A Tour of London, England

The first time I traveled to Europe was in the fall of 2000, when I spent two weeks in England. I was glad my first "abroad" experience was in a country where I understood the language, because I really have no ear whatsoever for languages. This was evident the following year when I was in Paris, and even after studying French for four months prior to my trip, when I got there, I couldn't order a cup of hot chocolate in a restaurant without the servers looking at me as if I had two heads. In each place we went for dinner, I would order hot chocolate after dinner and somehow would "always" end up with some type of chocolate dessert or something with chocolate sauce on it. I definitely had an easier time in London!

Hotels:

At the time of this trip, I was a manager for Marriott, so we stayed in two very nice hotels for less than 60 pounds per night. We stayed in two Marriotts, one in the city itself, just a few blocks from the Marble Arch, and one in a town called Chesunt, which was approximately 30 minutes away from the city by train. Since this is a review of the city of London, I will not go in to great detail about these hotels, except to say that I do recommend them both, although the Marble Arch Marriott is not worth what most patrons will pay. As we only paid 49 pounds per night, it was nice, but I am not sure I would spend the 150 pounds per night that it's going for in August of this year. The Marriott in Chesunt, however, was lovely. The service and accommodations were both top notch, and I would highly recommend it, if you don't mind being a ways outside the city. Okay, now on to the important stuff......

Top Attractions (in my opinion):

London is full of museums, and truly, unless you are someone who can spend days on end in museums (I am not), there a few I recommend that will whet your appetite appropriately but won't bore you.

The British Museum is probably the best for seeing the most variety of exhibits. There are exhibitions from all over the world, and it's easy to spend several hours exploring without getting bored. You can tour the museum on your own, with a digital guide or you can go on a guided tour. This is their official website and will give hours, current exhibits, and tour information. http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/

I also enjoyed the Victoria and Albert Museum, which has a wide variety of exhibitions and collections ranging from paintings and sculptures to fashion and furniture designs. Hours of operation are 10:00 am to 5:45 pm S-TH and 10:00 am - 10:00 pm on Fridays. It is closed on the day before and the day after Christmas, in addition to Christmas Day, so be careful if you're traveling during the holidays. http://www.vam.ac.uk/index.html

The one museum that is at the top of the list for London attractions is the Tate Modern. This is only my personal opinion, but I think it's the most overrated attraction in the city. I will be the first to admit, I am not a fan of modern art. But, I lived a 10 minute drive away from New York City for 15 years and visited the Museum of Modern art there several times and was not nearly as bothered by it as I was by the Tate. Modern art is one thing. Even if it is not my preference, I can admit that the artists have talent. But, I cannot remember a single piece or exhibit that I saw that looked like "art" to me. One of the exhibits was of a clear bathroom garbage can, with all the garbage in it no less, turned upside down and mounted on the wall. If that's art, then we should all be artists and all be wealthy. But, again, this is just my opinion. My mother and I have argued about the interpretation of art on more than one occasion, and it seems that beauty really is in the eye of the beholder in even the most obscure situations. I would never tell anyone not to go, but if and when I go back to London, I will not waste my time or money at the Tate Modern. www.tate.org.uk

Now, one of my favorite attractions is one that some may think to be as much a waste of time as I did the Tate, but to me it was a blast. The London Dungeon is a museum that showcases the seediest parts of the city. You'll see recreations of all of the goriest parts of London's history, including a fabulous presentation on Jack the Ripper. I have always had an odd fascination with the gruesome, especially serial killers (the psychologist wannabe in me), so this was a really fun experience for me. It's not for the weak of stomach or heart, though. http://www.thedungeons.com/en/london-dungeon/index.html

As some people have a love of museums and, like my travel partner, can spend all day looking at paintings, I can spend all day looking at old and beautiful architecture, and some of the most beautiful architecture is in the form of old churches. I love seeing beautiful churches in the places I visit on vacation, and London has one of my favorite churches, St. Paul's Cathedral. In addition to being beautifully designed on the outside, it's awe inspiring on the inside. The ceilings, the stained glass, and the forever long and winding staircase that was too steep for me to climb to the top were all fascinating. But, most exciting to me was the Crypt. Several historical figures are buried in St. Paul's, including the Duke of Wellington and the designer of the Church, Christopher Wren. I remember having such a feeling of eerie calm walking over the tombs and graves of people buried so long before. But, I'm the one with the fascination for the macabre. I love walking through cemeteries and the older the tombs the better. http://www.stpauls.co.uk

We also visited Westminster Abbey, and although it was lovely and inspiring on the outside, the inside didn't affect me nearly as much. I felt like more of a tourist there. The experience of St. Paul's was much more spiritual. http://www.westminster-abbey.org/

Shopping:

One cannot visit London without doing a good bit of shopping, and where better than the famous Harrods? Harrods was such a fun experience for me, just because I'm a complete Shopaholic and to spend time in one of the most popular places in the world to shop was one of the highlights of my trip. We visited just after Thanksgiving, so Christmas decorations were up, and to see the city of London, and Harrods especially, decorated was quite an experience. There was also a lovely and touching display dedicated to Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed located on the lower level of the store. I believe his father is the founder of Harrods.

Theater:

I have always loved live theater, and I had always heard that the theater district in London rivaled that of Broadway. I traveled with my roommate and another friend who left a few days before we did. My roommate did not want to see a show, and I was not about to miss out on the experience, so I went on my own to see The Phantom of the Opera. The theater (unfortunately I do not remember which one) was okay but, I got matinee tickets the day of the performance and all that was left was a seat on the end with a very obstructed view. I also had the beginnings of bronchitis and was rather miserable all day and did not enjoy the show or the experience nearly as much as I wished I had. The theater district itself, called Leicester Square, was more condensed than what I remember of Broadway, but it was fun just to be there, seeing the lights and the marquees. I hope to go back someday, and when I do, I'll be sure to get tickets in advance and be healthy enough to enjoy the experience. http://www.londontheatre.co.uk/

Food:

The food, as probably most have heard, is forgettable at best. I cannot remember a single meal that was memorable. Food in England is bland and boring. There are fish and chips galore, and they were all good enough but nothing to write home about. Most of the pubs had some form of pasta with cheese, and I usually got that. If you're going to London, though, you're not going for the food, so it's nothing to really to worry over. Truthfully, the few times we had ethnic food, like pizza or Chinese, was better than local fare. The pubs, however, were all fun, filled with loud music, lots of beer and ale, and lots of very attractive men, if that's what you're looking for, that is, which of course I was not, but it was a nice bonus. ;)

Nightlife:

Nightlife, as far as I could tell, was difficult to find. Everything seemed to close very early in the part of the city we were. Restaurants stopped serving dinner at 8 usually at the latest, which is such a contrast to other large metro cities like New York, Paris, and Amsterdam, where nothing gets started until then. We had a hard time finding places to eat after 7. I think it was because during the second week of our trip, we stayed in more of a business district. I am sure, being one of the biggest cosmopolitan cities in the world, that there is night life to be found. I just didn't find it.

Transportation is excellent. The subway system was easy to navigate and very clean. And, the hop on hop off bus was a great to do a condensed tour of the city while deciding where to spend extended periods of time.

Check in to a Eurail pass, and a museum pass. Both will help to save funds. I also had good luck with the Frommers guide as far as telling me where to go, what to do, transportation information, hotels, restaurants, etc.

So, these are the main points of my trip that made it such a great experience. I only spent two weeks there, and it was impossible to see and do all I wanted to, so I hope to go back someday to experience more.