International Data of the UK

      1)  International trade is huge in the UK.  Exporting nearly £32 billion of exports to the U.S., £28 billion to Germany, and £19 billion to both France and the Netherlands, the UK lies within the top ten exporting countries in the world.  The UK’s biggest export in 2011 was nuclear reactors, boilers, machinery and mechanical appliances.  Mineral fuels, mineral oils, and products of their distillation came in second, followed by vehicles and their parts and accessories.  In general, the UK exports manufactured goods, fuel, chemicals, food, beverages, and tobacco.  In 2013, total UK exports were valued at about £283.2 billion ($475.7 billion).

The following diagram shows the exports of the UK, with the top ten exported products aligned in order on the bottom of the diagram.

The top trade partners for imports to the UK are Germany, China, the Netherlands, and the U.S.. Germany is the source for 12.6% of imports, China 8%, the Netherlands 7.5%, and the U.S. 6.7%.  The UK imports manufactured goods, machinery, fuels, and crops/foodstuffs.  In 2013, total UK imports were valued at about £384.5 billion ($646 billion).

2)  The currency in the UK is the British Pound (GBP or £).  The current exchange rate in the UK is 1 GBP = 1.68 USD.  In most recent exchange rate history, the rate is currently the highest it has been in the past 180 days, which hit April 16, 2014.  The lowest in the last 180 days was about 1 GBP = 1.589 USD November 12, 2013.  The average exchange rate is normally 1 GBP = 1.646 USD.

3)  The most current refugee statistics (from 2012) and their country of origin are:

15,132 (Somalia)                                 9,842 (Afghanistan)

12,155 (Zimbabwe)                             5,752 (Iraq)

11,428 (Iran)                                       9,901 (Eritrea)

Under international refugee law, a refugee is defined as a person who seeks refuge in a foreign country because of war and violence, or out of fear of persecution.  Refugees seek protection under the United Nations 1951 Refugee Convention, or from member states of the European Union.  This exercises of the EU’s “Four Freedoms”.  Since 1994, the number of people migrating to the UK has been greater than the number emigrating.  In 2012, immigration into the UK was 497,000 and emigration was 321,000.  This is a net migration of 176,000.  In most recent estimates, net migration has risen to an annual average of 201,000.  Most immigrants come to the UK from other EU countries (32%) and non-EU countries (52%), leaving 16% of people migrating to the UK as British nationals.  Most immigrants to the UK come from China, India, Poland, the U.S., and Australia.

4)  The UK maintains good relationships with mostly every country.  The UK’s relationship with both Iraq and China can be seen as controversial and/or complicated, but close.  Present British policy maintains that the relationship with the United States represents their “most important bilateral relationship” and vice versa.  Historically, UK forces have invaded, had some control over, or fought conflicts in 171 of the world’s 193 countries that are now United Nations member states.  Well known wars that the UK has taken part in are the Seven Years’ War, the War of 1812, WWI, WWII, the Korean War, the Gulf War, the War in Afghanistan, and the Iraq War.  Currently, there are no big conflicts that the UK is involved in.  

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/immigration/10480785/Most-immigrants-to-the-UK-now-come-from-China-figures-show.html

http://www.geohive.com/charts/ec_exim1.aspx

http://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/feb/24/uk-trade-exports-imports#

http://www.exchangerates.org.uk/GBP-USD-exchange-rate-history.html

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/uk.html

www.parliament.uk/.../sn06077.pdf‎

A Fez of the Heart: Travels around Turkey in Search of a Hat

One quote that struck me in this reading reads, "Turkey did not seem to exist in Pomegranate that morning" (page 8).  The immense takeover of tourism in Pomegranate seemed to have caused the Turkish culture to disappear.  Although things like authentic Turkish food and souvenirs continued to exists for visitors to purchase, the locals began to deny their past.  Things such as the Turkish national headress, a fez, were forbidden for locals to wear.  There was only one man that Seal could find wearing a fez.  Seal's account of his conversation with the man made it clear that it was okay for tourists to wear a fez, but not in "normal life" could Turkish residents wear them simply because they they were not seen as modern.  The many changes that came with the tourism industry in Pomegranate caused the loss of the Turkish culture.

Seal's explanations of the changes in Pomegranate make it very clear that there is a big interaction between economics and culture.  The mass amounts of money brought in from tourists caused the locals to become accustomed to certain ways of life that the tourists brought in.  Food, music, and language was all adapted to that of the tourists.  One huge example is that of nudity.  When Europeans began to visit Pomegranate, their nudity along the beaches caused outrage and disrespect to the locals.  Culturally, nudity was unheard of, let alone a woman showing the bottom half of their legs.  Once the locals accepted that tourism brought in capital, they started to embrace what would positively affect their businesses.  Postcards of nude women were sold at stands near the beach.  Sales were the priority in Pomegranate, and the locals adapted to changes in order succeed in the economic side of life.

Having visited Cancun, Mexico over spring break this year, I noticed a huge conflict between tourism, culture, and economics.  First of all, being a huge resort hub for mass amounts of tourists, resorts, bars, clubs, and stores all accepted U.S. dollars.  In addition, I did not come across one Mexican employee at our resort that did not speak English.  The restaurants, buffets, and beach grilles all served burgers, fries, and chicken fingers, all while playing popular American songs on their stereo systems.  All of these things are exactly what our culture is in the U.S.  Although all of these things were of huge convenience to my group of friends, I was somewhat disappointed with the lack of Mexican culture that I experienced.  I would have enjoyed more authentic Mexican food, music, and the Spanish language.  Though many people take excursions to go visit ruins in Mexico, it is also known to be dangerous to venture outside of your resort.  We went downtown to Señor Frogs one night.  I thought maybe I would see more culture this way. There were street vendors and the like, but I still only encountered the English language and U.S. currency.  I chose to make use of the Spanish that I know by occasionally speaking to the employees at our resort, as well as in the airport, in their native language.  For me, it was not only fun, but it also gave me a little sense of their culture.

Tourism in the UK

The tourism industry in the UK brings in just above 29 million tourists each year.  This makes the UK the 8^th biggest tourist destination in the world.  Foreign tourists spent $17.2 billion in the UK in 2011.  VisitBritain, an online website containing data by the British Tourist Authority, states that the United States is the UK’s most valuable inbound market.  However, 21.5 million European visitors overwhelm the 2.1 million American and Canadian visitors.  Summer months, specifically August, are the most traveled months for tourists in the UK.  Domestic tourism remains the biggest component to UK travel.  Statistics from 2009 show that domestic tourists spend £21,881 million among 126 million trips that were made by tourists.

Big portions of the major tourist attractions in the UK are in England.  About 5.8 million tourists visit a castle, 5 million tourists visit historical houses, and 6.4 million tourists visit religious buildings or monuments.  One extremely visited tourist attraction is the Tower of London.  The Tower of London is a historical castle on the River Thames in central London.  Two more main attractions in London are Buckingham Palace and “Big Ben”.  Big Ben is the nickname for the clock tower on the north end of the Palace of Westminster.  

Big Ben

Tower of London

Buckingham Palace

There are 15 national parks throughout the UK. There are 10 in England, 2 in Scotland, and 3 in Wales.  The biggest national park in the UK is Cairngorms in Scotland. 

Cairngorms-Scotland

The UK is extremely rich in biodiversity.  The UK contains a variety of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and fish. 

      

The top five visited museums in the UK are in Great Britain.  The British Museum, Tate Modern, National Gallery, and Natural History Museum all took in over 5 million visitors in 2013.  The V&A museum in South Kensington took in just over 3.2 visitors.  The British museum is dedicated to human history and culture.  The permanent collection in the museum consists of roughly 8 million pieces of work.  This is among the largest collections in the world, originating from all continents.

The British Museum

http://www.visitbritain.org/insightsandstatistics/visitoreconomyfacts/index.aspx

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/places/United_Kingdom

Google Images