Never tired of London
Part two

Petra Cerar, Tina Iskra, Anita Ivic, Petra Kežman, Polona Prodnik, Marko Horvat, Martin Robic, Andrej Salobir, Katja Vlašic and Maja Zor

The authors are students from Ljubljana, Slovenia, who have visited the UK. The authors of this article and their colleagues presented their impressions of London, England and the UK at the IATEFL Slovenia conference in September.

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Shopping in London…
Theatre
Culture
Church
Houses of Parliament
B&B
Food
Where are you from?

What I also experienced was Marks and Spencer's, with their twenty sorts of sliced bread, already made salads, organic food as well as a full selection of Christmas foods and sweets, in October. What surprised me most was that everything, and I mean everything, is already packed in plastic wrapping - from meat to salad, from fruit to bread, everything is vacuum packed. Which I find a bit too sterile and artificial, since there is no way I could actually choose the apples I liked, or buy a quarter of a loaf of bread. And the apples that I bought there had surely been raised in a week's time, since they were all watery and tasteless. Not to mention that three apples in London cost as much as a student's meal in a famous Mexican restaurant in Ljubljana. (Martin)

…What I noticed while walking around London was that practically every bookshop has a coffee shop inside. What a great way of attracting people! It is a real pleasure to go inside one of the bookshops, sit down with the book of your choice, and have a coffee alongside. No one will trouble a person for looking through a book or a magazine. One is most welcome to do just that. I guess Konzorcij in Ljubljana is that way too, but we could definitely use many more such bookstores. With a coffee shop inside them, of course… (Tina)

An incident worth describing happens, as I want to use my change in coins and try to buy something from the machines. But hey! - it has swallowed my money and hasn't given anything for it. I decide to complain to the shop assistant at the bar, and to my great surprise she listens to my story, takes the keys to the machine, opens it and gives me my sweets. It is something that would never happen in Slovenia because these machines issue no receipts or anything else to prove your story. I am amazed. (Alenka)

All shops were open on Sunday, which means that Slovenian politicians lie when they say that in all western countries shops are closed on Sundays. I bought a book and had a whole dialogue of "thank yous" with the shop assistant. Even more, he did not only say "thank you", but he actually looked at me and smiled as if he really meant it. I had never been treated this way in Slovenia! (Anita)

I got an impression that the British tend to consider theatre going a source of entertainment rather than a serious institution that is reserved for intellectuals, as this is mostly the case in Slovenia. Bearing that kind of theory in my mind, I was really taken aback by the fact that the actors of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' sang and danced in the foyer during the break. (Petra C)

Another distinction in comparison with Slovenian habits is that theatregoers wear casual clothes and in general are much more relaxed. It is also not strange at all if a person eats or drinks during the play. The audience also laughs aloud, shouts and takes part in what is happening. This kind of conduct is contrary to the stereotype of British reticence and strictness. (Renata)

"Les Miserables" was the second time I could realize how profit-oriented West End theatres really are, especially the ones performing popular shows, plays or musicals. Our seats were so high up I couldn't see the conductor! That was important to me and I did stand up in the end to see him, because I had to make sure I'd heard the correct name - yes, and it really was the one we had sung with some years ago in Ljubljana - amazing, the coincidence, isn't it - I thought to myself, and it was a perfect surprise to end my fourth day in London. (Alenka)

After a whole day of running around and sightseeing, Mojca and I decided to go and see a musical based on music by ABBA. Before we got to the theatre, we agreed that we would not pay more than L25 each for the tickets and we thought that was a fortune. Unfortunately, "Mama Mia" was sold out and we had to stand in the "return tickets line" and hope that someone would just bring a couple of them back. We were lucky and got the tickets in the end, but we paid L32.50 each, which is more than my annual ticket for the SNG Drama. But the show was worth every penny paid - it was fantastic and we had a fabulous time. It felt more like a concert as the conductor was taking photos and the audience was singing along and in the end the actors even sang a couple of extra songs - I had never experienced anything like that before because theatres back home are so different. (Maja)

In London, there are a REALLY large number of theatres. In Stratford-upon-Avon there are only two.

I very much enjoyed the backstage tour at the Swan and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre because I like theatre. Every time I go to see a play, I wonder what the backstage looks like. And today I finally got a chance to peek behind the curtains. I have stood on the stage of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre - not everyone can say that. But I can. It felt great and there must be even much more energy in the air when the audience fills the auditorium. (Polona)

The afternoon ended with a walk through Covent Garden and other streets in the area. I was lucky to watch and hear a group of young people play classical music (Vivaldi, I guess) in Covent Garden. It was great because it was different; we watched them from upstairs and the guy playing the violin was sort of kidding around while playing… (Alenka)

A woman stopped me in the street and said, "Excuse me. Jesus loves you." I didn't know how to react, but then she just gave me this flyer (about all God's good deeds and an invitation to join the Christian community) and left. (Anita)

I simply love Camden Town market. It is the whole world in a little space, full of different kinds of people, all shapes and colours. There was this man dressed like a guard with a bell in his hand who was inviting people to visit the market. I wanted to take a picture of him but later changed my mind because some other man took a picture of him before and the guard literally yelled at him: "F*** off!" (Polona)

The service is interesting and especially the choir is nice. I'm not a churchgoer otherwise, but it's good to see what is happening there. When I tell my great aunt that the congregation gets handouts with clear instructions about when to sit down or stand up, she is surprised, but I find the extra tips really helpful. (Alenka)

We've been to St. Paul's Cathedral, which I found very majestic, but was surprised at how little it was decorated. I was expecting a lot of wall paintings, something similar to the way churches are in Slovenia, but I was wrong. However, I thought the acoustics inside were really great. When we first came in, someone was playing the organ, and the sound was absolutely beautiful… (Tina)

What really impressed me about the ceremony in St. Paul's Cathedral was the singing of the Choir. There was something unearthly in it, something mysterious - and it definitely wasn't like the singing in some of the Slovenian churches that sounds as if the singers were holding a cat's tail while swinging it. (Marko)

When we visited the Houses of Parliament, we experienced what strict security means. I think that we went through about four body searches so I almost began to feel like a criminal. Then we finally reached the Stranger's Gallery of the House of Lords. There were only about ten people present and an elderly lady was obviously sleeping when her colleague had a speech. But when he finished, the lady woke up and started to comment on what he had just said. Interesting. (Polona)

I was quite intimidated by the guards at the Houses of Parliament carrying automatic weapons, but resisted the urge to discuss this topic with one of them. So I happily went in, knowing there would be another full body check waiting for me because of my dangerous-looking belt and metal watch. I always imagined the House of Commons to be much larger and expected that more than six MPs would be working there. Little did I know, but those six

were quite proficient in rhetoric and very relaxed when they were not speaking, putting their feet on the table as they sat on their chairs. Well, at least five of them were, because one dropped dead of exhaustion and had to take a nap right there.
The House of Lords with its red carpets was even less impressive - it seemed to me I came to a house for rich elderly people. (Martin)

The Big Ben had just started striking when I came near Westminster Palace. I was quite surprised that, when it struck out, there was no voice saying, "Porocila londonskega BBC-ja na Murskem valu." After I got over the disappointment, I continued my way towards the Palace and the public entrance to the Houses. The Palace itself is simply beautiful, no doubt about it. However, it is hard to get into it. All the precautions there made me think a little about the world where everybody is a potential terrorist.
When I finally came in, I saw an image I will never forget. It was the image of a man, who was a member of the Opposition, I think, since he was sitting on the right, sleeping with his mouth wide open and his foot on the Table of the House. I know that the parliament building in Ljubljana often turns into a circus tent, however, I have never seen or heard of any member sleeping during a sitting. Probably they just do not do it in such an obvious manner. (Marko)

Our room at the bed-and-breakfast is ridiculously tweed - with its pink walls, lilac curtains and bed-covers covered with flowers it looks like a dollhouse. But - what is most important - the beds are really comfortable. (Kaja)

The B&B we were staying at really shows the way the English decorate the interior of their houses. Our B&B looks rather small/narrow from the outside, but is quite spacious from the inside. And I can describe it as colourful. Every room has differently coloured walls - mine was pink - and loads of small details to make the room more pleasant. Napkins, small pillows, teddy bears, flowers in all forms and sizes etc. Fresh bouquets, dried flowers, flowers on walls, on curtains…flowers, flowers, flowers… (Andrej)

After a few days of experiencing London's hustle and bustle, visiting Stratford-upon-Avon feels like entering another world - and so does our B&B compared to the shabby hostel in London. "A home from home," as they call it, looks good, smells good and tastes good, although cereal, eggs and bacon, followed by toast and marmalade isn't really what a Slovene stomach is used to in the morning, at least not in this particular order. Anyway, there is much more to B&B accommodation in private homes than only bed and breakfast, as logic might make you think: flowery wallpaper and patchwork quilts, lace in every nook and cranny, garish porcelain dolls and a nice housewife with a good stock of family anecdotes for any occasion seem to be an essential part of the B&B culture. (Petra K)

It is interesting what menus in the UK are like. All food has positive adjectives written next to it on the menu; e.g. delicious fish and chips, home-made muffins, lovely cottage pie, tasty... This always makes me want to try everything on the menu. (Anita)

I tried the famous fish and chips - in a Turkish kebab joint. What I didn't expect was to get half a meter of codfish with a shovel full of chips, which I hardly managed to eat, even though I did not eat anything else the whole day. The meal was nothing to write home about, but it is a British specialty not to be missed. The proprietor of the joint also noticed immediately that we were not British, and wanted to be friends with us, bringing at least half a dozen different sauces to go along with the fish. How nice. At least he didn't pretend to know where Slovenia was, nor was he particularly eager to know. (Martin)

After the sightseeing, we ended up in a local pub. There was a British guy who asked us where we were from, and when we said Slovenia, he immediately placed us in Africa. (Anita)

The guide seemed very friendly at the beginning, but later, when she wasn't speaking about the cottage and the Hathaways, I sensed some kind of obligation in her voice. When she asked me where we were from, I said, "Slovenia," and she said, "Oh, really, that's nice." I could just read it in her eyes that she didn't have the slightest idea where this is. Then my mind raged. Why are you doing this - I'm not expecting you to know where my country is, though you could at least know that it is somewhere in Europe, but if you admitted that you don't, I'd be more than happy to explain it to you - it was a part of former Yugoslavia... She kept pretending and I was close to putting her back to real life by asking her where Slovenia is, with a smile on my face. But I didn't. I replied to her questions as a good boy... which puts me on the same pretentious level with her. Oh, dear... (Marko)

However, there are exceptions.

Well, I liked the man even better when he asked me where I was from and then replied without hesitating, "Dobe(r) dan." I was aghast, but then he also knew about "Nova Gorica" and the old "Gorizia" in Italy and said something about Shakespeare being there sometime. I didn't understand it quite well and had to go on with my tour, however, it gave me a pleasant feeling that a coincidental person knows of Slovenia. (Alenka)

Please check the British Life, Language and Culture course at Pilgrims website.