J and I were hanging out at the lounge area Heathrow Airport the other day, and a younger woman sat down next to us and started a conversation with the Swedish/ British family sitting across from us. Let's call her Sandy for our purposes.
Apparently, Sandy's original flight had been cancelled, and she was now at the airport a bit early in hopes of catching her rescheduled flight. She wasn't quite sure how to figure out which gate her flight boarded at, and the mother of the family kindly informed her that the gate assignment would be posted on the digital board. To which Sandy responded, "Oh, okay. Forget it, I'll just ask someone." Why ask?
Sandy took the opportunity to continue the conversation, and in doing so, embarrassed all Americans everywhere. But I will confess that I inwardly prayed that the Swedish family would mistake her for a Canadian. Hey, it could happen.
The conversation went something like this:
Sandy: So where are you guys going?
Mother: Copenhagen.
Sandy: Oh... I don't know where that is.
Mother: It's in Denmark.
Sandy: Wait, is that Dutchland?
Mother: Um. No. And where are you headed?
Sandy: I'm going to America.
(Last time I checked, America was a continent. Cringe.)
Awkward silence.
Sandy: What language are you talking to your kids in?
Mother: Swedish and English.
Sandy: How do they know which language to use?
Mother: They can usually figure it out.
We didn't want to overhear them talking, but J and I couldn't block out the sound of ignorance betraying itself over and over again as the conversation progressed. It was only the second time I've been embarrassed to be an American. (The first time was when we were standing in the queue for Edinburgh Castle, and a rather large American couple standing behind us complained loudly about the small size of the the ice cream cones and expressed wonder at how the locals were so thin. Hint: It may have something to do with those ice cream cones.)
I don't travel with a cover for my passport, and I don't try to adopt a faux British accent. Like Popeye said, "I yam what I yam." I like being an American, and I don't see any percentage in trying to erase or hide it. But just this once, it sure would've been nice to be a Canadian, eh?
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Friday, December 24, 2010
In Search of Christmas
Yesterday was the first day of my Christmas holiday, and J and I decided to leave the flat in search of all things Christmas.
We started off the day at the Victoria & Albert Museum, which houses an absolutely amazing collection of all things cultural, including sculpture and art and artifacts from all over the world. We gazed at amazing jewels and marveled at the gilt snuffboxes that had once belonged to Napoleon. Talk about sensory overload.
Afterward, we headed over to the ice rink at the Natural History Museum and sipped the most delicious hot chocolate ever in the Cafe Bar as we watched the skaters glide across the ice. But the skaters didn't glide so much as cling to the sides for dear life. I couldn't figure out why someone would pay 13 pounds to cling to a low wall to avoid falling on cold hard ice for an hour. We were thinking of joining in on the fun, until we realized that the ice was overcrowded with inexperienced skaters with flailing arms, and it probably wouldn't be that fun dodging about to avoid getting poked in the eye by a wayward arm.
And now, I must spend all day making chocolate truffles and sugar cookies for my neighbors in exchange for the French champagne and Dutch biscuits we've received from them. I'm off and baking now!
We started off the day at the Victoria & Albert Museum, which houses an absolutely amazing collection of all things cultural, including sculpture and art and artifacts from all over the world. We gazed at amazing jewels and marveled at the gilt snuffboxes that had once belonged to Napoleon. Talk about sensory overload.
Afterward, we headed over to the ice rink at the Natural History Museum and sipped the most delicious hot chocolate ever in the Cafe Bar as we watched the skaters glide across the ice. But the skaters didn't glide so much as cling to the sides for dear life. I couldn't figure out why someone would pay 13 pounds to cling to a low wall to avoid falling on cold hard ice for an hour. We were thinking of joining in on the fun, until we realized that the ice was overcrowded with inexperienced skaters with flailing arms, and it probably wouldn't be that fun dodging about to avoid getting poked in the eye by a wayward arm.
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| Ice Rink with the Natural History Museum in the background |
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| View of the ice rink from the Cafe Bar |
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Word of the Day
to chunder: to vomit uproariously after being out on the lash
Needless to say, we exchanged our most disgusting drinking and vomiting stories at work today. Yes, we've sunk that low in a herculean effort to amuse ourselves. The stories involved lots of unfortunate carpeting, parking lots, strangers' bathrooms and taxicabs. Exactly what you want to hear to put you in the Christmas mood.
It all started when our employer decided to gift us all with bottles of wine, and we were debating whether to crack open a bottle of chardonnay after lunch. First off, let me say that the drinking culture in the UK is quite different from the US. It's common to see lots of black-suited City people around lunch time having a drink or two before hoofing it back to the office to do very important office things. If you were to do the same back in the US, people might stage an intervention to get you to join a rehab facility (preferably one without Lindsay Lohan), and you'd probably get fired.
Ultimately, the puritanical Americans convinced our UK colleagues that drinking on the job was probably not the best idea. One of the Americans suggested that we find a park nearby where we could imbibe in the wine off the firm's premises. The UK lawyers were initially a bit puzzled at the suggestion. Was greenery that important in enjoying a glass of wine? Did Americans derive some sort of special pleasure from drinking wine while standing on grass? In the end, the idea of shivering in our winter coats while encircled around a bottle of cheap white wine while standing on muddy grass didn't sound quite appealing enough, and the lonely bottle ended up unopened in the mini-fridge in our kitchenette.
I'm still undecided as to what was the proper course of action. It doesn't seem odd to have a glass of wine with lunch, even if you are working in the afternoon, and in fact, I've done this with partners at my old law firm. And it seems even less of an offense in the UK, where people drink all day every day. But then again, we are working for a very uptight NY law firm. Oh well, the bottle will still be there when we come back from holiday. =)
Needless to say, we exchanged our most disgusting drinking and vomiting stories at work today. Yes, we've sunk that low in a herculean effort to amuse ourselves. The stories involved lots of unfortunate carpeting, parking lots, strangers' bathrooms and taxicabs. Exactly what you want to hear to put you in the Christmas mood.
It all started when our employer decided to gift us all with bottles of wine, and we were debating whether to crack open a bottle of chardonnay after lunch. First off, let me say that the drinking culture in the UK is quite different from the US. It's common to see lots of black-suited City people around lunch time having a drink or two before hoofing it back to the office to do very important office things. If you were to do the same back in the US, people might stage an intervention to get you to join a rehab facility (preferably one without Lindsay Lohan), and you'd probably get fired.
Ultimately, the puritanical Americans convinced our UK colleagues that drinking on the job was probably not the best idea. One of the Americans suggested that we find a park nearby where we could imbibe in the wine off the firm's premises. The UK lawyers were initially a bit puzzled at the suggestion. Was greenery that important in enjoying a glass of wine? Did Americans derive some sort of special pleasure from drinking wine while standing on grass? In the end, the idea of shivering in our winter coats while encircled around a bottle of cheap white wine while standing on muddy grass didn't sound quite appealing enough, and the lonely bottle ended up unopened in the mini-fridge in our kitchenette.
I'm still undecided as to what was the proper course of action. It doesn't seem odd to have a glass of wine with lunch, even if you are working in the afternoon, and in fact, I've done this with partners at my old law firm. And it seems even less of an offense in the UK, where people drink all day every day. But then again, we are working for a very uptight NY law firm. Oh well, the bottle will still be there when we come back from holiday. =)
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Being Neighborly
It's nice enough to have quiet and considerate neighbors who don't make much noise and who are understanding when we accidentally set off our (extremely loud) fire alarm, but I must say, it's even nicer when the downstairs neighbor gifts us with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot and the upstairs neighbors invite us to a New Year's party at their flat.
Now, I'm trying to figure out what I can do in return. I'm thinking something along the lines of a homemade treat such as my famous Cinnamon Sugar Cookies... perhaps in a nice Emma Bridgewater biscuit tin?
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Now, I'm trying to figure out what I can do in return. I'm thinking something along the lines of a homemade treat such as my famous Cinnamon Sugar Cookies... perhaps in a nice Emma Bridgewater biscuit tin?
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Sunday, December 19, 2010
Not to be a Grinch or Anything, but...
I'm really hoping that it's not a white Christmas. We got some snow dumped on us over the weekend, and all transport in the UK has basically come to a crashing halt. Heathrow and Gatwick airports have both closed, and the Tube is running on a "severely delayed" basis.
As lots of people try to make their way in and out of the UK to see their families for the holidays, travel has pretty much come to a standstill and it's near impossible to get in or out of the country. Flights have been massively delayed (next available flight being nearly a week later), and I'm not quite sure that rescheduled flights will even make it out with more snow being predicted for later on in the week. Family should be together for the holidays.
DAMN YOU, SNOW. I bite my thumb at you.
As lots of people try to make their way in and out of the UK to see their families for the holidays, travel has pretty much come to a standstill and it's near impossible to get in or out of the country. Flights have been massively delayed (next available flight being nearly a week later), and I'm not quite sure that rescheduled flights will even make it out with more snow being predicted for later on in the week. Family should be together for the holidays.
DAMN YOU, SNOW. I bite my thumb at you.
Friday, December 17, 2010
A Holiday Tipple
I've just wandered home from having a holiday pint with my work colleagues, and it turns out that a half cider is about all I can handle before someone has to wheelbarrow me home. I figure this is good information for me to have any future pub trips. In any case, the Cittie of York in Holborn is definitely worth a visit - old building, not too busy, and clean with great decor. What more can a girl looking to get smashed ask for?
Continuing our cultural exchanges, we spent much of yesterday playing with Christmas crackers we got from the canteen workers, wearing crowns and saying jokes and playing with yo-yos that fell out of them. It's too bad that they're regarded as explosives so I can't send some to the States. The terrorists really do ruin it for everybody.
Continuing our cultural exchanges, we spent much of yesterday playing with Christmas crackers we got from the canteen workers, wearing crowns and saying jokes and playing with yo-yos that fell out of them. It's too bad that they're regarded as explosives so I can't send some to the States. The terrorists really do ruin it for everybody.
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| Looks innocuous, doesn't it? Not per the TSA. |
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
A New Low
Today, I demonstrated what a "valley girl" accent sounds like to my work colleagues by doing the girl's bit from Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Baby Got Back." For those of you who don't remember, it begins with, "Oh my god, Becky. Look at her butt. It is like, so big. It's like, totally out there..." Yes, I'm afraid things have definitely taken a turn for the worse in our office exchanges.
On the plus side, I've gotten loads of recommendations for places to eat since I don't really trust travel books, and TimeOut has been a bit of a hit or miss for me. Here's my list so far:
Fish and chips - Fryer's Delight by Holborn
German sausages - Bavarian Beer House in the City
Curry - Brick Lane (of course!) in East London
Sushi - Donzoko by Oxford Circus
Korean - Forget it, wait until a trip to LA (my own personal view)
I'm planning on Christmas feasting for the next two weeks or so, so I'm a bit concerned as to whether my body can handle the calorie overload so I may spread out the restaurant visits over the next few months. It's hard enough to not get fat with the all of the Thai takeaways we've ordered in the last few months, and I'm guessing that the discovery of new food goodies isn't going to do my waistline any favors. Anyway, must go tend to my Outrageous Brownies, tee hee. =)
On the plus side, I've gotten loads of recommendations for places to eat since I don't really trust travel books, and TimeOut has been a bit of a hit or miss for me. Here's my list so far:
Fish and chips - Fryer's Delight by Holborn
German sausages - Bavarian Beer House in the City
Curry - Brick Lane (of course!) in East London
Sushi - Donzoko by Oxford Circus
Korean - Forget it, wait until a trip to LA (my own personal view)
I'm planning on Christmas feasting for the next two weeks or so, so I'm a bit concerned as to whether my body can handle the calorie overload so I may spread out the restaurant visits over the next few months. It's hard enough to not get fat with the all of the Thai takeaways we've ordered in the last few months, and I'm guessing that the discovery of new food goodies isn't going to do my waistline any favors. Anyway, must go tend to my Outrageous Brownies, tee hee. =)
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park
The crowded part:
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| A German funhouse that played a variety of strange tunes with lots of blinking lights. To state the obvious. |
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| Wanna ride in a flinging double decker bus? |
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| Almost big enough to give the London Eye a run for its money. |
And the delicious part...
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| Gingerbread, anyone? |
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| Turns out you can candy just about anything. |
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| J opted for the candied cashews. Yum. |
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| First time J had chestnuts. J didn't like them. I did. |
The Downright Strange part:
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| A blow up nightclub with bouncers and everything. |
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| An ornery tree that told bad jokes and sang songs. |
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| A leftover Halloween funhouse? Wait, whaaa? |
Friday, December 10, 2010
Cultural Exchange
I had a little burst of pride today when one of the UK lawyers got up from their desk this afternoon and announced to our group that it was time for a "froyo" break. Yes, the conversion has begun... Although, it seems the conversion has been going on for a while already.
For instance, I wasn't aware that all the little grey squirrels that I see in the park everywhere are much reviled as American squirrels that had the gall to chase away the native British red squirrel into oblivion. I have to admit, I have yet to see any little red critters about. And apparently, the Americans' monomania for turkey as traditional holiday fare has carried over into the Brits adopting turkey as the meat du jour for Christmas dinner. But I refuse to admit any blame for that, we never said that they had to abandon the goose (A Christmas Carol, anyone?) for our much less attractive poultry.
Other things I've learned today:
Irn Bru (pronounced Iron Brew) is the national drink of Scotland with very amusing adverts
You can get pretty much anything deep fried in Scotland, although they were pretty disgusted when I told them about the deep fried Twinkies you can get in county fairs all across America
Cinnamon buns haven't really taken off here but they know and love brownies
There are wallabies in the UK
There is only one private university in all of the UK, but it's only popular with the foreign set
Blackadder and Forty Tower are apparently must-sees
They've heard of Jon Stewart, but not Stephen Colbert so much
Don't be surprised if you see a fox in the streets of the City
I'm telling you, I learn a million new things every day. And I try to teach a few things about our culture too. For instance, I introduced them to Conan O'Brien's Triumph the Insult Comic Dog (Star Wars Premiere, it's a must click on YouTube). America, I hope to do you proud.
For instance, I wasn't aware that all the little grey squirrels that I see in the park everywhere are much reviled as American squirrels that had the gall to chase away the native British red squirrel into oblivion. I have to admit, I have yet to see any little red critters about. And apparently, the Americans' monomania for turkey as traditional holiday fare has carried over into the Brits adopting turkey as the meat du jour for Christmas dinner. But I refuse to admit any blame for that, we never said that they had to abandon the goose (A Christmas Carol, anyone?) for our much less attractive poultry.
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| At attention and ready to fight! |
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| Preoccupied by nut. Almost too easy. |
v.
Other things I've learned today:
Irn Bru (pronounced Iron Brew) is the national drink of Scotland with very amusing adverts
You can get pretty much anything deep fried in Scotland, although they were pretty disgusted when I told them about the deep fried Twinkies you can get in county fairs all across America
Cinnamon buns haven't really taken off here but they know and love brownies
There are wallabies in the UK
There is only one private university in all of the UK, but it's only popular with the foreign set
Blackadder and Forty Tower are apparently must-sees
They've heard of Jon Stewart, but not Stephen Colbert so much
Don't be surprised if you see a fox in the streets of the City
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| Wait, was it a left or right turn? Damn, I knew I should've brought my London A to Z. |
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Back to Work
It's been a bit quiet on the blog since I started working on Monday. Nothing serious, just a short placement at a US law firm as a contract lawyer. It's dry work, and the funnest part is hanging out with the other contract lawyers, two US qualifieds (Boston, Chicago), and three UK qualifieds (Polish, Scottish, English). We're all in one room for eight hours a day, and although we're plugging away at our work faithfully despite the utter lack of supervision, we still find loads of time to swap stories about our different cultures and getting a big kick out of the differences.
We got into a conversation about pronunciation today, and we were all laughing at each other by the end of it.
OREGANO:
US: o-REH-gano
UK: o-re-GAH-no
CAPILLARIES:
US: CAP-ill aries
UK: ca-PILL-aries
Trust me, the UK way of saying these words is weird and strangely hilarious. Also, frozen yogurt doesn't seem to have taken off yet in the UK, and two of them had never tasted it before encountering the frozen yogurt machine in the lobby's canteen. They couldn't stop laughing when I told them that it was called "froyo" for short.
I think the word "hella" threw them for a loop too, and they were completely unaware that there's different ways of saying fizzy drink in the US depending on what region you're in: East/ West: soda, Midwest: pop, South: coke (then you get to specify what kind).
Other questions that were asked today:
What is a "punter"? Varies, but it can mean a sports fan.
Why do the Brits like to talk about the weather so much? There's just so much of it.
How do the Scots feel about the film Braveheart? A good film, but not at all historically accurate.
Where does scotch whiskey really come from? Most likely the Chinese, and not the Scots.
What's in a Cadbury Double Decker candy bar? A thin layer of crispy cereal, nougat (pronounced noo-ga), and caramel covered in chocolate.
What are A-levels? Similar to the SATs, except they follow you around forever.
What are university and law school fees like in the UK? You don't want to know the answer to this if you're an American - it'll make you weep with envy.
How did the Brits become a nation of tea drinkers? A secret raid on the Chinese emperor's stash by British soldiers apparently. The Brits were actually used to be a nation of coffee drinkers.
It's been four days so far, and it's been incredibly illuminating. We all laugh about how much we're learning, and none of it pertains to the law, much to my relief.
I wonder what I'll learn tomorrow...
We got into a conversation about pronunciation today, and we were all laughing at each other by the end of it.
OREGANO:
US: o-REH-gano
UK: o-re-GAH-no
CAPILLARIES:
US: CAP-ill aries
UK: ca-PILL-aries
Trust me, the UK way of saying these words is weird and strangely hilarious. Also, frozen yogurt doesn't seem to have taken off yet in the UK, and two of them had never tasted it before encountering the frozen yogurt machine in the lobby's canteen. They couldn't stop laughing when I told them that it was called "froyo" for short.
I think the word "hella" threw them for a loop too, and they were completely unaware that there's different ways of saying fizzy drink in the US depending on what region you're in: East/ West: soda, Midwest: pop, South: coke (then you get to specify what kind).
Other questions that were asked today:
What is a "punter"? Varies, but it can mean a sports fan.
Why do the Brits like to talk about the weather so much? There's just so much of it.
How do the Scots feel about the film Braveheart? A good film, but not at all historically accurate.
Where does scotch whiskey really come from? Most likely the Chinese, and not the Scots.
What's in a Cadbury Double Decker candy bar? A thin layer of crispy cereal, nougat (pronounced noo-ga), and caramel covered in chocolate.
What are A-levels? Similar to the SATs, except they follow you around forever.
What are university and law school fees like in the UK? You don't want to know the answer to this if you're an American - it'll make you weep with envy.
How did the Brits become a nation of tea drinkers? A secret raid on the Chinese emperor's stash by British soldiers apparently. The Brits were actually used to be a nation of coffee drinkers.
It's been four days so far, and it's been incredibly illuminating. We all laugh about how much we're learning, and none of it pertains to the law, much to my relief.
I wonder what I'll learn tomorrow...
Saturday, December 4, 2010
A German Christmas
If you want to celebrate Christmas, the best place to do it is in London. There's Christmas fairs and festivals galore, and the hardest part is picking which one to go to. I settled on the Cologne Christmas Market at Southbank Centre since the Real Food Festival was also going on at the same locale.
It was dark by the time we arrived there, so we got to fully appreciate all the fairy light canopies that were hung from every roofline. Each of the 60 or so wooden stalls had their own Christmas decor, and J and I had a grand old time perusing the goods offered up for sale along with a ton of other people. There were a variety of things, and all things Christmas, of course, such as roasted chestnuts, mulled wine (J enjoyed a cup), and lots and lots of sweets. And we also got to catch our first glimpse of the London Eye, Westminster, and the Golden Jubilee Bridge in the evening, all lit up. After we were Christmased out, we headed back to the Real Food Festival, where J and I shared a sausage dish with boiled potatoes and onions with toasted cheese. Sooo good.
Anyway, we decided to walk off some of the food and wine by walking over the bridge and ended up walking over to Trafalgar Square where surprise surprise, the Christmas tree was up! Along with a giant menorah and a nativity display. The tree is a gift from Norway, and it's decorated in the Norwegian style. The tree has been given every year since 1947 in thanks for British assistance during World War II. Isn't that amazing?
We finished off the evening with a stop at the nearby Waterstone's to pick up some books for the remainder of the evening, and we're going to order a Thai takeaway and settle in for some X Factor. A great Saturday night.
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| Sausage, onions and potatoes. Yum! |
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| Old-fashioned carousel for the kiddies |
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| The gingerbread stall - Definitely one of the more popular ones! |
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| The Thames looks a lot nicer at night |
We finished off the evening with a stop at the nearby Waterstone's to pick up some books for the remainder of the evening, and we're going to order a Thai takeaway and settle in for some X Factor. A great Saturday night.
Les Miserables at Queen's Theatre
J's been wanting to see Les Miserables since forever, so he decided to splash out some major cheddar for some primo seats at the Queen's Theatre last night.
After a very cold and long walk down Regent Street, we finally reached the Queen's Theatre, which is right by Picadilly Circus. Needless to say, there were tons of people roaming the pavement, but we got there in the nick of time. The theatre itself is absolutely beautiful and feels really plush and intimate - I doubt there's a bad seat in the house. The decor was in tones of burgundy and turquoise with gold gilt and velvet coverings, making the place just absolutely decadent.
The production was amazing and took place on a rotating stage, which made the stage seem a lot larger since the actors could literally run around in circles without looking like they were just crazy. The show took about 3 hours, and the whole thing was in song. I really enjoyed Eponine's performance, and she totally stole the show. And I had the added luck of not having to see a Jonas brother play Marius - thank goodness.
The only problem is that Les Miserables is one of my favorite books, and it's always difficult to see a translation of a much beloved novel for the stage or screen. Especially when they're trying to fit 1300 pages of love triangles and revolution into a 3 hour show. I mean, even Harry Potter decided it needs two 3 hour movies to do justice to the last book in the series! Some of the characters like Cosette and Marius came across a little flat due to the compression, and I think I may have enjoyed it more if I wasn't constantly comparing it to the novel. But all in all, it was a wonderful production, and the music was absolutely beautiful.
The song "On My Own" is still stuck in my head...
After a very cold and long walk down Regent Street, we finally reached the Queen's Theatre, which is right by Picadilly Circus. Needless to say, there were tons of people roaming the pavement, but we got there in the nick of time. The theatre itself is absolutely beautiful and feels really plush and intimate - I doubt there's a bad seat in the house. The decor was in tones of burgundy and turquoise with gold gilt and velvet coverings, making the place just absolutely decadent.
The production was amazing and took place on a rotating stage, which made the stage seem a lot larger since the actors could literally run around in circles without looking like they were just crazy. The show took about 3 hours, and the whole thing was in song. I really enjoyed Eponine's performance, and she totally stole the show. And I had the added luck of not having to see a Jonas brother play Marius - thank goodness.
The only problem is that Les Miserables is one of my favorite books, and it's always difficult to see a translation of a much beloved novel for the stage or screen. Especially when they're trying to fit 1300 pages of love triangles and revolution into a 3 hour show. I mean, even Harry Potter decided it needs two 3 hour movies to do justice to the last book in the series! Some of the characters like Cosette and Marius came across a little flat due to the compression, and I think I may have enjoyed it more if I wasn't constantly comparing it to the novel. But all in all, it was a wonderful production, and the music was absolutely beautiful.
The song "On My Own" is still stuck in my head...
Thursday, December 2, 2010
No Run Today, and Here's Why...
I actually was thinking about going for a run today despite the fact that it was flurrying all night, but J decided on a snow day and decided to not go into the office. So instead of running, I convinced him to go on a walk through the park with me, and I became very glad that I decided not to go running today.
More pictures from my film camera...
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| The pond froze over! |
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| Look what happened to my running route! |
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| I'm guessing the water fountain's in the same state. |
More pictures from my film camera...
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