Becoming A Londoner

London not only provides me the experience of living in a different culture, but it also provides me the experience of living in a big city. At over 7.5 million people, London is a huge city.

One of the biggest adjustments I've made to living in London is the pace. Everything is fast-paced here. The people walk fast. Drive fast. Talk fast. Eat fast. Drink fast. If you're walking down the street and stop to check the time, you better hope you don't get trampled.

I will admit, though, I enjoy the energetic pulse. For those of you who know me well, I am accustomed to the "Mississippi Mosey." But that pace doesn't cut it over here.

However, I do find one aspect of the pace frustrating at times. No matter what direction or which side of the street I am walking, I always feel like I'm swimming upstream. I attribute this to the lack of accepted walking behavior (for as proper as England is supposed to be, I'm a little surprised). Let me explain.

It doesn't matter if you're walking on the left or right side of a street, the best way to avoid traffic jams is for people to informally agree to sidewalk etiquette. In America, we drive on the right side of the road. And in practice, when we are walking in public, we gravitate to the right.

To clarify again, I don't mean we only walk on the right side of a street. I mean, wherever we are, albeit a shopping mall or hallway, in the face of oncoming traffic, we move to our right to avoid a collision.

But here in London, people walk in the middle of the sidewalk, on the left side and the right side. Inevitably, people are going to run into each other. My point here is simple: If cars are going to drive on the left side on the road here, than people should move to their left when walking. This would provide traffic control and some organization to the masses of people.

Although, last night I was told by some natives that pedestrian traffic is a mess no matter where you go, especially in big cities. I agreed that there will always been congestion in big cities, but interjected that I think it's worse here in London because there seems to be no organization.

Sensing my new friend was not going to accept my point, I shied away from further discussion.

Nevertheless, my new favorite thing to do when walking in the London rush hour is drafting. Yes, it's the same idea cyclists like Lance Armstrong use when racing. I simply find an overambitious individual and stay close while he battles the elements. It provides me an enjoyable walk.

Yet, drafting is more challenging then you would think. First, you have to stay close because the openings that the individuals make don't stay open for long. However, you can't get too close because if they stop or slow down for any reason, you have to allow enough space so you don't barrel into them and so they don't think you are stalking them.

Alas, I am making the adjustment despite my plea for order! Hopefully I can sit down with Gordon Brown next week to discuss this issue during our weekly briefing.