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dani731
Blessed!!!
Member since 1/08 3355 total posts
Name:
D
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London
My cousin is getting married in London at the end of July. My mom and 2 sisters are going for a whole week. Leaving Sunday night until the next Monday. I was not going because I can not afford the $1k airfare. My dad just offered to buy me ticket for my birthday   He felt bad that I was the only one not going and he knew it would make my mom happy for all of us to go together. Unfortunately, I can't fly out until Tuesday night and I have to come back on Sunday because of work obligations.
Anyway, can you guys give me suggestions of things to do/see and places to eat? What things can my mom and sisters do that I probably won't mind missing since they will be there 2 days before me?
Also we want to go to Paris one of the days. What is the best/easiest way to get there?
Any other suggestions are welcome also!
I'm so excited and grateful that I am actually going to LONDON!!!
TIA
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Posted 6/29/11 5:09 PM  |
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bikramaddict
mommy-to-be
Member since 8/06 4376 total posts
Name:
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Re: London
yay! i love london!
Things to do:
- The London Eye (like a big ferris wheel that shows you the entire city from the air)
- Piccadilly Circus, kind of like Times Square.
- Knightsbridge - you can't go to london without going to the big shops! :) Harrod's, Harvey Nic's, etc.
- High tea! Check out The Goring in Belgravia (right near buckingham palace). Their high tea is award winning.
Restaurants - just in general, you can find some really good Indian food in London. The Brits are very keen on it and you can find it all over the place.
Wagamama - noodle shop chain. Not the best food you'll ever have, but decent and very reasonable. Expect to pay about $13/pp for entrees. Wagamama is all over London.
As far as Paris goes, you can take the chunnel (train) though I don't think it will work well as a day trip.
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| Posted 6/29/11 8:21 PM |
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jeanyus27
Life is beautiful
Member since 8/08 2543 total posts
Name:
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Re: London
That's so awesome of your dad!!
I loved London!
They have the 2 day hop on hop off pass for the double decker bus. It stops everywhere and they run really frequently. We saw St. Paul's Cathedral, Big Ben, Westmister Abby, The Tower Bridge, The Tower of London, Shakespeare's Globe Theater, Piccadilly Circus. We were able to spend a good amount of time at each place over the course of 2 days.
I agree with the London Eye, definitely go on it! Have a great time!
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| Posted 6/29/11 9:29 PM |
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scubashell44
LIF Adolescent
Member since 8/09 790 total posts
Name:
Michelle
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Re: London
I agree with all the places mentioned, but would add this:
If you're into Harry Potter, go to Kings Cross train station and get your picture taken at Platform 9 3/4. Apparently so many people were going there asking for where it is (since its the station they use in the books AND the movie) that the train people actually took a train trolley cut it in half and glued it to the wall under a sign for platform 9 3/4!
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| Posted 6/29/11 10:33 PM |
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yankinmanc
Happy Days!
Member since 8/05 18208 total posts
Name:
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Re: London
Where in London will you be? Where is the wedding? UK weddings are really different than American ones, there is usually a wedding at the church, then there is the wedding breakfast, which is like the daytime reception, not everyone is usually invited to this, its the A Listers who get invited to the whole day. Then at night there is usually a wedding disco, thats where the B Listers get invited to. I find it a bit odd, but its normal here.
Okay, so London. I agree with the others, deffo do the hop on hop off bus tour, its the best way to get around and see the sights and to find your bearings. The Tube is super easy to navigate. The London eye is fantastic, but book tickets ahead of time. The Tate Modern is a good way to spend a few hours, as is the National Gallery. Chinatown is lovely, and good food too! And there are so many fantastic parks and things to see all around you. The shopping in the West End is great also!
London is a foodies paradise! You can get some of the worlds best food here in the UK, and you are spoiled for choice. I have stolen this list of restaurants from another forum, so I hope you find something that might help you!
Gastropub -
http://www.harwoodarms.com/ (get a scotch egg!)
http://www.thebullandlast.co.uk/ (great for lunch, Ferrero Rocher ice cream FTW!)
Thai -
(issan style) http://www.101thaikitchen.com/
Steak/meat - ( Hawksmoor Seven dials has a nicer dining room than Spitallfields, if you eat one steak in London, let it be the fillet at the Hawksmoor! )
http://www.thehawksmoor.co.uk/
http://www.stjohnrestaurant.com/ (the cooking is just so perfect)
Chinese -
Pearl Liang http://www.pearlliang.co.uk/london/bookings/index.asp
Szechuan http://www.urbanspoon.com/r/52/569918/restaurant/London/Ealing/Sichuan-Acton
Yum Cha - http://www.yauatcha.com/
Modern British -
http://www.themodernpantry.co.uk/ (love love love!)
http://www.thesummerhouse.co/ (Decent cooking but the dining room is extrodinary)
http://www.herefordroad.org/ (I miss you! I never get up that way anymore)
Italian
http://www.trullorestaurant.com/ (yum!)
Indian
http://www.quilon.co.uk/ (South indian)
http://maps.google.com/maps/place?ie=UTF8&q=the+empress+indian+london&fb=1&hq=the+empress+indian&hnear=0x487603554edf855f:0xa1185c8d19184c0,Westminster,+London,+UK&cid=14391611623490926500&dtab=2&z=14 (Just lovely lovely solid elevated take away style Indian food, way better than the rubbish on Brick lane)
http://www.yelp.co.uk/biz/sagar-london (Kerala Vegetarian Indian)
http://www.benaresrestaurant.com/ (Very delicate, lovely indian)
Also, everybody loves Wagamamas! The food is great! Stay away from chains, but Pizza Express, Strata, Barburrito always does nice food.
Let me know if you have any questions, I don't live in London, but can find out stuff for you if you need help.
Message edited 6/30/2011 4:22:17 AM.
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| Posted 6/30/11 4:21 AM |
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dani731
Blessed!!!
Member since 1/08 3355 total posts
Name:
D
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Re: London
Thanks for all the suggestions!!!
Posted by yankinmanc
Where in London will you be? Where is the wedding?
We will be staying with my mom's aunt (bride's grandmother) i don't remember where she lives I will have to look it up. The wedding is at the Bickley Manor Hotel
Message edited 6/30/2011 8:28:32 AM.
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| Posted 6/30/11 8:24 AM |
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lilacwine
only love...
Member since 5/05 2034 total posts
Name:
<3
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Re:
Message edited 6/2/2012 10:44:34 PM.
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| Posted 6/30/11 9:06 PM |
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MrsPJB2007
MBA at your service!
Member since 7/06 12020 total posts
Name:
MJ
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Re: London
Posted by lilacwine
We went to Paris through the Chunnel as a day trip from London. It's a very long day, but worth it if you have the time and really want to see Paris.
We were able to go to Notre Dame, the Musee D'Orsay, took a bateau mouche trip on the Seine, went up the Eiffel Tower and walked most of the Champs Elysees.
have fun!
We did this as well when we were in London. It is a very long day but really worth it. Though the price might be a bit steep for the train in July.
Everyone's given great suggestion already...as a money saving tip:
If you plan on doing sight seeing a lot, there are great 2 for 1 deals on tons of attractions if you show a train ticket. You can buy 3 day or 7 day Travel Card that gives you unlimited access to the subway system and buses which is GREAT for getting around London. You just have to purchase the tickets at a national rail station and they must be paper tickets. When looking at the London Underground maps, national rail stations have the red "crow's feet" symbol next to them.
Print out the vouchers before you go for any place you're interested in, and bring them with you. Then when you go to an attraction you show your voucher and card and get the discount for admission. We used it at the Tower of London, Tower Bridge, as well as the river boat cruise along the Sienne and countless other places. It really saved us a TON of money!
This is the link for 2for1 - Days Out Guide
This is a PDF of the underground map: Link
I found the Fodor's 25 Best travel guide for London to be a great book to bring with me when I was there. It has a map of all of London as well as the underground map...and had great tips for places to see/visit. It wasn't a bulky guide at all, and pretty compact and thin to bring with us everywhere. Even though we were in Paris for just one day, I also bought the 25 Best guide for that city and it was a big help.
25 best on amazon
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| Posted 7/2/11 9:33 AM |
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klingklang77
kraftwerk!
Member since 7/06 11489 total posts
Name:
Völlig losgelöst
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Re: London
Posted by yankinmanc
Indian
http://www.quilon.co.uk/ (South indian)
I second this! I was there in April and ate there. Loved it.
I also went to http://www.kenningtontandoori.com/
Kennington tandoori and that was really good as well. It's a bit out of the way if you aren't by that area.
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| Posted 7/2/11 10:28 AM |
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