February 11, 2005

Settling in UK-2

Ok, no great suspense! I did not have time to complete what I was writing on that day. So, put the "thodarum".
Karthik met me and took me to an Indian restaurant along with his friend's family. It was not a great gesture to say 'NO' when we met after a long time. I warned him though, wouldn’t be able to eat large portions, as I was already full. He ordered a masala dosa. Not bad!
Fine, coming to live in UK, few of the things I observed:
1. People here are extremely courteous (in actions), and expect you to be so to them. If you don’t, they clearly wince at you. Reminds me of convent schools
2. British people are quite fond of Indian food, and there is atleast one Indian take-away in every small town
3. And the take-aways are run by Bangladeshis mostly
4. Interest in cricket is clearly out. Ashes series supposed to start in summer is evoking enough interests in lots of Indians and Pakistanis than English people.
5. They care a lot about very very small thing too and are very sensitive
6. Many British IT guys take life cool and lead a laid back life, unlike Indian IT pros who want to be given the mantle and role of Proj Mgr within their first 7 years of experience, and do not want to code anymore!!!
7. Technology in terms of low-cost is not popular here in UK. It is possible to get a really freaky gadget and of good quality in India for a relatively 40% lesser cost than what is available in UK
8. This does not include mobile phones or their pricing plans
9. Public libraries are fantastic here. They house a great collection. One can take 14 books in one's card and can retain for 21 days.
10. It is freaky to observe that people do not cross lanes whole driving, and almost stop always at signals -- even if no one to cross the road. Driving here would be a nightmare for people who drive to Tidel park and beyond in Chennai