Talking to Londoners

This past weekend, I was in London and I had an enjoyable time sightseeing. I was also blessed to be able to attend the Wels mission there for worship. On top of that, while I was there, I had many conversations with a number of people, both strangers and friends.

 

Conversation 1:

To preface this conversation, I was talking to a few kids that I know who live in London. It is really neat to compare our school to theirs. For the most part, it is similar to ours in the lower grades; however, the older they get, the more different the school gets from how we know it. However, even from early on, schools have some subjects like manners, ethics, and even general religion. Most American schools don’t have classes like these, and public schools are usually completely secular. Then, as they approach their equivalent of freshman year of high school, they typically choose a broad focus, such as STEM or humanities, etc. That year and the next are challenging, but as they become what we would call juniors in high school, things start to slow down, and they can take fewer classes that are even more focused. Then, after that year and the next, it is time to go to university at the same age that we do here in the US. I really enjoyed hearing about and almost envied the system of being able to have so much focus on your interests in high school.

 

Conversation 2:

To preface this conversation, I was speaking with someone who has lived in the US and England. I was talking with them about some differences in government. Specifically, the topic of the head of state intrigued me. The head of state in America is usually a politician who is elected for a few years; however, in England, the head of state is the king, who is in that role for a lifetime. Many people in England like the king, and he explained the mass support because the king is someone whom the people look up to, and he sets a good example for them, while not making political decisions. He then said that, conversely, the President of the United States is not always loved because he is not as long in office and often has to make controversial political decisions.

 

Conversation 3

To preface this conversation, I was speaking very briefly to someone about my age, maybe a little older. They were telling me how expensive England is, especially after Brexit, and I was telling them how Berlin was middle of the road. I found it tricky because the Pound is already stronger than the Euro, but a meal in London was numerically more Pounds than it would be Euros in Berlin. So it was interesting to hear how someone living there felt about the economy.

 

I really enjoyed my weekend in London. It was nice to have talked to so many people about their feelings about England and London, and for me to be able to compare things there to my home in the States, but also to Berlin.