Kikki Travel Archives - London 2009 - "The Beautiful Game"

Sept. 16, 2009

So much for the Queen's Word of the Day. Frankly, I can't keep up with all these bloody words and phrases. Instead, some football commentary:

"Football"

As most of you folks who live in Blue states probably know, "football" - in all other parts of the world, is actually what we North Americans refer to as "soccer." And what we refer to as "football" is called "American football" everywhere but North America.

As I type, I'm watching the Liverpool FC v Debreceni VSC football game, eating some sort of microwaveable, traditional British dish and drinking a glass of cheap red wine. Listening to the European football announcers call the game is the highlight of my day. They just seem to love it.

At this point several of you have probably asked, "where and what in the bloody h*ll is Debreceni?" (sorry, I still won't curse in front of my parents)...well I asked myself the same thing. After less than 10 seconds of Googling and a little Wiki magic, I learned the following:

-Debrecen is a city in Hungary
-The Hungarian spelling is dɛbrɛt͡sɛni veː ɛʃ t͡se
-In August 2009, they defeated PFC Levski Sofia (you'll have to Google that one on your own) 4–1 on aggregate to become the first Hungarian team in 14 years to qualify for the group stage of the Champions League
-You can read more about Debrecen VSC here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debreceni_VSC.

I've decided to be a Liverpool fan and have therefore begun to learn more about them. In a nutshell, I've learned that Liverpool are the arch rivals of Manchester United. Think of it as Mets v Yankees.

*The professional football teams in England are collectively known as the "Premier League."

Meanwhile, Liverpool has just won 1-0. Then again, they're playing dɛbrɛt͡sɛni veː ɛʃ t͡se, so nothing to get excited about (pardon the dangling preposition).

Kikki Travel Archives - London 2009 - "On London"

Sept. 11, 2009

As you all know, U.K. drivers drive on the opposite side of U.S. drivers. That's fairly common knowledge. What I've not noticed until this trip, however is that the local Londoners walk on the opposite side too. When Adam and I were in London last year, our use of public transportation and general wandering about took place during "off peak" hours, so the "opposite walking" wasn't terribly obvious. This time around I've noticed during rush hour that the natural inclination here is for people to stay to the left when going up/down the stairs, along the sidewalk, etc. They also beeline toward their left to move out of the way. It was only today that I noticed OUR (we Americans) inclination is to head to the right. To my NY colleagues who take public transportation, pay attention the next time you're moving through a crowded subway station or down the sidewalk - you'll naturally go right to avoid oncoming foot traffic...just as I do here in London, which explains why I've just barely escaped several deaths by stampede.

The grocery stores here sell very decent wine, beer AND hard liquor (they sell food too). I'm fortunate to be in what they call an "apart'hotel," which is effectively an efficiency apartment. I've got a small kitchen that allows me to cook, so I've been by the local grocery a couple of times already. It's the same grocery store staff every night and they're very friendly. My favorite person is the security guard, whom I befriended my first night when he helped me find a corkscrew (see "very decent wine, beer AND hard liquor").

I went out Thursday night with my colleagues (see "pissed" above). We started at the pub which is less than four feet from the door of our office and quite inescapable if you're trying to leave unnoticed and head straight home ("OY, YOU'RE NOT LEAVING ARE YOU?"). I then followed my new colleagues across the London Bridge to another pub. Before I knew it, it was closing time and we were being kicked out. I was so impressed with myself for being a rockstar and shutting down a bar (I haven't done that since my 20s), until I realized it was only 11pm (the bars in NYC shut down at 4am). I learned that until recently, 11pm was the standard closing time for London pubs. In recent years, closing time has been extended to approximately 1am with a special permit. Most local neighborhood pubs have yet to bother applying for that extended license, so 11pm it is. So much for my being a rockstar.

And finally, I've found that the Queen's English - in most cases - is slightly more literal than "American" English. For example, you won't find "Exit" signs, but rather "way out" signs with arrows pointing to the way out. Very concise, n'est ce pas? Additionally I stop off at a coffee shop for a caffeine fix, I'm asked, "is that for here or to take away?" "Take away" is the British "to go." So each morning I say, "I'll have a cup of coffee to take away." In NYC, you park on the street and then dump your change into a "muni-meter." In return, you get a receipt that you must place in your windshield. In London, you park on the street and dump your change into a "pay and display." After all, that's precisely what you're doing.

Kikki Travel Archives - London 2009 - "Queen's English"

Sept. 9, 2009:

"Give you a bell" - synonymous with the American "give you a ring" or "give you a call," but cuter.

Sept. 11, 2009:

"Cheers." I've found this to be a somewhat multi-purpose exclamation, which is basically synonymous with "thanks." Although sometimes I hear a combination, "thanks, cheers!"

"That's Alright." This is synonymous with "you're welcome" or "no problem." For each pint I'm handed, I reply "thanks*," and 9 times out of 10 my enabler-of-the-moment responds "that's alright." *I'm not yet comfortable with "cheers." I'd just sound affected. Give me time. I'll still sound affected, I just won't think so.

"OY." In London, this is an exclamation synonymous with "HEY" (as opposed to my Jewish grandmother's exclamation of annoyance).

"Off his tits." This is synonymous with "out of his mind," "crazy," "off his rocker," etc.

"Pissed." Meaning "drunk" or "wasted."

"Tube" = "Subway"