Liverpool through the eyes of a foreigner

When you come to a foreign country, you perceive your new surroundings in a different light. Basically your impressions depend on your mood and … weather. If you are in hilarious spirits you take everything with delight. No matter what a town looks like, you are inclined to exaggerate its beauty and diminish its ugly spots. However, you can’t ignore the weather. If it is drizzling, any magnificent town may appear dull and gloomy. It is common knowledge that foreigners always treat Britain as a country covered in a blanket of fog. From my own experience I can claim that it is not true. The British enjoy a lot of sunshine, spells of real gorgeous weather, particularly in summer. But let me leave general speculations and share my experiences of one of the most significant towns in the UK.

Liverpool ushered me with gloom and despair, but nothing remotely sinister. 

I would like to describe to you the day when I first arrived in Liverpool, the town where our friends Mary and David Moore have been dwelling for several years.

It’s a typical English city with the population of about 580,000. Liverpool developed through its sea trade and sadly through its connections with the slave trade in the early days. It never really had any big industries during the

Industrial Revolution, they came to Liverpool much later. The city is

now experiencing a revival in fortune. Mary and David are living in a house, which is not far from the sea. As you know, Liverpool stretches on the right bank of the Mersey, and it is very close to Wales. In fact it is known as the capital of Wales but that is a joke really. The River Mersey runs into the Irish Sea, so we may say that the Moores enjoy all opportunities of a sea country. At the railway station I hired a taxi and asked the driver to take me to # 8, Peter’s Street. While riding I tried to involve the taxi-driver into the conversation about Liverpool and find out some details about the life of its inhabitants. The driver was fairly sociable unlike the characteristics given by the foreigners about the English reserve. I was a bit struck by his accent, as sometimes I failed to catch what he was saying. I had an impression that he was speaking through his nose. From his words I formed a vague picture of Liverpool’s life. The town is very old, it was charted in 1207 by the king John who signed Magna Carta. His Majesty told everybody to move to Liverpool, but nobody did, to speak of. The town rather dozed until the 18^th century. The people who live in Liverpool are jokingly called Liverpudlians, just for fun. As I found out, there were a lot of tell-tales about Liverpudlian’s mode of life. Many people call them lazy layabouts, which is not true to fact. They are also called Scousers. Scouse is a type of stew. True scouse has meat, usually lamb, blind scouse has no meat and was a meal for people who were poor. The city is now experiencing a revival in fortune. It has been chosen as the European city of culture and there is much less unemployment than before. Money is now being invested in the city`s infrastructure. There are some ecological problems in Liverpool. And do you know a modern town without any problems? While the driver was talking to me, I was looking out of the car and enjoying the sights of Liverpool. We were passing by the impressive building which was right on the river called the Liver Building. It was a great building with two towers and on each tower there was an enormous bird, called the Liver bird. Our car ran smoothly along Hope Street at the opposite ends of which I admired two cathedrals.

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Somerton

When we first arrived in Somerton, it produced a very favourable impression on us: tiny, tidy neat and cosy. My eye was caught immediately by its accurately pruned green hedges contrasting with the grey colour of the houses. The English take great pride in their hedges with their fresh green hue. In general, grey is the dominant colour in thus part of England and the rest of the United Kingdom. Towns have a different colour depending on the local stone used for building and this makes England peculiar in the European world.

Somerton is a small well laid out old town with a population of about 5000 people. Its history goes back to the 7^th century. Like all old towns of that time it has a church and a market place which are still preserved. The old buildings are remarkable sights and over the years their use has changed but they still retain their unique beauty. The church, which bears the name of St. Michael, continues to be a place for relidious services. It looks a bit too huge for such a small place with its enormous stained glass windows and a lofty carved ceiling, the latter having one of the most marvelous pattern throughout all Britain.

I was struck by quiet streets, clean air and the atmosphere of a very ancient place. I thought I could run into a town crier, who informed the citizens of the petty treason or the sale of a wife. As a matter of fact, some of the houses do look medieval: they are specially maintained by the people who possess them. According to the law, people who dwell in very old houses mustn’t change anything in their appearance themselves: they are responsible for its aspect, and neither a window sash or a stone covered with moss or lichen can be changed. Most of the houses have fire-places, using smokeless coal. Some of the houses have names of their own: The Roof-tree, Two Hoots, Pound Pool, etc. 

There are plenty of pubs, eating houses, small hotels in Somerton. The pubs and inns are usually elaborately decorated with flowers hanging in pots or baskets. On some buildings ivy covers part of the walls, with flags containing different kinds of heralds in the form of dragons, wyverns, bears and other kinds of heraldic animals. If the door or a wall has some lichen, the place is sure to be more expensive with claims to be exquisite. The plaques with their names also sound out-of-date which gives the places added historical interest for example, the White Hart Inn, the Globe, the Green Dragon House. Or “Cask Marquo. This house serves quality cask beers” Another one runs as follows “A.D. Merricks & A. Doble. Licensed to Sell beer, Wine, Spirits, and Cider. To be Consumed on or off Premises. Business hour: Monday --11, … Sunday – 10.

Unlike the grey Somerton houses, telephone booths are red. The same refers to the red gate of Somerset Fire brigade, which looks very impressive with its black tiled roof and grey walls. A walk about Somerton is most refreshing, but it won’t take you too long, about an hour or so, in good weather you can afford to stroll for a couple of hours and drop in at local shops.

I can’t but dwell upon the so-called “Charity shops”. They can be found in any town or city of Great Britain. We might call them second-hand shops in our country. However in Great Britain they are non-profit making i.e. all the money, which is earned in the shop can only be used for charity purposes. Normally, people in Great Britain take care of those who are less fortunate, less prosperous and less healthy.

Any small town centre in Great Britain includes the post-office, the bank, and the shopping centre. Somerton is no exception. At any rate, the shops are tiny as the town itself. Even the supermarket is relatively small and the choice of goods is rather limited there, but you can find all the necessary articles. The library, situated also in the centre of the town, serves as a place of enlightenment. One can borrow books, journals and magazines there, and can make use of the Internet completely free of charge.

From my point of view, special mention should be made of Somerton’s graveyard. It is in perfect harmony with the whole appearance of the town itself: it is well looked after and constantly taken care of. Some tombs are several hundred years old, but they look perfectly neat.

Singapore

City state

Venice of Asia

Singapore is a modern equivalent of mediaeval Venice. Both cities are built on islands and have become wealthy by trade. Like mediaeval Venice, Singapore is an independent city-state and is governed by a small group of powerful politicians and businessmen.

The story goes that in 1299, a prince of Sumatra (now part of Indonesia) was hunting a lion. It disappeared on an island, which he named Singa (lion)pura (city). Modern Singapore was founded in 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles, the British Governor of Sumatra. He saw that the island was in a key position for trade with Asia, a gateway to the East. Its deep-water harbour was ideal for refuelling large steamships with coal.

In the 1920s, Singapore became Britain's main naval base in Asia. During World War II, the Japanese took the British by surprise; they invaded from the land side, and took the city in 1942. All Britain's defensive guns faced the sea.

The British returned in 1945, but not for long. Singapore joined independent Malaysia, but there was tension between the Malay and Chinese communities, which led to race riots. The majority Chinese population of Singapore, led by Lee Kuan Yew, wanted independence from Malaysia, which was agreed in 1965. But the future did not look bright. The small Chinese city-state was dominated by two large Muslim neighbours, Malaysia and Indonesia.

The Lion roars

Lее Kuan Yew and his People's Action Party quickly modernised Singapore. They improved transport, housing and education. Foreign investors built hi-tech factories, oil refineries and banks. The old city was redeveloped so that Western tourists could visit a clean, safe part of Asia, with drinkable tap water. Business boomed and is still growing fast. Local companies, such as Singapore Airlines and Times Publishing, have helped to make Singapore the second richest country in Asia (after Japan).

All this progress has a price. There is strict control over free speech and the press always supports the government. Even the trade unions are a branch of the government. The legal system is extremely strict. It is illegal to import chewing gum into Singapore. There is physical punishment for vandalism and the death penalty for smuggling drugs into the country.

There is a tiny opposition party. At election time, the government tells voters that if they do not support it, public projects will be cancelled. Foreign criticism has no effect. The People's Action Party simply points to Singapore's commercial success.

English-speaking China

Singapore has three main communities. The largest group are the Chinese, who make up 76 per cent of the three million population. The next largest group are Malays (15 per cent). The smallest group at seven per cent, is Indian. Chinese Singaporeans feel a close connection, to China, partly because most of them speak Mandarin, the language of Beijing.

Singapore has four official languages: Mandarin, Malay, Tamil (an Indian language) and, most important of all, English. It is the language of government, television and universities. In schools it is a compulsory subject. With so many multicultural influences, it is not surprising that Singapore has developed its own Singlish expressions. If someone asks you how you are, the local reply is, 'OK, lah!'

Multiculturalism also makes Singapore the eating capital of Asia. Its people love to eat out. They have a vast choice that includes Chinese shark fin soup, traditional Indian food, Indonesian mee goreng (fried noodles), or even an English tea.

Why is Singapore like mediaeval Venice?

How has Singapore become the second richest country in Asia?

Do you think it would be difficult to live in Singapore?

Compare your country's level of prosperity and freedom to Singapore's.