London Off the Beaten Path Tips by tvor

I walked down the Strand, past the deep and narrow old Twinnings tea shop and discovered a monument to the Knights Templar. To my right was the Temple Bar, once the center for the Knights but, after their disbandment, the legal eagles moved in. This is a very old part of London and in off the main road there are courtyards and a church and a private park. It's quiet and peaceful. There is a fountain court where a fountain has existed for 400 years. A little peaceful oasis in a very busy spot of the city.

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Not always off the beaten track but the London walking tours will take you up alleys and around buildings that might not always be the blockbuster tourist attractions. There are a lot of walks that show you parts of London that tourists don't always see. The guides know so much about the area and the city and they are a fount of interesting information and stories. I took a full day one that took us to Richmond, down the Thames on a boat and in to Hampton Court and we took a normal 1-2 hour one along the SouthBank of the Thames focussing on Shakespeare.

Mind you, some of these types of tours have extra costs that they don't tell you about in the brochures, in addition to the 10 pounds for the day tour, it also cost extra for the entrance to Hampton Court and for the boat ride and you had to buy a sandwich or something for your lunch. But it was still worth my while and i had a most enjoyable day out. Other extra costs might be things like boat fares or entrance fees to sites but you get discounts and get to jump the queues as well.

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Website: http://london.walks.com/

Sunday morning, everyone knows about Hyde Park Corner and watching the people wax eloquent about any and all opinions But there's another treat just around the corner. All along the Bayswater road fence of Hyde park, artists and crafts people were displaying and selling their stuff. We spent nearly an hour walking along and looking at the pictures, prints, stained glass, enamels and some other odds and ends. No jewelry which was surprising. It was like a free art gallery! They aren't all "starving artists" in fact, they can be artists that have showings in galleries too. Prices are pretty good and the variety is wonderful!

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I had wanted to go to the Fan Museum once I discovered its existence. It just took my fancy, and then, i do have a penchant for odd museums if i can find them. It is in an old house not far from Greenwich park and you can get taped guided tours. There are only a few rooms, a small gift shop, a cafe which was shut when we were there, and a little garden out back. There's a small entrance fee.

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Website: http://www.fan-museum.org/

The "Millenium Mile" is what it's called now, but it was always there. Now you can walk right along the river from Westminster bridge where the Town Hall and London Eye are, right to Tower Bridge. There are more major attractions on the South Bank of the Thames these days to draw the tourists. The London Eye observation wheel at one end and the Tate Modern near the other end, with the wobbly Millenium bridge connecting to just below St. Paul's. There's the new Shakespeare's Globe theatre and that's definitely worth a look. You can get a free tour inside the theatre and the theatre museum also details the history of the South bank area. Lots of great interactive displays and other stuff too. I feel a Must See tip coming on.

But in between there is the Oxo Tower, just by Blackfriar's bridge. You can go up to the 8 or 9th floor and go out on a deck and get a good view of London and it's free. There's Gabriel's Wharf, which is a little oasis of a few shops and restaurants with outdoor seating if you like. There's usually been an outdoor secondhand book sale both times i wandered along. that's near the arts center. There are benches to sit and rest and watch the boats on the Thames and the people walk by. There's Sir Walter Raleigh's ship, there's the Southwark Cathedral and there's a market along here some days. Vinopolis is a museum about wine and that's new as well.

Over by Tower Bridge there's the Museum of Design and also a tea and coffee museum which i haven't yet been to but it's on my list for sure! The Southbank has a lot to offer and it's starting to find its feet with the tourists. Do take a day and explore!

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ST. Dunstan's in the East was built by Wren after the great fire on the same site as a church has stood since Saxon times. It was all but destroyed in a bomb during WW II although the Wren tower still stands. I was walking around in the City of London and spotted the spire, went down a side street and found it. The grounds where the church was is now a little park with benches and flowers and lots of greenery climbing the remains of the church walls. It was an unexpected little haven in the crowded City.

Walk east down Eastcheap, which turns into Great Tower Street. You'll spot the spire on your right and the street is St. Dunstan's Hill.

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Website: http://www.gardenvisit.com/g/stdunst.htm

If you make your way to Greenwich to see the Observatory, don't forget the National Maritime Museum and the Queen's House at the bottom of the park by the Thames. Admisstion to all three is now free. It was built in 1616 by Inigo Jones in the Palladian style for the wife of James I but she died before it was completed. His second wife Henrietta lived there when she was the Queen Mother. Charles II expanded it and later it was turned over to the warden of Greenwich Park.

It's been restored and furnished as closely to the mid 1600's as possible and is open to the public.

You can get to Greenwich by train, DLR, boat on the Thames and by bus. The Jubilee line of the Underground stops by the Millenium Dome a little ways away from the Park.

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Website: http://www.greenwich-guide.org.uk/queens.htm

Nestled in the west end of London near Victoria Station is Westminster Cathedral. NOT Westminster Abbey, mind you. This is the Catholic Cathedral built in in a Byzantine style of architecture using two different colours of stone, brick red and cream white, a colour scheme reflected in the buildings in the neighbourhood as well. The church was build around the turn of the 20th century after a prison on the site was demolished.

There are some amazing mosaics and marbles in the cathedral and you can take an elevator up the bell tower for a small fee for a view of London.

Get here using the tube to Victoria and walking a block or so east on Victoria street. 11, 24, 148, 507 and 211 bus lines Much of the cathedral is accessible to wheelchairs as well.

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Website: http://www.westminstercathedral.org.uk

The Bramah Museum of Tea and Coffee is a small museum, not as well known as the big museums like the British or the V&A but it has it's charm. When one thinks of England, one certainly thinks of tea. This museum shows you the history of tea and coffee, both commercially very valuable products and both launching major social implications. After all, a tax on tea was an early instigator to the American Revolution and all those Starbucks you see on street corners? They had their origins in the coffee houses in London!

The museum is only a few minute's walk west from London Bridge station close to another new musuem, Vinopolis. Well worth a look.

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Website: http://www.teaandcoffeemuseum.co.uk/

Vinopolis is a relatively new attraction on the southbank of the Thames, near the London Bridge underground station next to Borough Market, the Tea and Coffee Museum, Shakespeare's Globe and Southwark Cathedral. Anyone who is interested in wines around the world would find this fascinating. There's a chance to taste, and dine as well as purchase. The only drawback is that it's a bit pricey at 11 -12.50 pounds for an adult admission tour.

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Website: http://www.vinopolis.co.uk/