UK recap

I’m back in the US, jet lagged and still recovering from four solid days of meetings and thinking and face-to-face social interaction. I’m glad to be back, but I had a great trip—and was reminded in about equal measure of the things I miss, and don’t miss, about living in the UK.




Ten reminders of what living in the UK is really like
1. Being plied with cups of tea for any remotely plausible reason.
2. Being able to get virtually anywhere on public transportation.
3. The prohibitive cost of almost everything. (The equivalent of $36 for a train ticket to travel less than 60 miles—one way?)
4. Bourneville chocolate.
5. Going to the pub.
6. Anonymous intimacy (everyone is so packed in together that you can see into people’s front rooms and overhear their business when out and about, but we all pretend otherwise).
7. Walkers Thai sweet chili crisps.
8. Determining where UK popular culture overlaps with (as well as completely diverges from) the US equivalent. Can be observed by watching television, listening to the radio, browsing in bookstores, or checking film listings. Very difficult to discern a pattern.
9. Customer service—or complete lack thereof.
10. The weather. 'Nuff said.