Funny Things that 'Foreigners' Do -

[anjou]

Originally Posted by Lodesman

Does NS = Nova Scotia? If so, I can assure you the locals do not find midday drinking vulgur - the ice machines are to put ice in your drinks.

But the ice machine was on the side walk outside the motel room. I take my drinks at a bar.

One thing that puzzled me was the state run liquor stores that were only open 9-5, monday-friday. What happens when you get a thirst out of hours?
And the beer was like water and so cold the flavour couldnt be tasted.

But the seafood.........bliss.
County Mounties wernt bad either

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by anjou

One thing that puzzled me was the state run liquor stores that were only open 9-5, monday-friday.

Reminds me of whe down in NZ around 10 years ago. Drive in Off Licences (Liqour Stores)

The massage parlours (Knocking shops) in every town (and village?!) was also an interesting concept

[Lodesman]

Originally Posted by anjou

But the ice machine was on the side walk outside the motel room. I take my drinks at a bar.

That's standard in N. America - you should have had an ice-bucket in your room. Maybe it's a N. American thing to drink on the cheap in your hotel room, before going to the bar.

One thing that puzzled me was the state run liquor stores that were only open 9-5, monday-friday. What happens when you get a thirst out of hours?

Well, obviously you have to plan ahead. Depends on the province - they all have different rules and different types of stores. Some have off-sales allowed at pubs. In Quebec you can stock up at the depanneur (corner store) late at night. I always thought Nova Scotia was backwards - don't know if it's changed, but you couldn't buy groceries on a Sunday, but the pubs were open. Go figure.

And the beer was like water and so cold the flavour couldnt be tasted.

Two part answer - yes most of the commonly-available brews are mass-produced swill. Look around though, and you'll find a lot of excellent beers - different areas seem to be more fanatical about beer; in BC they have a very active CAMRA chapter.

Second part - maybe due to the cool, dreary weather in the UK, you are unaccustomed to the delightful thirst-quenching properties of an ice-cold beer on a hot summer day.

[dana-tenacity]

UK and US two great countries separated by a common language.

[Badsanta]

I remember well the first time someone asked me for a fag.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by dana-tenacity

UK and US two great countries separated by a common language.

Tell an American lady to sit on her fanny... if you survive that tell an English lady the same thing but be ready to run ;-)

cheers,
Nick.

[canuck1955]

Ah yes American Muscle cars. I remember a friend with a Javelin or something like that. High performance, 0-100 in no time flat, whereas my poor Healy sedately and steady climbed to 100 and then kept going. On the freeway he would pull away in a flash and then top out (very low gearing, great out of the hole). Down the road he would see my headlights (they worked) gaining on him and then passing him without over revving. Then of course when it was my turn to 'lead' I would hit the twisting winding roads and he had no hope in heck. Punch the gas, tear up a 100 yards of asphalt and then stand on the brakes to make the corner 1/2 a mile away. I can still see his face growing read and the frustration as in the long run and on anything but a short straight away, I could outperform him.
Healy vs Camaro not equal sport vs muscle???
Healy vs Corvair
Jaguar vs Camaro
TVR vs Camaro

But I digress. its about what foreigners do. Do you know why the brits drink warm beer. The refridgerator electronics are made by Lucas.

[sctpc]

Originally Posted by Golden Wattle

Here in OZ, flashing headlights warns of the Cops ahead or a warning of danger.
However if you are caught by the police, they will fine you & you will lose demerit points. but still not as bad as New Zealand pigs

Cheers
GW

you forgot to tell how all the roads are losing a lane so push bikes who pay nothing can have road priority.

and most parts off Australia have over head power also.

[anjou]

Maybe because we have been drinking real cask ales for well over a thousand years, well before refrigeration, we have a taste for the living flavour that contains hops, malt etc

Real ales that are cask conditioned are akin to fine wines, they are alive, not chemically cloned (brewed) then killed by more chemicals to make them travel and store well.
Mass brewed lagers and beers are refrigerated but officianados wouldnt drink them anyway.
Cider is another drink in point. It is a living product that is killed by cooling. If youve ever left a pint in a fridge and tried it for breakfast, its tainted, flat and dead.
Yes, cider for breakfast. It certainly keeps the cold out on a winters morning when your milking the cows.
Back in the middle ages, when Britain had her fledgling army, soldiers were paid in beer, a daily ration of 16 pints. I guess you would fight anyone after all that.
Water with a weak alcohol content was the only safe thing to drink in a time when water quality and safety couldnt be guaranteed

I find the American misconceptions of Britain rather amusing.
My parents lived in a 350 yr old farm house before brother took it over. Dad recalled a conversation he had with some tourists who were both impressed by the 350 yr heritage but also concerned that he wouldnt have electricity or running water.

I still notice two major differences though, body weight and dental care.
Ive recently had my teeth whitened and i now notice other peoples teeth so much more, and im revolted and disgusted on the whole by the lack of dental care and hygene Brits have.
At the moment, we seem to be generally skinnier and smaller but I guess that will change.

As for fags and fannies, ..........."I'll wax your fanny"
Thats something only a beautician might tell a client who ordered a "Brazillian"

When i went to boarding school a fag was a junior student who was assigned to run errands and do chores for a senior. Its also slang for a cigarette.
Gays were more commonly known as poofs or queers and gay meant happy bright and fun.
A faggot is a meatball made with liver onion etc.
Its also a small bundle of wood for the fire, increasingly burned in modern ceramic stoves in eco homes

[SkiprJohn]

Poking a little fun at US cars. Vega, Pacer, mid 70s Mustangs are just a few and quality of Dodge cars and trucks in the early 80s. Hard to live those things down.

How about those funny English words; boot, bonnet, spanner referring to cars and tools.

Tao, if you were really good at parking you could put your British car or cycle right over the same oil spot each time and not have a bunch of them in the driveway. Finally after all the Matchless, Triumph bikes and cars we just had a large cookie sheet filled with kitty litter to park over. (slow learners)

J

[captain58sailin]

I like the Mexican response to a sneeze, which is "Sancho" which makes everyone laugh, it is a reference of someone hiding in the closet who was having an elicit affair with someone's wife. They also say "Salud" which means health.

[Talbot]

So many different versions of what flashing the light means.

The only sensible interpretation is:

I have seen what you are doing, watch what I am doing and take the appropriate action.

[Hud3]

Here on Nevis, flashing headlights in the daytime usually means the driver is saying "Hello" to you, although most just toot their horn as a greeting. Other times it means, "Come on through", when two cars reach a constricted spot in the road where only one can pass.

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by Talbot

So many different versions of what flashing the light means.

The only sensible interpretation is:

I have seen what you are doing, watch what I am doing and take the appropriate action.

So what are the potential dangers with this very common and rather accepted practice of flashing headlamps?

Well the main danger really is… The potential to confuse …

Much more ➥ Driver Training - Flashing Headlights

From the UK Highway Code (Rules 110 and 111):
Flashing headlights. Only flash your headlights to let other road users know that you are there. Do not flash your headlights to convey any other message or intimidate other road users.

[s/v Jedi]

I sometimes spend an hour or so surfing the web about language. Most people know that American came from English but it is amazing how many words in English came from American (thousands). And some of those came from Dutch.

The Dutch words used in American language that I can come up with: cookie, school, yacht, schooner, boss, yankee, knickerbocker, kils (streams), hook, haven (harbour).

For some, "pavement" means the road surface while for others it is the sidewalk. The differences go much further than many think and things can get very confusing at times.

see:

American English - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
New Netherland - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

cheers,
Nick.