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| A lovely view of London. Photo by Kelsey Devasure. |
Many people would like to travel the
world, everyone has that one foreign place that they have always
wanted to go to. For me that place was England. Last year Mrs.
Anthony and Mrs. Hays announced that they would be sponsoring an A.P.
English trip and go all the way to England. Everyone was invited that
met the criteria, of course I signed up.
What was perhaps the most surprising
thing was how different the two countries really are. When I first
though of going to England I thought gloom, British accents, and
royalty. While you do encounter many British accents, they all sound
a little different depending on the region. And gloom is definitely
present in England, though it is accompanied by freezing temperatures
and relentless pop up downpours.
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Houses of Parliament and Big Ben.
Photo by Kelsey Devasure. |
Royalty is another story, they are
very much a monarchy, even if the Queen no longer rules. “Queen
Elizabeth II's Regime” is displayed in all important places. But,
while we were there, they held a parade in which the whole royal
family was carried down the streets in horse drawn carriages. Of
course we have nothing like that, or the crown jewels in America.
Now, if you were the average American
who eats many fried and preserved foods it is likely that you either
die of starvation or your body would go into some sort of shock. The
food there is either very light, sandwiches, tea, etc. or very, very
dense; haggis, lamb, some sort of beef looking thing. In addition to
having different foods than America, you had probably better not hope
to wash down their interesting food choices with a tall ice cold
glass of soda. The old countries do not use ice in their drinks, and
the cups are the size of Dixie cups used here to brush your teeth.
(okay, maybe a bit bigger) And I certainly hope you don't need a
refill because it will be another five pounds.
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| "Can you say, Olympics?" Photo by Kelsey Devasure |
Bringing up the next point, British
money is worth much more thank American money. While I was there I
withdrew 50 pounds from my bank account and it ending up converting
to cost me $86 dollars. You felt like you were getting a deal when
you paid a pound for a candy bar, but really you just paid about
$1.75. I wish I had been a British person coming to America, I would
have felt rich.
“Across the pond” there is a whole
different world, these are just a few differences. Experiencing a new
culture can be enriching if not shocking too, you may be surprised by
how the country you dream of visiting does things differently.
