English humour

Yesterday evening, I was talking to Daisuke about English humour. The other day, Jun told me that Mr Bean is very popular in Japan; Daisuke confirmed that. Jun also mentioned he likes Red Dwarf which is a popular sitcom produced by the BBC.

English humour is frequently sardonic and ironic which can sometimes cause offence if you do not understand. English people are known to be sarcastic and witty. Humour is an important part of daily life in England and can seem droll. English people love to crack jokes and tell anecdotes. If you want to live in England, you need to have a good sense of humour.

A pint of beer

England is full of pubs. Most English people say they miss the English pub when they go abroad. Many foreigners say they miss the English pub when they leave England. Beer is the most popular drink in pubs and we usually order it by the pint.

Interestingly, I ordered the same beer twice but got two differently shaped glasses. I prefer the shape of the left glass.
One UK pint = 568ml but in the USA, one pint = 473ml. Some foreign style pubs in Japan offer pints of beer so you need to check whether it is a UK pint or a US pint; A UK pint is bigger!

Cake

This afternoon, I enjoyed tea and cake as I usually do on my day off. Today's cake was one of my favourites: Teacake. It is a kind of fruitcake made with tea. This style of cake is traditional and popular in England.

Fish and Chips

Fish and Chips is the most popular dish in England; it is the national dish. Before returning to Japan, I ate Fish and Chips at the airport with a pint of Fuller's London Pride. I was replete!

Selfridges department store

Selfridges is a department store on Oxford Street in central London. It was founded in 1909 and is the second biggest after Harrods. Selfridges innovated the modern shopping experience and has been much copied the world over.

Selfridges website

Regent Street on Sunday morning

I went to Regent Street on Sunday morning and was surprised to find the shops were closed. Most of the shops on Regent Street were open from 12pm to 6pm. Regent Street is in central London and is famous for stores like Burberry, Barbour and Hamleys.

Looking north towards Oxford Circus.

Looking south towards Piccadilly Circus.

Aquascutum

There are lots of great shops on Regent Street. Other famous shopping streets nearby are Oxford Street, Savile Row, Bond Street, Carnaby Street and Piccadilly.

Afternoon tea

Naughty but nice.

パブのランチ

 It isn't healthy but it makes me happy.

Any or some? Part 2

As I explained previously, we use any for questions. However, we can use some for questions too. It depends on the type of question. Compare the following:

"Is there any tea left in the pot?" This question is asking for information (I want to know about the tea).
"Can I have some more tea please?" This question is a request (I want some more tea).

"Are there any nice restaurants around here?" (Information)
"Can you recommend some restaurants around here?" (Request)

サッカー

Last night, I went to a football match with Takashi and Ko. The match was the ACL (Asian Champions League) final and it was played at the National Stadium in Tokyo. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric. The fans were chanting and cheering. Some people were waving flags. Some people were blowing vuvuzelas and other types of horn; it was so noisy! Some people drank a lot of beer. The whole experience was very exciting.

Any or some?

Kimie and Kazue have asked me about any and some.

We use any in negative sentences, for example:

"There aren't any cockroaches in my house."
"There isn't any coffee in my office."

We use any in questions, for example:

"Are there any chopsticks on the table?"
"Is there any beer in your fridge?"

We use some for affirmative sentences, for example:

"There are some roses in my garden."
"There is some cake in the cupboard."

近所

Recently, Keita forgot his key and when he got home, nobody was there so he was locked out. Luckily, one of his neighbours invited him in until his mother arrived. But, which neighbour was it? How do we describe the position of our neighbours' houses?

Here are some common ways to describe the position of your neighbours' houses:

Let's say you live in a house at number 3.

Next door = number 2 or number 4
Next door but one = number 1 or number 5
Three doors away = number 6
The house opposite = number 10
The house diagonally opposite = number 9 or number 11

We can also refer to the house by its number:

• "Mr Nakamura lives at number 8."
• "The Yamadas live at number 5."
• "Number 12 is empty - nobody lives there."

Keita's kind neighbour was next door but one.

Apple Biting

A very popular Halloween party game is Apple Biting: An apple is hung from above using string and we must try to bite a piece. Two people usually compete at the same time and the winner is the first person to bite a piece of apple. Here is a video from the London Bridge English Halloween party.

You can see the same video on YouTube.

Orange bobbing

One of the games at the Halloween party was called Orange Bobbing: There was a bucket of water with some Satsuma oranges in it and we had to get an orange using only our mouth; it was difficult but three people managed to do it. Here is a video of one partygoer's attempt.

In England, we usually use small or medium-sized apples and call it Apple Bobbing. The game is a very traditional and popular Halloween party game.

The video is also on YouTube.

More Halloween party photos

Halloween party photos

Halloween party game

Bite the apple game at the Halloween party.

More photos later.

Bonfire Night

This evening in England, there is a festival of bonfires, fireworks and parties. The festival has three different names:

• Bonfire Night
• Guy Fawkes Night
• Fireworks Night

The festival's official day is 5th November but if it is a weekday, most people celebrate it at the weekend instead. Bonfire Night is not a public holiday so we go to work or school as usual. However, Bonfire Night is a very popular festival and most people celebrate it. Many people combine a Halloween party with a bonfire/fireworks party.

In the year 1605, a group of men conspired to kill the king of England and many lords. They put 36 barrels of gunpowder under the House of Lords in London; this is called the Gunpowder Plot. One of the gang members was assigned to guard the gunpowder and ignite it at the right time; his name was Guy Fawkes. Luckily, the plot was discovered and stopped and the gang members were captured. They were all executed for treason.

England still remembers the Gunpowder plot today and celebrates its failure. In modern times there are firework displays all over the country. The weather is usually cold at night in November so we stand around a bonfire and eat hot food such as jacket potato, soup and barbecue meat.

Children are taught this traditional rhyme: Remember, remember the fifth of November!

The clocks have gone back

Last Sunday, the clocks went back in England. This means that the time changed from BST (British Summer Time) to GMT (Greenwich Mean Time).

Every year on the last Sunday in March, the clocks go forward one hour from 01:00 GMT to 02:00 BST so we must change our clocks. On the last Sunday in October, the clocks go back one hour from 02:00 BST to 01:00 GMT so we must change our clocks again. Some people forget and get confused.

On the last Saturday in October, you might hear people say "Remember the clocks go back tonight."

On the last Saturday in March, you can hear people say "Remember the clocks go forward tonight."

Many countries operate such a system and call it daylight saving time.

トルコの料理

Yesterday evening, I was talking to Kanako about Turkish food. I said that I had never seen a Turkish restaurant in Japan. Kanako said she had been to a Turkish restaurant in Shibuya and she had heard of another in Yokohama.

Later yesterday evening, Aya tweeted about Turkish food and said "I love Turkish food!" Well Aya, so do I!

Does anyone else like Turkish food? Do you know of a good Turkish restaurant? Let's go!

Oh dear!

Atsuko has asked me about the expression Oh dear! We use Oh dear! to express our sympathy or disappointment upon hearing some bad news, for example:

• "Hanako failed her driving test again." "Oh dear!"
• "I've caught a cold." "Oh dear!"
• "I've forgotten my lesson fee." "Oh dear!"

We do not use Oh dear! for very serious situations; it is better to say "I'm sorry to hear that."

Hotchpotch

During Daisuke's lesson today, we had the word hotchpotch. We were discussing urban sprawl and how Tokyo is a hotchpotch of homes and businesses. Hotchpotch means an unplanned mix or jumble.