A few more thoughts on England

I had wanted to travel abroad for a long time, so I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to go to London and York. Traveling to England exceeded my expectations in some ways and in other ways I was a little surprised at how much America does things better. Let me give a few examples:

Stuff the England did really well:

• Fresh/Healthy/Delicious/Cheap Fast Food: So many good places like Pret, EAT, Wagamama, etc. For London being the most expensive city in the world, we were able to eat really healthy on a budget (I was surprised!)
• History: England has SO much history, it made me realize what a young country America really is. I felt a little confused, especially in York, seeing these really OLD structures, and then a car driving by... weird.
• FREE stuff: All of the museums that we went to were FREE (Tate Modern, British Museum, British Library, National Gallery, National Portrait Gallery, John Soane Museum, etc.) The only places that we had to pay were The Tower of London and Westminster Abbey, which considering those were two of the best places we went, it was not too big of a deal. But each of those sites will cost you about $30.00/person!
• Public Transportation: We could get anywhere in London really easily. My one complaint is that the doors on the trains close really fast, and sometimes without warning. This caused my mom and I to get separated once because the door closed right after I boarded. We did not have cell phones, so it was a little scary, but we found each other!
• Chivalry: I was impressed by how often men gave up their seats on the train for woman and how people noticed if someone was pregnant or otherwise needed to sit down and men and woman offered their seats immediately.
• SHOPPING: Harrods, H&M, Primark, Marks and Spencer, the list could go on and on. And this is not just true for London. There was an H&M in York too!
• Tips: Love that waiters just get paid more and tips are optional. Downside is that the service is usually not as good (which is to be expected).

So, as you can see, in a lot of ways London exceeded my expectations. However I had a few complaints.

Stuff that England was not so great at:

• Internet: I feel like in America WiFi access is ubiquitous. You can go almost anywhere and if you need the internet there is a Starbucks or a McDonalds or some other establishment that offers free WiFi. In London, this is NOT the case. I specifically picked our hotel because it advertised "WiFi available." Apparently, that means WiFi available for 18 pounds (or about $30.00) per day! Ouch. I have stayed in some pretty seedy hotels (one being in Blanding,UT) that had WiFi. This was a freaking 4 star hotel. come on. And all of the McDonalds/Starbucks/any other establishment charged for Internet access. I could not believe it. Luckily, there were quite a few Apple stores around, so I would head to one of those if I needed to send an email. (Which I did not feel bad about abusing at all because I am currently typing from a MacBook Pro.) Oh, and the train that we took to York also said "Wifi available" which meant shelling out 10 bucks to use the Internet for an hour. annoying!
• Bathrooms: It is almost impossible to find a place to use the restroom without paying. Most of the bathrooms cost about a buck to use (Like in the Mall or some of the museums). Crazy! So, we just tried to be smart and use the restroom while we were at a restaurant or at our hotel.
• Toilets: I seriously could never get a toilet in England to flush right. I do not know what the deal was. (sorry for TMI).
• Water: It made me nervous that in most of the bathrooms the sinks said "do not drink the water." In America, water in any bathroom must be potable. this surprised me.
• Customer service: I feel like no matter what restaurant we went to I got dirty looks and eye rolls if I asked for a cup of water. What was that about? I guess they probably had to go to a special sink to go get me some potable water. Oh, and if I asked a question to a Bus driver, I usually got yelled at. Why do people feel like they need to be mean??
• False Advertising: We stayed in a "Bed and Breakfast" in York that charged 5 pounds for breakfast. Ummm... I am pretty sure that it is just a "Bed" not a "Bed and Breakfast." I feel like if that happened in America, someone would get sued.
• Traditional British Food: Not a fan. Jacket Potatoes (baked potato) and Fish and Chips (Fried Fish and French Fries with salt and vinegar).

Sorry for all my complaints. I had a really good time, but going to another country helped me appreciate some of the really great things in America, and make me realize some areas we might be able to improve. I have decided that traveling abroad is kind of like skiing. I like skiing a lot once I am going down the mountain, but I don't love all of the work (getting all the ski gear on, traveling to the mountains, getting on and off the lift) that it takes to get there. Traveling abroad is like this. I had a great time once we were in London, but I did not love booking the flights/hotels, being in a plane for 8 hours strait, lugging baggage to the hotel, etc. But, like skiing, I am sure I will go back.