Lessons Learned

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United Kingdoms flagPublished: April 9th 2012Europe » United Kingdom » Scotland » Midlothian » Edinburgh
March 12th 2012
Things I've learned since my arrival...

American stereotypes (basically think we're all Texans)


     • we're loud
     • fat and lazy (we are the most obese nation but Scotland is only 2 spots behind us in international statistics)
     • cowboys
     • we all live on huge ranches with big red barns
     • Stetson hats
     • we all drive large, gas guzzling vehicles
     • we assume we know everything about everything



Scotland is crazy liberal, they make American democrats look like conservatives

Traffic and driving


     • pedestrians never have the right away (good thing to know if you want to survive)
     • look right when crossing the road instead of left; I found this to be very
    hard at first but now I do it without thinking


Flipping the bird


     • Like Americans, British will occasionally let people know that they are "number one" when they are displeased; here the index finger joins the middle finger as a two finger salute. The history behind this dates back to wars between Britain and France. The French had some of the best archers in Europe. Every time a French archer was captured by the Brits his two bowstring fingers were cut off; this was seen has an ultimate disgrace. So when British soldiers would pass French prisoners of war, the Brits would raise their bowstring fingers to mock them (if you can't picture this imagine a backwards peace sign).



Currency current


     • exchange rate: 1.00 British pound = 1.58 US dollars
     • notes (paper money) or British pounds: 5, 10, 20, 50, 100; the notes are different colors and sizes to make it easier for the disabled (blind) to work out
     • coins (known as pence): 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 (exapmple: 1 pence, 2 pence, 5 pence, etc) also 1 and 2 pound coins



Lingo


     • anorak: a waterproof jacket
     • "Give it a bash”: give it a go, try something new
     • rubbish: trash
     • biscuit: cookie
     • blether: to chat or babble
     • bonnet: hood of a vehicle
     • boot: trunk of a vehicle
     • ceilidh: a dance or gathering
     • chips: french fries
     • crisps: potato chips
     • CV: resume
     • daft: stupid
     • dram: shot of whisky
     • pants: underwear
     • trousers: pants
     • snog: kiss
     • tattie: potato
     • trainers: sneakers
     • wellies: rubber boots
     • shrapnel:change
     • Fiver/Tenner: refers to either 5 or 10 pence or pounds
     • tab,fag: cigarette
     • wee:usually means little
     • hair on the dog: day after a hard night of drinking and you start the day
     • by drinking more
     • to be in a state of intoxication: pished, blootered, reeking, nailed,
     • leathered, wellied, gassed, nailed
     • How are you gettin' on?: How are you?
     • hen or stag party: a bachelorette or bachelor party; it's very popular
     • for people from other countries to come to Edinburgh for this
     • gutted: to be disappointed or upset


Example:Saying, "I would be totally gutted if Donald Driver does not win DWTS!"


     • Americans get picked on for not using the letter 'u'


examples: labour, colour, harbour, etc


     • The British do not really acknowledge the letter 'z' (pronounced "zed" )


examples: organisation, globalisation, etc

Tipping


     • for restaurants
     • and taxis a good tip is 10%, they make a better wage thenwe do in the states
     • do
     • not tip at bars unless you like the service you can buy them a drink
     • it's
     • not recommended to leave money behind because more than likely another
     • customer will take it
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Nikki
nikki defere
nikki defere
I know that the saying "Where do I even begin?" is totally cliché but it applies very well to the last few days of my life. For those of you who are unaware of my current plans and location, I will be spending my last semester of undergrad in Dalkeith, Scotland, a little town on the outskirts of Scotland's capital, Edinburgh. I will return to the United States the night before I finally walk across stage to receive my Bachelor's Degree in Animal Science/Pre-Veterinary Medicine from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls (UWRF). Time has really flown by, it seems like just the other day I was... full info
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Great Britain, the dominant industrial and maritime power of the 19th century, played a leading role in developing parliamentary democracy and in advancing literature and science. At its zenith, the British Empire stretched over one-fourth of the ear...more info
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