Browsing Category

Expat Life

Expat Life

Top Tip: How to Act When You Meet the Royal Family

Today was a pretty big day if you’re a royal watcher as it marked the beginning of the Queen’s tour to celebrate her Diamond Jubilee.  I have a passing interest in the Royal Family, I’m more interested in their history than current day, but today I paid a little more attention.

You see, the first stop on the Queen’s tour today was a visit to De Montfort University and my other half was part of a delegation of business leaders who participated in the events with the Queen and the Duchess of Cambridge.  I’ve not yet received the full scoop on his meet and greet and whether or not he enjoyed the fashion show, but I’m sure I’ll get a detailed report along the lines of “It was alright.”  And of course I’m gutted that he wasn’t allowed to take any photos!

But I thought I would at least share with you some of the guidelines he received about how you’re supposed to act when you meet the Royal Family.

Meeting Members of the Royal Family

There is no obligation on anyone to bow or curtsey to every member of the Royal Family.  It is a custom, or convention, and not a rule, and as such people should feel free to follow it or not as they wish.  This was restated in advice from Buckingham Palace in February 1998.

The traditional practice was that it was usual for men to bow and women to curtsey on being introduced to and taking leave of members of the Royal Family as follows: If a hand is extended, take it lightly and briefly, at the same time executing a bow from the neck, not from the waist, or a brief bob with the weight on the front foot (if she wishes, a woman may bow instead of curtsey: it is the acknowledgement that counts, not the exact form it takes).

The Queen should be addressed as “Your Majesty” for the first time and as “Ma’am (pronounced like “am” not “arm”) on subsequent occasions.  Other members of the Royal Family should be addressed for the first time as “Your Royal Highness” and subsequently as “Sir” or “Ma’am”.

You just never know when this might come in handy.

March 8, 2012
Expat Life

Enjoying Some Quality Time in the Winter Weather

This week I took Monkey in for his two-year checkup (four months late…).  And because he cooperated so well, I took him to get a special treat at a local deli / bakery.  That kid loves his baked goods.  (Disclosure, they also have really good lattes for mummy.  Any excuse for a good coffee).  The place has great food but unfortunately has no inside seating, just a couple of small tables out front on the sidewalk.  My intent was for us to get our treats, get back in the car, and head the few minutes home.

Monkey decided he wanted a croissant, I got a sandwich and a coffee and then proceeded to head for the car which was miraculously parked right out front.  But as I headed for the car, the little man headed right for one of the small tables they had outside and pulled up a chair.

Now, I know I’ve talked about the English winter weather before and how lovely it is.  On this day, it was in the 30s, grey, damp, and blustery.  The usual.  And my child has just pulled up a seat at a table where we can enjoy our bakery items and coffee in this glorious weather.  This isn’t a café in the south of France!  I’m thinking about how quickly we can get back inside.  Instead, I pull up the chair next to him.

We’d only been sitting there a few minutes when a stranger passes by our little table and looks me in the eye and says “you must have a stern constitution to be sitting out here.”

Stern constitution?  No.  Sitting outside in this weather has nothing to do with my constitution and tolerance for cold weather.  “I have a two-year old.”  I explain to the stranger.  And I am weak and unable to say no to him when it comes to things that really don’t matter.  Was it really going to kill me to sit outside for 10 minutes and drink my coffee?  Probably not.  Even though my sinuses might say otherwise.

Oh to be a kid and not think twice, just live in the moment.  And not care how many crumbs you get on your face.

February 23, 2012
A Cuppa Tea
Expat Life

A Cuppa Tea Solves Everything

Although I’ve been in England now for over three years, I have not yet developed an appreciation for tea.  Maybe it’s just that I haven’t really tried. What with all my coffee drinking, when do I have time to fit it in?

But I am continually amazed to discover that tea is the most powerful beverage known to man and can make any problem you have go away.

Take EastEnders, quite possibly one of the most depressing shows ever on television.  On the show dear Dot Branning is always at the ready with a cuppa to make everyone’s problems go away.

Just found out your house burned down?  Here, have a cuppa. It will all be OK.

Just found out your boyfriend slept with your mother?  I’ll put the kettle on and we’ll have a cuppa.

But it’s not just on TV and in popular culture where I’ve seen this.

I’ve recently been in and out of the hospital with my Crohn’s.  And I’ve been amused to find that each time when I wake up from my procedure, the first thing they offer me is a cup of tea.  I haven’t eaten for two days, I’m completely dehydrated, and I have low blood pressure.  Wouldn’t a bit of water or juice be a more appropriate beverage for the situation?  Apparently not.  Never mind the wisdom of leaving a porcelain cup with a scalding beverage in the hands of someone just coming off heavy sedatives.

Is there no situation that doesn’t call for a cuppa tea?

The British are the largest per capita tea consumers in the world.  Maybe it’s because they know a secret the rest of us don’t.  That tea isn’t just a nice warm beverage.  It will fix everything that’s wrong in your life.

Tea drinkers, please help me understand.  I’ll put the kettle on.

February 16, 2012
Sunset Over Stonehenge
Expat Life

Five Things I Enjoy About England

Some time ago, I wrote a post on the things I missed about America since moving to the UK.  Mostly, these were things I missed that made daily life a little more convenient.  Getting through the day with the least amount of hassle is something I’m pretty keen on these days as doing anything with a toddler around is a little more challenging.

I said then that I’d eventually need to write about the things I like about the UK, just to be fair and balanced.  I’ve been in the UK now for over three years and I’ve mostly, but not completely, gotten over the culture shock.  All this time has certainly given me a chance to soak it all in I’ve been asked by a few friends what I like about living over here.

There’s no particular theme here other than I think these are all things that the English take for granted, that they don’t think twice about.  But they are things that I can’t help but compare and contrast to my daily life in America.

  1. Organic / Natural / Local Food Choices

    Even before I moved to England, I was making an effort to eat more organic and natural foods.  Michael Pollan’s wonderful book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, opened my eyes to what we eat and where it comes from and inspired me to put more thought into my choices.  I think anyone who eats food should read this book.  And, it’s not nearly as difficult to eat this way in England as it was in America.  I can go to any of the large national supermarket chains and find a wide selection of organic and natural foods.  I don’t have to go to a specialist natural food store.  Heck, I can even find store branded frozen fish fingers that contain only ingredients I can pronounce.  In America I couldn’t find a single brand that wasn’t laden with chemical preservatives.  I love how they label produce here with details about where it came from, sometimes down to the farmer’s name.  So I can choose oranges from Spain instead of Florida and feel like I’m doing my bit for the environment.  And within a 15 minute radius of my house there are any number of farmer’s markets and places to get REALLY local produce and meat.

  2. The Countryside

    Outside of the large metropolitan areas like London, you don’t find the suburban sprawl so typical of America. England’s towns and villages are separated by large areas of countryside.  And the closeness of the country to the city always strikes me.  If I drive two miles in one direction I’m in the middle of Oxford City.  If I drive two miles in the opposite direction, I’m in the middle of the country.  In the spring and summer, the countryside comes alive as rapeseed and poppy fields turn it into a quilt of bright colors.  It amuses me that I’ve sometimes had to negotiate sheep and horses on the roads.  I’ve gone for a walk, picked wild blackberries, AND THEN MADE FOOD from them!  And for a country that has notoriously bad weather, the English sure do their best to make the most of all the great walks the countryside has to offer.  They’ll go out for walks in weather I’d normally never dream of stepping foot outside in.  But here if you waited for only the good weather to get outside, well, then you sure wouldn’t get much fresh air for a large chunk of the year.

  3. Driving

    After I got over the fear of driving on the “wrong” side of the road and the blood streamed back into my cold white knuckles, driving here has become second nature.  And, one of the things that initially scared the life out me but that now makes complete sense to me is roundabouts.  You’re at an intersection and instead of sitting at a red light you just kind of pause and then keep going.  They keep the traffic moving, most of the time.  I think about all those times I’ve been stuck at a stop light with no one else in sight.  I’m wishing I could have whizzed around a roundabout.  I also appreciate the relative orderliness on the motorways.  People understand and generally abide by the rule that says “thou shalt not be in the outside lane unless overtaking.”  In America it’s generally anarchy (and dangerous) as people mostly ignore this and drive in whatever lane they feel like.

  4. Proximity of Great Stuff

    The beauty of living in a small country is that all its treasures and great sights are within easy reach.  Within a 1-2 hour drive of my house I can visit not just some of the most iconic and historic places in England but also the world.  This year I’ve now got a National Trust membership to take in more of these sights.  It’s not that there aren’t amazing things to see and do in America, there certainly are.  But America is so big and vast.  Seeing the great sights involves planning.  I’m not a good planner.  But here I can wake up one morning and spontaneously say “let’s go visit Stonehenge.” (Disclosure: Toddler makes this spontaneity much more difficult.)

  5. Kettles

    How good are electric kettles?  They are amazing.  Why do most American’s not have these?  After the war, did the English make a secret pact to keep all the best stuff for themselves?  Or is it just me that never knew about them?  Even though I’m not a big tea drinker, I can fully appreciate the speed with which these things boil water. No more waiting for ages to boil a pot of water to make pasta. Just fill up the kettle and then BAM, it’s like magic. Now I realize that this is a silly little thing to consider as one of my top things about England. But sometimes it’s just the silly little things that can make a difference.

There are other more thoughtful things that I enjoy, like living in a country where political debate isn’t heavily influenced by religious dogma.  But you’re not supposed to talk about religion and politics, right?  The Brits at least have a sense of humor about that kind of stuff and don’t seem to take it all so personally.  And reality TV? How good are they at that?  I think just about every top reality TV show you’ve seen in America is a knock-off of something from the UK.

I’m sure I could come up with even more examples of things I like about living in the UK.  Generally though, I’m just so thankful that I’ve had the opportunity to immerse myself in another culture.  I think that every American should seek out opportunities to do this, to explore the world, to broaden their understanding of other cultures.  There are more Americans on Facebook than have a passport and I find that sad.  Go out and get your passports people and go somewhere.  Anywhere!

 

February 9, 2012
Measuring Cup
Expat Life

What I’d Do With a Time Machine

If I had a time machine and could go back and tell my 10-year-old self just one thing it would be this:  “learn and master the metric system.”  Well, it would be a toss-up between that and “wear your retainer every night, FOREVER.”

There are plenty of things we’re forced to learn in school where we say to ourselves, “when will I ever use this in real life?”  Like advanced trigonometry and calculus.  I can’t say that I’ve ever used these in my every day life.  Ever.  And my lack of commitment in fully understanding these things (and, consequently, marginal grades) shows that I did have some foresight to know I would never need these tools again.  I understand that everything in the universe around us is somehow fundamentally explained by mathematics.  I’m just happy to be in awe of this without actually being able to explain how the Fibonacci sequence appears in pine cones.

But what I could not have predicted was that in my late thirties I would leave the United States to live in another country, a country that like all other industrialized nations in the world uses the metric system (mostly).  And this I use every day.  Running on the treadmill at the gym?  Speed in kilometers per hour.  Buying meat, canned goods, ANYTHING in the grocery store?  Weights in kilograms or millilitres.  Buying a storage cabinet from IKEA? Measurements in centimeters.  Checking the weather forecast?  Temperature in Celsius.  The list goes on.

I find cooking to be a particularly interesting challenge.  I’ve always enjoyed Christmas baking and most years bake numerous varieties of cookies.  But in my opinion good baking requires precise measurements, measurements that don’t always lend themselves to conversion.  Like when a recipe calls for one stick of butter.  Let’s just say that last year’s Christmas baking of what had been tried and true recipes didn’t turn out so true. I’ve made things a little easier for myself by bringing with me my US measuring cups and spoons and purchasing a kitchen scale, something I’d never bothered with before.  But I’m still endlessly converting ingredient lists to the metric system as that’s how they’re packaged in the store.  And, I can’t even pre-heat the oven without doing a Fahrenheit to Celsius conversion.

No one at the age of 10 can predict what life may have in store for them.  But as the majority of countries around the world use the metric system as their primary system of measurement, I’d guess that one’s likelihood of using the metric system at some point in their life is pretty high.  While the curriculum in my American grade school certainly included the metric system, it’s a classic case of use it or lose it.  And growing up in America I didn’t use it, so I lost it. Thank goodness I live in the age of the Internet where I can now find the tools to convert units for me with relative ease.  But this is clumsy and a time waster.  It would be much easier if I had mastered the metric system and could do this in my head.  And, I wouldn’t have to answer “hmm, I don’t know” when the doctor asks me how many kilograms my child weighs.

So time machine on.  Ten year old self, pay attention to the metric system.  Learn it.  Use it.  Master it.  The world is big and diverse.  You will travel, work, and live outside of America.  And you will find billions of people who do not measure butter in sticks.

November 29, 2011