A Bit of British Culture

Yes,  I know, another update... But if you're on here then I guess that makes it okay. Just to clarify though, I'm not planning on updating everyday, so don't get used to it ;-] But I do know that I would be curious about all of this new stuff if I was in ya'll's shoes, so I'm trying to fill out in on as much as I can that I have learned so far. Plus, I'm having so much fun that I want to share it with everybody but it's kind of hard and time consuming to tell everyone all of the details, it's a really long post but here we go..

I finally got a chance to go to Aldi (which is a super cheap grocery store that is in America as well) with Chris from Montana and Chris from Missouri. Deciphering what all of the stuff was was pretty difficult, but enlightening none-the-less. Here's some of the food that I got today



The salt was huuuuge (and was only 29 pence which is like $.45)! In the back is wheat bread (I think), on the right is baguettes which is what most people eat their sandwiches on, and the front is potatoes that I am planning on making with Grandma's baked potato bag (Thanks Grandma!)




On the left is what I think is like spaghetti sauce, the middle is different kinds of crisps (chips) and on the right is Fusilli noodles (spiral noodles)




Sadly, no Diet Coke and the Lemonade is marked as "cloudy" because it is yellow, the other kind was clear. Each of these semi-2-liter bottles was 40 pence which is like 60 cents!




Pretty self-explanatory here, but they all just look funny haha!




This is where I got frustrated. Needless to say, they don't have American Cheese in England. They did, however, have British cheese which I found pretty funny! But I ended up getting shredded cheddar cheese (which was white and not yellow) cheddar slices, German salami, and British butter haha! The chicken in the front and the ham on the back right was the most expensive things that I bought out of the whole trip. They were each about 1 pound and 50 pence for 4 slices in each package. That translates to about $2.25 which is like 40 cents a slice! I mean I know that it really isn't too bad in the big picture but maybe I won't be living on sandwiches here..




Fries, chicken, and pizza. Home Sweet Home




This is the kitchen. The stove on the left has a grill in the top section and an oven on the bottom.




Kitchen table with a view in to the courtyard outside. Fridge and Freezer are on the left




Here's the other side of the kitchen. The other fridge and the other freezer are on the bottom left.




This is the view in to the courtyard from the kitchen.




Haha! The window across the way used sticky notes to make a pac-man and a ghost. The sticky-notes on our window above are to continue it all the way around along with the other flats.




The water closet is on the left and has a toilet and a sink which is mainly used for guests. The one on the right has a bath/shower and also a toilet and a sink.



This is Lucy, one of my flatmates and I last night at Source which is the on-campus bar. It was a lot of fun, but verrrry different. They don't grind/juke, but just dance with eachother. I was trying to explain it all to them, but no such luck haha. We danced to like all American pop music which I found funny as well as things like YMCA, the Macarena, and even Cotton-eyed Joe (made me think of you Nolan!). I felt like I was at a wedding when those songs started to come on. Kind of surprised the chicken-dance didn't come on next...

Now on to a vocabulary lesson..

toilet - bathroom

flat - apartment or dormroom

flatmate - person you live with, like a roommate, but doesn't share a room with you

quid - bucks (slang for pounds which is like dollars)

p - short for pence, like cents or coins

bit - small part

quaff - a poof (how I am wearing my hair in the picture above)

back-combing - teasing

queue - line of people or cars

trackies - polyester sweatpants

trousers - regular pants

pants - underwear

mobile - cell phone (pronounced mob-eye-uhl, not mob-uhl like we say it)

shopping center - mall

commoner - lower-class

crisps - potato chips

chips - french fries

biscuit - cookie

bin - garbage can

rota - rotation

enquiry or query - question

expiry date - expiration date

timetable - schedule

accomodation - dorms or residence halls

course - area of study or major

module - class

module descriptor - syllabus

flat water - tap water

tutor - professor

mate - friend

cheers - thanks

football - soccer

rugby - similar to American football, but less sctructured

rounders - similar to softball, but not very popular =[

Insight on the British people

Overall I've learned that people here are very proper and reserved. Even people my age don't cuss like a sailor. It's looked down upon if you do and is considered common (this will definitely be a challenge for sure!). They definitely do not like complaining and if they do, they don't complain directly. Eveeryone I've met so far really enjoys Americans. There was only one guy who jokingly told me that I stole America from him, but other than that, they get really excited haha! I feel like I have it stamped on my forehead because they never ask what country I am from like all of the other international students, but what state I am from. When I tell them Illinois, I have to say by Chicago which isn't true at all, but they know where it is. When I say I go to school in Kentucky, they always get really excited and talk about KFC haha!

Eating Out

Since I've been here, we've eaten out quite a lot (mainly since I didn't have any food but granola bars and candy that I brought from the plane). They do not tip or pay any kind of sales tax so the price you see on the menu is the price you pay, which is verrrry nice! Also, as far as the places that I've been which mainly has been pubs (not just to drink) you have to go to the counter to order and pay, they don't have servers that come and help you. There is also no free refills and you only get ice if you specifically ask for it because they think it takes away from the flavor of the drink.

I know it has only been five days since I first arrived, but I feel like I have already learned so much and am already excited to learn more. Please feel free to leave comments because I know you have thoughts on everything I'm saying and I want to keep in contact with everyone! My skype is Katie.Gibbons26 so if you downloaded skype and have a webcam, please feel free to add me and skype me any time! Also, I am 6 hours ahead of central time in Illinois and 5 hours ahead of eastern time in Kentucky which is kind of a challenge, but I do really want to keep in contact with you all!

I hope you're enjoying reading all of this and I can't wait to start hearing from everyone! Miss you all and see you soon!