So I am back in London and it’s time to try and get used to my daily routine here in this new city. It’s quite different to what I am used to in the U.S. The city is really huge, so every morning I need to leave my apartment at 7:15 to catch the Tube. Do you know what is the Tube? Apparently the Tube here means the underground train or as we call it in New York, the subway. Apart from that, it seems that English people have different words in English. Yesterday I spoke with my colleague and he asked me where I bought my trousers. When I told him that I didn’t understand, he said that he asked me about my pants. He also asked me where I live and if I live in a house or a flat. I told him that I live in a shared apartment. He started laughing telling me that in Britain you rent a flat not an apartment, and you take the lift not the elevator, and also you go to the loo instead of the toilet. My colleague was really polite during our conversation and he kept apologizing and saying ‘sorry’ each time he corrected my American English to British English. I don’t understand it. To me it sometimes seems a bit over-polite. Anyhow, after I finished work, I decided to join another colleague of mine for dinner at an Indian restaurant. I heard that in London there are many Indian restaurants and they are really good.
Later on, after we finished our dinner at the restaurant we went to watch the Wimbledon tennis match between Roger Federer and Andy Murray. This tournament takes place annually in London and people from all around the world attend this event. Tennis is not ‘my cup of tea’ though, as the English say, so I told my colleague I wanted to go home and said goodbye. He apologized again and said: “I am sorry”.
Why do they apologize all the time? maybe you know why? How is it in your country?