England in July My husband and I are going to spend the first week of July in London, England. I'm keen on seeing the British Museum and just walking around the city soaking up the history. I also want to see the castle at Dover. Anybody have a suggestion about things to see? Wish I had more than a week but the little store where I work is only closed for two weeks out of the year, the July 4th week and Christmas week (we sell trophies to schools.)
I would advise also going to see the white cliffs of Dover. If you're spending time in London, I would certainly suggest going to Camden Town or Covent Garden. They have brilliant markets and you get to experience the hustle bustle of English culture firsthand! Obviously there is Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square and Nelson's Column. I can't think of anywhere else you could go. There are always day trips to other cities like Brighton. Best bets would be to look on the internet.
Ah, London in July. First pack rainy weather gear. We've had a spell of hot, sunny Julys/Augusts over the last few years but the Brit summer is notoriously unreliable. Top visitor attraction is The Tower of London I have always intended to visit Highgate Cemetary final resting place of Karl Marx and Charles Dickens and numerous other Visctorian Notables. The British Museum is pretty good but not outstandingly different to the national collections of any other G8 nation (and needs 2 days fully to explore IMO). The Victoria and Albert Museum is more intimate and houses some outstanding collections of the Victorian Arts and Crafts and art deco and post-impressionist movements. It is also close to the Albert Hall and the Albert Memorial as well as Harrod's dept store. Then there's Shakespeare's Globe Theatre which has tours by day and shows by night. No roof! Far out! They're doin The Tempest and A Winter's Tale early next month. A boat trip down the Thames is always pretty good as is the centrally built mega-ferris wheel The London Eye which is a great way to see the essential London in one fell swoop. If you go to Trafalagar Square be sure to take a look at nearby St Martin in the Fields an early 18th century church that was much copied in the colonies Also for history Brighton is OK if you like "camp" Regency baroque nonsense but a similar distance is Colchester which has the better part of 2000 years recorded history. If you want a historic place to eat and drink I know of three pubs ... The Prospect of Whitby years since I was last there but is supposed still to be good. The Town of Ramsgate The Captain Kidd Never buy hot/cooked food from street vendors pitched near attractions; they're probably illegal immigrants with even less idea of food hygiene than they have of English. If using cabs, only use licensed "black" cabs; too many of the rest are unlicensed, uninsured cowboys ... or illegal immigrants British "hot dogs" are inedible thou luckily the smell will probably warn you against purchase . Have a fabulous time and please post back with where you went and what you thought of it!
Much thanks for the suggestions, Sailor, Josh and Mirelly. I printed out a copy of the thread so that I can plot things out on a map. I'd like to put up a picture or two when I get back but I'm not sure what's allowed here. A picture from a digital camera makes for a rather big file.
My father fell off Tower Bridge into the river when he was 9 or 10. The tide was out so he landed in a bottomless gunge of evil smelling mud. Obviously (cos I'm here to prove it) he was hooked out by the bridge's engineers and hosed down, filled up with buckets of hot sweet tea and warmed up and dried out beside the massive boiler that powered the bridge until it went electric. Buck house is a terrible disappointment IMO. Even the queen doesn't like it. The tours are reportedly dull and expensive. The 'toy' soldiery nonsense is better seen at the daily rigmarole at Horse Guards parade, sadly you have missed the best ceremony of the year, Trooping The Colour, which was yesterday. Also forgot to mention HMS Belfast Europe's last armored battle-cruiser (which last saw action in the Korean war and was involved in the whole of WWII) More magical is the Lord Nelson's 18thC flagship, HMS Victory, which has been preserved at Portsmouth an hour's train ride from London .... I suppose The Cutty Sark at Greenwhich is also worth a mention.
This is so great. I am printing out these pages. Really wishing I could be there for two weeks instead of one . (Hope this shows up OK--having a curious problem with internet this morning--some graphics not loading.)
No one has mentioned Madame Tussauds yet, so I thought I had better, even though I have never been over there, I have always wanted to go to the wax museum http://www.madame-tussauds.co.uk/experience.asp .
Yeah. I also forgot to mention the West End! If you're in London then you definitely must visit a theatre in the infamous West End! I don't know what's showing at the moment but it can be found on: http://www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk/ I've been to see Blood Brothers and Mamma Mia! They are both excellent shows. I hope you have an excellent time in London. Like Mirelly said, pack an umbrella just in case. Also don't feed the pigeons! They are devilish buggers.
Yikes ! So this morning, my husband says, "When do we have to be at the airport?" And I says, "Saturday evening, eightish I think. Let me take another look at the eticket." (goes to desk, spills papers out of folder, reads eticket--rubs eyes--reads it again) We're supposed to be on the plane 8:30 pm on July 1, which is NOT Saturday at all. It's TOMORROW NIGHT. After work! I'm NOT READY! Husband laughs and laughs at scatterbrained wife. He says he's taking Friday off from work, will throw a few things in the suitcase and be done. I stop his laughing when I suggest that the only thing I'll pack is a credit card . I won't be able to keep up with my Sim families until we get back on July 11. Or check in to see what's happening with the WorldSims folks, which I do daily even though I don't log on or post most times. This forum is SO much more entertaining than anything on TV . I go to bed giggling every night. By the way, Kristalrose, hope you didn't mind my borrowing of your other signature phrase. I thought it so great that I repeated it to every woman at work and I often put the philosophy into practice .
Let's see....several bits of reminders. 1) Pack Lite. Pack, and then repack. You'll be buying souvenirs so be prepared to be overflowing when you get back. My suggestion is you pack a second dufflebag/luggage within a bigger one and use that one for your clothing. So as things move along and you get more mementos, you'll be ready. So luggage within luggage and that inside luggage has all ur clothing. This way you don't have to spend extra money on buying bags in the UK Note: FAA Regulations: Two pieces of luggage per customer, one laptop, and one carry one the most per passanger 2) Pack 2 credit cards. One primary credit card (needs spending limit) and one secondary credit card tucked away at all times. The secondary one is merely as backup just in case something happens, ie get robbed, etc. 3) England Weather - Be prepared for sudden changes of weather. Morning temperatures are mild. Foggy usually. Day times, can get warmed. Since the weather climate can change a lot, pack a small travel umbrella Airline. Please contact your airlines right now to confirm your tickets and seating. head on over to www.seatguru.com and check out your seat and see if there are any flags/warnings. If there is, call your airline and see if you can get adjusted. Also, bring a couple of books to read. It's roughly a 6-8hr flight, so it would be wise to bring a book to read. Also, GET A WINDOW SEAT!!! That's if you can. A window is a good thing cause it gives you something to look at. Plus when its daytime or evening, you can see the stars, clouds, like you've never seen before CAMERA! BRING ONE!! DON'T FORGET! Don't forget Passport too Airport -> Please be there 3hours ahead of schedule. Yes Three. Not 2.5, Three. With 9/11 security measures, and unknowns ahead, this allows you plenty of time to cushion yourself. Also, pack a few bottles of water for the airplane trips. Maybe some small snacks. They feed you really well on the planes (depends on airlines too). I flew British Airways, and they are really good Places to visit: -Buckingham Palace -Tower Bridge -London Eye -Millenium Dome -Harrods (expensive stuff, but its fun to walk in the world's largest department store)
Thanks, Josh. I'm packing now. It's been a long day. Hope that you found someone in the UK to take care of that event in the works for today. I'm assuming we'll get news of it sometime soon. (yawn...I made the mistake of having some wine with supper . . .maybe not a good idea . . .bigger yawn) Checking out until the 11th.
P.S. Even though I have set my profile for East Coast time, sometimes my posts show screwy times, maybe California time. It's 11:20 pm now where I'm sitting, Bye again.
hahaha .... Lemme look into your account, and see what's up Have fun , and hope you get around to a few of my suggestions at least
