London/Paris 2011 trip report–part 10

From the beginning we’ve planned to make Tuesday a laundry-and-not-much-else-planned day and that’s what it’s been.  We slept in and then got started on laundry using the washer/dryer in our studio flat.  For lunch, though, we ventured out to explore more of the huge shopping center a few minutes walk way in Canary Wharf.

One thing Jackie wanted to do was (I know this will amaze you) find the local library, called the “Idea Store.”  She looked it over and then we wandered through the mall before deciding to have some Thai food for lunch.  We had a nice rice/chicken/spices meal along with a couple of pots of tea.  It was quite good and filling.

After lunch we walked over the a community park that is situated right on the Thames.  There’s a very nice walkway along the river and we strolled there for awhile before returning to the flat to finish up laundry.

I did considerable research in finding a place to stay in London.  It would be easy to spend a small fortune just on a hotel here.  Basically, the closer one stays to the main tourist areas around Buckingham, Hyde Park, etc. the more money it will cost.  However, if you are staying for a week or more, it’s worth the effort to find a flat to rent.  Generally speaking the flat will cost a bit more but will give you a lot more room and cooking capability which is nice for breakfast and maybe an occasional meal.  If you are willing to stay farther out, though, you can save some money.  I spent a lot of time on Tripadvisor looking at reviews and found this place; outside the tourist area in, instead, the “Wall Street” of London.  The cost was about the same as a tiny room in a “city” hotel but the accommodations are much better.  One of the main things to think about when planning a London trip is that the tube gives you great access to everything.  If you are close to a tube station you’re never far from the rest of London.  By staying at Canary Wharf we’ve had easy access to a great shopping center with plenty of shops and restaurants plus easy access to the tube, the light rail, the river commuter services – all with Greenwich 10 minutes away one direction and the Tower of London 10 minutes away the other.

We’ve found the people of London to be always in a hurry, always polite, and always willing to help if you ask them.  We think they smoke too much and don’t like having to walk through a cloud of smoke around the doors of nearly every building.  Sometimes we’ve struggled to understand what they say and they’ve struggled to understand us.  We were surprised, though, at how many people there are speaking other languages.  It’s as common to hear people speaking other languages as it is to hear English.  We’ve seen many men in beards and turbans and women wearing veiled outfits.  Those people, by the way, have never made us feel uncomfortable in any way.

We’ve seen less tattoos, more women wearing short skirts, and more men wearing dark suits with white shirts and black ties than we’ve seen at home.  Some of that may be due to being out here with all the business types.

We’ve been especially blessed by the weather.  It has been just terrific with lots of beautiful sunshine and unseasonably warm temperatures.  We came prepared for London’s fall weather and ended up enjoying the best of London’s summer weather instead.  The jackets have been left on the hangers and the umbrellas haven’t been carried.   If anyone asks us about late September/early October London weather we’ll tell them it’s some of the best in the world — of course Londoners will laugh us out of the room when we say it!

Thanks for reading.