How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Jul 4th 2011 | 7:20 pm
#46
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 14,680
From: Bay Area, CA
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Jul 4th 2011 | 8:28 pm
#47
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 14,680
From: Bay Area, CA
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
After spending the last 2 years on BE I was all set for this on our recent trip back to England, first time we had been back since leaving nearly 4 years ago.
I didn't see any dog poop on the streets or in the parks we visited and there were plenty of dogs around.
I didn't see any gum on the floor, althouh my husband did step in some on the shopping trip to the posh outdoor mall at Stanford we visited prior to our trip
Traffic was heavy, but not as aggresive as I remembered
Shop assistants were really lovely everywhere I went, customer service has definately picked up but hasn't got to the stupid American stage of hovering on your shoulder.
Every meal we had was good, inluding the pub food althouh I did get stung for paying for breakfast in the hotel when I thought it was free
Sausages were lovely though, and HP on the table
I was also expecting loads of graffiti, broken glass, drunks in town on a night, teenage gangs. I witnessed none of this and our home city where we were staying is a fairly common place, certainly on the lower end of the posh meter.
I didn't see any dog poop on the streets or in the parks we visited and there were plenty of dogs around.
I didn't see any gum on the floor, althouh my husband did step in some on the shopping trip to the posh outdoor mall at Stanford we visited prior to our trip
Traffic was heavy, but not as aggresive as I remembered
Shop assistants were really lovely everywhere I went, customer service has definately picked up but hasn't got to the stupid American stage of hovering on your shoulder.
Every meal we had was good, inluding the pub food althouh I did get stung for paying for breakfast in the hotel when I thought it was free
Sausages were lovely though, and HP on the tableI was also expecting loads of graffiti, broken glass, drunks in town on a night, teenage gangs. I witnessed none of this and our home city where we were staying is a fairly common place, certainly on the lower end of the posh meter.
Not enough to make me want to go back, but at least now I don't have to dread a trip when I have to make it!
Jul 5th 2011 | 12:49 am
#48
Forum Regular
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 149
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Wow, its bizarre to me that anyone would dread a trip, I would give anything to go home! Those negative things people have listed are all the things I hate about the town I live in here in America....lol....
Mind you, I work in a laundromat so never mind the dogs, I have to deal with how dirty PEOPLE are all day......
Mind you, I work in a laundromat so never mind the dogs, I have to deal with how dirty PEOPLE are all day......
Jul 5th 2011 | 1:07 am
#49
BE Site Lead
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 92,279
From: MA, USA
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Things that drove me completely insane on my most recent trip back to the UK:
Dog poop
Gum on pavement
Traffic, traffic and more traffic
The smell of pee when walking past bus shelters etc.
The rain (it rained for 12 days out of 14)
The miserable faces on the shop assistants
Crap hotel/pub food
Having to pay to park everywhere you go
I think that's about it...rant over
Dog poop
Gum on pavement
Traffic, traffic and more traffic
The smell of pee when walking past bus shelters etc.
The rain (it rained for 12 days out of 14)
The miserable faces on the shop assistants
Crap hotel/pub food
Having to pay to park everywhere you go
I think that's about it...rant over
The dog poop is weird, because I'm seeing that in my town now too...but where we were living, just outside of Boston, there wasn't any, plenty of dog poop bins around.
Popping into Boston, and just realised how many smokers there were too, so weird as you hardly ever see fag butts around where I am, nor where we were living.
Jul 5th 2011 | 3:38 am
#50
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2005
Posts: 3,264
From: Vermont
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Jul 6th 2011 | 10:14 am
#52
Thread Starter
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 1,712
From: Northern California
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Just to follow on from my original post I saw the rag n bone man today - where was his horse and cart!!!! He arrived in what looked like a spanking new pick up truck and turned his nose up at the tele we had left outside for him and drove of without it!!!! 
I saw the rag n bone man today - where was his horse and cart!!!! He arrived in what looked like a spanking new pick up truck and turned his nose up at the tele we had left outside for him and drove of without it!!!!
Jul 6th 2011 | 10:18 am
#53
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jan 2008
Posts: 41,517
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Last time I saw a rag and bone man (about 20 years ago) they only wanted scrap metal.
Jul 6th 2011 | 2:27 pm
#54
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 954
From: Mendocino, California
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Do you still get free balloons ? We used to up north
Jul 6th 2011 | 7:39 pm
#55
Thread Starter
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 1,712
From: Northern California
Jul 7th 2011 | 12:15 am
#57
A lion in your lap
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,605
From: Sparta NJ
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
An observation from my trip to London back in March: Both London and New York claim the title of "World Financial Capital" and it seems to be a close thing, but London easily beats New York in the race for "World capital of standing outside the office having a fag".
Jul 7th 2011 | 9:01 am
#58
Just Joined
Joined: Jul 2011
Posts: 2
From: Lake Mills, WI, USA
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
My mum used to get a donkey stone...that was many, many years ago.
Miss the UK when applying for a job, all those drop down boxes for the USA school you never went to and GPA scores...pain in the neck and I do miss meeting other people who know the difference between a cask beer and a Miller/Bud and especially not walking into a bar in town and feeling naked as I'm the only one not wearing a baseball cap.
Miss the UK when applying for a job, all those drop down boxes for the USA school you never went to and GPA scores...pain in the neck and I do miss meeting other people who know the difference between a cask beer and a Miller/Bud and especially not walking into a bar in town and feeling naked as I'm the only one not wearing a baseball cap.
Jul 7th 2011 | 10:55 am
#59
BE Site Lead
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 92,279
From: MA, USA
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
The foods only mediocre though as they're trying to make it a bit more posh than pub grub needs to be...still, best beer around
Jul 7th 2011 | 11:40 am
#60
Septic Sprout
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 8,002
From: Shanghai
Re: How do I know Im back in Blighty?
Are you sure it's all cask-conditioned beer? I'm a fairly serious beer head and not heard of anywhere doing more than two or three - even in the big beer destinations, e.g. Portland, Denver, San Diego etc. I seriously doubt anywhere in the US has the cask turnover to keep that number fresh - possibly except if there was a beer festival on or something. 99.99% of US craft beer is sold as keg. There is a nasty trade around for fake beer engines, however.
