Thursday 14 July 2011

Really Weird Things About London

There are a few things that are sticking out to me here, and are kind of really bloody weird to an Aussie.
  • No blankets or top sheet. The only thing above the mattress is a doona ('duvet'). This makes it hard not to overheat at night - or rather, hard to adjust to changing weather.
  • Market segmentation in retail - it's very different here. To get something like an organic face moisturiser or bodywash, I have to go to an upmarket supermarket/department/beauty store, I can't just get it at my local. To a point, this happens in Brisbane too, in that there isn't much choice, there's usually only one brand. Here, there's zero choice.
  • Range in supermarkets. Supermarkets carry so many extra types of things (booze and clothing) here, there's not much choice in other things.
  • Instant/2 minute noodles. Not something I'd expect to miss, but as an emergency relatively safe meal, they're great - except they don't really exist. I suppose not so surprising, given the relative lack of Asian people around. Never before have I understood the term 'Australasia'. 
  • Stand on the right, walk on the left, some of the time. 
  • Luggage on public transport. It's normal to catch the tube to and from international transit, it seems. So there's people with luggage everywhere. Very strange.
  • 6pm peak hour on the tube. Apparently people knock off work later here.
  • No awnings over streets. Or, well, almost none. It does make for a lack of shade - not that it's really sunshiny enough here to worry about. 
I'll think of more weird things, I'm sure.

7 comments:

  1. re Asian stuff: find a Pakistani store (your local Indian, basically). that should do the trick.

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  2. I'm finding similar in Germany. Seems to be a European thing.

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  3. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  4. another test comment

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  5. Another thing to note: in UK, when they say Asian, they mean subcontinental Asian. Otherwise it's 'oriental'. I never could get used to that.

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  6. Surely you'll discover Asian shops at some point!

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  7. Carpet in a lot of the bathrooms. Really freaking bizzare.

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