So I went out to dinner tonight with an old family friend who works as a flight attendant and stays right down the road from me when he's in London. It has been very, very chilly here lately, even snowing on and off today. I hoped to catch the 49 down the street to save me 10 minutes of icy walking (hey, it's free for me, so why not?). But as I was walking out my flat, I noticed the bus was already in the turn lane at the corner, with a green light. I booked it down the street, only to miss the bus by about 20 feet... or so I thought. But then the bus stopped, and I was able to hop on (sometimes, bus drivers are mean and won't let you on if you run up and they've already shut their doors. Just a heads up.). So I move to the back, and stand next to a 50ish gentleman, who is about ready to get off. Right before his stop, he turns to me and says, "I saw you running for the bus, so I pushed the stop button, even though it wasn't my stop. I'm glad you made it on."
How nice is that? See, that's what I love about the British. They are so unassuming, and private, but they will do nice things like that, and are usually very polite about everything. So I thanked this gentleman, and he goes the extra step and wishes me a very enjoyable evening. I believe he actually he really used those exact words.
I was astonished about how polite and nice he was. I know that nice is a word that is overused, and it's hard to really know what it means anymore. It's like cute. What does cute even mean? It can describe animals, boys, babies, and cars. What does nice mean? It describes people, suits, cars, and other material objects.
But I think that there isn't a better word for this gentleman. He was nice. He went out of his way to help a stranger out, just because. Because it's cold outside, or I was running, or maybe he thought I was cute. Who knows?
In any case, he certainly endeared me to the British even more.
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