Adapting and Communicating in a Foreign Country

Distant pastures are always greener, this is true in every walk of life. Once, I used to think that living abroad would be a great pleasure. How naive I was! Now after few yrs of being an expat, I have mixed feelings and am trying to gauge my thoughts...

At first, in Kuching (East Malaysia), I enjoyed the pleasant climate and good-natured people. I used to communicate by sign language with a neighbor, because both of us didn't know a common language.

Later in Kuala Lumpur (West Malaysia), even though many spoke English, at first it was difficult to understand their accent and style. Others used to say the same thing about my accent as well. After being there for 5+ years, more or less I started to speak/communicate like locals.
Now, here in UK, for the first few days it was like re-inventing the cycle, in terms of communicating with the locals. At a super market till, the cashier asked me something twice and I couldn't catch it. It sounded like this:

Chu nida bae?

She had to repeat it for the third time and finally I understood that she was asking me:

do you need a bag?

I was a bit embarrassed and lamented about this to a friend. Um, well, her experience gave me more confidence because she told that in her early days, she could never understand anything, even if the same thing was repeated several times! Nowadays, to overcome this situation, whenever I travel in public transport or be in a public area, I try to catch up with the conversation that goes on around me, but the intention is not eavesdropping:)

So far, I have never heard should, must or for that matter they don't even use can you. They are always polite. Let me share an experience to show their politeness or rather use of language. When you travel by bus, besides regular stops, there are several Request Stops. If you happen to wait at this type of bus stop, you need to wave your hand, to signal the driver that you need to get in. Similarly, if you have to get down at these stops you need to press the red buzzer in the bus.

Say, if you were unable to reach the buzzer, you would be requesting someone nearer to help you, right? I would have probably said "excuse me, please press the buzzer". But, I overheard someone's request, which was: Could you please ring the bell for me? That too with a pleasant smile. After that, she was profusely thanking the other person.

Saying thanks and sorry for even very small incidents is a part of the British culture. A friend, jokingly commented that these phrases are too natural and sometimes it looks like automated words without meaning, but so far, I have not had any negative experience in this area.

In public, usually people are lighthearted. Once an old lady was finding difficult to get up from a par bench. Just then, I had an eye contact with her. Immediately she had a beautiful smile and quipped: I need a pair of new legs.

Princess of Wales Memorial Fountain

Princess Diana Memorial Fountain is in the banks of the beautiful Serpentine lake, in Hyde Park.

Serpentine Lake, Hyde Park, London Sky Watch

When I first heard about this memorial, I was expecting a fancy jet type fountain that rhythmically dances, something like musical fountains.

View of the fountain from the entrance

I was a bit disappointed to see this flat flowing fountain. On second thoughts, I was convinced that this quite affair is a befitting memorial for the graceful princess and suitable place for peaceful relaxation. The signboard also declared this memorial as a place for 'quite enjoyment'.

Kids and adults were happily dipping their feet in that granite fountain!

We had good time, but one part of me was constantly thinking of that sweet Lady, who captured millions of hearts, and the tragic accident.

Pevensey Castle - Photos the Archives

While visiting a friend in Eastbourne, Essex, UK, she was kind enough to take me to Pevensey Castle, which was about 20 minutes drive from her house. Thanks to her generosity:) As usual, I was excited to visit a place of historical importance. It is said that the Pevensey castle was originally built by the early Roman settlements in the Southern Coast around 3rd century AD. Additions and modifications should have been done, however there is no documentary evidence of this castle after the Roman empire, until 1066!

A 12th century chronicle says,

Pevensey is a castle rising on a very lofty mound, fortified on every side by a most beautiful wall, fenced impregnably by the washing waves of the sea, almost inaccessible owing to the difficulty of the ground.

Here is a sketch of the castle in its heyday and its pitiable current state

It is very sad to see just the remains of this lofty castle...

View from afar

Entrance

Side view

Gate House built in 1200AD

Remains - For SOOC

Foundation stones of the Chapel and remains of the font in the nave

Light and Shade

I have guilty conscience, whenever I go through my photo archives (2 + years of captures!). Yes, I feel that I've created a huge backlog in preserving the memory. I intend to make at least a weekly post from the backlog. Here is a series of shots that has light and shade...

@ Jewellery Quarter Museum - Birmingham, UK (Yet to post photos from this Museum)

Somewhere in Reading, UK

Apartments in Choa Chu Kang, Singapore

Ancient Egypt - Universal Studios, Singapore

Dome @ Hassanal Bolkiah Mosque Brunei

Thorn shrubs @ Madurai, India

World War II Memorial @ Labuan, Malaysia (yet to write a post on this) 

Hoping to catch up, before my memory fades!

Whereabouts?

Friends asked me if I will go online during our holidays. I said that they could reach me on my mobile or as usual, through mail and FB. On a different note, there are controversies on using 'check-in' app of Facebook, mainly because of safety reasons. Well, is it worth to show FB status as "...have checked in ABC Bank"? When I started thinking in this direction, I vaguely remembered that I'd read something about having trust and finding people in the last century, in Jewellery Quarter Museum, Birmingham. So, I dug through my photos archive and found this interesting piece of info...

So much was done on trust! They led such a simple life, no urge to shout at the whole world about their whereabouts, like how we do today via status updates in social sites!

Experience at Shakespeare's Birth Place

Note: This post is long overdue. I had withheld this post, as I thought I had lost the photos that should go with this post when my laptop crashed a couple of months ago. Fortunately, during my visit to India, I found that I had taken a complete backup of the photos that I shot in UK. So, here we go...

A visit to Stratford Upon Avon, the birth place of Shakespeare is like going on a pilgrimage for literature lovers. It took about an hour's drive from Birmingham to reach there. It is a picturesque village, bustling with tourists.

As seen in the map, Avon river dominates this locale. 

The performance chart at the Royal Shakespeare Theater was a standing proof of the prevalent theater culture.

Performance at the Open Year Theater on the banks of Avon...

We saw hoards of people heading towards the Henley Street... 

Shakespeare's Birth place comes into view.

 

I was awe-struck and was so excited to see the house from outside, that I was just standing there without even bothering to follow my friends who were heading to the entrance to buy the tickets.

The birth place tour starts with a multi-media presentation, which was fantastic. The show tries to describe the theater experience and simultaneously shows memorabilia. Here are some colorful shots that I captured at the show.

Inside the house, there were guides in period costume and they explained how life was in Shakespeare's times, when there was no electricity. My first concern was how they survived the winters without proper heating! 

Shakespeare's father was a glove maker and at times the income was insufficient and the whole family had to starve! Here is a shot of their humble dining room...

The pair of gloves shown in the above photo is a replica of popular gloves in Shakespearean times.

Let me end this place post with the great poet's grave...

Note that "u" is represented by "v" in archaic English

Love Hate Graphic

Every time I saw this advertisement in London buses, I was attracted by this powerful, yet simple graphic.

It is amazing to see how same graphic, with different angle can change the perception. Kudos to the creative designer who had come up with this! Come to think of it, everything in life too is like this. When you change your attitude, things too take a different color.

Black by Day Red by Night - A Glimpse into Black Country!

When I first heard, I was surprised by the term "Black Country". So I was tempted to visit the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley, which is about 20 minutes drive from Birmingham.

There seems to be no geographical or political boundaries that mark the Black Country. After reading the clippings in the museum, it seems that this district got its name since 18th century because of coal mining and industrialization. 

Painting that depicts a mining scene.

The museum was a blend of traditional display stuff and also they had re-created Black Country as described in the above quote. In fact, the village, cottages, shops, barns, and even people roaming the streets were dressed in period costumes. Walking through the museum was like stepping back in time.

Here is a local confectionary...

We bought some hard boiled sweets and the shopkeeper too started to chat with us like a typical friendly villager. In those days, it seems that they were using beetle blood to make pink icing, of which she showed us the sample...aiyk

Menswear specialist - the corduroy in display was of very high quality...

In true sense, it was a living museum in every aspect. At one point, we were standing in the middle of the road and looking at the map, trying to find our way to go to the boat canal. An old lady, of course, dressed in 18th century fashion came up to us and casually asked us if we needed help.

Canals were mainly used to transport coals from the mines...

Boat trips were available...

But we skipped the boat trip, as we had to rush to the mines as it was nearing closing time...

The trip was roughly for 30 minutes and it was a mock mine, but still the experience was awesome. We had to stoop low and walk in utter darkness and only one dimmed torch was given for every group of five. We had to walk closely and get used to darkness. The atmosphere was so thick that I was starting to get choked and was wondering how people slog in there for whole day!

Crystal Place Museum

Actually, Crystal Palace was a massive exhibition cum amusement park in the 19th and early 20th century. Originally, it was located in Hyde Park, London, for about 6 months and attracted around 6 million visitors and was relocated to Sydenham Hill in South West London. The Crystal Palace building was a mammoth glass and iron structure with two majestic towers on either side of the building.  In 1936, the entire structure was razed out by fire. Now, the Crystal Palace Museum holds the remnants of the glorious past.

Camera was allowed only in the entrance room and luckily, there were some interesting pictures and information, including this structural outline of the Crystal Palace.

Railway promotional material...

There were some interesting comments by the elite on this exhibition and here is a few that captured my interest:

• The park is desecrated by the greatest trash, the greatest fraud, the greatest imposition ever attempted to be palmed upon the people of this country. Col.Sibthorp. MP. 4th June 1850
• Whether the show will ever be of any use to anybody may be questioned, but of this I am certain nothing can be more successful. The Duke of Wellington May 7th 1851
• I find I am 'used up' by the exhibition, I don't say there's nothing in it, there's too much. I have only been twice, so many things bewilder one. Charles Dickens, 17th August 1851

Looks like there has been mixed reaction on the entertainment and show business right from those days.

The exhibition displayed the courts of various countries and here is a depiction of a grand Indian Court:

Well, there were some paintings and photographs that captured the fun and entertainment of those days. The first "flying machine" concept was depicted there and it was merely a children's merry go round that we find in any parks. But, the picture had beautifully captured the excitement of the people who were flying on it, as it was their first true off the ground experience.

Above all, what attracted me the most was the passion for preserving the past glories. Now, I understand why only caucasians visit the forlorn museums and archeological sites in India. How often do we try to do this kind of things at home, in India? We too have a very rich heritage, but it is sad that we do not consider spending or learning about our past, which helps us to understand our roots and also appreciate the present day conveniences.

Wandering Alone

For quite some time, I wanted to go to the Crystal Palace Museum, which was a nearby attraction from Croydon. As usual, I tried to read up online, but there was little information on that. So, I decided to go there and see it for myself. Even in Malaysia I have never dared to venture out on my own, but now in UK since am all by myself I decided to explore alone. Well, every time I can't expect my friends to tag along where ever I wish to go.

Without any hustle I reached the location. Once inside, I was trying to figure out the museum location from the map and started walking in the direction, which I assumed to be right.

I went towards the sprawling lawns...

After walking for a while, I saw the children playing in the fields, and I had fresh pangs of loneliness. In the distance I saw this communication tower.

The headless statue reminded me of 'Headless Nick' of Harry Potter!

Majestic Sphinx...

Still, unable to find my way, I gave up my pride and approached a family who were relaxing under a tree to ask for directions. Immediately, the gentleman told that he was heading towards the museum to kill his time and asked me to follow him. Without second thoughts I followed, but when he turned towards the thick wooded path, suddenly I was thinking what kind of madness I am doing by just following some stranger! Luckily, within moments I saw the clearing and the old museum building:) The museum was small and deserted...

As this post is lengthy, I have split the museum details in the next post.