Most of the time, my weekdays at school are fairly uneventful, so I don't have much to say until I go somewhere on the weekend. I know some people would like to hear more, since not all of you have been to the UK before. So, here are a few things that I've learned about living in the UK:

With regard to traffic/pedestrians:

You don't have to wait for the "walk" sign to cross, but it's better to do so, at least at unfamiliar intersections.

When the "walk" sign goes off, it's time to get out of the intersection. The British also have a yellow light before the green light, which coincides with the "walk" sign turning off. Some drivers do get impatient if you're in the crosswalk, as they could otherwise start through the intersection. This extra yellow light would never work in the US, as many drivers and pedestrians are generally unaware of their surroundings. Many more people would be run down on Peachtree Street, just like Margaret Mitchell.

In tube stations, people actually do stand to the right on escalators, so those in a hurry can move past. People here are actually capable of following directions. Again, this would never happen in the US.

Other miscellaneous trivia:

Most washbasins (sinks) in Britain have seperate taps for hot and cold, and you can't really use the hot tap without getting burned. The showers in my dorm are almost uncomfortably hot, and there is no temperature adjustment. There are two shower stalls in the bathroom, with motion activated lights, and in one of them the motion sensor is improperly placed, so the light goes out after a couple of minutes. Also, the bathrooms in my dorm are unisex, which seems a bit unusual to me, but I've never lived in a UK dorm before now.

Many of the smaller shops close earlier than I'm used to, say 8 or 9 PM. The Sainsbury's is open late, until midnight on weekdays. They still have some kind of a blue law here, such that many stores don't open until 11 AM on Sundays and close at 5 PM. According to Wikipedia, the Sunday Trading act of 1994 was passed after the UK joined the European Economic Community, to avoid breaking the rules of the community. Since 1950, buying and selling on Sundays had been banned in the UK. With the change in 1994, stores larger than 280 m^2 are only allowed to be open for 6 hours on Sundays.

I have been attending a small (about 400 people, so that's small to me) contemporary church, called Christchurch London, which meets in the Picadilly Theatre from 4-6 PM on Sundays. Afterwards, a group of around 20-30 will go to a nearby pub for drinks. This is a reflection of the culture, as alcohol is viewed differently here than in the US. This would go over like a lead balloon at any church in the US.

Regarding the phone numbers here, people write them in all sorts of ways. I think a lot of people who live here are as confused as I am. They apparently changed the system several times in the '90s, adding extra digits to the area code to create more numbers. At least in the US we have a fixed length for numbers, with a clear area code and exchange. I guess since the telephone was invented in the US, we should have the best system.