September 9, 2008 Did you know?

I decided to make today's blog a Did You Know of the UK. I hope you find it interesting. :) It's not exhaustive, but just a few random facts.

Did you know....
There are NO electrical outlets in bathrooms here! Also no light switches! Switches have to be outside the room, or you can have a pull string one.

Did you know...
Schools operate on a term system here, with roughly 10 week terms, and a month break in between. School started last week, but ends July 15th with 3 terms in that time frame.

Did you know...
You are not allowed to take your children out of school during term time- no family vacations, no excused absences.

Did you know...
There's no Bill of Rights for the UK, so there is no right to bear arms, no right to free speech...

Did you know...
Britain as a country views the US as a young, adventuresome, risk taking, and insulated nation, which is forward thinking and not bound to tradition, but also a bit headstrong and individualistic.

Did you know...
You can get a flight from the UK to many places in Europe for $10 or less if you choose your time right and don't wait till the week before to purchase.

Did you know...
It doesn't really matter which direction your car is facing when you park on the side of the road in the UK. In fact you can block half the road even and that's still fine.

Did you know...
There isn't a dramatic color change in the fall here- leaves just turn sort of yellowish brown and drop off.

Did you know...
If you order a package through the mail here it's likely to arrive in 2 days, no matter where in the UK it came from.

Did you know...
British people really do drink a lot of tea. The first thing a host will say when welcoming a guest is "Would you like some tea?" The expected answer is "Yes, please" so if you say no they pause a second to be sure they heard you properly. :)

Did you know...
What we call English muffins in the US vaguely resemble crumpets, a famous British tea time food.

Did you know...
There are a lot of designated "traveller camps" for nomadic people like the Roma (aka Gypsies) to use. Many of them have large pastures for their horses as well, and you can often see horses grazing along the highways near the traveller camps.

Did you know...
Private rooms in hospitals have to be paid extra for. Once you've had your procedure or delivered your baby or whatever, they put you into a big ward with curtains between you and the other people there. There simply aren't large maternity sections of hospitals all with private rooms. It cost an extra $160/night to have a private room in the hospital. (I found this out through friends, not because I've had to go to a hospital myself thankfully.)

Did you know...
Most children of middle or upper class families take a year off between high school and college, called a Gap year, and many of them travel around the world for several months during that year. Our landlord's son is spending several months travelling across Asia right now.

Did you know...
There is national health care here, and many people complain that doctors don't want to treat them because of the cost. If you go to a doctor you're likely to be told to just go home and eat "more fruit and veg."

Did you know...
All children wear school uniforms here. Each school has a set of colors, and the children all have matching sweaters, skirts/pants, and white shirts. It's like Harry Potter, but every school in the UK is like that.

Did you know...
The official name of the country we are in is United Kingdom. It is also called Great Britain. Within the United Kingdom there are the regions called England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. There is also a Commonwealth composed of former British territories including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, India, and South Africa. But not the US. :)

Did you know...
You are required to use the emergency brake whenever you stop at an intersection.