An American tourist in UK shared the moment he was ‘almost arrested’ in London after a big misunderstanding with his Airbnb host over one word – but people argue it’s ‘common knowledge’
An American man shared the moment he was ‘almost arrested’ for trying to break into someone’s flat after not understanding common British saying – but people quickly argued it was ‘common sense’.
There are currently 67 countries around the globe where English is an official language, totalling 88 countries and territories in the English-speaking world. However, it’s still safe to say that the usage of the language can vary significantly depending on where you are. This is something that American tourist Nick Toteda discovered during his trip to London when he encountered a significant language barrier while trying to locate his Airbnb accommodation.
He took to Instagram to recount how a misunderstanding with his Airbnb host nearly led to him being ‘almost arrested’. In his video, Nick is seen sitting on the floor of a bedroom as he narrates his near-miss with breaking into someone else’s flat in London.
“British people… I just nearly went to jail for breaking and entering because of your lingo,” he said at the start of the video before explaining what had happened.
He went on to share the weekend before filming the video, he had booked an Airbnb in a block of flats in London. After receiving the keys, he messaged the host to ask for the flat’s location, to which the host responded it was ‘on the first floor to the right’ Believing he had found the correct flat, Nick attempted to unlock the door with his key but failed.
“It’s not really working so I’m like fidgeting around with it,” he said, before informing the Airbnb host that the door wouldn’t open, insisting that although it was the right key, it was ‘not turning’.
The host then instructed him to attempt the other locks on the door, which featured three locks positioned one above the other. However, this approach proved unsuccessful as he remained unable to access the flat. He was then advised by the host to ‘really pull’ on the door and the lock due to the door being old.
“I’m here like pulling on this door, and out of nowhere, a woman opens the door,” he revealed. “And she’s like ‘pardon me? Can I help you? Why are you doing that to my door?'”
Nick continued by saying he froze as he hadn’t anticipated anyone being present in the flat.
He proceeded to explain it was his Airbnb, to which the woman responded it was actually her residence, prompting Nick to apologise before displaying the Airbnb listing, stating it was on the ‘first floor to the right’.
“She was like ‘first floor? That’s one above’,” Nick recalled, expressing his bewilderment.
However, he still ascended to the next level, where he immediately managed to enter the property. Upon getting inside, Nick enquired whether the Airbnb host had actually meant the second floor, though the host swiftly rejected this, insisting it was one level above the ground floor.
“I’m like ground? When has the ground ever been a floor in a building? I was so confused,” he said. “Apparently British people say ground floor and then one. Every other country I’ve been to, it’s been one, two, three, like counting levels to a house.”
“Why are we saying ground floor? Who has ever said that?” he said. “I’m lucky she’s not pressing charges because I could not survive in jail to be honest.”
The comment section lit up with responses, as many pointed out that this was ‘common knowledge’ around the world.
“It isn’t just a British thing. It’s literally everywhere in the world apart from the States!” one user asserted. Another chimed in: “Is it me or is ground floor extremely normal globally. Like every country I’ve been. Even hotels in the USA from my experience.”
Another person commented: “As an American, the term ‘ground floor’ makes total sense to me. What doesn’t make sense to me is calling the literal second floor of a structure the first floor.”
