well the sun is out for what seems like the first time this year and I, as a fan of River Cottage and Jamie At Home, am busy dong the rural thing out in Bavaria, Germany. Finally it is apple harvest time and I am busy picking the "Jacoubis" or St James Apples, to make juice tomorrow with a big crusher, apple press and steriliser which I will syphon into two crates of old mineral water bottles I scrounge from the local "Getränkemarkt" or off license. I'm starting to harvest veg from my allotment, another nod to the British way of life.
So I'm thinking of what you do to feel a bit like home is with you. Year round it's PG Tips, British telly and a Friday pint at home. Over in Saudi when I lived there it was listening to the very British sounding Radio Bahrain or the odd run with the Hash House Harriers (those who don't know what they are Google them), or a pint on a British Aerospace compound.
In Outer Mongolia I visited the Steppe Inn on the British Embassy for some real beer and British chat.
When I was in India I saw the old British hill stations like Mussoorie with their English cottages and rose borders, and the British Empire named "The Mall" with a "Picture Palace" at one end and a library at the other. In Naini Tal in Uttar Pradesh (formerly known as the United Provinces) where my father was posted for R and R during his National Service days in Ceylon there was a Hotel Elphinstone with a bust of Queen Victoria in the lobby.
My point being that wherever you go around the world you'll always find little bits of Britain established by some homesick Brit such as myself. I've got a home designed rose arch I built a few years back, with grapes and geraniums drooping all over the place.
Anyone else know of examples of "Britain" abroad?