Like most births, my life in London began with an egg. Or rather, a carton of them. Here in the United Kingdom, where even a pub meal can cost an American student more than $15, the kitchens in our dorms offer an alternative to poverty. Grocery shopping appeared simple enough. Tesco Express, a scaled-down version of one of the UK's major supermarkets, was more inviting than the grape juice-stained maze of the Safeway in D.C. Cheese, milk and bread were quickly mine. I explored the refrigerated perimeter of the store, looking for a carton of eggs, the last item on my terse list.
At the counter, I asked about the missing eggs, and was led back to the refrigerated section, where individual containers of egg salad winked at me, untranslatable. Defeated by mayonnaise, I left the egg-poor Tesco for the larger grocery store down the street. This search went much the same way, until one patient store clerk led me to the baking aisle, where the elusive cartons of eggs slept among sacks of flour and sugar, unfazed by the balmy room temperature.
In my search for a simple, generic food, I actually was met with a surprising degree of cultural specificity. From the locations and names of products in a London grocery store to the deadpan humor of Londoners, this city boasts a uniqueness that is less blatantly foreign than that of other European cities, yet exotic all the same. This is perhaps especially true for an American visiting London.
When eggs are no longer eggs, when a familiar-looking grocery store becomes uncharted territory, that's when you realize you are truly a foreigner.
Speaking, and yet not speaking, the unique language of London reveals the subtle shades of difference between cultures. London's traffic patterns, turns of phrase, eating habits and social scene all seem to distinguish the place more than any vast linguistic or cultural gap could.
London is a multicultural city, and as it continues to grow in this respect, these markers of its identity will no doubt adapt to match the city's evolving character. But the mysterious and wonderful idiosyncrasies that give London it's own teeming, richly captivating character are part of the streets themselves, and will remain as long as the city does. For many Americans, the attraction of London is its familiarity and tangency with America. It seems more valuable to recognize the ways in which London is a departure from U.S. norms. In what would seem impossible if it wasn't so palpably real, London's distinguishing qualities are just as delicate, but just as vitally strong, as the shell of an egg.
Colleen McCarthy will write from her study abroad location in London every other Monday.
