London General Tips by Mariajoy

Favorite Thing: As part of a VT meeting in honour of HORSCHECK's visit to the city we waited until the sun went down to take a stroll to see the illuminations of some of the 12 bridges and buildings taking part in the SwitchedOnLondon lighting festival taking place from 8th to the 16th February 07. The buildings involved were:

1. Adelaide House
2. City Hall
3. Custom House
4. Hays Wharf
5. HMS Belfast
6. London Bridge
7. Thames North Walkway
8. Thames South Walkway
9. No 1 London Bridge
10. Tower of London
11. Design Museum
12. Urban Chandelier at the Scoop At More London

We saw numbers 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 and 11.

Fondest Memory: I'm not sure if this is a yearly event - but if you are visiting the city it is well worth checking out events and festivals like this as they are very unique and original and create great memories!

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Favorite Thing: Canary Wharf is the post-modern face of London, situated in Docklands. The fabulous history of the Docklands, from it's earliest beginnings in the 12th Century through it's hayday in the early 1960's and economic decline in the 1970's is told at the Canary Wharf History website in a time-line format.

Needless to say (from the photo) that the area has undergone MASSIVE rejuvenation over the last 20 years and is now an ultra-cool thriving business/residential/leisure area.

Fondest Memory: London is ever changing and adapting. I love seeing new things evolving, and regenerating - London is exciting and unpredictable and thoroughly intoxicating. Every visit becomes a fondest memory!

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Favorite Thing: This monument, unveiled by the Queen on 9th July 2005 is dedicated to all the women who served in World War II. It is situated close to the Cenotaph on Whitehall.

The website details the many crucial roles women undertook throughout both world wars:

Women in Uniform


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Favorite Thing: Just next to Hungerford Bridge, on the Embankment, there is a wall mounted monument to Joseph Bazalgette - the civil engineer who changed London forever by masterminding the sewerage system throughout the city in the mid 1800s. Cholera at that time was rife and Londoners died in their thousands. His sheer brilliance and visionary thinking revolutionised public attitudes to health, hygiene and water-borne diseases. It transformed a foetid and stinking city into one where such diseases became a thing of the past and life became infinitely more tolerable for its citizens.

An excerpt from the website Joseph Bazalgette

"He saw to it that the flow of foul water from the old sewers and underground rivers was intercepted, and diverted to flow along new, large, low-level sewers, built behind embankments on the riverfront and taken to new treatment works."

For more information about the fascinating history of the sewerage system of London please check the website.

Fondest Memory: Today, walking through Soho and China Town, these 150 year old drainage tunnels are at last being modernised and replaced with a new system. It's causing some inconvenience and disruption to pedestrians but the work is crucial and I hope it will be as long lasting and effective as Mr Bazalgette's!

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Favorite Thing: This ticket booth started in Leicester Square in 1980 offering half price theatre tickets. Back then it was just a little hut but in recent years has become a larger permanent structure offering the best prices for discount tickets to West End shows. There is a 2.50GBP service charge on each ticket and the queues are looooong - but definitely worth waiting for. Tickets can be paid for by credit card or in cash (including Euro). A new booth has recently opened at Canary Wharf DLR station but cash is not accepted.


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Favorite Thing: This 18th century church, designed by James Gibbs and consecrated in 1726 is a well known London landmark situated in Trafalgar Square. (There has been a church on this site since Norman times). Tremendous work is done here with many of the city's homeless and Chinese community and there are regular services (the first religious broadcast went over the airwaves from this church!!), concerts, brass rubbing and of course the Cafe in the Crypt where you can get a pre-theatre meal quite reasonably - or just escape the cold for a few moments and have a quiet coffee break during the sight-seeing! Coffee and cake for two will set you back about £5.

Concerts are held here every Mon, Tues and Fri at 1.05pm. Check the website for listings of other free events held here.

St Martin in the Fields


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Favorite Thing: After 150 years of debate about "what to do with the fourth plinth" in Trafalgar Square, the powers that be decided that a 15ft (4.5m) marble statue of the 8 months pregnant Alison Lapper by the artist Marc Quinn, should adorn it. Alison was born with thalidomide. Some may be offended by the statue of the naked Alison... just as the Victorians were offended by exposed table legs and male members and sought to cover them up with table cloths and fig leaves. If this statue offends then maybe you need to ask yourself why.

London makes no apologies - This statue is "a celebration of the human spirit".

Alison Lapper - Guardian article


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Favorite Thing: This 8 ton, 5 meter high coloured glass sculpture is the latest piece of art work taking the fourth plinth in Trafalgar Square. Designed by Thomas Schutte, it is meant to "collect and reflect light like a jewel" - but it doesn't really work on a grey dismal London day (of which there are many!!). Maybe on a sunny day it will look better.

Due to years of indecision as to what to do with the fourth plinth, there is no permanent statue here and it was eventually decided that it should be used as an ever changing display of artwork/ sculptures.

The pregnant Alison lapper sculpture has gone and this one, "Model for a Hotel" will be here for the next 18 months.


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Favorite Thing: You'd never know it from his face but this happy chappy was playing the funkiest honky tonk in town!! I caught his eye, pointed to my camera, he nodded approvingly so I took the pic and left a quid in his hat - as had a few hundred others before me - and he deserved every penny!! It was fantastic. If you are in Brick Lane on a Sunday and you hear great music - it will be Big John Carter - the Piano Man!

Fondest Memory: On this trip?? This guy would be my fondest memory. :))

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Favorite Thing: I just liked this statue... can't remember who it's by but it looked sweet surrounded by early spring purple primulas.

It's near St Paul's Cathedral.


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