Wednesday, January 02, 2008
In Summary, England
There are two distinct Englands. One is seen on the left below. That photo was taken in a bird sanctuary in East Anglia right next to the North Sea. On the right is Tower Bridge in London. (London Bridge, the scenic one, is in Arizona.
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In between the two extremes are many towns and cities such as Nottingham, Leicester, Stratford and hundreds more that make up the England in which most English people live and work.
I learned some things about England which I did not know. I knew, for example, that England went Metric a long time ago. I'd never driven in England, though, and thought that only beer was still availble in the old measures (pints, to be exact.) In fact, the highways are signed in miles and yards, and the speedometer on the car I rented was exactly like an American one, with the Kilometers in little numbers inside of the list of "real" speeds in miles per hour. Petrol (gasoline) is sold by the litre (liter) though, at just over a pound per litre. Since a Pound generally buys the same thing a dollar will buy in America, gas isn't all that god awful more expensive than it is in Nevada, maybe 25 percent or so more, which is less of a difference than I'd been expecting. Of course, right now the dollar isn't worth what it ought to be, so pounds are expensive for an American to buy. On the other hand, if you have pounds and want to visit America, I can tell you that you'll find it remarkably cheap. Come to Vegas, because everybody loves Las Vegas, and I'm not kidding. You'll have a good time. We even have some roundabouts, if you're feeling homesick. Also our petrol is cheaper.
You might think I enjoyed my stay in Britain, and you'd be right. It felt homey, in a good way, and the people were very friendly and tolerant of my American ways. One man even thanked me for bailing them out in World War Two, as if I'd had anything to do with it. Well, officially then, you are all very welcome, by British friends. Think nothing of it. Think of me the next time you're in Boots buying batteries. Finally, in gratitude for being shown a great deal of hospitality, here's something distinctly British, and even red, white and blue:
)
In between the two extremes are many towns and cities such as Nottingham, Leicester, Stratford and hundreds more that make up the England in which most English people live and work.
I learned some things about England which I did not know. I knew, for example, that England went Metric a long time ago. I'd never driven in England, though, and thought that only beer was still availble in the old measures (pints, to be exact.) In fact, the highways are signed in miles and yards, and the speedometer on the car I rented was exactly like an American one, with the Kilometers in little numbers inside of the list of "real" speeds in miles per hour. Petrol (gasoline) is sold by the litre (liter) though, at just over a pound per litre. Since a Pound generally buys the same thing a dollar will buy in America, gas isn't all that god awful more expensive than it is in Nevada, maybe 25 percent or so more, which is less of a difference than I'd been expecting. Of course, right now the dollar isn't worth what it ought to be, so pounds are expensive for an American to buy. On the other hand, if you have pounds and want to visit America, I can tell you that you'll find it remarkably cheap. Come to Vegas, because everybody loves Las Vegas, and I'm not kidding. You'll have a good time. We even have some roundabouts, if you're feeling homesick. Also our petrol is cheaper.
You might think I enjoyed my stay in Britain, and you'd be right. It felt homey, in a good way, and the people were very friendly and tolerant of my American ways. One man even thanked me for bailing them out in World War Two, as if I'd had anything to do with it. Well, officially then, you are all very welcome, by British friends. Think nothing of it. Think of me the next time you're in Boots buying batteries. Finally, in gratitude for being shown a great deal of hospitality, here's something distinctly British, and even red, white and blue:
Labels: England, Holidays, Info
