European vacations

Properties
City
London
Region
England
Country
United Kingdom
World Region
Europe

Not everyone has the chance to go to London; however, everyone should try to go at least once if only for the museums. London has over 200 museums which attract over 30 million people to visit them every year.

Accordingly I have put together a handy package of information regarding each of the major museums in London, including both their websites and basic directions to the museums if you’d be taking public transit. It goes without saying that any of London’s excellent “Black Cab” drivers would be more than happy to drop you off at any of these museums’ door! Since many of the museums are within a very small radius in central London this guide would be great for those with long layovers at either Heathrow or Gatwich (take the Heathrow or Gatwick Express train into central London to save some coin – cabs could run you 40 or 50 pounds for the trip)

I am sure you have heard of the English writer and illustrator Beatrix Potter and maybe read some of her work such as Peter Rabbit, The Tailor of Gloucester,Benjamin Bunny to name just a few. You know who I am talking about? Then this may be of interest to you.

To talk about everything that is excellent in the city of Oxford, England would take a lifetime, but I will try to touch on the best things that I encountered on my trip there during the summer.

I was on a school trip to England over the summer, with a 10 day stay in London and a 17 day stay right outside of Oxford in Oxfordshire.

*Frigid Fingers*

It was while walking through a lively avenue in Hampstead at 7 PM when I felt those frozen fingers sneaking up into the sleeves of the monstrous purple jacket* and scalpelling** through the muscles of my spine to seize my marrows.

It was not the sort of the wishy-washy California cold that you can shoo away with an acrylic fleece throw and a portable electric heater. Its name was Cold, pronounce it in the way you would say with grim determination, “Thor” or “Magnus”.

I took a trip to England in August and one of the things I wish I could take back home to the states with me is a Harrods department store. To describe Harrod’s as just gigantic and enormous is a complete understatement, it has 330 departments, 7 floors ( each beautifully decorated I might add ) and one million square feet of selling space…take that Macy’s. You could spend all day shopping there and never have to walk past the same area twice. The salespeople are super friendly, helpful,and prevalent through out (you literally couldn’t walk more than a few feet without coming across one) and although the store is almost always packed with people (mostly tourists), purchasing lines move surprisingly quickly. They have a huge selection of almost everything you could want from shoes and clothes to specialty cheeses and sushi. But, my fave part of the store was their amazing Christmas section filled with tons of decorations and ornaments most with the famed Harrod’s insignia on them. At night the outside of the store is outlined with lit up christmas lights all year round, making quite a beautiful site. (picture worthy) If your traveling to London make sure to take the time to visit.

Last weekend on Memorial day, as I watched for the upteenth time the movie, The Longest Day, I couldn’t help but be reminded of the time we spent in Normandy following the paths of the soldiers who lived and died in the towns and on the landing beaches of those immortalized places, Omaha, Gold and Juno Beaches, Arromanches, St Mere Eglise, all the other beaches, villages and towns on the coast, along with the city of Caen, which was our base for our stay.

Amsterdam is a fun,exciting, and, yes, even cultural city. There is the Amsterdam that makes it a mecca for college students, backpackers, and those fascinated with the pot and hash bars. The smell of grass permeates the air with a pungent, sweet aroma. It can be smoked, eaten in baked goods, or brewed in tea.

I was just looking at one of my photo albums from about 20 years ago. There I found wonderful pictures of Canterbury. I was so lucky to have lived close by, in Maidstone. Both Canterbury and Maidstone are situated in the county of Kent. The Garden of England.

This particular photograph was taken at the Kent County Cricket ground. My husband was a Road Safety Officer and would trailer a huge display unit to the games. I would sometimes go along, just to watch the cricket. These were fun, but also relaxing days for me. Any cricket fans can find the Saint Lawrence Ground on Old Dover Road, Canterbury, CT1 3NZ. Telephone 01227-456886.

This is part one in a two part series on surviving cheaply in London.

Along with the great, seething metropolises of Tokyo, Paris, and NYC, London is one of the planet’s most expensive cities to live in. I know - I lived there on and off, over a period of three years, for an entire year. On more than one occasion I arrived in London with hardly a quid to my name and lived to tell the tale, so here is the expurgated, bare-bones, cheap bastard, poor-as-a-bloody-church-mouse budget version of how to eat and drink cheaply in London.