No matter how hard travellers try to blend in, there is no getting around the fact that we do look like a tourist when we visit another country. It’s not just about the way we look, our accent, how we take photos of each other in front of boring sign posts, or even the way we stand on corners with bloody great maps in our hand, staring up at the street names with totally confused looks on our faces. It’s also about the way we interact with others.

Despite the footage you may have seen of English football fans holidaying in Europe, the English are quite reserved people. Of course, there are the famous British eccentrics too, but most of these bizarre and colourful characters are off somewhere enjoying high tea with their basset hound, test driving a nuclear powered phone booth on the far reaches of the Thames, or paying homage to the British baked bean on some monstrous country estate. For the most part, Londoners don’t like to be embarrassed or have undue attention drawn to themselves - at least when they are sober.

If you walk down the street in London, smiling at everyone and saying hello, locals will either suspect that you are a “bloody foreigner”, a borderline lunatic, or possibly both. The reason they stare at you strangely for a couple of seconds before lowering their eyes and crossing the road, or bury themselves in their newspaper, is because they probably don't know much about wherever you are from and worry that you won't understand their responses, which are often riddled with sophisticated humour and self-depreciation. It’s all far too embarrassing for most Londoners to even contemplate.

Following the basic rules of London etiquette, no matter how quirky or ridiculous some may sound, can take a visitor far in this city. Respect the local customs, just as you would expect at home, and these proud, reserved folk will welcome you into their beloved city, shower you with well-mannered hospitality, and charm you with their wonderful sense of humour ands irony.