Please recommend things to do in London

In My Humble Opinion
21

Hallo! I am back home in ‘The Smoke’ at least twice a year, and I usually recommend to friends that they do something lovely, as has been suggested (I will flog the British Museum to death as I have done much research there – check out the little guitar in Gallery 42; I’ve played it! – and also the Museum is 250 yrs old this year and has a big exhibition accordingly.)

I also suggest to them that they buy an A-Zed and get a copy of the telephone directory to help ‘personalise’ a trip – perhaps you like 2nd hand records? Look shops up in the phone directory, make a list, and head out armed with your A-Zed! Not only will you find your shops, but you might see a part of the city otherwise missed and make some discoveries!

Seriously, if you can, try to do something ‘personal’ – I know Kinks’ fans who have gone to ‘Kinks related’ sites, etc.

cheers,
Ms Boods

22

I would make a trek to Stonehenge. I don’t think it’s that far and you can get busses out there. Even if it takes half a day it would be well worth it. I still remember seeing it coming over the hill on my way from London, one of my best memories.

23

A couple of tacky things to do when you get tired of the culture:

The London Dungeon
The Guinness Book of World Records Museum
Rock Circus (Madame Tussaud’s, but only Rock & Roll figures)

Assuming they are still there - I haven’t been to London in a few years.

A day trip to Warwick Castle is well worth it. And not tacky at all.

24

The only thing I’d recommend doing in London is leave. I hate the place. YMMV

25

I spent a week in London last May. I’d just like to reiterate that the museums are free, while nothing else is, including the churches. Given that…

The V & A was very neat. So much stuff to see – I especially liked the huge hall that had plaster casts of great sculpture. And the glass section. Think of the crafts section at a state fair x 100. Visit the Albert Memorial while you’re over here… it’s kinda close.

The Imperial War Museum was okay, but I had a hard time finding it, and it’s not close to anything. Lots of cool tanks.

Tate Modern is worth a quick run through at the very least. A nice easy flow in London is from St. Paul’s over the Millenium Footbridge to Tate Modern.

I also took day trips to Bath and Cambridge, both of which were very worth it.

26

Great suggestions, all. I’m leaving work in a few minutes, so I’ll give a shout when I get back from the trip. Thanks for your help.

Mangetout, just curious, is it cities in general or just London that you find objectionable?

27

I think it is just London; I live near Southampton and Portsmouth, which are reasonalby large cities (in comparison to others in this country only), although nothing like London, naturally. I don’t love cities - I’d much rather be out here in the sticks, but there is something about London that I just find terribly oppressive - it is almost as if a dark cloud is pressing down on me whenever I even go near the place.

28

Heh – just don’t go into that room when you’re jetlagged. That was the closest I’ve ever been to believing I was going insane.

And I’d second the suggestion of getting groundling tickets at the Globe, if you’re up to standing through a three-hour play. It’s quite possibly the best theater bargain in the world.

29

Well, I’m back and mostly un-jetlagged. Sorry I didn’t update earlier in the week, but there were some family health problems to deal with.

Here’s what I managed to do in my 2.5 days in London:

Wed. - had drinks and ate dinner at a Mediterranean-themed place somewhere on Charing Cross. That was about it, as we didn’t get in on the train from Oxford until after 6:00 p.m.

Thu. - London Eye, Dali exhibit next door, DLR to Greenwich, lunch in the market, Royal Observatory and the prime meridian, saw the Queen walking between the residence and the Maritime Museum where she was opening an exhibit, DLR back to central London, dinner in Covent Garden at another place whose name escapes me, more drinks, collapse.

Fri. - Most of the day at the British Museum (where much film was used), rainy day, so rest of afternoon spent sampling pubs in the vicinity of the BM, then dinner with two coworkers at Bam-Bou.

Sat. - took tube to Charing Cross station, walked from there to Parliament, taking in Trafalgar Square, Queen’s Life Guards, Parliament/Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, leftover signs/graffiti from May Day protests, then back to hotel for bus to Heathrow and flight home.

Thanks to all for suggestions. I didn’t have anywhere close to enough time to do everything, but I did succeed in straddling two hemispheres (insert obligatory innuendo here), spending a great day at the British Museum, unexpectedly seeing QEII herself, and consuming mass quantities of good food and drink.

JohnM (already looking forward to next excuse to UK)

30

While I don’t normally correct typos with a follow-on post, the construction “next excuse to UK” is just a bit too strange. Obviously, “next excuse to [travel to the] UK” was the intent, but I could always say that “to UK” is just an abbreviation for, say, “to unwisely kvetch”, or “to unreservedly kowtow”, but that would be a transparent attempt to save face, wouldn’t it?

31

Still, not as bad as "sampling pubs in the vicinity of the BM . . . "

32

Welcome Back, JohnM! I lived in the UK (but not London) for a year, but never made it down to Greenwich, so I’ve still got some things to look forward to on the next trip. :slight_smile: