If you are English you are....

I have just been told what the world thinks of the English by my Indonesian 17-year-old neighbour. It was during a party in our house so he was speaking more freely than normal.

Apparently the English are esteemed for two things:
1/ football (my friend knew lots of english city names through their football teams)
2/ and Mr Bean (which is on TV every night in Indonesia! by the way, if anyone out there sees a Mr Bean doll in a shop, please could you buy one for him? its his No.1 wanted-item!).

But as for the English as people?
Well they are also two things:
1/ arrogant
2/ wasteful & extravagent.

I found my own example for the arrogant - I watched a hugely cringeworthy interview/TV show with Hugh Grant on Japanese TV a few weeks ago. He was awful. His jokes were arrogant, and culturally way-WAY-off-line. He was taken to a lovely Japanese restaurant, but told them the food was disgusting (his joke), and that the hostess was stupid for dropping something (his joke). His attitude seemed to be that he could snigger at Japanese customs, as no-one he knew would be watching him anyway.

My Indonesia friend had his own example of why we are extravagent and wasteful - in two words (from his mouth): Victoria Beckham. and in three more: too much money.

Now that was someone being honest... although I of course was told I was exempt ;-)