Hello, my name is Ravi Longa. I come from India but moved to the city of Winchester in Hampshire, England when I was 14. My parents knew my dream was to become a famous actor, so they decided to let me get a chance. They wanted to open an Indian restaurant, so it was a win-win situasjon. I have to save up money so I work at the restaurant, and eventually I can move out and hopefully get acting lessons and a part time job at a theatre. My birthday is on january 5th, so I just turned 17 a few days ago.
Winchester Is the former capital of england, which is kinda cool I think. It's located at the center of the the much larger "City of Winchester", a local governmet district located at the western end of the South Downs. Winchester is probably most known for it's cathedral and the award-winning "Blue Apple Theatre". Maybe I'll get a part time job there, how cool would that be!? There's also this weird thing going on every year, the "hat fair", which is some kind of street theatre with workshops, performances and gatherings at almost every avenue. It's kinda weird, but really cool at the same time! We've also got a castle here, the Winchester castle, which is famous for "King Arthurs Round Table".
As I said I moved to England when I was 14 years old (3 years ago), but it was not easy for me to settle. First of all, I could not speak english so well. People did not understand my english. I had no friends in England and getting friends was not easy either. The people here was so mutch different from the people of India. As an example, the women in England dress so much differently than the women in India. In India women do not wear shorts or jeans so much. A women should not show her legs so much in India, but some young women in India do not care about that. They wear shorts and singlets anyway. The women in India like to dress up more than the girls in England. Indian women wears much jewelry and bright colours, British women do not dress up as much as indian women.
I actually found a girlfriend here in England, her name is Priyanka. She is Indian too. She loves our Indian culture, she actually teach girls bollywood dancing.
I met her a few weeks after we moved here. She is only 16 years old but so grown up in her mind. Soon we have been toghether for 2,5 year.
I am proud of being british, or indian british at least. England is a proud land and I am proud for living here. Typical britain would be, yeah they like their tea. Other things that are typical for britain is that people here are very polite. We say ''thank you'', ''please'' and ''excuse me''. We also give eachother nicknames, like dear, chick, madam, miss and mate. There are many more nicknames that we give, they vary from what sex you are, how old you are and where you are. People greet friends here with a kiss on the cheek. You may have seen it in a movie sometimes? We british people are also very time conscious, we find it rude to be late. We open the doors for others and drive on the left side of the road. We are a very polite people, we find it impolite even just asking a lady her age. Another thing we british people love, is our pubs. We drink there, meet friends there, we eat and relax in the pubs.
There are some problems in the UK, but I would say the biggest problem is obesity and a very unhealthy lifeway. People drink very much here, more than most other countries in Europe. As I said earlier people meet up in pubs with friends, they eat and relax there. People here do not have a great diet either, they love cupcakes, cakes, applepie, and so on. Fruits and vegetables are not so common like in other countries either. Also, people of the UK are more likely than any other country in Europe to die from smoking! It is unbelievable. Another thing here is that many young teenagers becomes young mothers and fathers. I don't know if it is a factor in this but maby that has something to say too. Obesity is not healthy at all, you can get many problems of it. Like diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. That is just a few health problems, there are much more than that. I know it is not healthy to be overweight but in India the women are supposed to have a little extra weight. Extra weight in India is a symbol of fertility and good health, but not too big either. I am aware of what I eat and how I exercise.
You can read a bit about this topic on this page > http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/british-people-are-the-fattest-in-europe-says-government-report-397617.html
I really hope people of the UK will open their eyes and get healthier. I know we can't be as bad as America, or in other words the stereotype american.
I would believe that queen Elisabeth. She is the Queen of England and she is Supreme Governor of the Church of England. She also has the title Defender of the Faith. She is the last queen of many countries, she is the queen of Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize, Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and Ceylon. That is extremely many countries ! At least that is my opinion. She have been the queen for more than 60 years. That women keeps her health in good shape in other words! She is indeed the front person of England.
my parents have found another girl in India they feel is a suitable wife for me. 08.02.2013
Today my mom and dad walked in to my room and told me to get ready for a trip to India. I wondered what was happening and my mom smiled from ear to eara and said ''Ravi, I found you a lovely wife. She is 13 years old and will become a perfect wife for you. Her whole village is preparing the wedding at this time, in a few days you will marry her. And since she is from a poor village, she will obey you''. I got shocked and could not speak. I got myself toghether and said to my mom ''I will not marry a child! It is not legal either, you have to be 18 years old to get married in India. She is only 13 years old. A 13 year old girl is not a wife, but a child. She cannot carry any children and Priyanka is a much more suitable wife for me, she is 16 years old and have a education and a job''. My mom just laughed and said ''Yes, I know she is not legal, but her family is poor and have to get her married so that they don't have to pay for her. And we found someone who would marry you two. The whole village like the idea, so no one will tell anyone either. Priyanka is way too skinny to carry healthy children, she have to have fat on her body! This will happend either you like it or not.'' Many people know that a son in India will obey his mother, and it is not different when you move out of India. In other words, I cannot go against my mother. What can I do?