say they're on "holiday" instead of "vacation." I love how they love curry. I just love Moulin Rouge, the movie. Oh wait, that was Paris with Scottish people. Sorry.
I think I'm going to start trying that holiday thing, though. It's the difference between a Tupperware party and a "soiree." It just makes me feel a bit zestier. "We're going on hoh-lee-daye." Don't tell me that doesn't sound better than vay-cay, although my bad Harry Potter imitation needs some work.
Anyway, bottom line: Be nice to the Brits. They are allies who own more than 8,000 homes around here. Don't forget what side they are on: Squarely ours.
Kelly Griffith can be reached at kgriffith@orlandosentinel.com or 863-422-5908.
Orlando Sentinel Published February 12, 2006
E-mail this article Printer friendly version Most e-mailed articles
Seems some of our local British property owners and visitors are on the verge of a little tea party these days. And I don't mean the dainty, dignified variety usually presented on their vacation-home patios.
I'm talking the angry tea-dumping Boston kind, fueled by paying taxes to a government that's grown increasingly hostile.
Some Brits who have owned homes in the Four Corners and Kissimmee area for more than 20 years -- paying property taxes all the while -- have found visiting so burdensome in recent months that they are sadly pondering telling Disney good-bye and heading to Spain.
I find it sad, really. I like having the Brits around.
Let's consider for a minute you're going on vacation to London and taking the family. You've owned a flat there for 20 years and have been going three or four times a year for several weeks at a time. You pay your taxes, and in a way, it feels like a second home.
Many people you know clamor for business visas that would allow them to go there and live full time, but you like your life here and just want to visit there to relax a bit.
But then, rules change because of the terrorists and war and all that. The bobbies (police) get mean. They start calling you "aliens." The airport -- three or four may be involved in your travels -- becomes an hours-long ordeal.
When you arrive in London, the drivers license you've had for years, you now discover, must be renewed each time.
The wait in the London drivers license bureau takes up a good portion of one of your vacation days.
Plane ticket prices have soared as jet fuel prices drive airline costs up. Costs of the attractions aren't cheap. The overall sense is you really aren't wanted in London anymore.
You alien, you. Where are your papers?
Sadly, this is the experience of some of our Brit friends these days. While some appreciate the security measures, others say there must be a more efficient way. I agree.
One Brit property owner who has had a house in Kissimmee for 20 years said he used to get 15 to 20 inquiries a month about renting but now only about one or two a month. He thinks the hassles are part of it.
I hate to hear this, because the Brits are fun to have around. I love how they say they're on "holiday" instead of "vacation." I love how they love curry. I just love Moulin Rouge, the movie. Oh wait, that was Paris with Scottish people. Sorry.
I think I'm going to start trying that holiday thing, though. It's the difference between a Tupperware party and a "soiree." It just makes me feel a bit zestier. "We're going on hoh-lee-daye." Don't tell me that doesn't sound better than vay-cay, although my bad Harry Potter imitation needs some work.
Anyway, bottom line: Be nice to the Brits. They are allies who own more than 8,000 homes around here. Don't forget what side they are on: Squarely ours.
Kelly Griffith can be reached at kgriffith@orlandosentinel.com or 863-422-5908.