Posted on 01/01/2014 1:24:59 PM PST by killermosquito
I will be making a short business trip to Cambridge and London, England (Feb 5-7 Cambridge, Saturday, Feb 8 in London). Then a slightly longer stay in Sophia, Bulgaria (Feb 9-15).
Freepers know everything. What should I do? What should I not do? Where should I eat? What places must I be sure to visit?
2. Eat Indian food.
3. Make fun of their faggy accents and their inbred German head of state.
Imperial War Museum, the view from the top of the Eye, and a ham sandwich at Abdul’s!
I recommend the Imperial War Museum. You can kill the entire 16 hours there. But if you have time left, go to Westminster Abbey — the Poet’s Corner. Almost everyone you’ve ever heard of from English history is buried there.
Where to eat: Indian restaurants. Ask someone what's good.
What to do depends on your interests and how much time and energy you have. That time of year I'd be thinking indoor stuff. Consider the British Museum, Westminster Abbey, Houses of Parliament, go to the theater.
Re: post 17...keep in mind, I’m a card carrying agnostic, but I love great historical architecture. If you had more time I’d suggest Salisbury Cathedral and, especially, Lincoln Cathedral, where my ancestor is buried...but 16 hours won’t get you there.
I visited London and Oxford in spring of 2007.
The Tower of London can take an entire day.
I took a double-deck bus tour starting at Victoria Station, went by Toussaud’s, Baker Street, Picadilly, Trafalgar, and ended up near Parliament. Elapsed time: two hours.
At the base of the London Eye, there used to be a Duck Tour: a repurposed WW2-era landing craft swam up and down the Thames. Elapsed time: 90 minutes.
No idea what the current prices would be...
Have tea with the queen...
I hear they have excellent Bulgarian restaurants in London.
...and in respect to “where to eat”, you’re in Britain, wolf something down at McDonald’s, it’s cheap and you won’t waste much time.
As opposed to your inbred, faggy head of state?
Grab a “Hop On-Hop Off” Bus on Piccadilly near Leicester Square.
Get a good look at what you might want hop off to see a certain
place check it out, then go back to the spot that you Hopped off
and Hop back on the bus that runs every 20 minutes and find
another interesting place .and repeat.
You can see a lot of London in a short time on the HOHO Bus.
Good Luck
If you enjoy walking tours and historical crime scenes.
http://www.viator.com/search/jack%20the%20ripper?pref=204&aid=m1872
game, set, and match!
You left out Kenyan.
I have been to Sophia and would recommend the archaeology museum. They have reconstructed a Neolithic burial that is something to see. The man was covered in gold at the time of the original burial and the museum people have made the display just as the burial was discovered including the pure gold artifacts.
Obama makes Tony Blair and David Cameron look like John Wayne.
Thanks for the video tour! I was last over in 1964, for a Scout Jamboree in North Wales, and London sure has changed.
Skip the food. "Great British Cuisine" is the shortest book in the world.
IWM London is undergoing a major building redevelopment, transforming our museum to mark the Centenary of the First World War, and on 6 January the museum will close until July 2014.
Definitely check out the Tower of London. It is 1,000 years of history all in one spot. Even if you don't like the Crown Jewels there is tons of other stuff to see.
Hear Evensong in St. Paul's Cathedral, even if you're not Anglican or Episcopalian. Their men and boys choir is magnificent. Not far from the Tower.
Westminster Abbey. Be sure to chat up the guardians whom you will see hanging around keeping an eye on things. I think they may be pensioners from Chelsea Hospital (veterans). In any event they are VERY knowledgeable and I had a wonderful conversation with one of them about King Harold and Hastings.
If you are at all interested in history, hit the British Museum. You could spend the week in there, but see the Elgin Marbles, the Rosetta Stone, and some of the Egyptian antiquities.
If you like art, definitely go to the Tate Gallery (hit the historic side, not the modern side, unless you just like that stuff.) They have original William Blake watercolors and a bunch of Pre-Raphaelites and many other amusing things beside. South of Westminster Abbey, on Millbank along the river.
The National Portrait Gallery is also excellent. It's not far from Westminster Abbey, in the opposite direction.
All of this is easily walkable if you're a good walker, or you can take the Tube which basically goes everywhere.
By an Oyster Card (Subway pass) just as you are leaving the airport. Traffic is brutal and the tube is the best way to get around.
Flying into Heathrow? Take the London Express into town. Costs a bit more than other transportation, but since you are short on time you need to make every second count! Enjoy the Brits. Cheers!
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