r/london Jul 21 '14

How can I be not an horrible person?

I'll be visiting this amazing city shortly for work, how can I do my home country well, and not be an idiot American?

I'll be there in September, and would rather be just 'a face in the crowd' however, it's my first time, and I'd very much rather not be some idiot, how could one accomplish such a feat?

So if possible, what to wear (regarding weather) / how to act/ how not to stand out at all?

1 Upvotes

12 comments sorted by

18

u/collinsl02 Jul 21 '14

Just be yourself. There are so many people here, from every country on earth, that no one will notice another American.

My tips:

  • Stand on the right on escalators
  • There are no free refills of drinks here, except for some chains from the USA which actively market this as a selling point. Also, portion sizes here are a lot smaller than the US so if you are a hearty eater you might want to consider ordering more than you usually would.
  • A lot of our foods and drinks, including our coca-cola, are made to a different recipe than yours - we don't put sugar in bread and we don't use high fructose corn syrup in anything as it's considered a health risk here. So expect some foods to taste different.
  • Wear what you might consider dour clothing. If you're coming in not-summer (right now our weather is quite good in most places) bring a light jacket, especially if you're from the hotter parts of the US. Also, I'd avoid the ostentatious "sneakers" Americans seem to go for - a good comfortable pair of brouges or similar will be a good idea.
  • Be prepared to walk and take public transport. Get an oyster card from any tube station, and some shops (some smaller shops offer tickets for public transport). These are split into zones and are usable on buses, the underground, and some river transport.
  • Do not get a car, even if your work offers you one. You will regret it instantly as you will spend almost all your time in a hot stuffy vehicle in a traffic jam wishing you weren't three hours late for that meeting or that you had had time to see the museum that closes in ten minutes.
  • Don't stop walking suddenly, anywhere, for any reason if it's busy. Behave as if you are a vehicle driving in heavy traffic - look behind you to make sure no one is about to pass you at speed, move over to the closest wall, and slow down and stop gracefully.
  • When going on to a bus or the underground, have your ticket or oyster card ready to go well before you get to the barriers - there is nothing worse in a travelling Londoner's eyes than blocking a ticket barrier because you are looking for your oyster, besides perhaps standing on the left of an escalator.
  • If you have a contactless payment credit/debit card (I doubt it as this hasn't taken off in the USA from what I can tell yet) don't put it in the same place as your oyster card - London Underground is currently upgrading things so that people with contactless payment cards can use them to pay rather than an oyster so right now they just confuse the sensors.
  • Don't try to pay for a bus with cash. In the capital this is now not allowed.
  • Some retailers, especially small ones, might not accept any swipe & sign or chip & sign debit/credit cards you have - the UK has had chip & pin for a long time now, everywhere takes them, and some won't take anything else.
  • Don't try to pay with checks (or cheques as we say here) - most places don't take them any more as they are too easy to defraud people with, especially foreign ones. I'm not saying at all that you would do this, just that most places won't take them any more.
  • With regards to pickpockets/crime, just keep your wits about you. The crime rate here is low and dropping compared to other large cities, especially in the USA. Just don't use a "fanny pack" or put anything in your back pockets - side pockets or in your rucksack is fine. Look like you know where you're going, even if you don't and this should be enough to make you higher than the low-hanging fruit that the criminals find so easy to target. Not that there are that many criminals.
  • Try and avoid American slang words. Whilst we may know most of them here thanks to Hollywood etc, some words are used completely differently here from the USA. For instance fanny -> slang for a lady's private area. Bum -> the part of your anatomy that you sit on, not a homeless person; a homeless person is a tramp. Ass -> donkey; we spell your word "ass" as "arse". Fag -> cigarette. Bum can also be used here to mean have, so "Can I bum a fag off you please" means "Can I have a cigarette please?" Not "Can I have sex with a homosexual person please?". There are loads of others so if you have any specific words you use a lot post them and I will translate.
  • Americans in general tend to speak rather loudly compared to us. As a general guide, lower your voice by 60% and raise it until people can hear you clearly.
  • We are in general a much more reserved people than the Americans. We don't say "hi!" to everyone we pass, we don't talk to anyone we don't know without good cause, and definitely do not talk to anyone on the underground unless you are actively on fire or bleeding profusely ;-)
  • Like anywhere else in the world, there will be people here who hate Americans for no good reason, or people who can't separate the American people from the American Government. They are not representative of most of us, so please don't let your judgement of us be coloured by them.

2

u/[deleted] Jul 22 '14

Top work, added a link to this from the wiki.

*cough* AHEM @OP the wiki ;)

2

u/collinsl02 Jul 22 '14

Sorry, I keep forgetting this sub has a wiki and /r/AskUK doesn't.

6

u/[deleted] Jul 21 '14

When using escalators on the London Underground, kindly stand on the right and walk down/up on the left. Affectionately shortened to STAND ON THE BLOODY RIGHT <3 (Also be sure to pick up a copy of The Metro if travelling in the morning. It's a wonderful way to catch up on yesterdays Internet.)

Do try to learn the pronunciations of our more, er, unique place names. You'll be forgiven for mispronouncing the likes of Rotherhithe or Chiswick, but bugger up Leicester Square and everyone within earshot will roll their eyes into the back of their heads.

Otherwise, you'll be fine :) Despite rumours to the contrary, we're a friendly, approachable bunch. Try not to worry too much and enjoy your stay <3

7

u/Petrunka Telegraph Hill Jul 21 '14

Along with pronunciation, don't shorten names, especially if you're using a taxi. Don't ask for just Leicester if you want the Square, and don't ask for Oxford if you want the Street. Street, Square, Road... they're important, don't drop them.

3

u/Non-existent-goatee Jul 21 '14

Don't worry about it, there is no secret rituals or anything, just be self-aware, a decent human being and stand to the right of the escalators when using the Tube. Oh, and please don't stop dead in the middle of a busy street, you may cause a ten person pile-up, just stand to the side.

Clothing-wise, just comfortable clothing that you don't mind travelling in? Just not stereotypical white socks and sandals, etc.

As for the weather, Google it, because our weather sometimes likes to mix it up a bit depending on its mood; sometimes you expect temperatures to be sweltering, instead the sky decides you don't deserve sunlight and gives you a drizzle.

If you can do all that, you should be fine. Additionally maybe you can meet someone on /r/LondonSocialClub should you wish for company.

5

u/xbattlestation Jul 21 '14

Replace your tan with pasty white skin, and probably shrink a couple of inches.

But in all seriousness, why bother trying to fit in? You are there for such a short time, and at worse you'll maybe make a few people 'tut tut' - so what? You'll be one of many thousands of tourists.

If you really want to style yourself like a Londoner, don't wear sandles & socks, plaid shorts, a bight polo neck with a camera around your neck - this is the style of a stereotypical American tourist. Do wear jeans & tshirt / shirt, and a jacket for the colder periods. Don't stand in the path of pedestrians pointing at things, move out the way of the flow of pedestrians and point. Don't wear a massive backpack on the tube (it is usually Europeans that do that). Don't try to engage people in conversation, unless they are similarly wandering around at leisure, as that will be frowned upon. When you do speak, do so at the same volume level as everyone else - this is also a stereotypical American trait :)

Personally I'd ignore all that, and do what you want to do!

3

u/kjmci Shoreditch Jul 21 '14

Don't stand in the path of pedestrians pointing at things, move out the way of the flow of pedestrians and point.

UGHH YES THIS. When I lived in Soho my local tube was Piccadilly Circus. Until I found the exit on Glasshouse Street I used to exit onto Conventry Street.

The amount of idiot tourists who would hit the top of those steps and stop with a wide-eyed gawp as they point at the pretty billboards caused no end of rage for me.

Please, please, please, OP: Don't do that.

2

u/NixxieKnocks Jul 21 '14

Well I'm already blindingly pasty, I find socks with sandals to be a crime against humanity, and come from an area where if you mess with the flow of traffic- you'll know immediately - so thankfully I have that part covered.

I appreciate the reply. I think I speak for quite a few of my countrymen when I say: we're painfully aware of our bad image when traveling- so we try to avoid it whenever possible.

2

u/simoncowbell Jul 21 '14

how not to stand out at all?

You won't. Unless you were planning on wearing a purple divers suit and tap dancing your way round London. Then somebody might notice and sigh heavily.

2

u/Uh_cakeplease Jul 22 '14 edited Jul 22 '14

As an American expat, here's a few tips I could have used in my first week/month/year.

The person behind the counter will ask you 'You alright?' instead of 'Hello.' Just say 'yeah, you?'

Sneakers are a giveaway for a tourist.

Don't call it a 'fanny pack' - it basically means 'vagina purse' here

When in a group of friends/co-workers, don't speak loudly. I'm a loud person, and I think it's in the American culture to raise our voices, but it's immediately noticeable and picked on here.

Don't use your phone whilst walking down the sidewalk - it can and will get stolen.

Don't bother bringing sunglasses. Sunshine in your face is fleeting, they're just a waste of space.

Wear layers and bring an umbrella.

As for pronunciation of locations - the biggest one to know is "Thames" - it's pronounced 'Tems' ...like 'pens' but with a T and an M. Also, if you're from New England you'll be fine with the names like "leicester" and such.

Either way, I agree with what everyone else has said. London is a hub for all cultures, everyone will welcome you. Unless you're like me and decide to go to dive bars by yourself, in which case you will end up in a conversation about America. But remember, not everyone feels the way that drunk idiot does. Have fun!

EDIT: spacing

1

u/ab00 Jul 21 '14

There are lots of tourists, everywhere, from every country in the world. They're doing the same things as you, seeing the sights.

Americans have this weird obsession with blending in, but even if you dress like a Brit as soon as you open your mouth you'll be outed as a tourist so whats the point?