My wife and I going to London soon. Does anyone have any travel advice? We’re gonna be there for a week.
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Laura K.
18 years ago
ooh, london! what for? for business or pleasure?
i can give you lots of advice. anything specific you want to know?
Laura K.
18 years ago
you may wonder why their sandwiches taste so good. you can buy almost any kind of sandwich to go in grocery stores/cafes/convenience stores. they are cut in half [diagonally] and put into these triangle containers. the reason they taste so good is because there is butter on them. don’t question it, just eat it.
some sandwiches may contain something called “rocket” or “salad.” this just means it’s got lettuce on it.
you may find some interesting flavors of sandwiches, like tandoori chicken or egg curry. go for it.
in england, they say “tom-ah-toe”, not “tom-ay-toe.”
Laura K.
18 years ago
potato chips are called crisps over there, not chips. if you ask for chips, you’ll get french fries. the crisps come in all sorts of bizarre flavors, like lamb-&-mint and barbecue chicken. being vegetarian, i’ve never tried these, but people seem to like them. go for it. you may see something on a menu called a “jacket potato.” this is a baked potato with any number of toppings – beans, chicken, cheese, whatever you want. it’s a nice thing to have for lunch if you don’t want to spend a lot of money, but want something fast and easy. the… Read more »
Laura K.
18 years ago
also, be sure to have a good map before you go. i recommend the Streetwise series. London streets are notoriously confusing. any Chicago-like numbering system is non-existent, so most places will orient themselves around a particular Tube stop, and you get off at that stop and find it from there. you won’t be able to find anything by the street name/number. those are pretty much meaningless. i actually just wrote a research paper comparing the street layouts of Chicago and London – i’ll send it to you if you want to read it.
Laura K.
18 years ago
you MUST go to the Tate Modern. if there is only one art museum you go to on your trip [i assume you’ll go to more than one, though], this is the museum to see. it’s the best modern art museum i’ve ever been to. plan to spend an entire day there. runners-up are the Tate Britain [check out the Turner wing] and the National Gallery. the National Gallery has all the old stuff – it’s kind of like the Art Institute. it’s in front of Trafalgar Square, where all the pigeons land on people. if you have time, i… Read more »
Worried about not fitting in at London? Wish you could ditch your american accent for a hoity toity Londonesse accent? Here’s how. 1) Puker your lips but leave a little hole to speak through 2) speak in a high note and extend your words. Try it now! “Why hellooooooooo. I would like some fish and chiiiiiiiiiips pleeeeeese. Why thank yooooooooooou!”
Laura K.
18 years ago
i spent an afternoon at the Tate Modern, and only got to see about half of it. you won’t want to rush thru it either, you’ll want to have lots of time to explore. yes, Londoners do carry the A-Z book. i never had one, but it is quite popular. i had tea at tea time once. when i was in London in 1996, my study-abroad program set up a high tea for the students at the Waldorf. tea, cucumber sandwiches, clotted cream, scones, etc. good stuff, but i think it’s pretty pricey there! i developed my love for tea… Read more »
Laura K.
18 years ago
one great thing about London is that it’s a very walkable city. it’s big, but you don’t really feel like it’s big, because it’s so easy to walk around. you can hit Kensington Gardens, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, National Gallery, St. Paul’s, Millennium Bridge, and the Tate Modern all in one walk. probably not all in one day, though.
Isn’t “rocket” the equivalent to the peppery-greens we call arugula? I always thougt we should call it rocket and not arugula, but now that I see rocket could mean “lettuce”, I’ll get off that call-to-action
Laura K.
18 years ago
yes, even if you don’t buy anything there, Harrod’s is an experience in itself. there are about a million eateries in that place. i bought a Harrods box of matches, because that was all i could afford in the whole place at the time. it cost 10 pence.
i think you’re right about rocket, tom. it’s probably more specific than just lettuce. i too agree that “rocket” is a fun name for it! not that “arugula” is boring.
Laura K.
18 years ago
how was the trip? what did you do? where did you go? post some pix!
did you eat rocket? did you eat mars bars? did you eat jacket potatoes? did you eat clotted cream? did you eat sandwiches with butter on them? did you eat courgettes? did you eat chips? or crisps? how about a slab of fried fish wrapped in a newspaper cone?
The pictures are fantastic! Very cool! For those of you who don’t come to unlikelymoose through the home page, make sure you go there. You can link to the hundreds of pictures moose has posted. :^)
Laura K.
18 years ago
great photos! how was the trip? did you make it to the Tate[s]?
ooh, london! what for? for business or pleasure?
i can give you lots of advice. anything specific you want to know?
you may wonder why their sandwiches taste so good. you can buy almost any kind of sandwich to go in grocery stores/cafes/convenience stores. they are cut in half [diagonally] and put into these triangle containers. the reason they taste so good is because there is butter on them. don’t question it, just eat it.
some sandwiches may contain something called “rocket” or “salad.” this just means it’s got lettuce on it.
you may find some interesting flavors of sandwiches, like tandoori chicken or egg curry. go for it.
in england, they say “tom-ah-toe”, not “tom-ay-toe.”
potato chips are called crisps over there, not chips. if you ask for chips, you’ll get french fries. the crisps come in all sorts of bizarre flavors, like lamb-&-mint and barbecue chicken. being vegetarian, i’ve never tried these, but people seem to like them. go for it. you may see something on a menu called a “jacket potato.” this is a baked potato with any number of toppings – beans, chicken, cheese, whatever you want. it’s a nice thing to have for lunch if you don’t want to spend a lot of money, but want something fast and easy. the… Read more »
also, be sure to have a good map before you go. i recommend the Streetwise series. London streets are notoriously confusing. any Chicago-like numbering system is non-existent, so most places will orient themselves around a particular Tube stop, and you get off at that stop and find it from there. you won’t be able to find anything by the street name/number. those are pretty much meaningless. i actually just wrote a research paper comparing the street layouts of Chicago and London – i’ll send it to you if you want to read it.
you MUST go to the Tate Modern. if there is only one art museum you go to on your trip [i assume you’ll go to more than one, though], this is the museum to see. it’s the best modern art museum i’ve ever been to. plan to spend an entire day there. runners-up are the Tate Britain [check out the Turner wing] and the National Gallery. the National Gallery has all the old stuff – it’s kind of like the Art Institute. it’s in front of Trafalgar Square, where all the pigeons land on people. if you have time, i… Read more »
Worried about not fitting in at London? Wish you could ditch your american accent for a hoity toity Londonesse accent? Here’s how. 1) Puker your lips but leave a little hole to speak through 2) speak in a high note and extend your words. Try it now! “Why hellooooooooo. I would like some fish and chiiiiiiiiiips pleeeeeese. Why thank yooooooooooou!”
i spent an afternoon at the Tate Modern, and only got to see about half of it. you won’t want to rush thru it either, you’ll want to have lots of time to explore. yes, Londoners do carry the A-Z book. i never had one, but it is quite popular. i had tea at tea time once. when i was in London in 1996, my study-abroad program set up a high tea for the students at the Waldorf. tea, cucumber sandwiches, clotted cream, scones, etc. good stuff, but i think it’s pretty pricey there! i developed my love for tea… Read more »
one great thing about London is that it’s a very walkable city. it’s big, but you don’t really feel like it’s big, because it’s so easy to walk around. you can hit Kensington Gardens, Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, National Gallery, St. Paul’s, Millennium Bridge, and the Tate Modern all in one walk. probably not all in one day, though.
What about Carnaby Street and Harrod’s for shopping? How about a drink at The Savoy Hotel?
Isn’t “rocket” the equivalent to the peppery-greens we call arugula? I always thougt we should call it rocket and not arugula, but now that I see rocket could mean “lettuce”, I’ll get off that call-to-action
yes, even if you don’t buy anything there, Harrod’s is an experience in itself. there are about a million eateries in that place. i bought a Harrods box of matches, because that was all i could afford in the whole place at the time. it cost 10 pence.
i think you’re right about rocket, tom. it’s probably more specific than just lettuce. i too agree that “rocket” is a fun name for it! not that “arugula” is boring.
how was the trip? what did you do? where did you go? post some pix!
WE WANT LONDON PICTURES. WE WANT LONDON PICTURES.
did you eat rocket? did you eat mars bars? did you eat jacket potatoes? did you eat clotted cream? did you eat sandwiches with butter on them? did you eat courgettes? did you eat chips? or crisps? how about a slab of fried fish wrapped in a newspaper cone?
hmm, where is erik? did he fall into the Thames?
i want to hear about London.
The pictures are fantastic! Very cool! For those of you who don’t come to unlikelymoose through the home page, make sure you go there. You can link to the hundreds of pictures moose has posted. :^)
great photos! how was the trip? did you make it to the Tate[s]?