I recently submitted this for review.
London has become a second home to me over the past seven weeks. I remember when I first arrived and I was so nervous about everything, but that seems like such a long time ago. Since then I have learned a lot, and feel very comfortable here in London as an American. One of my favorite things about London is the variety of people that you meet. I probably hear five or more different accents every day. Instead of just learning about the UK, I am learning about the world.One of the reasons I chose to study in London, is because I already knew the language. I didn’t realize exactly how different actual English is from American English. At first I had a hard time remembering to say trousers, instead of pants, and there was a lot of confusion when talking about crisps, chips, and fries. I still don’t know how to request a dinner roll, since our American biscuits are called rolls, and our cookies are called biscuits here. There are still many more language differences that confuse me and whoever I am talking to.At first I was really nervous that the people would not be very friendly, but after a few days, I learned that they are generally very nice and willing to help whenever possible. When I first arrived and had to carry my suitcase up the steps from the tube station, a British man helped me with it. I have a lot more stories about British helpfulness, and politeness. Going into the shops is another thing. Generally the cashiers are nice, especially if you have cash or a local card. Sometimes it is hard to get the cashiers to accept my bank card since it does not have a chip on it like the local cards. You can also get funny looks if you pay with exact change or don’t wait in the right spot for the queue. .The British are generally very humorous people. When I first arrived, I thought that they were very serious, but if you see them in the pub you realize they are just being serious because that’s the way they think they are supposed to behave. I have gotten several offers, from silly older men, to buy me a pint at the pub. Other than just older people, it is also nice to see the British in a relaxed setting just talking, joking, or singing American songs when they have had too much to drink. Although it is called a pub and serves alcohol, pubs are very social places and more like restaurants or cafés in the US. It is a nice change from out serious middle class neighborhood that we live in.I have learned a lot already and still manage to pick up more information from daily interactions as well as my classes. Life continues as usual, but in a few days I will be making my way to Rome. Right now my time here in London is almost half over. Not to worry though, I think I may have to come back.
