Continued.
I've decided that, having gotten past the excitement of being here, I'm really starting to enjoy myself in a not-so-touristy kind of way. I'm all settled in with my job, I've made great friends and I know the Eton high street like the back of my hand. I can find my way around London without looking like a lost kitten and when I get on the tube I no longer clutch nervously to my map. I've learned a lot about myself and I've learned even more about the ways of those silly British people and their silly kingdom. For example, I now know that...
...if you go to someone's house, they will try to make you tea. This is not a stereotype. I have come to accept this and will take milk and two sugars, please. Also, if you have someone over and don't offer to "put the kettle on", they may think you're weird.
...rugby is superior to American football (sorry Dad!). Not only do the guys not wear heaps of pads (or even a protective cup), but they also don't stop the clock every 2 minutes and walk in circles with their hands on their hips catching their breath while the referees do some silly arm things. Oh, and rugby players are also, as a whole, cute.
...in Mary Poppins, Dick Van Dyke's attempt at a cockney accent sounds absolutely ridiculous and may or may not be offensive. Genuine cockney accents, however, are lovely (much in the same way that rugby players are cute.)
...if you answer a question in the affirmative with "uh-huh" like I tend to do, people will probably think you're making strange grunting noises and become too embarrassingly confused to go on with the conversation. Is it an American thing? Uh-huh.
...if you ask for a sack in which to put your purchases at a convenience store, the clerk, the person you're with, and anyone else within ear shot will probably laugh at you. It's actually very embarrassing (apparently only Santa carries a sack...)
...what we call "chocolate" back in America is pretty much cardboard compared to what they have here. Seriously, it's almost Easter, go buy enough Cadbury to last you until next April! I don't know how I'll ever go back to Hershey's...
Lastly, I now know that if everything works out, I'm definitely not coming back in June!
Love love love,
Kelsea
Saturday, March 21, 2009
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sooo I'm incredibly jealous of you...i've decided that I'm an American but that my soul is from England...I grew up with that culture and it is in general far better than ours. In conclusion..if you come back (we shall have to do brilliantly British things together like have proper tea with milk and sugar and beans on toast) and if you don't then when i am next there (hopefully next Jan) we shall have to brilliantly British things together and try as hard as we can to not be too touristy!
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