Never look directly at anyone else (except members of your own group). Never talk to anyone else on the subway. When you do talk, be very quiet. Avoid littering anywhere.
On the train, when you have been sitting next to/across from a stranger for a minimum of two hours, you can then begin a conversation—again, speaking very quietly. The topics should be bland and certainly should not be a criticism of anything about the country. Exchanging names is almost never done.
As in the trains and subways, you must talk quietly. Avoid drawing attention to yourself—pick-pockets are common and tourists are fair game. Don’t advertise the fact that you’re an American tourist. When making purchases, be prepared to stand quietly in a line (not crowded around the counter). The British will tell you to “Queue up!”—line up—if you try to jump the line or avoid standing in a line. (Queue is pronounced “cue”.)
Pubs are great places to eat noon meals and that’s where we’ll eat most of our noon meals. However, pubs are always well-lit and quiet—noon or night. As a general rule, women order “half pints” and men order “pints”. The legal drinking age is 16.
At the hotel, we'll be eating a typical English breakfast: one soft fried egg (sunny side up), Canadian bacon, a kind of baked beans, and either a fried tomato or a fried mushroom. They are willing to scramble the egg. Wasting food is highly frowned upon (the cost of food is half again or twice as much as it is here), so if you know that you absolutely can't or won't eat any of the above, please ask our server NOT to bring them to you. You'll get a small glass of orange juice, all the tea or coffee you want, and unlimited toast and jam.
You will most likely run into foods you don't like--or at least look strange. However, try a bite--give it a true taste test. If you don't like the food, quietly leave it and don't order it again. Remember, you didn't travel 5000 miles to eat the same things you eat at home. The food is part of the adventure.