to want ^Typical English^ tourist spots to have English people serving you?

[IwantJoansbag]

I expect to get flamed for this and called all-sorts, but I don't care.
I'm genuinely curious.

We went out for the day yesterday and stopped off at 3 well-known English tourist spots.
Glastonbury, Cheddar and Wells. (with a little stop off at a pretty little 'supposedly' English market-garden type place - selling Strawberries, Plums, etc) plus we stopped off at an outlet village.

It just seemed wrong that at EVERY place we stopped we were served by Eastern Europeans. I didn't hear ONE English accent (except in the shops), but all the eateries and stalls.... foreign accents.

If I go to a Beer Festival in Germany, its nice to be served by somebody with a German Accent - it adds to the atmosphere.
If I were to go to New York and eat in China Town - its great if the majority of people are Chinese.
Stopping off in a typical Italian Pizza place and the people are mainly Italian! You expect a bit of authenticity.

So, is it too much to ask the same happens in England?
It must be disappointing for the tourists when they come here.

For the record:- I am ONLY talking about typical tourist spots and I've got nothing against people coming to our country to work, but I think that some places (tourist spots where you expect things to be traditional) they should have mainly English people dealing with the public.

It's seasonal work. E. Europeans are usually better equipped to take it on as they tend to come on their own, without a family in tow to support, and can share a carvan or crowded flat and send the money back home, where it is worth far more.

I am very very sad that people who think like you actually exist v

The wages are dreadful, and locations often inaccessible unless you have a car, or are part of a work gang with transport.

*It's seasonal work. E. Europeans are usually better equipped to take it on as they tend to come on their own, without a family in tow to support, and can share a carvan or crowded flat and send the money back home, where it is worth far mor&

Okay, that makes sense.
I think they are employing people who speak very little English.
At the one place, I ordered an Americano - he gave me a Latte.
We ordered 6 donuts, he gave us 4. Then he gave us the wrong change!

It's all very well these places wanting 'cheap labour' but it's at the expense of giving the customers Good Service.
(obviously it's not the fault of the person who is employed)

I blame the Employers.

You expect a bit of authenticity

I laughed out loud at this line.

YABU.

As someone from the other side of the world, when I went to typical English spots and was served by non-English people, it never occurred to me to care.

When I'm a tourist I want to see a country for what it is today, not 50 years ago. If anything, for me, realising how cosmopolitan the UK was made it feel much more interesting

I am very very sad that people who think like you actually exist v

It's okay, I'm expecting the usual you hate immigrants comments to pop up.

Thanks to the ones that are giving me good explanations! I am genuinely curious.

The man in the Italian pizzeria serving you front of house might well be Italian.

The cash-in-hand guy who made your pizza round the back will, however, be either Eastern European or Moroccan.

As long as you don't have to see him though, I suppose that satisfies your criteria?

I really hope you are a troll on a windup.

And not the racist arsehole you come across as.

Is your objection that 'local' people could be doing (and might need) the jobs and hence are being driven out of their 'traditional' home areas?

Or that the tourist attractions should be convincingly 'ye olde worlde' and the 21st century shouldn't intrude?

Wobblestones, maybe this will explain things:

It's all very well these places wanting 'cheap labour' but if the person can't speak English, it's at the expense of giving the customers Good Service.
(obviously it's not the fault of the person who is employed)
I blame the Employers.

At the one place, I ordered an Americano - he gave me a Latte.
We ordered 6 donuts, he gave us 4. Then he gave us the wrong change!

I am surprised you didn't order English tea which probably comes from Asia . I also guess only foreigners make mistakes like the donuts and change?

Is your objection that 'local' people could be doing (and might need) the jobs and hence are being driven out of their 'traditional' home areas?
Or that the tourist attractions should be convincingly 'ye olde worlde' and the 21st century shouldn't intrude?

I suppose I want good service and it's nice if people understand what I'm asking for.

Besides, how do you even know where people are from when you're travelling if you don't speak their language? I spent some time in Italy years ago and knew one woman that I was surprised to learn after knowing her about a month was actually Albanian. If you don't know the language yourself and everyone's speaking to you in English, how would you even know?

I will counter the OP's anecdote about the latte/Americano tragedy, shall I?

I went to my local bakery on Thursday. Not a furriner in sight.

"Can I have an iced finger please?" (dd's favourite)

Drippy English Rose looks at me. "A what?"

"An iced finger"

"Which are they?"

"The ones shaped like fingers with icing on the top, there"

She finally gets one out of the window and then stands in front of the till looking worried.

"Jean, how do I put iced finger in the till"

Jean (also English) comes scuttling out of the back wiping grease down her pinny.

"Here dear, press the button that says "iced finger" on it"

English Rose then gave me the wrong change which she dropped on the floor and forgot to give me the iced finger.

But at least she was English hey! Had she been Lithuanian I expect I'd have come home with a pork pie that she'd have overcharged me for.

The employers aren't doing it for the good of their health - they need to make a profit so they can pay everyone's wages, maintain the attraction etc.

Tourists will only pay so much before they decide the attraction is too expensive and don't go.

If what the tourists pay will only fund Eastern European minimum wage workers, well that is what you are going to get. Plus the jobs are seasonal, often with crap hours, v boring, no opportunity for career progression etc - it's not exactly what most middle class Brits are dreaming their children will grow up to do as a career, is it?

I suppose I want good service and it's nice if people understand what I'm asking for.

Do you only receive good service from authentic English people?

Plenty of English people would provide shit service.

What an absolutely appallingly xenophobic thread.

There are migrant workers in all tourist trades in all countries though. I worked in a bar in an Italian tourist town when I was younger and there were lots of ex pats working there, and some Scandinavians and Germans too. There are Brits and Scandis working in Thailand. The last time we went to Greece there was a nice Albanian guy we got to know who had been working there for years. I can't say that any of this has ever 'disappointed' me as a tourist because it isn't as if I never met any Thai/Greek/whatever people. If you want to experience more the more indigenous culture of a place then you seek it out.

Go to Switzerland. All the hospitality staff are local.

Of course, the markup on a bottle of beer is 200%, but that's because they pay actual living wages.

The other reason you got Easterners is that those venues have sky high house prices and are mostly occupied by very rich people with very rich teenagers. Tarquin and Jocasta don't wait tables, oh dear me no.

But what IS an English accent? As I have a strong Northern accent, presumably in your warped world I wouldn't be allowed to work in Bath or Wells, as it wouldn't be "authentic."

People from Cornwall couldn't work in the Lakes, Londoners couldn't work on the north York moors railway...right?

Or does an English accent just mean RP in your sheltered little world?

Your OP said nothing at all about staff not understanding customer requests or not speaking good English. You only introduced that when people rightly pointed out the nasty xenophobic undertones. Your original complaint was about Eastern European accents.

Yabu.

I am surprised you didn't order English tea

I find this comment a bit sad.

Why is it, we will go to GREAT LENGTHS to protect the tradtions and cultural differences of other Nationalities,
but, to want to protect and 'celebrate' English Traditions is somehow
WRONG and a matter for joking?

I suppose I want good service and it's nice if people understand what I'm asking for.

Well then the nationality of the staff involved is immaterial (only their language proficiency is) and you are managing to make yourself sound xenophobic for no good reason.