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gwuMACaddict

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Apr 21, 2003
3,124
0
washington dc
alrighty... you might recall this thread here... or noticed i was gone for a week (miss me?)...

anyhow... a few quick observations about london... interested to hear what other people think...

  • International, but... I guess living in DC, I take for granted what an international city this is also... Was expecting to hear many different languages, but it felt a lot like home
  • Pizza Places Everywhere! Ok, seriously... whats the deal with this? How much pizza do you folks eat? Pizza Places EVERYWHERE...
  • Cider... YUM! Met wonderful folk at Buhrle (spelling?) market who kept feeding me the best cider I've ever had!
  • Boston? London reminds me of Boston, head to toe... Curvy streets, old buildings fused with modern glass structures, the subway even looks like the "T". Fanuel (spelling) Hall even looks like that outdoor market area by Liechster Square.
  • Cars No wonder iGav gets so upset about American styling... it was painful to get back to the states...
  • People "Fashion" is really what you make it- everyone wears what they wants and wears it like they own it- less cookie-cutter than the states

I'll add more as I think of it... but this might get some conversation going...
 
I had a fabulous time! I've always enjoyed traveling because you really get to see the World through a different lens... I just didn't expect it to be so similar this time maybe?

It shouldn't have taken me till age 23 to get over there though... blech... was having too much fun finding beaches and palm tree getaways before... :cool:

other thoughts

  • Church: Went to Westminster Abby and St. Paul's for services... wow- I'm used to going to the national cathedral here in dc, these blew me away...
  • Art: The Courthauld is such a little hidden treasure! Saurat, Vincent, Degas, Renior, etc. And free on Mondays!
 
gwuMACaddict said:
Art: The Courthauld is such a little hidden treasure! Saurat, Vincent, Degas, Renior, etc. And free on Mondays!

Somerset House as a whole is one of the best hidden treasures in London. As well as the Courtauld Gallery, they do cinema showings, gigs and an ice rink in winter in the courtyard - all in an ex-inland revenue building hidden away on the outskirts of the square mile.

Glad you had a good time gwuMACaddict. London has its problems, but in general is a fantastic city - as is DC. Last time I was in the States I hired a bike and spent a gorgeous summer's day cycling round all the monuments
 
Kernow said:
Somerset House as a whole is one of the best hidden treasures in London. As well as the Courtauld Gallery, they do cinema showings, gigs and an ice rink in winter in the courtyard

yes, they were setting up the ice rink yesterday... will just have to go back this winter and take advantage :D cinema showings would be equally nice
 
I love London, but unlike you, I didn't see many pizza places. There are some pizza and chicken places, but I wouldn't say there are very many.

Now kebabs......THAT is what you should be getting in London instead of pizza.
 
Abstract said:
Now kebabs......THAT is what you should be getting in London instead of pizza.


oh no! i wasn't EATING the pizza, just seemed like there was lots of places to actually GET pizza everywhere i looked...
 
I'd love to go sometime - my only experience is Heathrow a few times. My one take-away experience from that was that, apparently, iced coffee (in particular, an iced venti coffee with two added espresso shots) is not an English thing.

Or any iced drinks, for that matter.

Of course, that's a huge leap based upon on airport Starbucks encounter. :)
 
Abstract said:
I love London, but unlike you, I didn't see many pizza places. There are some pizza and chicken places, but I wouldn't say there are very many.

Now kebabs......THAT is what you should be getting in London instead of pizza.
I agree... I didn't see any pizza places... just tons of kebab booths/carts (all throughout Europe really).

I noticed an awful lot of pubs. ;) And when walking by, I noticed a lot of rowdy, tall, HUGE, beat-up, scarred men in shirts w/ bold striped across them. :p
 
gwuMACaddict said:
[*]International, but... I guess living in DC, I take for granted what an international city this is also... Was expecting to hear many different languages, but it felt a lot like home

A lot of people speak english when they're here, but that's because we're lazy bastards when it comes to learning other languages ;) heheh.

gwuMACaddict said:
Pizza Places Everywhere! Ok, seriously... whats the deal with this? How much pizza do you folks eat? Pizza Places EVERYWHERE...

Hahahahahahaha... it's true, but it's really more of an affliction of the West End more than anywhere else. ;) even Little Italy pales in comparison :p

Did you manage to get a table at any of the places discussed in your other thread though?

gwuMACaddict said:
Cider... YUM! Met wonderful folk at Buhrle (spelling?) market who kept feeding me the best cider I've ever had!

Wow, I've been London based since '99 and I've yet to find a place that sells decent Scrumpy, thanks for the tip fella. ;) Cider = mmmmmmmmmmmm :D

gwuMACaddict said:
No wonder iGav gets so upset about American styling... it was painful to get back to the states...

heheheh, we're spoilt that's for sure, pretty much anything goes here... that's the European influence though, rewind 20 years ago, and sterling cars were VERY, VERY different I can assure you ;)

gwuMACaddict said:
"Fashion" is really what you make it- everyone wears what they wants and wears it like they own it- less cookie-cutter than the states

I was in a discussion about this with a friend of mine not all that long ago(who's a fashion designer) and I was berating the fact that London fashion really is stuck in a rut, it really hasn't changed all that much for half a decade + easy, what's in fashion now, was what was in fashion 5 years ago, it's just arguably more popular now, ballet shoes, martial arts shoes, mullets, trucker caps, the works... in a way it's cool because nothing is dating at the mo, but really... where's the antidote to the anti-change brigade?
 
Now, try finding your way OUTSIDE of London, most visitors to thee UK are unable to do so.

Visit the rest of the UK - London isn't everything, only a small part.



gwuMACaddict said:
alrighty... you might recall this thread here... or noticed i was gone for a week (miss me?)...

anyhow... a few quick observations about london... interested to hear what other people think...

  • International, but... I guess living in DC, I take for granted what an international city this is also... Was expecting to hear many different languages, but it felt a lot like home
  • Pizza Places Everywhere! Ok, seriously... whats the deal with this? How much pizza do you folks eat? Pizza Places EVERYWHERE...
  • Cider... YUM! Met wonderful folk at Buhrle (spelling?) market who kept feeding me the best cider I've ever had!
  • Boston? London reminds me of Boston, head to toe... Curvy streets, old buildings fused with modern glass structures, the subway even looks like the "T". Fanuel (spelling) Hall even looks like that outdoor market area by Liechster Square.
  • Cars No wonder iGav gets so upset about American styling... it was painful to get back to the states...
  • People "Fashion" is really what you make it- everyone wears what they wants and wears it like they own it- less cookie-cutter than the states

I'll add more as I think of it... but this might get some conversation going...
 
jsw said:
Yeah, I couldn't figure out if that was a plus or a minus for her. ;)
Oooh you two are mean!

RUGBY players gosh darn it, and you knew it, too! Hmph. *Looks the other way*
 
devilot said:
Oooh you two are mean!

RUGBY players gosh darn it, and you knew it, too! Hmph. *Looks the other way*
Well, you still didn't answer the question. I think we knew they were rugby players. Do you like rugby players? ;)

Me? I like female soccer players, not so much female softball players.
 
Stella said:
Now, try finding your way OUTSIDE of London, most visitors to thee UK are unable to do so.

Visit the rest of the UK - London isn't everything, only a small part.

Fair point - living in London tends to blinker you to the existence of other places in the UK. I'll go with raggedjimmi and recommend Manchester.

Avoid S****horpe though.;)

EDIT: It appears the profanity filter knows the old joke - who put the **** in S****horpe!
 
jsw said:
Well, you still didn't answer the question. I think we knew they were rugby players. Do you like rugby players? ;)

Me? I like female soccer players, not so much female softball players.
Wow this will be the third time I've engaged in a 'hottest athletic types' discussion this week. Um, rugby players are ok if the face looks ok (yes, that's probably a rarity; gotta love the big factor, probably lift me up w/ one arm :D ), water polo yummy, some futbol/soccer players yummy, and I am partial to rowers (just not the really really skinny/lanky types). I like me some meat. ;)
 
iGav said:
Wow, I've been London based since '99 and I've yet to find a place that sells decent Scrumpy, thanks for the tip fella. ;) Cider = mmmmmmmmmmmm :D

I was in Borough Market for lunch last Friday. The Cider is indeed mmmmmmmmmmmm. Big guy with a big beard and 3 barrels marked Dry, Medium and Sweet. No strenght marked: it probably varies! They'll sell you a pint to drink there or larger volumes to take home. You need to get down there!
 
Kernow said:
Mmmm...kebabs. Is it wrong to be having cravings for a large donner at 2.45pm? :eek:
Mmmm. I'll take a doner any time of the day. (Is is spelled 'doner' or 'donner'? All the places I saw in France spelled it with one 'n', but that might just be the French spelling.)
 
Stampyhead said:
Mmmm. I'll take a doner any time of the day. (Is is spelled 'doner' or 'donner'? All the places I saw in France spelled it with one 'n', but that might just be the French spelling.)

I think you can have both. It's the same as popadoms (or puppadums, or papadoms, or...) in Indian restaurants.

Whichever - they are both very tasty.
 
gwuMACaddict said:
  • International, but... I guess living in DC, I take for granted what an international city this is also... Was expecting to hear many different languages, but it felt a lot like home
  • Pizza Places Everywhere! Ok, seriously... whats the deal with this? How much pizza do you folks eat? Pizza Places EVERYWHERE...

I'll add more as I think of it... but this might get some conversation going...

London Rocks! I've lived in DC for 13 years, and although international, it doesn't even come close to how international London is.

I would also agree that there seems to be a Pizza Hut on every corner!

I've been to London three times and I have to say it is one of the best cities in the world!!!
 
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