London vs. Europe

I wanted to follow-up on a previous post regarding the Pros and Cons to London. I spoke about my favorite aspects and my not so favorite aspects of the city. In addition to this, I wanted to speak about how London compares to the other cities I visited in Europe. When I was abroad, I travelled to 11 cities in 10 countries. It was quite a lot to handle in a matter of 4 months. I definitely saw differences between London and the cities that I visited in Europe. For example, the city of London is completely English speaking, while the other cities I visited were native speaking cities. Just this little difference made my experience in each city vastly unique. I had to learn how to adapt to the culture of Prague, Budapest, Paris, and Venice in a matter of a couple of days. I didn't want to embarrass myself in these cities, so I had to observe the way people acted around me to learn how they ordered food or asked a local for directions. In London, I felt like I could go up to anyone and just ask where to go and they would point me in the right direction. The city that I had the most trouble with translations was Munich, Germany. Purchasing tickets for the subway system in Munich from the airport took years off of my life. Not one person I asked knew English or even had a clue what I was talking about. That's why I loved London so much: I don't speak any other languages, so finding my way around the city was quite easy and accessible as a foreigner. Language was one of the hardest barriers I had to overcome when traveling through European cities.

Another difference between London and the cities I visited was the food. I have to say, the food in London gets quite boring and is the same in every pub you go to. I loved how unique the food was to each city. In Paris, all I ate were Croque-Monsieur sandwiches. In Venice, I had the freshest pesto pasta I could ever imagine. In Budapest, I ate goulash soup for the first time ever (and it was amazing). I think if I had one more steak and ale pie in London, my mother wouldn't recognize me. I wish the cuisine in London was more exotic and diverse. The people are certainly diverse, but the food tended to be consistent throughout the city. It was either meals that I could find in New York or pub food. Europe is great in the way that each city's food is specific to the culture, which I didn't find to be the case in London.

Although London has many amazing aspects that attract so many visitors to the city, Europe has a rustic and authentic feel that London is beginning to lose. I think that this has to do with the fact that many U.S. business firms are focusing on the global mindset. Many firms are transitioning their national office to the U.K. This blend of cultures would never happen in Rome or Prague, where there is so much history ingrained in the surrounding area. There is so much magic in the architecture and beauty of Europe that London and the U.S. will never gain.