Loisde

Just back from London and side trips to Kent and the Lake District - sigh - very lovely time.

Just a comment about walking distances in London. When asked how far something is, the answer was invariably "a 5 minute walk" or "a 15 minute walk," etc. Your 5 or 15 minutes may or may not equal my 5 or 15 minutes. I am a stroller, and if anything irritated me about London, it was the rushed atmosphere from the sidewalks to the tube stations to just everywhere. I prefer to walk at my own pace and do not expect to get my heart rate going as if I were at the gym.

Whenever someone advised that it was a "15 or 20 minute walk," I immediately called "Taxi." It's not that I'm adverse to walking, it's just that I don't want to move as fast as some. I actually prefer for someone to advise on distance in terms of blocks, although I acknowledge that length of blocks can vary. I just know that when I reach an intersection, I have a block behind me.

Not a major bone of contention, just an observation. And if I just miss a train, well, you know what? Another one will be along in just a few minutes.

Don't ask me to hustle on vacation. I'm on vacation for a reason and it isn't to run for a bus or train.

tpatricco

Loisde, I understand your desire to stroll and enjoy the scenery while on vacation, but surely you can't fault the city of London for it's hectic pace. Most of the people there were probably not on vacation, but horrors...on their way to work. When you visit a city, a major city at that, you should expect this pace, not be irritated by it. Perhaps you irritated many on the sidewalk with your relaxed pace as well.

As always, appropriate expectations are the key to not being disappointed.

Loisde

Good point, tpat. I was very conscious of those who obviously had somewhere to be at a certain time and I did my very best to not be an obstruction.

I can honestly say that I never stopped abruptly on the sidewalk and I always stayed to one side or the other to allow others to pass by.

And I only gaped a little. But I was discreet. Or tried to be.

StCirq

Interesting observation and one that points out how different people are.

Everywhere I went in London on last trip there people said the same: "5 minutes' walk" or "20 minutes' walk" and I found I was there in half the time. I do walk incredibly fast (people who've traveled with me have pointed this out on several occasions, not all so kindly). I find it very hard to "stroll" even if I am in a place that begs for strolling. My legs just GO and my mind keeps up. I like to feel a nice heartbeat as I walk - it makes me feel alive and, yes, I do like to stay fit while on travel, and walking fast in big cities in Europe does amazing things for the cardiovascular system.

I like your attitude about not hustling on vacation, but somehow when I'm on vacation I'm running even faster than when I'm at home to catch something, whether it be a train or a métro or a bus or whatever. I'm not sure how to avoid that, given the usual paramaters of my trips. I always have to fly into Paris, get a taxi to the train station, take a 5-hour train ride, then drive for 45 minutes. There's nothing about that scenario that isn't hustling, but that's what I'm stuck with.

Anyway, it doesn't surprise me that Londoners' evaluations of distances and how much time it would take to get to places was off for you. In general, Europeans walk more than Americans and walk faster than Americans, so the amount of time it would take them to get to such and such a place would be less than it would be for you. So be it.

flanneruk

The term "block" is simply not used in British in the way it is used in American. No-one would have the faintest idea how many blocks there might be between x and y.

Life is simply lived at a faster pace here than in most of the US. You simply need to adjust for it.

WillTravel

Some people might take a stab at giving the distance in terms of meters or fractions of a mile, but there wouldn't be any guarantee as to accuracy. With a good map it's fairly easy to get an idea, though.

In London, I would just hop onto the nearest bus if tired of walking. It's sure to take you *somewhere*.

nytraveler

Agree with above posters that in major cities people are usually trying to get somewhere for a purpose and will be walking at a steady pace rather than strolling. I'm glad you're making an effort to stay out of the way - its very frustrating to be trying to get to work or to a restaurant for a lunch date and find groups of people just standing in the middle of the sidewalk - or wandering at an incredibly slow pace.

In New York people can usually tell you how many blocks to somehwhere since the streets are numbered and you can just substract - but are much more likely to give you a time - assuming about 1 minute per block or 20 minutes per mile (normal walking pace - not rushing but not lollygagging either).

alice13

But we don't have blocks! As you have been there you will know that London does not have a "grid" street plan. Wonder why? (rhetoric Q!!). So it's not possible to say "it's x blocks from here" cos there are no blocks.

If you want "blocks" then best to stay at home - or visit the other parts of the "New World" - but if it's Oz, avoid downtown Sydney as it's also an organically grown city and the streets are all over the place.

Personally, I like it like that. Melbourne is all straight lines so you might find that closer to home.

Kate

Willtravel, I think you'd be very lucky to find a Londoner who would describe a distance in metres, as we're still using yards and miles!

Loisde, of COURSE people are rushing about. London is primarily a business city rather than a toruist attraction, and you'll find the pace no different than New York. Hardly surprising. Actually, it's the one thing that drives us locals barmy - tourists dawdling along when we've got places to go!

And we don't have a CLUE what a block is, because we just don't have them. "Block" is a US term that we can't relate to, given our jumbled street pattern. It would take me longer to mentally count the streets between here xx and yy than it would for me to walk you there personally.

Singletail

"tourists dawdling along when we've got places to go"....gee, are they blocking the entire sidewalk (I know you do have those) and I'm sorry but the distance between where two other streets intersect a third one is a "block" and grid system or not they do have "blocks" in London...or perhaps you were too busy running over people to notice!

Tallulah

Singletail: Ha ha! The notion of a 'block' simply doesn't work in London - or most European cities for that matter! If that's your definition of a 'block' then it will tell you absolutely NOTHING about the distance - this is an organic city with many of the road layout originating from Medieval times. You might have an intersection every 50 yards for 200 yards and then not have another one for 300 yards; so giving distances in 'blocks' is FAR less helpful than an approximate distance or journey time.

And yes, I work between Oxford Circus and Piccadilly Circus and everytime I go out I have to fight my way through groups of tourists blocking the pavement or standing in rather unhelpful areas of tube stations. I don't see this as a problem, I'm delighted that people like to visit here, but it IS a fact!

And what do you mean "..sidewalk (I know you do have those).." - what do you think we bloomin' well have?! (Well, pavements actually, but I won't split hairs!) Answers on a postcard please?!?!

Kate

Thank you Tallulah - they do indeed block the entire pavement at times - perhaps because many streetshave narrow pavements, but in busy places purely because there are so many people. Locals seem to have mastered to art of weaving around each other at speed.

Blocks schmocks, meaningless here so get over it!

Tallulah

Kate: So you're saying that you don't like it when people tell you that you don't know about your hometown and correct you? Shame on you!! Haha!

Kavey

As been said, the "block" concept is absolutely pointless in a city that has grown organically and doesn't follow the slightly mundane graph-grid pattern of modern cities.

Since "5 blocks" could be anything from a few hundred yeards to a couple of kilometres it really would be the most pointless answer anyone could give you.

Knowing roughly how long it might take to walk there is a much more helpful answer in central London.

If you aren't happy being answered in that way you could always invest in a map or A-Z streetmap booklet and ccount blocks for yourself!

Kate

yeh tallulah, you noticed.

I can see this argument going round the block a few times...