Starting on the 16th July are The Proms - a huge series of classical concerts and the Royal Albert Hall every evening, which carry on for over two months. And no need to book tickets - it’s just a matter of turning up and queuing.
I highly recommend joining up with the LonDopers–they’re fun, witty people and hanging out with them is a blast. They’re not bad tour guides, either. I’d also second the London Eye on a clear day. I was lucky enough to ride it on a clear day, and the views were spectacular. The engineering on the Eye is also spectacular, if you’re into that sort of thing. I took more pictures of how it was put together and supported than I did of the views.
Be aware that you can easily spend days in the British Museum. Not that this is a bad thing. I went in intending to see only the Sutton Hoo exhibit, and wound up wandering around the Egyptian and Assyrian stuff as well. Yes, I saw the Rosetta Stone. Yeah, that was way cool. The hop-on/hop-off tours are not only good ways to get a look at lots of sights (with commentary), they’re also good ways to get around London. The tours with actual live guides are much better than the canned tours, especially because you don’t have to put up with cheezy sound effects. A couple of them include admission for short Thames boat tours, too.
Yes it used to be almost totally unknown, luckily I went to King’s College London (right next door) and so found out about it. Since then it has got some media coverage, but it was still possible 5 years ago to walk round a room containing several originals that you had seen prints of many times in your life all nicely hung with hardly anyone else there and able to get to within inches of the canvas.
I seem to remember they had some of the Talouse LaTrek (sp?) moulin rouge originals, and Degas and stuff like that.
Spectre thanks for mentioning the Gilbert collection, I hadn’t seen it and wondered if it was also worth a visit. I’ll probably go see it next time I am back in Blitey.
Everyone lurrrrves to stare at that Rosetta Stone, but here’s a tip – everyone knows it’s famous cos Champillon cracked hieroglyphs using it, yes?
But no one ever tells you what it bloody says!
So, you want to impress, you walk up to it (go on late night, as it’s usually surrounded by crowds during the day,) and say that,
It’s the same thing written in three languages (as will be obvious on close inspection). The first third of the document is the date (which rendered in modern terms is 27 March 196 B C). The middle bits talk all about the current pharoah, Ptolemy, and some of his recent contributions to the general state of civic comforts, and also that he’s added another god-title to his own. Oh, and by the way, permission is granted for the people of Egypt to worship him as a god, if they wish…the last bit says that this proclamation is to be copied in three languages and placed in every temple and village and town in Upper and Lower Egypt.
Meanwhile – if you want to see my favourite thing in the Museum, go up to Gallery 42 and look at the Royal Gitterne – also take a good look at Gallery 42 cos next summer I will be on the project to help begin redecoration of that gallery, including a new display case and things for the Gitterne, which will be properly reclassified as a citole by wee small me…
Gah – I meant, it will be obvious the Stone is in three languages, not that it’s obvious that all three languages say the same thing :smack:
Maybe I ought to write in hiero – I’d prolly make more sense most days…
Some things that I greatly enjoyed:
- the Natural History Museum
- the Wallace Collection
- the Royal Observatory at Greenwich (a short ride on the Docklands Light Railway)
- if you’re of an ecclesiastical bent, then a visit to Westminster Cathedral (not to be confused with Westminster Abbey) is wonderful, as is a walk around the City looking at the Wren churches.
I recommend against moving into a small bedsit in Hackney, taking a stressful office job, and hoping against hope that you might meet someone to love on the forty five minute tube journey home every night during rush hour, before you come home, watch drivel television and drift into the numb sleep of the antidepressed. And if you do it, try not to do it for TEN YEARS.
Also don’t go to the Planetarium if you’re extremely tired, you’ll fall asleep in your chair. I still never saw that all the way through. 
Things you might want to do if you get outta town.
Stonehenge. The best way to get there used to be to take the train to Salisbury, then the bus to Amesbury, then walk out to Stonehenge, but in the post-terrorist world that won’t fly any more. Alas.
Windsor Castle and environs.
Longer trip: Caernarvon Castle (and environs). Wales is still pretty much unspoiled.
Stratford-On-Avon (get tickets to the theatre).
In London, definitely the British Museum, and the Tower. My own favorite spot in London is the bridge across the lake in St. James Park, looking toward Whitehall, but that’s strictly for a tranquil day after you’ve already looked at Buckingham Palace or Trafalgar Square.
My university graduation ceremony was held there 
Here is the advice I came up with after my last business trip to London.
Bring a lot of money. I am a New Yorker, and I scoff at tales of other expensive cities! I am a New Yorker, high prices do not shock me! London, however, brought me to my knees on this issue. I figured, how expensive can it be, work is covering food and lodging and most transport … man, I still needed a lot of money to entertain myself during my brief free time.
As my free time was limited, the main attraction for me was the British Museum, which I cannot recommend highly enough (as has already been mentioned). Now, this might cause some of the LonDopers to writhe in agony, but I would also recommend a very touristy gift shop that is across the street from the museum – it stands out quite a bit because it is decked out with British flags and giant beefeaters and all that business. However, inside, they have very inexpensive and very cute tins in the shapes of things such as Big Ben and the red telephones and the double decker buses, and they are FULL OF CANDY. I found this to be extremely helpful for the obligatory “bring me back something from London” that goes on in our office (maybe your coworkers are more mature about business trips, if you’re lucky) and the various children for whom I am expected to bring back token gifts. The key point here, if it wasn’t clear, is that they are FULL OF CANDY, and candy is the single most important thing to shop for when one is in London. It is really, really good.
I know that shop of which you speak – sweeties are lovely lovely pressies, but if you wish to bring back the nectar of the gods, Cadbury’s Fruit and Nuts. I myself am jonesing for them, just thinking about someone having access to them!
Cadburys. (The US version is made by Hershey’s and is NOT the same).
Anyway, back to those sweetie tins – you can find a lot of the same presentation tins in the supermarkets like Sainsbury’s (there’s one just up the street from the Museum in the Tottenham Court Road) & Tesco’s, and they don’t cost anywhere near what the wee shoppes charge for them.
Maybe if you’re there long enough, you can take the train out to Cadbury World near Birmingham (about 90 minutes by rail from London). Take carrier bags – they give away free samples by the ton.
This whole thread is making me homesick…
There are some really great suggestions here (Did someone say candy?). I definitely want to do the London Eye thing as well…
As for the money thing, looking at the various admission rates for the suggestions I’ve gotten here so far, I see what you mean. All well and good if I were earning pounds, which, of course, I’m not… Will suck to effectively have my income reduced by half for two weeks :eek: but at least the ol’ expense account should help soften the blow some. By the way, for any who didn’t know, traveling as a consultant is decidedly much less convenient than traveling as an employee. Especially when you’re given such little notice.
Still open for more suggestions! This is great stuff here.
The friends who have visited me have always enjoyed the London Eye (London from the air), followed by a tourist boat ride on the Thames from the Eye to the Tower of London (London from the Thames) finished off by the Tower of London (ooh, ain’t it old!). The double decker sightseeing tour busses have gone down a treat as well - one of them includes the boat fare and it is valid for 24 hours from time of purchase, so bus one day, boat etc the next. Having tried various ways to show my guests as much London as possible, this seems to be one of the most economical.
I’m making notes of everyone’s suggestions. Having lived in London for so many years, there is a lot I want to do, but it is too easy to shrug one’s shoulders and say “there’s always tomorrow”. Now that my time there may be coming to an end, I want to experience it all and I am cursing the time I’ve wasted.
I hope you have a great time.
Victoria and Albert (gift shop almost as good as the museum)
Tate Modern (wonderful)
London Eye (get tickets in advanced, but well worth the wait)
Reduced Shakesphere Company (http://www.reducedshakespeare.co.uk/index2.htm
Harrods (its not famous for no reason at all)
I have a London Tips page on my site that’s the wisdom of two trips there.
I haven’t read most of the posts in this thread - gotta pack for my own trip tomorrow! - but try to see the “Ceremony of the Keys” if you can (see links on my site).
Cheers!
Rex
I can’t believe no one has mentioned T in the Park !
I think the Pixies are playing.
I was there last year, and there’s a bus from the Salisbury train station directly to Stonehenge. Definitely worth the trip.
I’d also recommend the British Library. In one room you can see the Magna Carta, Gutenberg Bible, Shakespeare’s First Folio, the score of Beethoven’s Ninth, Handel’s Messiah, and even some original lyrics jotted down by Lennon & McCartney.
Unfortunately for me, I’ve only been to London once, and that 32 years ago. Is the Cape Horn ship *Cutty Sark * still berthed on the Thames as a tourist attraction? I enjoyed the Royal Mews (sort of a super garage that houses the royal carriages). Nobody has yet mentioned Madam Tusseaud’s original wax museum or the Queen’s Life Guard at White Hall. Sadly, I only had a couple of days in London. I tried to pack in as much sightseeing as possible. Of all the places outside the US I’ve ever been, London is the one I’d most like to revisit.
I live about 20 minutes from there, but have never yet managed to go. However, for chocolate of the gods, I’m rather partial to Hershey’s Cookies and Cream, and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups. (Yes, I’m British, please don’t hurt me for saying that I like a Hershey’s product). Unfortunately, my current stash, bought on my visits to Canada and New Mexico have now run out.
Try the Portobello Road antiques market, open from early every Saturday. It is supposed to be the world’s biggest open air antiques market. It’s a lot of fun, even if you don’t buy anything.