I have moved between Scotland and England several times in my life, and in some ways, that should be quite easy. Scotland and England are part of the same state, the United Kingdom, with the same language, the same currency of the pound, and lots of shared history. So the change could be no greater than moving from one town or city or village to another.

But there are differences too. Some people call Britain a country, some people call England and Scotland countries, although they are both part of the UK. The education systems are slightly different, and so are the laws. A lot of the time, you might not notice this, especially if you are not changing school or university. Recently, though, I went to the shop on a Sunday afternoon, and was surprised to find it shut. This is because the laws are different in Scotland and England about when shops can be open on a Sunday!

Language is a very interesting point of variety. If you move between England and Scotland, you will have to get used to the fact that some personal names are common in England and not all in Scotland, and vice versa. "Vice versa" is an interesting phrase which means "the other way round too"!

Place names are very different indeed. There are some place names in England that include the word, "stow", which is just the Old English for "place", given by Anglo-Saxon settlers from over a thousand years ago. Lots of English place names include the word, "caster" or "chester", like the beautiful city of Chester. This comes from the Roman word for "camp", which the Romans used when they lived in Britain about two thousand years ago. Because Scotland's history is a bit different, you hardly find these place names at all. Instead, you get many that use the Gaelic word, "loch", which means "lake".

If you go out to get your "messages" in Scotland, it means that you are going to get your groceries or shopping, not communications from friends or family. In England, the word, "burn" means that that you have been holding something too hot for too long! In Scotland, everybody uses it with that meaning too, but it also means, "stream", a water feature in a landscape.

There are so many other changes to get used to as well: pronunciation, building style, tastes in food, and music. And to make matters more complicated, different regions of Scotland and England also have their own distinctive heritage and feel!

Some ways that I adjust to a different environment are to go out and explore the countryside where I am living, look at maps, admire the old buildings, spot differences in menus, and listen to people speaking. But, in truth, adjusting to a new environment, for me at least, is never finished.