What's good to do in London, England? We'll be there for a week.

[Radio_Lady]

Looks like it will be showery and highs in the 50s. I would have liked a little better weather in May, but no such luck.

Restaurants? Museums? Side trips? Web sites describing these?

Grateful for anyone -- British or American or otherwise -- who would care to respond!

In peace,

Radio_Lady

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

1. I slept all day and partied all night.

The Knights Templar Church is cool though. I saw that and I went to the Portrait Museum. And I um...partied a lot. Sorry. London was a blur, but I had a really great time.

[Radio_Lady]

7. LOL. We'll be touring all day and sleeping at night.

I guess that's what you do when you're as ancient as we are!

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

11. I was 20 when I went.

My flight out of Newark was delayed for a long time, so I ended up arriving at night instead of in the morning. I was there for three days before I saw it in the light at all.

When I went to Ireland the year before, I didn't sleep much, but I also saw it during the day. I was also backpacking around solo. I was staying in hostels and figuring out where to go & sleep day by day. It's not like I had a hotel that I could hole up in. I got there with no place to stay. No one could get in touch with me. All I knew was that 10 days from landing in Dublin, I would be flying out of Shannon. I think that's the best kind of trip there is (at least at this point in my life).

[Radio_Lady]

13. Ah, youth! It's often wasted on the young! But these days, there is

so much more traveling possible. When I was 20, I already had had a full time job on television in Florida and then went to live in Los Angeles and tried to stay afloat in college. One one break, I met a young doctor, got pregnant and then married, had a stillborn baby, then divorced... then went back to college.

There was no time for anything you might call fun!

I'd love to go to Ireland someday, but we'll get to Edinburgh, Scotland, this time (after London).

[CaliforniaPeggy]

2. My dear Radio_Lady!

You have to be kidding!

A week will NOT be enough time in London......We were there most of three weeks, and that wasn't enough!

Let's see: The British Museum, Westminster Abbey, St. Paul's Cathedral, Stonehenge (take the train) and on and on....

EVERY step you take will lead you to historic places!

The Tower of London....go see the Crown jewels! Incredibly beautiful!

Take lots of pictures.....

I would seriously suggest that you buy a guidebook and read up.....

You will LOVE London!

It ranks up there as one of my fav cities....Paris is up there too...

:hi:

[Radio_Lady]

10. Well, we originally had Paris as our first destination, but we decided

not to go because of the student revolution and the problems with Delta Airlines, connections on Air France and British Airways and baggage considerations. We decided to simplify things a bit. It seemed a big rigorous to be away for a whole month.

So we now have one week in London, one week in Edinburgh, Scotland, and the last week in New York City.

I think all the things you mention sound really great. Adding them to my list right now. Thanks for your input.

[kay1864]

48. Stonehenge--might want to NOT take the train

I've done it both ways (train and bus) and the train is much harder, since once you get to Salisbury, you have to find transport to Stonehenge itself.

The second time, we took a bus tour, and it ended up being the same price as the train! (£47 IIRC). Bus took us from the tube stop in London directly to Stonehenge. Much easier, and no wandering around in Salisbury asking about the van to Stonehenge.

[democracyindanger]

3. Tell people you're from Canada, for starters.

The British Museum for sure--centuries of loot from every corner of the world.

The National Gallery, if you want to see some amazing classic pantings.

Catch a play at Covent Garden. Better than Broadway. I think Kevin Spacey is at the Old Vic.

Walk Hyde Park.

Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.

Eat fish and chips from a street vendor.

Take a picture with a beefeater.

Get in a fistfight with an Arsenal fan.

The best Indian food in the world isn't in India, it's in London. Go to a nice one.

Ride the Millenium Wheel.

Yell at Tony Blair.

Have a pint in a pub.

Take the Chunnel to Paris for a day.

Harrod's department store.

Leave your NASCAR jacket at home.

Don't eat at McDonald's.

Plan on a lot of walking around London.

Have another pint in a pub.

Get knighted.

And always LOOK RIGHT.

[Radio_Lady]

12. Wow! Your list is magnificent! I know about the LOOKING RIGHT

thing from a couple of visits we made to Hong Kong. My husband almost got hit by a car at crowded Stanley Market. We are just not accustomed to people "driving on the wrong side of the road."

As for pretending I'm Canadian, what do I do about my passport???

Thanks for the suggestions. We did some of them a couple of years ago when we were in London for two days.

Especially the pint in the pub with the fish and chips. I just have to get used to dipping those chips in vinegar...

In peace,

Radio_Lady

[HarukaTheTrophyWife]

4. Oh and I accidentally got to see the changing of the guards.

I was wandering around and I followed the rampaging hoarde of Japanese tourists and saw the guards.

[Radio_Lady]

14. We did see the changing of the guards. As I recall, it was springtime

and my husband broke out in a sneezing fit due to the trees that were in bloom.

God, I hope we miss that season this time.

[bbernardini]

5. You MUST see the Reduced Shakespeare Company in Piccadilly Circus.

You know, where Tower Records is. :) Absolutely brilliant, no matter what show they're doing. (Note I said REDUCED Shakespeare Company. http://www.reducedshakespeare.com)

Covent Garden
The street that the Virgin Megastore is on is pretty cool.
Harrod's
The whole Big Ben/Parliament/Thames area.

There's a good Indian restaurant in Notting Hill, although the name escapes me at the moment.

[Radio_Lady]

6. If you think of the restaurant's name, PM it to me! You have until

May 10th! Yes, everyone mentions Harrods... I must put that on the list.

Thanks so much.

[bettyellen]

24. when you go to Harrods (or any dept store) check out the nice

pointelle underwear. for some reason it's one of the few things you can get over there that's really well made and a good deal.
most stores sell really beautiful camisoles and tees as well as shorts and long johns they make nice pajamas. even in the cheaper stores they're pretty well made.
that and gardening knick knacks they do really well over there.

aside from that, the three essentials:
the theater
tower of london
tate gallery

have fun.

[bigwillq]

8. Have a good trip.

Have fun! :hi:

[Radio_Lady]

15. Thanks, bigwillq -- appreciate your post!

[bigwillq]

16. Sorry I don't have anything to add

I've never been to London.


:)

[Radio_Lady]

21. That's OK. I hope you get there someday soon!

[Flaxbee]

9. definitely make sure your shoes are comfortable...

last time I was there, waayyyy too long ago in 1999, I stayed with a friend in Knightsbridge, I think it was, and I just walked out the front door every day and walked alll over the place. Spent a fair amount of time in museums. If you liked (or even read) the Da Vinci Code, there might be a few fun places to visit (esp. b/c the movie's coming out soon).

Portrait Gallery - just read a good article about it, how they're raising $$ to buy a portrait of John Donne (it's in the museum now) from the estate of Lord Lothian, to whom Donne himself willed the portrait in 1595...

I also just loved having a ploughman's lunch at a pub (usually very good cheese and bread), have a pint or two, have fish and chips, definitely find a good Indian food restaurant...

Do invest in a good guidebook with pictures and maps, and then just prioritize what you'd like to see.

Have fun! I envy you!

[Radio_Lady]

18. Packing my New Balance sneakers and my Birkenstock sandals.

Ugly, but who cares? I know I'll be walking all day.

My husband has "DaVinci Code" on his MP3 recorder. I watched the PBS special with a lot of the sites. However, I think we will miss the movie preview although the movie opens this summer.

Hubby had guidebooks galore and is printing reams of information to take with us. He's the best travel guide.

Thanks, Flaxbee -- we waited forty years before we could travel like this, raising five kids and working many full time jobs. I hope you get to retirement healthy and with a few bucks plus the courage to travel.

In peace,

Radio_Lady

[Flaxbee]

26. one more thing...

I took a quick trip to Cambridge one day - Cambridge and Oxford are very easy to get to by train, and it was fun to wander around the grounds of such an ancient university. If you can luck into being there when there's a choir performance, I hope you enjoy it! The British take their choir music very seriously and it is beautiful.

I'm so happy for you that you're able to travel like this!

[emmajane67]

34. I think 'Visit London' the touristy place

now have a 'Da Vince Code' places advisor on staff.

Maybe give them a call.

The Victoria and Albert museum and the National History Museum are both worth a look.

Check out some street markets:
- Go to Brixton maybe, London is a culturally diverse city, it's not just old buildings to see here
- Columbia Rd flower market on Sunday mornings

Food:
- Chinatown for yummy Japanese and Chinese food
- Curries are good but not on Brick Lane, although brick lane is worth a look if you have time
- Borough Market on Friday lunchtime. You can do a lovely walk from Borough market along the southbank of the Thames past the Tate, one of the lovliest walks in London I think. You could even make a day of it and walk further along to London Eye and up over Westminster bridge, houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey.

PM me and I can draw you a map or something.

My folks LOVED Harrods, I think they spent about 3 hours there

[u4ic]

17. If I ever get back there again

I'm heading to the Black Museum, and a Jack the Ripper walk.

Maybe I'm weird. :shrug:

[Radio_Lady]

22. That's pretty weird, but my husband is a horror fan. I'll mention it.

Thanks for posting.

[radwriter0555]

33. That was the first place we headed in London. It's not wierd at all!

I'm a HUGE sherlock holmes/ Aurthur Conan Doyle fan... Cut my reading teeth on that stuff.

My 10 year old daughter LOVED it.

[emmajane67]

37. I've heard GREAT things about the Jack the Ripper walk n/t

[radwriter0555]

40. I'm heading up in July and it's on our itinerary after an afternoon in

Harrods.... priorities and all, yes?

[no name no slogan]

19. I lived there for 7 mos in the early 90s, and I didn't even come close

to seeing the half of it.

There's a saying that goes, "if you grow bored of London, you grow bored of life". There's so much to see, you will not have time to sit still.

My suggestions, along with all the others here:

* Get tickets to the National Theatre. They have a large multi-theatre complex on the southern bank of the Thames and always have something good running.

* Go shopping in Oxford Street, which is one of the busiest shopping streets in the entire world. It should be navigable this time of year, as it's not near Christmas.

* Have a pint of REAL, cask-conditioned, traditional British beer. It's unlike anything you've ever drank before. Most pubs in central London don't keep the best cellars, but you can still find a good pint most of the time. Order the "Best Bitter", and you'll have yourself a pint of liquid gold.

* Visit the Tower of London, and get a taste of history dating back to Roman times. The crown jewels are also kept in the tower, and are sometimes on view (through very thick glass and heavy security).

ENJOY!

[Sanity Claws]

20. Side trips

Cambridge is a nice day trip by rail. I did it many years ago. I don't have a website for it but you might want to google it

[Paladin]

23. The Imperial War Museum

Unfortunately, the Lawrence of Arabia exhibit which I was lucky enough to see in December is no longer there, but the permanent exhibits are terrific.....

[Dude_CalmDown]

25. Make sure you make a trip to Leeds Castle to visit the Dog Collar museum!

I'm not kidding - there really is a dog collar museum.

[nytemare]

27. If a history buff, you must see the Cabinet War Rooms.

http://cwr.iwm.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.826

In the bunker, the walls to the rooms were taken out and covered with plexiglass. They were left as they were when the war ended. When you start, they give you a tape player (maybe a cd player now), that tells you what went on in each room during the war. It is very interesting, and somewhat creepy, because they play the bomb sirens on the tape.

There is a gift shop where they sell posters and such that were displayed during the war.

A must see, in my book.

[clyrc]

28. I'll add the London museum and Hampton Court Palace

if you are any kind of history fan.

One day while my family was there, we had been walking for hours and we were hungry. My husband wanted to try a pub, so we went in to the first one we found. We were the first ones there for dinner, but soon another American group showed up, and then one by one the whole place filled up...with Americans. We had never heard of the place, but apparently the Sherlock Holmes Pub is a big tourist restaurant. The food was good enough, but very expensive.

[mr blur]

29. Check out what a recent visitor to us did:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=191&topic_id=15364&mesg_id=15364

and

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=191x15788

[u4ic]

30. When exactly are you going to be there?

If you like the horses, there are a few racing meets happening every week, and quite possibly some show jumping, too.

I'd have to check on it, though.

[Radio_Lady]

42. We'll probably pass on this u4ic. We like dog shows, but will be

missing Crufts or however they spell it.

[zanne]

31. Especially if you have an overcast day...

Take a boat up the Thames to the Tower of London. Brrrrrr----creepy.

[Seabiscuit]

32. Side trip to Bath, England. You'll thank me for it.

[Radio_Lady]

41. Thanks, Seabiscuit. We'll look into that for sure.

[kay1864]

50. I'm pretty sure that

the bus tour I mentioned below (to Stonehenge) was actually a "Stonehenge and Bath" tour (you can get them in all kinds of combinations, obviously)

Bath was enjoyable, and the two of them make a good all-day trip.

One note on Stonehenge: you can't touch the stones, or even get much closer than about 30 ft to them. Couple decades ago you could, but now they have rope barriers, due to minor vandalism (and I imagine just wear-and-tear from thousands of hands).

[tjwmason]

35. Worth noting that the major museums are all free.

There's a cluster of them in South Kensington - the Victoria and Albert, the Natural History - which is also right by the Royal Albert Hall and the (frankly gaudy to the point of ugly) Albert Memorial.

The London Eye (big ferris wheel) on the south side of the Thames - just opposite Parliament (nearest Tube, Westminster) is well worth a try. The Houses of Parliament are worth a quick look (though I'm no fan of Victorian - especially gothic-revival - architecture), and Westminster Abbey is in the same place - if you're interested in music, they have Evensong sung daily which is worth attending.

Along Whitehall (it's recommended that you not throw things at Downing Street as you pass, however tempting, the Police aren't so keen these days) from there is Trafalgar Square which has the National Gallery, also Admiralty Arch which leads onto the Mall. The Mall leads down to Buckingham Palace.

[RebelOne]

36. The Tower of London is definitely a must-see.

And the ravens there are awesome.

[NewWaveChick1981]

47. Totally agree!

You can't miss the Tower. The British Museum and the War Room are also a must-see.

[corksean]

38. Don't miss Camden Market on Sunday.

it's a HUGE street market not far from the centre of London selling everything from Bric-a-Brac through vintage clothing, antiques, specialist music and furniture. You'll also find a lot of up and coming designers and artists selling excellent (and cheap) clothes, jewelery and paintings.
It's on during the week but Sunday is the only day to go as it's much busier and a lot of stallholders only come on Sunday. It's also the best place in the world for people watching as you stroll around, with a very relaxed atmosphere despite the crowds. It kicks off around 11am and to see the whole thing at your leisure will take 3 - 4 hours.

http://www.camdenlockmarket.com/flash_main.htm

As mentioned above I would also recommend the Jack the Ripper walking tour. The guides are friendly and very knowledgeable and you get to see parts of London that haven't changed much in the last 100+ years.

http://www.jack-the-ripper-walk.co.uk/
http://www.walks.com/

Hope you enjoy your week. I lived there for 16 years and even though I'm now settled back in Ireland I still miss the buzz you can only get in London.

[Radio_Lady]

44. Thanks SO much, corksean! I'm sure we'll try to make the market!

We've been to outdoor markets all over the world -- it's what we do!

"May the wind be at your back..." and I don't remember the rest of the blessing, so, have a happy IRISH weekend!

In peace,

Radio_Lady

[seemunkee]

49. Camden is great

Lots of fun and very interesting shops.

Westminster Abbey I thought was fascinating.

Go see the Magna Carta at the British Library.

A nice casual restaurant is Wagamama http://www.wagamama.com/

And get a vanilla ice cream cone with a Flake chocolate bar stuck in it. Yummy

[ScreamingMeemie]

39. I don't know, but I am jealous!

Have a great time!

[Radio_Lady]

46. Sorry, MrsGrumpy. May I wish you good health and enough $$

in your retirement to do some travel to places YOU love!

We're pretty lucky. My ex-husband, now 70 years old, is facing terminal lung cancer and he's younger than my present husband, who at almost 72, just plans the heck out of every year travelwise.

We'll just travel until we are faced with health problems that make travel impossible. Or, if one or both of us just keel over from death -- I imagine the airlines and hotels will refund our money or something similar -- if that happens!

[Ron Green]

43. Hampton Court Palace.

I've been to most of what's mentioned in this thread, but this was the most interesting spot for me anywhere around London:

http://www.historicroyalpalaces.org/webcode/hampton_home.asp

Also, a side trip to Bath would be cool.

[kay1864]

45. I always recommend

After you've done the Tower of London, St. Paul's, etc...

Cabinet War Rooms
Very cool. They're the actual underground rooms where Churchill and his military staff conducted the war campaign during WWII. I remember the Big Board and the multi-colored phones, the tiny quarters for the enlisted men, Churchill's bedroom, etc. Self-guided tour with headphones. Takes about an hour. Right near a tube stop IIRC. I'm not a history buff by any means, but I enjoyed the heck out of this one.

Museum of London
(not the same as the British Museum) The history of the city, via artifacts, from Roman times to the present. Again, I'm not a history buff, but I spent 2 fascinating hours there (you could do it in less, but I wanted to see everything.

And for the British Museum, grab a copy of Rick Steves' London before you go. He gives you the highlights, so you don't waste hours and hours. Also has some good restaurant recommendations.

There's also this thread http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=4852676 for other London ideas.

[Radio_Lady]

51. You folks have been awesome today! We're just flabbergasted that so many

of you DUers chimed in on this thread.

We'll quaff a few for ALL of you in England and Scotland! :toast:

Wish we could do it in person!

Offering just one HUGE group hug this evening --> :grouphug:

Thanks again from Radio_Lady and Gramps, her spouse!

[Jean Louise Finch]

52. Tea and scones and clotted cream...

Arteries and wallet be damned! You've got to do a proper high tea at least once, somewhere posh. I recommend doing it every day, but only maybe one day of poshness.

The Tate Modern is also definitely worth stopping by, so long as you avoid the installations of fluorescent lights. Covent Garden is for sure worth spending an afternoon in -- especially if a string trio is playing. And Notting Hill and the market surrounding is just magic.

The main thing about London is just to remember that it's really, really....really expensive, but don't let it get you down. No converting pounds to dollars! I reckon just wandering the streets is pretty fun, and you can easily skip meals and just drink beers and bloody marys in pubs.

Have a great great time and travel safe,
Jean Louise