more participants at Jenny Matlock's Alphabet Thursday
The only language where the letter P is pronounced pee and is therefore the favorite letter of the kids because it stands for what we all know : an urgent call from nature !
In French, German and Italian the languages I know P is not Pee but Peh and Peh doesn't mean anything but the letter P and there I am again at the beginning.
It is also amusing to listen to listen to a German with a strong accent who says Shakespeare's famous phrase :" to pee or not to pee, that is the question" !
But p, pronounced in English is also money ! Since the decimalization of British currency and the introduction of the abbreviation p, as in 10p, 20p, etc., the abbreviation has tended to replace the pence in speech as in 1 p. During my researches for this "P" post, I also learned that a penny is a coin (pl. pennies) or a type of currency (pl. pence).
Today for one p you get nothing anymore. I had been told that to pee had once cost a p. That must have been a very long time ago, because now everywhere I stayed I had to pay 30 p which was a minimum. The "I have to go" fees in certain places could even raise up to 50 p's ! And for this price I didn't even meet a kind Madame Pipi (pronounced Peepee) who sits in a corner with a saucer on a little table, knits or reads and chats with the customers in need. Nowadays you have to go through impersonal barriers put your 30 or 50 p's in a slot and if you are lucky you go through without getting stuck.
This evening I leave the country with the p's, pence and pennies and return to my Euro cents, which means that I take the Eurostar from London to Brussels, where Mr. G. will pick me up !
Travel safely!! your post made me laugh and reminded me of an e-mail I got. New wine for those that wake frequently at night, forget Pinot Grigio, the new one is being marketed as: Pinot More !
ReplyDeleteI wonder why the Brits still have pees when they are not worth anything any more. A funny post. I was pleased to note that we never had to pay to pee in USA. You can pee free.
ReplyDeletepay to pee?
ReplyDelete*chuckles* I enjoyed this! Thanks for the morning giggle!
ReplyDeleteFun post!
ReplyDeleteCan't imagine paying to pee, though.
;)
Hi Gattina
ReplyDeleteLong time no see sorry I've been a bit waylaid.
My Gran used to say "I'm off to spend a penny" meaning she was going to the toilet and it did indeed cost 1d (as it was) to use a loo in olden times.
I used to say "I'm off to spend a pound" meaning going for a dump but my gran thought that was too much info!
;-)
ps you still do have to pay to pee in London railway stations ~ about 25p
ReplyDeleteand Harrods' "luxury washrooms" cost £2 I do believe
I was wondering if I was the only one that didn't realize you had to pay to p. Pretty coins! {:-Deb
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful trip. Hope you don't have to Pee after paying many P's for the trip. ~Ames
ReplyDeleteHave a great trip!
ReplyDeletehttp://carabossesbedchamber.blogspot.com/2011/08/alphabet-thursday.html
Travel safe, sweet lady!
ReplyDeleteLoved your humorous link for the letter P.
It was just perfect.
A+
PS. You have to pay to pee in Mexico, too!
Seriously? You have to pay to pee? I've never heard of such a thing.
ReplyDeletePay to P? Well, I never.....
ReplyDeleteSo, what if you're broke?
Enjoy your trip and P safely:)
Oh this reminds me so much of the time I was a law student in Leicester. Such fun - I didn't even mind having to pay to pee!
ReplyDeleteNow, I hardly ever meet Madame Pipi. We sometimes have to pay to use toilets in Malaysia, but thankfully those places are few and far between!