tiggerlover
Still waiting for "the talk"
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2000
- Messages
- 10,314
What a successful trip we had to London!!!! Many thanks to all of the UK DISers who helped with my planning, I took a lot of your advice and tips and I am so happy that I did. As I have posted before the biggest thanks goes to Shaun a.k.a. BONZO for the extensive time and help he gave me. {{{Thanks Shaun!!}}}
Accomodations
We stayed at the Travel Inn at County Hall and to those who suggested this hotel, many thanks, we were pleasantly pleased. We were told this chain was the equivilent of the Super 8 chain in america and we were happy to see that it was above the mark. The hotel was nice, breakfast was delicious, the staff was friendly (although we did have 2 small issues with misinformation and a pillow), the rooms were bigger than we expected and quite comfortable. And the location, oh my, we couldn't have asked for a better location.
Food
As suggested, we tried some pub food, fish and chips and some bangers and mash. The bangers and mash were a huge hit with both of my boys (I liked them too, but they ate them more often) and although the fish and chips were good I only sampled a little because of my commitment to WISH. (But that is a small joke because I made up for it in other ways). Thanks to the information here I was on a mission to go to Harrods and seek out Krispy Kreme donuts and to my surprise the day we were there they were giving out free sample....oh my they were yummy. We tried the sandwich shop Pret on a couple of ocassions and I really enjoyed what we had each time. They were not only fresh and delicious, but it was a nice quick meal. We also sampled the malted milk balls, I think they are Malteasers or something like that, but I have to say I enjoy the american Whoppers better. We went to Hard Rock Cafe, which was yummy, Rainforest Cafe, which we hated and Stickey Fingers, which was delicious. We also sought out a few chinese food places that were yummy as well.
Sites and Attractions
The Lion King was fabulous, it surely was a treat for all of us. My DS was on the edge of his seat for a good portion of the first act. I wish we had more time so that we could have chosen another show to see as well. I did notice a lot of posters in the tube stations for some great upcoming events (i.e. Disney on Ice and the Nutcracker), how lucky you all are to have so many things at your fingertips.
We enjoyed walking the river from the hotel to Tower Bridge and we did have an opportunity to see David Blaine. I couldn't get over all of the people there each time we went by. The Tower of London was a great way to spend a day. We had a terrific Beefeater and spent quite a bit of time exploring the grounds. The Crown Jewel house was exciting, it was wonderful to be able to see the Queen's Coronation, something we had never viewed before and of course the jewels were breathtaking.
We took the double-decker bus tour with the river cruise and enjoyed them both. We took the bus at mid-day on Saturday and was able to take it again Sunday for part of the day, which was nice since we took a different line and got a different commentary. This, along with riding the tube, were DS's favorite things. He was so taken with the tube, he wanted to ride all the time and he became quite the expert at reading the tube maps.
We briefly visited the HMS Belfast, we went to St. Paul's Cathedral and walked and walked and walked. We saw the changing of the horse guards and the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace too. And on our very last day we did The London Eye...the views were beautiful.
Observations and Comments
One of the biggest things we noticed was the lack of trash cans in the city. For a large city that is one of the cleanest I have been in there were very few trash cans. I was told this was due to the threat of bombs...is this true?
Another thing we were happy to find was that Londoners are a very friendly lot. Every time we stopped someone on the street to ask for assistance they were always helpful. One man had his own map and helped us find where we were going, another man told us to follow him and he would show us the way and yet another lady in a store walked us outside to show us the way. After visiting a lot of big cities, this was a nice surprise.
On the flip side of that the most difficult thing for us was hearing what folks were saying, especially service people. Everyone was so soft-spoken we seemed to always have to ask them to repeat themselves.
I realize this has turned into a small book, so I will share one more thing and put an end to this post. As americans it was unusual for us to see cars and trucks driving on the opposite side of the road. DS even was amazed that the trains were on the opposite side as well. So on the flight home DS wanted to know if the planes leaving the UK flew on the opposite side of the sky.
) Out of the mouth of babes!)
Thanks again, one and all, I truly appreciate you all. London is one of my top 3 favorite cities and I hope I have the opportunity to visit once again in the future.
Accomodations
We stayed at the Travel Inn at County Hall and to those who suggested this hotel, many thanks, we were pleasantly pleased. We were told this chain was the equivilent of the Super 8 chain in america and we were happy to see that it was above the mark. The hotel was nice, breakfast was delicious, the staff was friendly (although we did have 2 small issues with misinformation and a pillow), the rooms were bigger than we expected and quite comfortable. And the location, oh my, we couldn't have asked for a better location.
Food
As suggested, we tried some pub food, fish and chips and some bangers and mash. The bangers and mash were a huge hit with both of my boys (I liked them too, but they ate them more often) and although the fish and chips were good I only sampled a little because of my commitment to WISH. (But that is a small joke because I made up for it in other ways). Thanks to the information here I was on a mission to go to Harrods and seek out Krispy Kreme donuts and to my surprise the day we were there they were giving out free sample....oh my they were yummy. We tried the sandwich shop Pret on a couple of ocassions and I really enjoyed what we had each time. They were not only fresh and delicious, but it was a nice quick meal. We also sampled the malted milk balls, I think they are Malteasers or something like that, but I have to say I enjoy the american Whoppers better. We went to Hard Rock Cafe, which was yummy, Rainforest Cafe, which we hated and Stickey Fingers, which was delicious. We also sought out a few chinese food places that were yummy as well.
Sites and Attractions
The Lion King was fabulous, it surely was a treat for all of us. My DS was on the edge of his seat for a good portion of the first act. I wish we had more time so that we could have chosen another show to see as well. I did notice a lot of posters in the tube stations for some great upcoming events (i.e. Disney on Ice and the Nutcracker), how lucky you all are to have so many things at your fingertips.
We enjoyed walking the river from the hotel to Tower Bridge and we did have an opportunity to see David Blaine. I couldn't get over all of the people there each time we went by. The Tower of London was a great way to spend a day. We had a terrific Beefeater and spent quite a bit of time exploring the grounds. The Crown Jewel house was exciting, it was wonderful to be able to see the Queen's Coronation, something we had never viewed before and of course the jewels were breathtaking.
We took the double-decker bus tour with the river cruise and enjoyed them both. We took the bus at mid-day on Saturday and was able to take it again Sunday for part of the day, which was nice since we took a different line and got a different commentary. This, along with riding the tube, were DS's favorite things. He was so taken with the tube, he wanted to ride all the time and he became quite the expert at reading the tube maps.
We briefly visited the HMS Belfast, we went to St. Paul's Cathedral and walked and walked and walked. We saw the changing of the horse guards and the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace too. And on our very last day we did The London Eye...the views were beautiful.
Observations and Comments
One of the biggest things we noticed was the lack of trash cans in the city. For a large city that is one of the cleanest I have been in there were very few trash cans. I was told this was due to the threat of bombs...is this true?
Another thing we were happy to find was that Londoners are a very friendly lot. Every time we stopped someone on the street to ask for assistance they were always helpful. One man had his own map and helped us find where we were going, another man told us to follow him and he would show us the way and yet another lady in a store walked us outside to show us the way. After visiting a lot of big cities, this was a nice surprise.
On the flip side of that the most difficult thing for us was hearing what folks were saying, especially service people. Everyone was so soft-spoken we seemed to always have to ask them to repeat themselves.
I realize this has turned into a small book, so I will share one more thing and put an end to this post. As americans it was unusual for us to see cars and trucks driving on the opposite side of the road. DS even was amazed that the trains were on the opposite side as well. So on the flight home DS wanted to know if the planes leaving the UK flew on the opposite side of the sky.
) Out of the mouth of babes!)Thanks again, one and all, I truly appreciate you all. London is one of my top 3 favorite cities and I hope I have the opportunity to visit once again in the future.
)
