Some things I have learned about my great friends, the English.

After being here for over three months, I have come to know the English culture pretty well. They do speak English here but there are certain words that are different. Here are a few of my favourites/favorites:

fairylights - Christmas lights

wellys - rain boots

cheers - thanks

aubergines - eggplants

courjettes- zucchini

pram - stroller for young babies, think carriage

pushchair - wheel chair

kirby grip - bobby pins   

jelly - Jello

gutted - disappointed

uni - university  Also, College here is not uni. It's kinda like in between high school and uni. 

diary - calendar   I thought everyone wrote "Dear Diary, ..." for the first couple of weeks here.

torches - flashlight

sledge - sled   When it snowed here, we all went sledging.

braces - suspenders

fringe - bangs (hair)

jumper - sweatshirt

trainers - shoes

pants - underwear  This can be a little tricky. If let's say I wanted to wear shorts instead of pants.

trousers - pants

bin - trash can  This one still throws me. Some of English friends say "trash can" in a very American accent so we understand them. Gotta love 'em.

Brillant - awesome  If you're really cool, you say Brill.

So when I get back, I maybe saying some of these words. Now you will be able to understand what I'm saying. Also, many people asked if I would get an accent while being here. We're kinda got one. We still talk in a Californian accent but our inflection sometimes goes English. When Chelsea and Janice visited they said that they could tell that our speaking was more Englishy.

Kevin and I have also learned things about the amazing country known as England.

1. People are weighed in stones. 1 stone equals 14 pounds.
2. Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are strange and are "so American." I guess in their mind they think peanut butter and jello which is quite weird, I agree with them on that
3. The English LOVE to queue and HATE those who jump the queue/those who are slightly to the right or left. Other European countries do not know how to form lines and make a mob or cut in front of people. We learned this while travelling around Greece and Spain.
4. Having a building built in the 1400's is a normal thing. So normal in fact that they converted one into a starbucks in Canterbury.
5. I love when our English mates pronounce very American words in an English accent. For example, our friend, Doug, pronounced Shamu's name "Shimooo (one syllable). We love you Doug.
6. Their whole country is smaller than our state of California, yet pretty much every city has their own accent. We're getting pretty good at telling accents apart...well kinda.
7. Instead of saying "What's their name?" they say "What are they called?"
8. England can't handle snow. Airports, buses, schools, train stations, and roads shut down. One would think after hundreds of years, they could get it.
9. English food is actually really good. Food here is fresh and not processed. I'm quite content with it.
10. Tea must be with milk and two sugars. It's the only way to go.

I really love English people. They're brill. You know what else is brill? Their coins. Like our state quarters, their 2009 coins when aligned form the royal shield of the UK. It took me forever but I finally got them all.

There is a possible chance of snow this weekend...please pray that it won't. We're checking the weather every five seconds. Our flight out of the country is on Monday at noon. Just to make sure we're not stuck in Canterbury, we are going to leave on Saturday afternoon and stay with our friend, Charlotte, who lives in North London. That means we'll have a day in London to say good bye to England. We're planning to take a 2012 Olympic site tour, see the Egyptian book of the dead in the British Museum (We took a class on it and its a special exhibition) and eat at one of Jamie Oliver's restaurants. This all means that we have less than two day in Canterbury. CRAZY.


I have a confession. Canterbury is my favorite city in the world. That is a huge statement to say but I realized I love California but I don't necessarily love a particular city as much as I love Canterbury. Don't get me wrong, California is still on top (Sorry, English friends). 


I should get packing, my stuff has doubled since I got here. Good night! California, I see you in 5 days.