Things I Love about the UK
“The office” and other British comedy- when they get it right it’s hard to argue with it.
Stonehenge
Scotch
England when the sun is shining
English gardens
“The Streets”
The way the Brits treat their dogs
Sky- sort of Fox with a brain
BBC
Radio 4 (sometimes)
The shipping report at 2 am
Real ale
London
Edinburgh
Hyde Park
Speaker’s corner- always plenty of arguments-never a fight
British Milk
Double Decker buses- to look at not to ride
Smokey pubs you can smoke in (soon to be a thing of the past)
Indie bands-even though boy bands seem to rule the airwaves, the endless crop of new stuff gives me hope
XFM
Luton airport
Standstead Airport
Low cost Airlines check this price list out! http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/
Sandwich bars
The Thames
Walking along the Thames in Westminster
The view from the south side of the Thames by the London eye
The London Eye
Tate Modern (kind of)
Steak and Kidney pie
Gastro pubs
Old pubs
Pubs
Notting hill Carnival
The Underground ( the idea of it, but not at rush hour)
The mix of cultures
Finding a good Indian restaurant
Stupendous curry-It is now the favourite, national dish in the UK!
Lock ins- no longer needed as you can legally now get a drink after 11!
Look up when you walk around London-the buildings are great
Gas fires
Urban gardens
The lake district
Somerset
Devon
Cornwall
Brighton
Funny village names
“common land”
The fact that roses bloom in January- it takes the edge of the grey drizzle
The NHS- not perfect but everyone gets treated regardless of background or economic circumstance
The social safety net
Inclusion in education
Going to Oxford or Cambridge costs a fraction of any state university in the US
Black taxis (expensive but they will always get you where you want to go)
“fair play”
Respect for “learning for learning’s sake”
Brits read
The Observer
The Economist
The Guardian
The Telegraph
The Broadsheets generally
Rugby
The ritual of the pint
“Panorama” and the various incarnations of investigative journalism on telly
Brit nature films
“Walking with Dinosaurs”
Swans everywhere- protected by the crown
Camden Market on a Sunday
Camden stalls
People live in buildings older than North America- I don’t mean royalty, I mean everyday people
Open debate- sometimes its absurd, but at least there is a measure of discussion
The Sex Pistols
My daughter lives here
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
Argh, you pander to the Pollyannas.
Yes, the Office! Black Adder and Horlicks also.
good I see positive frame of mind Ter Guess the jet lag is at bay
tou did forget your birth place in your list extensive list of full glass thoughts ! Think clair voyant's favorite show might be trailer park trash
Now Terry--“BBC…the NHS…Going to Oxford or Cambridge costs a fraction of any state university in the US…People live in buildings older than North America…STONEHENGE!!” --that’s just bragging!
I mean, I am sure a lovely stroll along New York’s East River (at night when the floating bodies are less visible) is just as lovely as a stroll along the Thames at Westminster….And funny village names? We’ve got those in the States. We stole them from the Brits! I mean I was born in Somerset, for godssake! Somerset, NEW JERSEY, that is! And the Sex Pistols? Ha. We have The Strokes. The Brits may appreciate them more than we do but they are New Yorkers all the way. And don’t you forget it.
In all seriousness its nice to hear that all those lovely fantasies about the UK fostered in the states by public television and films staring Gwyneth Paltrow are based in some kind of reality (even if its only the setting).
As for things I love about New York, well, Brooklyn, Katz’s Deli, Russ and Daughters, Sahadi’s, Karma, the East Village, the Lower East Side, the West Village (excluding the Meat Packing District), a few select parts of SOHO,the Jamaica Bay Riding Academy, Tompkins Square Park (now that its cleaned up a little), Prospect Park, Central Park, Washington Square Park, the MOMA, the Spring, the Fall, all the free concerts and outdoor films in the summer, delivery, bodegas, the Angelika, street musicians, the Brooklyn Heights Promenade, and most of all, diversity diversity diversity!!! I mean, where else can you randomly sit down on a park bench and hear a kick ass Hasidic Reggae singer giving a free concert so good the Jamaicans are screaming Ya mon! (And if you don’t believe me, check out the website for Matisyahu. He’s for real and not bad: http://www.matismusic.com)
dear me.....far too critical for a sister of mine....claire...whoever you are thanks for sending me to the dictionary....but you're right...no more pandering....if they can't take it c'est la vie!
Katz deli........hmmmm pastrami
Katz Deli... "I'll have what she is having".
Love it!
Dear Clair Voyant
There is no pandering. These last posts are old. All Mr. T had to do was copy & paste.
Post a Comment