Today I flew to London, England where I will be for a week running throwing sessions for players at the World U23 Ultimate Championships and teaching them about the other disc sports including disc golf and the overall.
This is the first time I’ve ever been in England – two years ago I was in Europe when I flew to Sweden for the World Overall Championships – so it was neat to notice the differences immediately.
Looking deeper there are many similarities but as this quotation by Linda Ellerbee alludes to, our differences are much more noticeable:
People are pretty much alike. It’s only that our differences are more susceptible to definition than our similarities.
So far, from landing at Heathrow, to taking the Underground, to taking the train, to taking a taxi and checking into my room at University of Hertfordshire, these are the differences I’ve noticed:
- Cell plans are different – I had to pay for a plan to roam in Europe
- Cars drive on the opposite side of the road (and people sit on the opposite side of the car)
- The money is different
- The electrical outlets are different
- Traffic lights are on the near side of the intersection rather than on the far side (which reduces the number of cars trying to run red lights and consequently reduces the number of accidents)
Taken separately, these aren’t a big deal but when combined together, they make for some fun adventures! I’ve learned that it’s important to ask for directions, take your time and don’t over-plan because if something goes unexpectedly, it’s sometimes hard to adapt so I prefer to have a loose plan and go with the flow.
I also got to finally meet Katrina Woldt, the WFDF Event Manager who is running the WFDF World U23 Ultimate Championships (along with 7 other events this year!). She was knee deep in player packs, meal passes and staff shirts so I only got a few minutes with her but I did offer up my volunteer services this weekend so we’ll see what she has in store for me! I love the energy that I can already feel from being here. Just outside of my window there are two Canadians playing catch…I’m going to go say hi to them in fact!
Catch you later 🙂