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Replies: 52
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:08 PM
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We're going here in a few weeks.
I don't want to be a cynic about it like Dennis Farina's classic character in S N A T C H.
The scene when the customs agent asks if he has anything to declare and Farina quips "Yeah. DON'T GO TO LONDON."
So what is one thing you world travelers would do in London if given the chance? My wife and I aren't world travelers. We're country mice, easily confused by customs forms and "lifts" and Tube maps and driving on the left side of the road.
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National Champion [7908]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:19 PM
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Go to the British Museum and spend at least two days there. Then try to complete a pub crawl in downtown London. lol
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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I've heard the museum is worth a stop.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:44 PM
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I hired a private guide to take us around to several notable watering holes one afternoon. A "drink where Churchill drank" type of deal because getting trashed in London is probably the responsible thing for us to do!
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Campus Hero [13620]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: I've heard the museum is worth a stop.
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Apr 2, 2025, 6:26 PM
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Yep. I’ve been to all of the oldest pubs in England. Interestingly, all 26 of them were the oldest.
Based on straight looks, the one in St Albans was the oldest. There was not one straight line in that room. Walls bowed, 9 ft ceiling on one side of the room. 7ft ceiling on the other side or the room, no square corners.
The Tower of London has got to be a good tour. You can’t violate everyone’s civil rights for several hundred years without creating at least a few good stories.
I always joke, only the English can conquer the whole world and still have terrible food. Get the fish & chips, everything else is pretty terrible.
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TigerNet Elite [77701]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Joined: 1998
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:27 PM
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I would see The Tower of London. I would not try to drive in London. Traffic is nmuts and backward to us. And if you ride the tube - "mind the gap"
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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We're doing a bike tour which is also a pub crawl.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:43 PM
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What could possibly go wrong.
Also going to hit up Borough Market and walk over to London Bridge and the Tower while in the vicinity.
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National Champion [7688]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Wear Shirts With The Paw Nice And Big On It ---
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:33 PM
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Put a big Clemson flag on the Big Ben clock
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Packing several Paw magnates.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:42 PM
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Plan to slap them on black cabs, lorries, tube trains and possibly the King if he'll sit still long enough.
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National Champion [7445]
TigerPulse: 97%
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went last summer, did a lot of quick stuff to see more
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:35 PM
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due to only being there a week. Visited Kew gardens, Westminster Abbey, London Tower, Churchill War Room, Kensington Palace (didnt do tour, may if we go back), Hyde Park, Buckingham Palace (didnt do tour, may if we go back), saw a play at Shakespeare Globe, London Eye.
Pretty easy to get around with the buses and tube.
Funny story, so we go all the way to London and get on the London Eye and I hear this whining voice making a comment about my Clemson Hat. Of course, all the way across the pond I get on the London Eye and get stuck with a coot in my pod.
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Coots are sad little creatures.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:40 PM
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I hope you left it a decent tip.
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Tiger Spirit [9497]
TigerPulse: 95%
44
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Joined: 2002
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Check the weather/temperature closely. The last time I went to London......
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:42 PM
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in late June a few years ago it was 90 degrees - only had long pants. Now, given when you're going it shouldn't be that hot. But pack according to the weather forecasts.
It's a good idea, too, to get on a tour bus that drives you around London to the major tourist sites. But familiarize yourself with their somewhat-complicated tube (subway) system go you can get around town on your own. And don't sit right next to anyone on the tube as they don't like that.
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Thank you for this.
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Apr 1, 2025, 12:51 PM
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I always forget to pack for weather it's a blind spot.
We bought a couple of Oyster passes and will certainly try to get around by Tube.
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Game Changer [2000]
TigerPulse: 100%
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110%er [3811]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Check the weather/temperature closely. The last time I went to London......
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Apr 2, 2025, 12:37 PM
[ in reply to Check the weather/temperature closely. The last time I went to London...... ] |
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Be sure to note whether you get on a tour bus or a city bus. The big red buses can be either. We missed a stop and ended up riding to the end of the line way outside the city. The driver was very nice though, and put us on a different bus heading back into town. We didn't get into St Paul's because of this, but Westminster Abbey was amazing.
We were lucky enough to visit during the dress rehearsal a week before the Queen's birthday - all the pageantry but still a manageable crowd.
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Game Changer [2000]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 1:13 PM
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Take in a “Football” match … there are plenty of London clubs to choose from.
Visit Harrods Department Store - more for the architecture than the goods on sale.
Have some Fish & Chips
And don’t mess with the palace guards!! 😄
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Starter [284]
TigerPulse: 96%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 1:48 PM
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Driving, hardest to adjust to for me. Went to Australia for 6 week, picked up a rental in Sydney, no questions on whether it may be an issue and off we went. The first roundabout we came to I said i was not sure where the car in front of us is going but we are going there, confounding. Even at 4 week in got up early to get something out of the glovebox, jumped in the right side and found a steering wheel, not wanting to look foolish i pretended to fiddle with some stuff. Then reached over to glovebox, upon exiting there were 2 young ladies, immediately they asked if was was a tourist.
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Campus Hero [13620]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 7:33 PM
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I just silently chant, “keep left, keep left, keep left, keep left”. Round-a-bout, “keep left. Right hand turn, “keep left”. It works for me.
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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"BIG BEN!" .... "PARLIAMENT!" ...
Apr 2, 2025, 7:53 PM
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Head Coach [918]
TigerPulse: 100%
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I agree with the tour bus. It normally includes a boat ride down the Thames.
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:03 PM
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I agree with the tour bus. It normally includes a boat ride down the Thames. It is a great way to see the bridges, big Ben and Parliament. You can go round as many times as you want and hop on and off. It's nice to see the city at different times of day. It's also a great way to see things if the weather is not great. If you do this early in your trip, you can then decide where you want to spend more time.
Harrod's for a take home dessert and the window displays. Rose Gardens at Kensington Palace. The National Gallery is a great place to take a break from weather and it's free.
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National Champion [7421]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:08 PM
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I thought London was owned and operated by Iran now? Is that not true?
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Top TigerNet [29618]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Posts: 34683
Joined: 2009
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Ive been to London 3 times
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:11 PM
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An under the radar, more local thing to do if you get tired of pure tourist stuff is to go to the Camden area for some nice local pubs.
Then match the sunset on Primrose Hill. Fron there you can walk all the way through the connecting parks as far as you want all the way to Soho and just soak in everything. I did this on a memorable night with a girl from Zaragoza, Spain in October a few years ago
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Top TigerNet [29618]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Joined: 2009
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Watch ****
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:11 PM
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Orange Blooded [2395]
TigerPulse: 94%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:14 PM
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- go to Speakers Corner in Hyde Park by Marble Arch on a Sunday morning
- go waterfront pubs on Thames by Hammersmith tube. This is good if you’re looking to sit at an outdoor pub and be with locals and not so much tourists.
- go to Portobello Road market
- Go to a Chelsea match if schedule permits
- Walk up and down Kings Road in Chelsea, good for window, shopping, eating and people watching
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Top TigerNet [29618]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Joined: 2009
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Chelsea matches are usually far more expensive
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Apr 2, 2025, 11:23 AM
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Thanks to their smaller capacity. Tottenham matches are more affordable and you get the larger more modern stadium feel. But Chelsea you do get the smaller more English intimate experience
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Orange Blooded [2395]
TigerPulse: 94%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:18 PM
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Sounds like you are going to be there before June, but if you happen to be there in June, the Wimbledon warm-up tournaments can be pretty cool. Much more low-key. Easier to get a ticket good stuff. These are Queens club championships and the Eastbourne international.
I don’t know when rugby matches are, but if you can catch a rugby match at Twickenham that is really cool.
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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We'll be there in May ...
Apr 4, 2025, 1:42 PM
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Otherwise we'd be there. Wife was a D1 tennis player and still loves the game.
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Game Changer [1880]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 2:23 PM
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Touristy, but the Tower of London is worth seeing.
You can go up in the Tower Bridge for not much money.
Take a train to Scotland- awesome hikes. Or the Lakes District - same.
The Tate Museum of Modern Art is nice, right on the river.
Any pub is pretty cool.
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Valley Legend [12545]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Joined: 2006
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 1, 2025, 3:33 PM
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Well, not exactly London, but I did play golf in the snow on April 6 in Inverness Scotland. It also snowed the entire next day on our bus ride to the Glasgow airport. It can also be quite nice.
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Clemson Icon [27781]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Posts: 48283
Joined: 2010
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Can't help you. I was traveling with a couple of girls from Anchorage that were
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Apr 2, 2025, 10:56 AM
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Tag-teaming me for the better part of a week... Even blessed the fields around Stohenge. ;~)
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TigerNet Elite [69562]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Joined: 2001
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Stonehenge was the biggest disappointment to me.
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Apr 2, 2025, 12:59 PM
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Spent less than 20 minutes looking at rocks in a pattern.
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All-TigerNet [6034]
TigerPulse: 100%
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All-TigerNet [6034]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 1:11 PM
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Oh, The Swan Pub - near the Marble Arch at Hyde's Park - is a nice pub with great fish & chips and some outdoor picnic table seating. I had a hotel around the corner and ate ther seversl times:
https://www.swanrg7.com/menu?menu=menu
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TigerNet Elite [69562]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Joined: 2001
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 12:55 PM
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London is HUGE!! And, there are a lot of diverse cultures there. But, on my trips there in 1998 and 2018, I, generally, felt safe
- Ride the Tube and get off and wander around at the safer stops.
- Visit Tower Bridge.
- Visit Hampton Palace.
- Visit Globe Theatre (sidenote, my avatar was taken there)
- Meander through the safe parks.(https://www.royalparks.org.uk/visit/parks)
- See a play. Go to Piccadilly Circus.
- Visit Westminster Abbey.
- Tour Tower of London and see the crown jewels. They are literally priceless. Plus, you will also be at Tower Bridge.
- Get some fish and chip at a local pub.
- Touristy, but eat at the original Hard Rock Cafe.
- Shop at Harrod's.
- Go on a ghost tour and/or Jack-the-Ripper tour.
- Use the crosswalk at Abbey Road. Go to Penny Lane.
- The one that is still on my bucket list - see a tennis match at Centre Court at Wimbledon. Next time I am in London, I am going just to see Wimbledon.
- Enjoy the local people. I love the British wit.
- Visit Buckingham Palace.
- Visit Windsor Castle. When we visited in 2018, the Queen was in residence.
Not sure if it is still there, but in 1998, we got our pictures made at Tiger Tavern at Tower Hill - near Tower of London.
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Hall of Famer [8879]
TigerPulse: 80%
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watch the King's guard on horse
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Apr 2, 2025, 3:10 PM
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you can follow them from the Hyde Park barracks to the Palace
pretty cool thing to see IMO - we came upon it by accident and got some of our best fots
https://changing-guard.com/Kings-Life-Guard.html
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Mascot [24]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 3:41 PM
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I work for an airline and have been there lots of times. It’s really gone downhill the last few years and is a different world to what it was 25 years ago. The crime rate is similar to most big US cities and the infrastructure is starting to fall apart. There also aren’t very many English people in London (it’s down to around 35% now). I would try going somewhere further east like Poland, Hungary, or the Czech Republic.
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Campus Hero [13620]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 7:41 PM
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Warsaw was cool. The Pols were exceedingly friendly everywhere we went. Stayed in a hotel immediately next door to the Polish White House, $175/night. Actually had good Mexican food in Warsaw, true story.
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Campus Hero [13620]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: Too late to change our plans!
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Apr 3, 2025, 4:02 PM
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Prague is #1 on my list of need to see.
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Head Coach [975]
TigerPulse: 85%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 4:03 PM
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In no particular order:
- Simply walking through Westminster Abbey
- Covent Garden/Carnaby/Regent Street for shopping - window or otherwise
- Saint Paul's for the architecture and/or Evensong
- Temple Bar for the history
- Walks in Hyde Park/St James's Park (and see )Buckingham Palace (from the outside))
- side trip to Windsor Castle (or one of the royal palaces)
- British Museum and National Museum (next to Trafalgar Monument - also St Martins-Field)
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TigerNet Champion [120549]
TigerPulse: 100%
65
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Joined: 2003
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I dare you to wear a maga hat on The Tube***
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Apr 2, 2025, 4:27 PM
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Challenge accepted***
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Apr 2, 2025, 7:59 PM
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Letterman [158]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 4:42 PM
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Been a while since I was there, but ... Tower of London is ok if you are not getting out of London at all. Its a bit "too" touristy. Felt like standing in line at Disney at one point.
But in London, posters are right, visit Borough Market, London Bridge and the Tower (since you're there.) British Museum is good, and, if you like art, definitely go to the Tate Museum. Probably one of the best I've seen along with Museo de Orsay in Paris. Also, visit Trafalgar Square just to see it and find a pub for lunch nearby.
If you get out of London, Windsor Castle is ok. If you like old castles, Dover Castle on the Channel is really good ... very well kept but no toursity feeling at all. Bath is a neat place, as is Stratford on Avon. Stonehenge is over-rated IMO only b/c you can't get close to it.
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Orange Blooded [2544]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 9:34 PM
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If you and the wife like history, London has a ton more than us here in the states. Tower of London not on weekend, Churchill war room.
Grab a few travel apps and they. Make it real easy, show you directions where to walk, what tube to get on and station to go to, and even if you transfer to bus. Get some fish fry at a pub, order banned and mash, and weather is spotty that time of year. Can be cold, rainy, sunny, or all of the above.
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Orange Blooded [2544]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 2, 2025, 9:35 PM
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Citymapper or tflGo were good travel apps
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Orange Beast [6549]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 3, 2025, 5:59 AM
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I am going back in a few weeks myself. The first time I had a few days and I saw Buckingham Palace (was at the end of the summer and open), Tower of London with Crown Jewels, and the changing of the guard. Look on YouTube to see how to watch the changing of the guardian without standing in front of Buckingham Palace. Also use the Hop On Hop Off bus.
Look at the London Walks website. We are using them for out initial tour of the British Museum and Trip to Oxford and Cotswolds. On our on we are going to Churchill’s War Room, Hampton Court Palace, Stonehenge, Bath, Windsor, and Westminster Abbey. We will be there nine nights and will still not see everything. Pick your top of the list and plan a trip back. The taxi system is all regulated and safe. Take a taxi from Heathrow to your hotel. You already have your passes for the tube.
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Orange Beast [6549]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 3, 2025, 6:01 AM
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Sorry for the spelling and grammar mistakes. Too early in the morning….
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Orange Beast [6549]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 3, 2025, 9:33 AM
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Also, if you want a day trip out by way of small Mercedes passenger van, look at the Rabbie’s tour website. I used them two year ago for a day trip and highly recommend them.
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Thanks for all these tips!
Apr 3, 2025, 2:27 PM
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I hired a driver to take us from Heathrow to hotel and hotel to Heathrow, mostly to make it as easy as possible on my wife, who will be doing the west-east/overnight flying thing for the first time ever.
And I haven't done it in a long time, myself. I doubt my middle-aged self is going to respond to it as favorably as my 20-something self did.
We've kicked around the idea of a day trip to Cotswolds or maybe a train to Dover. But we're both shading toward focusing on what's around us in the city.
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Valley Legend [12914]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 3, 2025, 7:08 AM
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Churchill War Rooms
Van tour to Stonehenge, oldest pub in Europe, Roman Baths
Go to Windsor Castle where the Queen actually lived 90% of the time.
Basically everything outside the city after a couple days is much better to visit. Ppl are very rude, food sucks, and things are dirty in the city.
But also go to the Natural Science Museum. It's free and one of the best I have bern too.
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Orange Beast [6549]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 3, 2025, 9:53 AM
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Hey A1A, have you applied online for your ETA travel VISA for the UL? Just want to make sure that you have it. Have a great trip!
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Yes - that is done!
Apr 3, 2025, 2:31 PM
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Delta sent me a link to tackle that pretty early on in the process.
I've also had our Oyster passes delivered and in a week or so will have the bank mail me a few hundred pounds for tips, incidentals, etc. We'll be there five full days and I want to be good to those who look after us.
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Head Coach [968]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Re: London in the spring.
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Apr 4, 2025, 1:49 PM
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Westminster Abbey
Take in a show in the theatre district
Fish and chips but avoid the smashed peas they serve with it (I hate peas)
Indian food is excellent there if you like spicy and Indian food
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Paw Warrior [5066]
TigerPulse: 100%
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Best Indian food I ever had was in Colchester***
Apr 4, 2025, 1:51 PM
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So I'm with you on that one! We'll definitely dive in to some curry at some point. I think our hotel has a curry room.
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Replies: 52
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