# Living near Buckingham Palace - Horrid? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 8, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989 "2011-08-08T20:47:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/1 "2011-08-08T20:47:58Z")
I think Buckingham Palace must make Westminster a very posh neighborhood, so maybe there are folks there so rich they have time to spend on the Dope…What is it like to live near there? It seems there’s always large gatherings there and at St. James Park and the surrounding area - is it terrible to live around that? Or do the masses show, enjoy themselves and leave in the space of a day for things like Trooping of the Colour, etc? And if you live in Buckingham Palace, I’d love to hear about that as well… ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/2 "2011-08-08T21:11:51Z")
I would imagine you get used to it. Much like some friends of mine have an amazing 180 degree view of the Pacific Ocean…and sees Cruise Liners park two or three times a week. (I do not live near Buckingham Palace.) I DO work in Downtown Denver, and when ‘Stuff’ happens, you develop coping mechanisms. (St. Pattys day, avoid west end, with all the bars…Taste of Denver, avoid the Capitol Hill Area, Broncos win the superbowl - Work from home) ---
**Author:** ![MarcusF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/67e7ee/32.png) [@MarcusF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MarcusF)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2011, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/3 "2011-08-08T21:29:49Z")
Nobody lives that close to Buck House. It’s [surrounded by parks](http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=london&hl=en&ll=51.501183,-0.141449&spn=0.00931,0.018539&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=18.147177,37.96875&t=h&z=16) on all sides except the south which are mostly offices and other public buildings. Actually it would be less busy than many other bits of central London. The area round there has few bars and restaurants to keep people there during the evenings. ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/4 "2011-08-09T01:22:18Z")
> [@MarcusF](#): > > Nobody lives that close to Buck House. It’s [surrounded by parks](http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=london&hl=en&ll=51.501183,-0.141449&spn=0.00931,0.018539&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=18.147177,37.96875&t=h&z=16) on all sides except the south which are mostly offices and other public buildings. Actually it would be less busy than many other bits of central London. The area round there has few bars and restaurants to keep people there during the evenings. Great view of the area, but I must ask - an Irish Embassy? Color me confused. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/5 "2011-08-09T01:47:27Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > Great view of the area, but I must ask - an Irish Embassy? Color me confused. There’s a whole country of Irish people out there, ya know. There’s a road on the west side of the palace that looks like a giant pair of sunglasses. ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/6 "2011-08-09T01:53:06Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > Great view of the area, but I must ask - an Irish Embassy? Color me confused. You’re confused that the Republic of Ireland has an embassy in the capital of its neighbour, the United Kingdom? ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/7 "2011-08-09T02:04:40Z")
> [@Cunctator](#): > > You’re confused that the Republic of Ireland has an embassy in the capital of its neighbour, the United Kingdom? I guess I’ve thought of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, N. Ireland like our states over here; independent gov’ts at the local level under a Federal umbrella. But Ohio wouldn’t have a representative in Lansing, Michigan… but they do have one in Washington, DC and having written it out now I understand what you’re on about. _ **RED ALERT- IGNORANCE HAS BEEN FOUGHT** _ ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/8 "2011-08-09T02:11:01Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > I guess I’ve thought of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, N. Ireland like our states over here; independent gov’ts at the local level under a Federal umbrella. But Ohio wouldn’t have a representative in Lansing, Michigan… but they do have one in Washington, DC and having written it out now I understand what you’re on about. > > _ **RED ALERT- IGNORANCE HAS BEEN FOUGHT** _ _screech_ That’s the embassy of the Republic of Ireland, not Northern Ireland. NI is part of the UK; the Republic isn’t. They had a war over it, you know… ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/9 "2011-08-09T02:14:49Z")
> [@MarcusF](#): > > Nobody lives that close to Buck House. It’s [surrounded by parks](http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=london&hl=en&ll=51.501183,-0.141449&spn=0.00931,0.018539&sll=53.800651,-4.064941&sspn=18.147177,37.96875&t=h&z=16) on all sides except the south which are mostly offices and other public buildings. Actually it would be less busy than many other bits of central London. The area round there has few bars and restaurants to keep people there during the evenings. What’s with the weird lines on the back lawn? ---
**Author:** ![Implicit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Implicit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Implicit)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/10 "2011-08-09T02:20:02Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > I guess I’ve thought of England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, N. Ireland like our states over here; independent gov’ts at the local level under a Federal umbrella. But Ohio wouldn’t have a representative in Lansing, Michigan… but they do have one in Washington, DC and having written it out now I understand what you’re on about. > > _ **RED ALERT- IGNORANCE HAS BEEN FOUGHT** _ I’m not sure you do understand. Ireland is an actual country that gained independence from Britain about 100 years ago. So it’s like the United States having an embassy in London. ---
**Author:** ![Cazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cazzle/32/75_2.png) [@Cazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cazzle)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/11 "2011-08-09T02:25:28Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > What’s with the weird lines on the back lawn? If Time Team has taught me anything, then those lines are clearly signs of earlier buildings. Three days hard digging will uncover a garden wall from the 30s and a small pile of random stones that the experts agree is clearly a bronze age burial/kiln/nightclub. Then it’s off to the pub. Meanwhile, my partner went to school in Windsor and says he never really gave a thought to the royal residence except to be vaguely annoyed at navigating around groups of tourists while trying to go about his ordinary day… although he adds that it was fun watching it burn that one time. He also liked the easy availability of tourist foods on the streets, particularly the waffles and doughnuts. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/12 "2011-08-09T02:33:28Z")
> [@Implicit](#): > > I’m not sure you do understand. Ireland is an actual country that gained independence from Britain about 100 years ago. So it’s like the United States having an embassy in London. And besides, I would not be surprised if Ohio did have a representative office in Michigan. I believe that there are various associations of second-level jurisdictions like US states and Canadian provinces, and it would seem to be a natural thing for them to do bilateral relations. ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/13 "2011-08-09T02:34:00Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > What’s with the weird lines on the back lawn? There are tents out there too, so maybe it’s related to a garden party, maybe ropes that would get put into stanchions to make the pathways you can see in [this picture](http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44839000/jpg/_44839726_picswroyal.jpg)? ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/14 "2011-08-09T02:43:30Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > _screech_ > That’s the embassy of the Republic of Ireland, not Northern Ireland. NI is part of the UK; the Republic isn’t. They had a war over it, you know… I had heard a whisper of it, yes. Did you know Michigan and Ohio had a war as well? Michigan ‘lost’ Toledo. ---
**Author:** ![APB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8e8cbc/32.png) [@APB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/APB)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 10:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/15 "2011-08-09T10:56:22Z")
> [@Cazzle](#): > > If Time Team has taught me anything, then those lines are clearly signs of earlier buildings. Three days hard digging will uncover a garden wall from the 30s and a small pile of random stones that the experts agree is clearly a bronze age burial/kiln/nightclub. Then it’s off to the pub. Of course, _Time Team_ have excavated the back lawn of Buckingham Palace. Not that they found much, apart from some garden features already known from other sources. The excavation report is [here](http://library.thehumanjourney.net/140/1/BP_TTV1.1.pdf) [PDF]. ---
**Author:** ![Floater](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/dc4da7/32.png) [@Floater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Floater)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/16 "2011-08-09T11:25:22Z")
> [@Nawth\_Chucka](#): > > I had heard a whisper of it, yes. Did you know Michigan and Ohio had a war as well? Michigan ‘lost’ Toledo. When I was going to Columbus OH a colleague of mine, who was from Grand Rapids, advised me not to mention Michigan. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/17 "2011-08-09T12:18:49Z")
> [@Lord\_Feldon](#): > > There are tents out there too, so maybe it’s related to a garden party, maybe ropes that would get put into stanchions to make the pathways you can see in [this picture](http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44839000/jpg/_44839726_picswroyal.jpg)? They look more like hosepipes for watering the lawn to me. They are attached in pairs to evenly spaced points that could be taps, and you can see what looks like a spray of water from the ends of some of them (the single one at the left and the two closest to the pathway). ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Excellent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f19dbf/32.png) [@Mr.Excellent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Excellent)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/18 "2011-08-09T12:42:14Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > I would imagine you get used to it. Much like some friends of mine have an amazing 180 degree view of the Pacific Ocean…and sees Cruise Liners park two or three times a week. > > (I do not live near Buckingham Palace.) > > I DO work in Downtown Denver, and when ‘Stuff’ happens, you develop coping mechanisms. > > (St. Pattys day, avoid west end, with all the bars…Taste of Denver, avoid the Capitol Hill Area, Broncos win the superbowl - Work from home) Good grief. Sounds like July 4th in DC. Anyone else want to talk about living near tourist attractions in this thread? [Stories of life near major tourist attractions - Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=619632) ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/19 "2011-08-09T13:10:06Z")
Indeed. Part of living in DC (not just on the 4th) is putting up with the rallies, protests and such that will occasionally pack the metro/restaurants/cabs to overflowing. You learn to live with it and teach the tourists about how to use the farecard machines. Standees to the right! ---
**Author:** ![Nawth\_Chucka](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c57346/32.png) [@Nawth\_Chucka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nawth_Chucka)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2011, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989/20 "2011-08-09T13:56:16Z")
> [@Mr.Excellent](#): > > Good grief. Sounds like July 4th in DC. Anyone else want to talk about living near tourist attractions in this thread? [Stories of life near major tourist attractions - Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share - Straight Dope Message Board](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=619632) A thread of yours off a thread of MINE? SPLITTER! (Off to post in other thread.) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/living-near-buckingham-palace-horrid/591989.md?page=2)