Um, well...I'm an American.

I had an interesting experience on the tube ride home tonight. My school organized an outing to a West End (like NYC's Broadway) show, The Lion King, for the night. It was absolutely amazing and so pretty! Anyway, when the show let out, we all funnelled towards the tube station so it was madly busy. We finally got packed onto the train and I was somehow separated from the other girl I was with on the opposite end of the car because I had made a beeline for the only available seat! I've learned quickly here that you don't pause to think about getting a seat - if you want one, you go for it. The only exception is if someone obviously needs the seat - a child, pregnant woman, elder, you get the picture.

So we had been on the move for a bit when I noticed a very loud young American woman describing her work day in detail to her English friend. She was complaining about her boss, former boss, co-workers, you name it - and very personal stuff about these people. It's useful here to note that the English never talk on the tube. They could ride together with the same person for years and never actually speak. Seriously. So this would be comparable to someone having this conversation at a library or during a church service. You just don't do it. I hear people muttering around me and kind of join in the eye rolling with the group of men and women around me. The man next to me mutters "Damn Americans" at which point, for some crazy patriotic reason, I felt I had to identify myself. I looked at him sheepishly and whispered "Well...I'm an American." He looks at me, starts laughing, then whispers back "Me too." I am not kidding you, the whole crowd of people around me were actually Americans that self-identified very quickly! Of course it would be Americans actually complaining about someone being rude - the English just sit and politely bear it. We all had a good laugh - coupled with a good stare and laugh from the English around us, and went about our night. It was so unexpected but funny to kind of learn about the American culture so unexpectedly. Very cool night. : ) Plus I'm all packed for and off to Paris in the morning - can't get any better than that!