29th August post

Today I decided to visit the British Council for the first time to see what is available there.  It is walking distance from the flat, so I left early to avoid the heat of the day.  I found the building quite easily following my map.  The British Council no longer has a library due to budget cuts.  However, I was introduced to several English teachers who work there and allowed to look at teaching materials, which was useful.

In the evening I walked down to Nile Street, the equivalent to the Embankment in London.  The Nile is a great deal bigger than the Thames though.  On the way there and back to the flat, I passed the Ministry of Justice, where very official looking guards sat at the gates.  They all wanted to practice their very limited English, ‘Hello, how are you?’  I am finding generally that people are keen to do this, and that this is the standard phrase.  The other thing people ask is whether I am English.