Walk abouts in London
by pedersdottir
If anything London is THE city to view on foot. There are so many pocket parks, quaint nooks and mews to poke about in.
For a great introductory tour try the Original London Walks. Walks are scheduled morning, afternoon and evening, 7 days a week, rain or shine. Each tour lasts about 2-3 hours and costs L 5.50 (or L 4.50 with the frequent walker's discount card). No reservations required: just check the schedule, locate a tour that strikes your fancy, and meet the guide at your designated location (generally outside a tube station).
At tour's end you are free to wander, shop, people watch or investigate the neighborhood further. Personal favorites:
Legal and Illegal London tour: AKA 'Walking in the Steps of Rumpole'. If you're a fan you will LOVE this one. See the Royal Courts of Justice, visit the 4 Inns of Court and the Temple Church. Stroll through Chancery Lane to glimpse the big wigs at Edes & Ravencroft. Afterwards you can hoist a glass of Chateau Plonk at Rumpole's favorite watering hole.
Greenwich tour: boat down the Thames to visit this lovely town which marks the Start of Time - 0 degrees longitude. On the return you can walk under the water via the Thames foot tunnel. ADVISORY: there is literally so much to see and do in Greenwich after the tour that you should plan on spending the WHOLE DAY. Maybe even a weekend.
Hampstead Village and Heath: so quaint, so charming, so close to Kenwood House. Little did I know the town used to be a SPA (it's that water connection again!)
Soho Walk: Start out at Leicester Square for a tour of London Bohemia that finishes with 60's retro-flair at Carnaby Street.
Find London Walks online at: www.walks.com or phone 020.7624.3978
-a good old English pub
-an...
by erica21
-a good old English pub
-an Indian restaurant
-the museum of natural history I will never forget the trip my dad took me on for Valentines Day - four days in London and I was on a quest. Every girl reading this will understand - I was on a quest to shop til I drop. Girls, the shopping in London is out of this world, there are so many hip stores it's unbelievable.
I just about draged my dad throuugh every store in London and he didn't complain once. He was so patient - what can i say, MY DAD IS THE BEST!!!
Tower of London
by JUNLI
This dates from 1078, when William the Conqueror began to construct the White Tower. It was turned into an enormous fortress by Henry III and has been a fortress, royal residence and prison. Now, it's the storage room of Queen's Crown Jewels.
The West End
by kris-t
The West End is the most popular shopping and entertainment district in London. Trafalgar Square is the most prominent landmark. Oxford Street is one of the best-known and busiest shopping streets in the world. Running from Charing Cross Road in the east to Marble Arch in the west, via Oxford Circus where it crosses Regent Street, it is home to many large department stores and shops (Selfridges, John Lewis, Marks and Spencer). Tottenham Court Road runs north from the eastern end of Oxford Street towards the north of the city centre, and is best known for its plethora of hi-fi, computer and electronics stores. West of the City, Covent Garden is home to the Avenue of Stars, London's version of Hollywood's Walk of Fame. South of Oxford Street's eastern end is Soho, a network of small streets crowded with restaurants, pubs, clubs, smaller shops and boutiques, and theaters and cinemas, as well as media companies and film, advertising and post-production companies. Soho is also well known for its very lively club and bar scene, the notorious sex industry and the major "gay quarter" of the city. Piccadilly is an elegant thoroughfare running from Piccadilly Circus in the east to Hyde Park Corner in the west. It is adjacent to Mayfair, and Green Park. Regent Street and Bond Street are important thoroughfares.
Cocney
by pieter_jan_v
Cockey is the East End slang. Besides the many ryming words meaning every day things, I present you this local poem:
TO ALL COCKNEYS LEAVING
To all Cockneys leaving I'd just like to say
I'll miss you all dearly the time you're away
I will always remember as it was before -
Rows of old chimneys and old broken doors
Every door open and no need for keys
Your name was your token you were easy to please
Differences settled by clearing the air
Up with your fists was a strange old affair
Then off to the boozer and give me your hand
The best in the house, the best in the land
Then back to your chimneys and old broken doors
Sunday at my house and next week at yours.
Remember that era for it was your day
To all Cockneys leaving I'd just like to say
I will miss you all dearly I'll wait your return
My door witll be open and a coke fire will burn
To those who are leaving and for what you have been
Goodbye your Cockneys, you're the cream of the cream.
Bruce Pope
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Interior (3)
Maureen, Britannia2, Carolinlondon (Carolyn) and D
Texting for the nearest private car or taxi
London Oct 2009
