Oliver, admittedly, couldn't quite follow Sebastian's monologue, and his curiosity insisted that he ask at least a couple questions to attempt to clarify it a bit. "Is Julia your sister, then? Who's...uh...Bridey?"
But Sebastian's question to him was, in its own way, even more complicated than working out the social goings-on of a group of people he didn't know. How did you explain the 21st and 27th centuries to someone from Sebastian's time? What would most of it even mean to him? Still, he couldn't avoid the question now--not when he had Sebastian's interest.
"Well..." he began eloquently, fumbling for words and wishing he'd studied modern history half as much as he'd studied classical history. "Birmingham'd probably look huge and very metal in 2006, compared to the 1920's. Cars everywhere. Telly. Microwaves. Lots of new things! Uh..." Oliver trailed off, not really sure how to begin to explain any of the technology. Maybe it was best to leave it at that for now and move on to something else. Maybe things that were uniquely Birmingham? Sebastian had asked about the city specifically, after all, and he didn't want to disappoint.
"The Bull Ring's one of the big attractions--it's a huge shopping centre. Well, for the second time since your time, even. Oh, and we've got Botanical Gardens, too! Not to mention Cadbury World. Are you a fan of chocolate?" He grinned, starting to feel a bit more at ease, though the topic was still very awkward for him. Better not to pause now. "And there's Millenium Point! There's a planetarium there. Not to mention an IMAX theatre! Movies in three dimensions, with colour and sound and about as close to life as you can get. I think you'd find it rather amazing." He continued grinning as he spoke, but he faltered slightly after that, remembering a particular IMAX-viewing experience with one Chloe Elliot, and his smile became fond but sad. "I...don't know what else to say," he said quickly, fumbling for something to pull his mind from those particular memories. "I guess...if you went there, the BT Tower'd stand out, too. It's the tallest building in the city--31 stories, which isn't much in the 21st century, really. The world's very tall and metal all over in 2006. I mean...I'm not saying that in a bad way. It's just...I don't know. Home." He stopped again, wondering briefly how it could have become so hard to describe Birmingham. Had it really been that long? No, it wasn't that. He still remembered it, in complete detail, but those memories weren't easy to share anymore--not with anyone on Gondovan, and certainly not with someone from the 1920's. So much of the meaning was lost.
Then again, he was at even more of a loss as to what to say about Gondovan. "You're gonna have to help me with the 27th century, 'cause I don't even know where to begin," he said, smiling awkwardly. "I guess...I live on a little planet--almost all desert. It's got one sun, a sky like candy floss, and two moons. There's even more technology there than in the 21st century, but they tend to gravitate toward making everything smaller instead of larger and more impressive. Well...I guess that's really just because the settlements on Gondovan are relatively small." He paused again, taking another drink of his Brandy Alexander as he waited for some indication from Sebastian as to what else he might want to know.
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But Sebastian's question to him was, in its own way, even more complicated than working out the social goings-on of a group of people he didn't know. How did you explain the 21st and 27th centuries to someone from Sebastian's time? What would most of it even mean to him? Still, he couldn't avoid the question now--not when he had Sebastian's interest.
"Well..." he began eloquently, fumbling for words and wishing he'd studied modern history half as much as he'd studied classical history. "Birmingham'd probably look huge and very metal in 2006, compared to the 1920's. Cars everywhere. Telly. Microwaves. Lots of new things! Uh..." Oliver trailed off, not really sure how to begin to explain any of the technology. Maybe it was best to leave it at that for now and move on to something else. Maybe things that were uniquely Birmingham? Sebastian had asked about the city specifically, after all, and he didn't want to disappoint.
"The Bull Ring's one of the big attractions--it's a huge shopping centre. Well, for the second time since your time, even. Oh, and we've got Botanical Gardens, too! Not to mention Cadbury World. Are you a fan of chocolate?" He grinned, starting to feel a bit more at ease, though the topic was still very awkward for him. Better not to pause now. "And there's Millenium Point! There's a planetarium there. Not to mention an IMAX theatre! Movies in three dimensions, with colour and sound and about as close to life as you can get. I think you'd find it rather amazing." He continued grinning as he spoke, but he faltered slightly after that, remembering a particular IMAX-viewing experience with one Chloe Elliot, and his smile became fond but sad. "I...don't know what else to say," he said quickly, fumbling for something to pull his mind from those particular memories. "I guess...if you went there, the BT Tower'd stand out, too. It's the tallest building in the city--31 stories, which isn't much in the 21st century, really. The world's very tall and metal all over in 2006. I mean...I'm not saying that in a bad way. It's just...I don't know. Home." He stopped again, wondering briefly how it could have become so hard to describe Birmingham. Had it really been that long? No, it wasn't that. He still remembered it, in complete detail, but those memories weren't easy to share anymore--not with anyone on Gondovan, and certainly not with someone from the 1920's. So much of the meaning was lost.
Then again, he was at even more of a loss as to what to say about Gondovan. "You're gonna have to help me with the 27th century, 'cause I don't even know where to begin," he said, smiling awkwardly. "I guess...I live on a little planet--almost all desert. It's got one sun, a sky like candy floss, and two moons. There's even more technology there than in the 21st century, but they tend to gravitate toward making everything smaller instead of larger and more impressive. Well...I guess that's really just because the settlements on Gondovan are relatively small." He paused again, taking another drink of his Brandy Alexander as he waited for some indication from Sebastian as to what else he might want to know.