First Time in London

Madison had never been to Europe, but one summer she landed in London and everything felt just a bit different.

Let`s follw her story and learn real British English along the way.

 

Madison was an American student who had never visited Europe before.

That summer, she decided to visit her British friend, Harriet, who lived in London.

They had studied together at university in NY and Harriet had always said, "You have to come to the UK one day!"

When Madison arrived at Heathrow Airport, she immediately noticed how polite everything seemed.

Even the airport sign said, "Please" and "Thank you".

It made her smile.

Harriet picked her up in a very small car.

Madison laughed and said, "Are you sure this thing can move?"

Harriet grinned, "It`s a proper British car, small and strong!"

As they drove through London, Madison was surprised by the narrow streets and the way people drove on the left side.

She held on to her seat more than once.

When they arrived at Harriet`s flat (not apartment, as Madison would say), more differences appeared.

First, the plugs were completely different.

Madison tried to charge her phone, but the plug didn`t fit.

Harriet handed her a big adapter. 

"You will need this." she said, "Welcome to the UK!".

Then Madison went to the bathroom and looked for the light switch, but there wasn`t one on the wall.

Instead, there was a white cord hanging from the ceiling.

She pulled it carefully and the light turned on.

"Wait, is this the light switch?", she called out.

Harriet laughed from the kitchen. 

"Yep! That`s how we do it here. It`s called a pull cord, safer than touching a normal switch with wet hands."

Madison smiled, "Okay, that`s clever, and a little weird."

Later, when Madison unpacked in the guestroom, she looked around and smiled.

"Your room is so cozy.", she said.

"But why is there a separate tap for hot and cold water?".

Harriet laughed, "I ask myself the same question every winter."

Madison also noticed that the rooms in the flat were smaller than in the US and there ware no built-in closets.

"Where`s the closet?" Madison asked.

"Oh, we use wardrobes.", Harriet explained, pointing to a tall wooden cabinet.

"We don`t really do walk-in colsets here."

Madison nodded, "Interesting, everything is just a bit different, Not worse, just different."

Over the next few days, Madison saw more of London, drank lots of tea, and slowly got used to the little things.

From standing in perfect 'queues' to calling the elevator a 'lift', she was learning the British way.

When it was time to leave, Harriet gave her a big hug at the airport.

"Next time, it`s your turn.", Madison said with a smile. "Come visit me in NY."

Harriet nodded, "Deal, I went to see if everything really is bigger over there."

They both laughed.

The trip had ended, but the friendship and the adventures were far from over.