Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Life Lessons 101
OK, Life Lesson Number 1: NEVER, under any circumstances, try to keep up drinking with a Brit on holiday.
Brits can drink. I learned that when I went to London a few years ago. I showed up, sober as a judge, and managed to stay that way for approximately two hours (as long as it took to get out of the airport, dump my bags and be whisked away to the local for 'a pint'). I stayed drunk for the next three weeks. I would wake up in the morning and before I could wipe the blur from my eyes and check for the level of hung-overness I'd managed to obtain from the night before, I would find myself sitting in a pub laughing over another pint of bitter and something deep fried for brunch, um, lunch...What do you call a pint and a mass of grease at 10am??? I'm not complaining mind. If I'd had the chance to assess my degree of hangover, I'm sure I'd have stayed in moaning for the remaining portion of my vacation...This was a far better way to spend the time...I'm just saying, I know that Brits can drink.
I was not, however, prepared for the amount they can drink when they are on holiday! Seems that through my haze in London, I failed to recognize that those escorting me from pub to pub where continuing to live their daily lives. They had work to attend, loved ones to look after, football teams to obsess over. When they leave all of that behind (well, they never do leave their football team obsession behind, do they...as a matter of fact, holidays usually consist of following said team away - calling that a holiday), they leave behind the need to remain coherent - or so it seems!
I met up with a group of six who were in North America to follow around some of their favourite teams...We met in a pub. Where else would you find them? It was just after noon. Being the "local", I was to show them the sites. Where would I take them? What would I want to do if I were on holiday here to see my team from home? No need to panic...seems that as long as there is a pint handy, they don't much care WHERE they go!!! We went from the pub to a touristy part of town...forget the fancy clothes boutiques, we found the brew pub! After a few rounds there, we decided to get back closer to the hotel (which was conveniently locate
Brits can drink. I learned that when I went to London a few years ago. I showed up, sober as a judge, and managed to stay that way for approximately two hours (as long as it took to get out of the airport, dump my bags and be whisked away to the local for 'a pint'). I stayed drunk for the next three weeks. I would wake up in the morning and before I could wipe the blur from my eyes and check for the level of hung-overness I'd managed to obtain from the night before, I would find myself sitting in a pub laughing over another pint of bitter and something deep fried for brunch, um, lunch...What do you call a pint and a mass of grease at 10am??? I'm not complaining mind. If I'd had the chance to assess my degree of hangover, I'm sure I'd have stayed in moaning for the remaining portion of my vacation...This was a far better way to spend the time...I'm just saying, I know that Brits can drink.
I was not, however, prepared for the amount they can drink when they are on holiday! Seems that through my haze in London, I failed to recognize that those escorting me from pub to pub where continuing to live their daily lives. They had work to attend, loved ones to look after, football teams to obsess over. When they leave all of that behind (well, they never do leave their football team obsession behind, do they...as a matter of fact, holidays usually consist of following said team away - calling that a holiday), they leave behind the need to remain coherent - or so it seems!
I met up with a group of six who were in North America to follow around some of their favourite teams...We met in a pub. Where else would you find them? It was just after noon. Being the "local", I was to show them the sites. Where would I take them? What would I want to do if I were on holiday here to see my team from home? No need to panic...seems that as long as there is a pint handy, they don't much care WHERE they go!!! We went from the pub to a touristy part of town...forget the fancy clothes boutiques, we found the brew pub! After a few rounds there, we decided to get back closer to the hotel (which was conveniently locate
