yk's slightly off the beaten path London Trip Report (incl how I survived Tube strike; and dinner with someone famous!)

Day 1
Queen's Gallery, Apsley House, Tea at Kensington Palace's Orangery

The immigration hall at Gatwick was a zoo. I waited an hour in line until my turn for immigration - which took less than 15 seconds.

In the baggage claim area (I had only carryon) I spotted a Barclays ATM, so I used my Bank of America debit card to get some £.

BTW, I didn't see any other Barclays ATM at Gatwick after exiting customs, so BoA holders please take note.

Thanks to Patrick, I found out that I could take the train all the way from Gatwick to Charing Cross station (with 1 change), which is very close to where I was staying. With the Tube strike ongoing, this was a much better option than going to Victoria and then try to figure out how to get from Victoria to Charing Cross.

The 1-way ticket from LGW to Charing Cross was £10.50. Because of some service problem, I had to change train twice, and I made a mistake of taking a much slower commuter train for part of the journey. The whole trip to Charing Cross took a little over an hour.

Where I stayed
I am not picky when it comes to accomodations. As long as it's clean an central and cheap, I'm all for it. So, I booked a single room at Northumberland House, which is a new LSE dorm. All rooms have private bathrooms (which is a must for me), and no breakfast is included. It is located on Northumberland Avenue, 1/2 block south of Trafalgar Sq, and 2-min walk from Charing Cross station.
http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/vacations/residences/northumberland.htm

My room was not ready, so I left my luggage there and went out sightseeing. First item on the list was buying an Oyster card. Initially I had planned on buying the Oyster plus 7-day travelcard. But with the planned 72-hour Tube strike, it seemed silly, so I opted for PAYG instead.

I am quite familiar with taking buses in London, and the maps at each bus stop clearly list the bus routes. Without much trouble, I took the bus to Victoria Street and walked to Queen's Gallery from there.

I arrived at Queen's Gallery at 12noon. I was surprised by the crowd. I didn't book my ticket in advance, and I was given 12:45pm time slot. With some time to spare, I walked around the corner to Buckingham Palace.

Turns out the Changing of the Guards was underway, so I got a few glimpses of it. Buckingham Palace is open during the summer, and hence the enormous crowd. Lots of people buy the combo ticket which includes the Palace, Royal Mews, and Queen's Gallery.

Anyway, I got in at my time slot. The only reason I wanted to go there was to see the newly rediscovered Caravaggio. The current exhibition, Art of Italy, takes up almost all the galleries. I'm no big fan of Renaissance and Baroque Italian art, so I quickly went thru the exhibition. The Caravaggio is very beautiful and worth seeing. Also on view are drawings by Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.
http://www.royalcollection.org.uk/default.asp?action=article&ID=32

Next I walked to Apsley House, aka No. 1 London. The House is where Duke of Wellington lived and he hosted annual Waterloo Banquets. Admission price includes an audio guide.

The ground floor has nice dinner service and a huge "Wellington Shield" in gilted silver. Upstairs has plenty of paintings. The most famous is Waterseller by Velazquez. There are also paintings by Correggio, Jan Steen, van Dyck etc. I spent about 45 minutes at the House.

After I emerged from Apsley House, I decided to walk along Hyde Park. My destination was The Orangery at Kensington Palace.

It was a nice cool day, and I needed to fresh air to keep awake anyway. I walked along the Serpentine and stopped for a few moments at the Diana Memorial Fountain. I really like the design of it - with the water at places flowing smoothly and other places more turbulent.

Across the street is Serpentine Gallery and the 2007 Pavilion by Olafur Eliasson and Kjetil Thorsen. Quite a neat design.

I continued walking towards the direction which I thought was Kensington Palace, but I was dead wrong! I emerged the park to find myself facing the Lancaster Gate tube station!!! By then, I must have walked 3 or 4 miles... But I persevered and continued walking. Finally I arrived at The Orangery.

For the record, afternoon tea is served there from 3-6pm. I ordered the basic tea set and picked Tregothnan Afternoon tea. I have to say, it was quite a disappointing experience. The setting is nice, but I thought the tea was nothing special. The teapot was very small, and held no more than 2-3 cups of tea. The tea includes cucumber sandwiches, a scone, and an orange cake. The Tregothnan tea was weak without much flavor. I guess for its price (£13.50) I shouldn't expect too much. The service was left to be desired. After I asked my waitress for my bill, I waited for over 15 minutes and she was nowhere to be found. I guess she had gone home for the day? I finally had to flag down another waitress and ask her to get my bill!

As I left, I walked past the front gate of Kensington Palace. It was just a few days after the 10th anniversary of Diana's death, so the gate was decorated with flower bouquets, photos, poems etc. Very touching scene.

Finally I reached Kensington Road and caught a bus back to Charing Cross. As I was tired and still full from the tea, I skipped dinner and went to bed at 7:30pm.

I woke up at around 11pm, read for 2 hours, then back to sleep from 1am until 8am the next morning.

yk:

Enjoying your report. Great format, easy to read.

Sandy

Thanks for posting - I'm looking forward to reading the rest of your report.

Lee Ann

Enjoying your report...I will be in London soon, after our Ireland trip so love reading about you trip!
Thanks,
Shadow

Interesting read! That's the 2nd bad review I've seen here for the Orangery tea. Those business class seats are addictive, aren't they?

yk - really enjoying it so far; heading to London in about 2 weeks myself! I looked at Northumberland House also but rented a flat this time; did your room have a small private kitchen, I couldn't figure that out from the site for sure.

Still waiting to hear about your famous dinner partner...

I know who that person is! Very very famous!!!

My mom and I met yk for dinner in London and we also stayed in Northumberland. Actually she helped me with some reservation difficulties (thanks again, yk!).

I think I can answer the question re kitchens. I don't think that you get a private kitchen, but there's a shared one you get access to. We never used it.

Northumberland also provides free computer access (code from reception) in the basement. Apparently yk didn't know this until I told her, but that was the night before we would both be leaving (I was there very briefly).

yk also told me who the famous person was. I won't spoil it for you guys. I've heard of this person, so I can tell you that the person is pretty famous as I am so bad with this sort of thing.

Then she told me that she saw a play in which another person acted. This time she was surprised I'd never heard of this guy.

Very much enjoying this report and looking forward to more.

and there I was thinking that 111op was the famous person!

Oh I wish.

I think that I've had my 15 minutes of fame already (but no, if I can claim I'm famous, I'm probably on a Z list). yk and I were debating where to put the dinner person. I suggested B list. I think she wanted A list. In the end I think we said ok B+ list. It will be interesting to see what people here think when the identity is revealed.

However I do know some people you read about in the newspapers, so in that sense I am one or two degrees of separation away from some famous people (by certain standards, anyway).

But these are not the sorts of people most people will know about, unlike the one yk had dinner with.

kmowatt - Northumberland House has communal kitchens. About 1 kitchen per 6-7 rooms.

I'll post a more detailed review about Northumberland house at the end of the trip report.

Day 2
British Library, Kenwood House, Hampstead, and National Gallery

The Tube strike was still ongoing in the morning. Fortunately, the Northern line was one of the 3 tube lines that were not affected by the strike.

I left Northumberland House at 8:45am and walked over to Charing Cross station to catch Northern line up to Euston to visit British Library.

The station wasn't that crowded... but the first tube train was packed to the gills - from the 1st carriage to the very last.

I decided to wait for the next train which was due 3 minutes later. It was the same. Finally, I realized that if I were to get on the train, I had to fight for it. So I stationed myself on the platform where the doors would be lined up, and then pushed my way onto the 3rd train. Many others were not able to get on at all.

I got off at Euston and walked to British Library. This is my first time there. I mainly wanted to see the Sacred exhibition - a collection of illuminated manuscripts from 3 major religions of this world (Christianity, Judaism & Muslim). I had prebooked a free timed ticket for 9:30am.

Before I went in, I stopped at a coffee shop briefly for a quick breakfast - cup of tea and a chocolate croissant.

The Sacred exhibition wasn't crowded at all when I was there. A lot of the books were 1000 years old or even older. Quite amazing.

Afterward I visited the "Treasures of British Library" rooms where I saw notes by Leonardo da Vinci, original scores by Mozart, Gutenberg Bible, lots of literary texts, and of course 2 copies of the Magna Carta. I spent 1hr 15 minutes there and left at 11am.

I returned to Euston station and took the Northern line further north to Golders Green station. From there I changed for Bus 210 to get to my next destination - Kenwood House.

The entire journey took almost an hour. There is a bus stop right in front of the entrance to Kenwood House. From the main entrance, it's another 5 minutes walk to the actual house. It is located in the woods and the surroundings is very nice.

Okay, so why did I bother to go visit it? The most famous painting there is The Guitar Player by Vermeer. After seeing this one, I have seen 24 out of 36 Vermeers. It also a great self portrait by Rembrandt, and paintings by Gainsborough. A few of the rooms were closed for renovation, and I was pretty much done touring the house in 30 minutes.

Kenwood House has huge open grounds. Lots of people drive up there to walk their dogs or have picnics with their children. I ate lunch at the Brew House restaurant. A Tuscan pea soup with bread and a lemonade set me back £6.

Kenwood House is also one of the filming locations for the movie Notting Hill.
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/nav.12783

I took the 210 bus back to Golders Green station, and then changed for the Northern line. I got off at the next stop - Hampstead tube station. Why? To take the 2pm Old Hampstead Village Walk organized by London Walks.
http://www.walks.com/Homepage/Wednesday/default.aspx#106

Our group only had 13 people and our guide, Peter, was excellent. I very much enjoyed this walk. This was my first time in Hampstead, and it feels so quaint compared to the hustle and bustle of London. Lots of famous people had lived (or still live) in Hampstead, including Constable, Keats, Jamie Oliver, 2 spice girls...

During the walk, I chatted with another solo tourist. She is a university professor from New Zealand who is on a 10-week vacation visiting Europe! 10 weeks! Her daughter works in London, so she uses London as her base and take various trips to other countries.

After the walk, it was time to return to Northumberland for a nap.

More to come...

Day 2 continued

After my afternoon nap, it was time to head over to National Gallery. It was Wednesday, the day that NG opens late.

I had prebooked a ticket for the current exhibition - Dutch Portraits: The Age of Rembrandt and Frans Hals. On Wednesday nights, the show tickets are half price.

When I arrived at 6:30pm, it wasn't too crowded. In fact, they were selling tickets for immediate entry. It was a nice exhibition with some blockbuster paintings from Mauritshuis and Rijksmuseum. Some paintings are just personal portraits, some are couple portraits, and some are group portraits.

After the exhibition, I went upstairs to quickly walk through the NG. I have visited the NG quite many times in recent years, so I am quite familiar with what's there to see. Sadly, my favorite section - the Sainsbury section - was closed due to personnel strike. I left the NG after about an hour.

I went to EasyInternet to check my email briefly, before heading to dinner at Belgo Centraal. Little did I know that I was going to share a table with a famous person......

You guys have to wait til next installment to find out as I have to have dinner now!

OH no! The suspense is killing me! Please post soon!

Jamie Oliver????????

Topping so I don't forget to come back to this thread to find out who the famous person is...

yk, this is so enjoyable!

I agree that the Sainsbury wing is the best part of the National Gallery - I go every time I'm in London. The Sacred exhibition at the British Library sounds wonderful. As for the Treasures room, I had to tear myself away after an hour!

EAT already!!!!!!

Shadow

Oh now you're just being mean! I fly to London tomorrow-don't make us wait!

Day 2 continued...
My brush with fame

I walked up on St Martin's Lane towards Belgo Centraal. I've been meaning to eat there for years but never gotten around to do so. Many restaurants line St Martin's Lane, and for the most part, they were quite empty on this Wednesday night.

I arrived at Belgo Centraal around 8:15pm. I had to wait for several minutes to be seated by the maitre d'. For those of you who haven't been there, the dining room is downstairs and filled with communal tables. The place was packed and I was seated at the end of a communal table. Next to me on my left were a couple, and the seat opposite me was empty.

After studying the menu, I was ready to settle for a quiet meal by myself. Before my waiter could come take my order, the maitre d' came over and seated a rather good-looking man in black T-shirt and jeans in the empty seat across from me.

He introduced himself as "Brandon" and then busied himself with the menu.

A few minutes went by, our waiter appeared to take our orders. I ordered the Classique Mussel Pot and a "Cristal" beer on draft. "Brandon" ordered the Green Thai Mussel Pot and a beer, and 4 shots of schnapps. We told the waiter that we are not together, but he didn't quite believe us.

Afterwards, we exchanged the usual pleasantries... "Where are you from? What do you do? What are you doing in London?" I initially assumed he is a Londoner, but turns out he's from Connecticut and works in the movie business. He's in London for a week making a movie (which I took as him being a low-budget independent filmmaker). He was quite interested in my profession and the fact that I was traveling solo.

A few minutes later, a fellow dinner patron came over and asked for an autograph from "Brandon." I even joked, "I guess you're famous, huh?"

We continued chatting over our moules et frites. Me talking about my upcoming trip to France, him mentioning he had previously lived in London for 4 months, and lived in other parts of Europe. The reason that brought him to Belgo Centraal tonight was he skipped out of an awful play staged across the street and came here for dinner instead.

Finally, half way into our dinner, I asked, "So, are you a movie producer? Or a director?"

"Oh no, I'm an actor."

Now thinking that he may be one of those extras in movies, I said, "Hmmm... I wonder if I have ever seen any of your movies? I don't see movies too often, maybe 1 or 2 a year."

He replied, "Well, depends on what kind of movies you like. Have you seen The Mummy?"

Of course I have seen The Mummy. It's shown frequently on cable channels and I used to watch it all the time! Now half drunk, I finally realized...

"You are Brendan Fraser???"

"Yup, that's me!"

The second half of our dinner conversation was about his shooting of Mummy 3, which is about the Terracotta soldiers in China. He was fascinated by the fact that I had seen the real terracotta soldiers in Xi'an (thanks mom & dad!). But he's in London for another movie, Inkheart.

In the meantime, he insisted me on sharing 2 of the 4 schnapps he had ordered.

Anyway, an hour later, we finished our dinner. Our waiter came to clear our pots and Brendan asked for his bill. I recalled Fodorite noe raved about the bread and butter pudding at Belgo Centraal, so of course I had to had it. Our waiter was confused - he still thought we were together!

Anyway, before Brendan left, I asked if he would mind having a picture taken with me, so that I could prove to DH that this really happened. He was completely fine with it, so the couple next to us took the picture.

After he left, I asked the couple if they knew who he was. The woman said she recognized him right away but they tried to be subtle about it. Apparently, while I was clueless on who I was dining with, half of the restaurant patrons were watching us and wondering who "that woman" was eating with Branden Fraser! :">

Anyway, this was certainly the highlight of my trip. He was easygoing and appeared genuinely interested in what I had to say.

BTW, the bread and butter pudding was really delicious! Thanks noe!
http://www.belgo-restaurants.com/

After dinner, I wandered back to Northumberland house via St Martin's Lane again. When I was passing Duke of York's Theatre I noticed a small crowd at the alleyway. I stopped for a few moments to see what's on stage and who's playing. Turns out the current production is a play called In Celebration starring Orlando Bloom! I asked a woman in the crowd if he's the one they're waiting for and she said yes. With nothing else better to do, I decided to wait around with them.

About 25 minutes later, the show ended and Orlando Bloom came out, showered by nonstop flashlights from cameras. I was standing close enough to snap a few pictures of him. Others had the programmes in hand, and he graciously signed all of them one-by-one.

What an evening, what serendipity!

I read about The Mummy 3. Great cast with Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, etc. But it was shot in Montreal.

So, do you think the play he skipped was the one Orlando Bloom was in it?

< So, do you think the play he skipped was the one Orlando Bloom was in it? >

You know, I should have asked... You'll see why later.

Absolutely a terrific trip report--informative and entertaining!

ttt .. and so I can find it again later to enjoy more!

< I read about The Mummy 3. Great cast with Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, etc. But it was shot in Montreal. >

He said it's cheaper to shoot in a studio in Canada (than in the US). I think there will be scenes in China. He mentioned he will be heading to Shanghai and then some smaller village in the near future.

FYI, the real terracotta soldiers will be traveling to the British Museum next week. Sadly, both Brendan and I are gone before it opens.
http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/

My dinner at Belgo Centraal was £23.

Great report so far!! I'll be heading to the BM to see the china exhibit - that's if I can get in, it's practically sold out for the first few weeks.

Brendan Fraser is well educated actor - grew up in Toronto and attended Upper Canada College - one of our better schools, and most expensive.

Great report-thanks! Orlando Bloom is partially responsible for the timing of our trip-it's my 17 year old daughter's graduation gift-I'm glad he's still being gracious(the show closes Saturday).
Thanks for the heads up on the British Museum exhibit-I just bought a couple of the nearly extinct tickets.

Susan- Have a safe trip. If your daughter wants to get his autograph, she'll have to wait in the alley way before end of the show. If she waits until the play is over, there's no chance she can get close enough to him for the autograph. I'd recommend either you or her leave the show at 9:40pm and then wait for him to come out; or return there on a separate night. He only signed autographs for the folks who were in the front row of the crowd...

How fun - and even more so since you didn't realize who your famous dinner companion was! I hope you will share the pictures . . .

bkmkg

Not that I haven't been enjoying the rest of your trip report, (and I have really enjoyed it so far) I have been waiting to see who your brush with fame was going to be. You didn't disappoint! I love Brendan Fraser!! I am officially jealous of you. Seriously, though, that is really cool experience.

Johanna

yk - You 'name dropper' LOL!! So far it sounds like a great trip, looking forward to the rest. And if you can, post a link to your photos.

Tom

That's a really great story! Brendan Fraser and Orlando Bloom in one night? Wow, what a lucky girl. And all this time I thought the dinner would be with some British celebrity that I didn't really know. But Brendan Fraser is much better!

Great story!
And I'm glad you liked the bread and butter pudding - and that it was on the menu). I will say that I had even more amazing bread and butter pudding at Loch Fyne in Oxford, if anyone heads out that way.

hi, yk,

great report - I worked in London for over 15 years and never saw half the stuff you have. I'm afraid the northern line is crowded like that every day; nothing to do with the strike. they wre threatening to up-date it 10 years ago when we left London, and its very patient inhabitants are still waiting.

the Tregothnan tea you mention is actually picked from camelia bushes grown here in Cornwall, and is fearfully expensve, so needless to say I've never drunk it. it's probably safer to stick to good old PG tips.

as for your VIP, I have to confess I've never heard of him, though my DD would doubtless be very impressed. [she says I don't get out much!] I'm sure it was nice for him to talk to someone who wasn't thinking about how famous he is all the time, and just wanted to talk to him.

looking forward to teh next exciting installment,

regards, ann

I don't think I asked -- and I don't think yk told us -- did the waitstaff know that that was Brendan Fraser? I understand that some of the folks eating knew.

Brendan Fraser! I would have died. He is quite a looker. I've seen several of his movies. IMO, one of the best movies he did was a small one called With Honors, in which he played a Harvard student who befriends and takes in a homeless man.

I'm really enjoying your report, as I also did a 5 day solo trip to London. It's making me think I should go back soon.

Brendan Fraser is a real cutie and I always thought he seemed like a nice fellow. It's good to know that he is down-to-earth. The other diners must have been so jealous of you!

I'm glad to see that most of you agree that Brendan Fraser is considered "famous." At least he's famous in my book.

This was certainly the highlight of my trip, but I hope those of you who are reading this trip report also enjoy the rest of the sights that I visited.

< did the waitstaff know that that was Brendan Fraser? >

I don't think our waiter knew - he knew it was someone famous because of the request for autograph but not really who he was.

Day 3 morning
John Soane's Museum, Courtauld

This is the only day that I had the evening free. I know Janis and a few Fodorites recommend against going to TKTS booth at opening time, but that was the only free time I had.

I arrived at the TKTS booth in Leicester Sq at 9:50am. I was expecting a long queue. To my surprise, there wasn't. Maybe about 20-25 people were in line. I got in line and contemplated what to see that night. I was inclined to see a musical, such as Billy Elliot or Avenue Q or Spamalot. Two young guys were in line in front of me. They look very American (T-shirt, jeans, flip-flops) and I struck up a conversation with them.

They are, yes, Americans, from "Southern Cal." And yes, fresh college graduates. They just arrived in London the day before and staying in a hostel in Piccadilly Circus. They are lucky enough to take a month off before starting their jobs, so they're on the first leg of their "European Grand tour." Talking to them reminded me of my younger years...

Anyway, they decided to go for Avenue Q. As for me... well, I saw that In Celebration is also available. I figured that I could always see the popular musicals in NY, but how often can one see Orlando Bloom in a West End play? £25 was how much I paid for my ticket. I was only in line for 20 minutes.

The tube strike had ended the evening before. Despite that, I had decided to travel by bus for the next 2 days. The max one pays on Oyster PAYG for buses is only £3/day, much cheaper than the tube.

I caught a bus heading towards Holborn for Sir John Soane's Museum.

The museum is free - apparently that was the wish of Soane. He loved collecting marbles, stones, terracotta, busts etc from the Greek/Roman period. The whole museum is packed with "stuff" from floor to ceiling! It really is quite amazing how much stuff he had. Two famous collectibles (IMO) are:
- sacrophagus of Sethi I; really beautiful sacrophagus with hieroglyphics inscribed on both inside and outside
- Hogarth's The Rake's Progress series

I spent no more than an hour there, though anyone who's interested in Egyptian or Greek/Roman antiquities could spend much more time there.
http://www.soane.org/

Next I headed south to the Courtauld Institute of Art. I had visited it just 2 years ago, but I was drawn by the current exhibition on Lucas Cranach. It is a small exhibit, a total of 5 oil paintings, and many more drawings by him. In the next room were more drawings by German painters, including 2 by Albrecht Dürer.

After the exhibition, I went to the permanent collection galleries. It doesn't seem like anything has changed since my last visit 2 years ago.
http://www.courtauld.ac.uk/index.html

Now it's lunch time. I took Patrick's suggestion and went to Boulevard Brasserie. I ordered from the 2-course Prix Fixe menu:

Duck liver parfait with toasted brioche and cherry compote

- and -

Fennel and sweetcorn risotto with Parmesan and truffle oil

The liver parfait is HUGE. It was the size of a 3x5 index card and was at least 1/2 inch thick. I was full after attempting to eat half of it. The risotto turned out to be cooked in a creamy cheese sauce, which of course was extremely heavy.

Even though both were tasty, I could barely finish half of the food. I guess I just picked 2 dishes way too heavy for me. Lunch was £13.
http://www.boulevardbrasserie.co.uk/index.asp

I just wandered over to the Europe board and there you are, yk, one of my all time trip report favorites. This one certainly doesn't disappoint. Thank you!

Wonderful report yk! Sometimes, serendipitous, last minute trips turn out really special.

All that fun and Brendan Fraser too

What a cool trip, yk!! And a brush with fame to boot.

Here's an FYI just in case you ever need it. I'm a BofA customer too so I'm always sniffing out Barclay's. You mentioned seeing only one Barclay's ATM, but there are more if you know where to look.

A couple of years ago I was at LGW and the Barclay's ATM at customs was out of cash. I asked a security guard if more were nearby and he told me to go up the escalator and look to my left. I did and there were several more ATMS, with at least one or two Barclay's.

Thanks for your report, and I'm jealous about Brendan.

So very cool,yk! But I truly think that we are so unaccustomed to seeing these stars "face to face" that when we bump into them, our subconscious sometimes tricks us into thinking,"no, couldn't possibly be xx".

My 20-something daughters are going to be SO jealous. They absolutely LOVE Brendan Fraser. I thought he was just adorable in "Blast From the Past" with Alicia Silverstone, Christopher Walken and Sissy Spacek. If you haven't seen it, rent it. Wonderful movie.

Lucky you! And your trip sounds wonderful. I am so happy to always hear of women who are not afraid to travel without their spouses. (I have two sisters who wimp out at the idea of traveling without their husbands! AGH!)

MORE! MORE!

sarge - After Brendan revealed to me who he was, the only movie (other than Mummy) that came to my mind was
"Oh, you're also in that movie with Alicia Silverstone!"

"Yes. That's Blast from the Past."

I was quite embarrassed that it was the only other movie I could think of. But hey, at least I didn't say, "Oh, you're the George of the Jungle!"

BTW, this is the 3rd European trip I have gone solo since I got married 2 years ago (and I've gone many solo trips before we were married). It's too bad DH can't go, but I can't sacrifice my love for travel to sit home while he's at work!

Thanks yk - I like to travel solo too and am really enjoying your report.

KMOWATT - we share a surname! I'm Australian - where are you from?

How about that Bokhara!! I was born just outside Chester on the Wirral peninsula - in a village called Willaston - there were a lot of Mowatt's in that small village! Originally our name was Mowat (with one "t") but got messed up in WW1!! Same overall family though - did you know that we have our own tartan, even though we are a scept of the Sutherland Clan? But watch out who you talk to in Scotland becasue we fought on the side of the English at Culloden!

Where does your family originally come from?

Day 3 afternoon
Churchill Museum/Cabinet War Rooms, Imperial War Museum

After lunch, I caught a bus towards the Parliament and got off at Churchill Museum/Cabinet War Rooms.

The admission is a steep £11 (audioguide included). Even though I had a 2-for-1 voucher, I was not able to use it because
1) I was by myself
2) I didn't have a valid rail ticket

One first goes through a series of rooms, which were kept untouched since the end of the war. Then one is directed to the Churchill Museum which opened in 2005. I have to say that I didn't enjoy the Churchill Museum. Call me old-fashioned, I still prefer the old-style of display with text and photos, artifacts etc. The CM consists of mostly interactive, multi-media displays. I lost interest quickly.

After the CM, one is redirected to another series of War Rooms including map rooms, living quarters etc. I definitely enjoyed the CWR part much more.
http://cwr.iwm.org.uk/server/show/nav.00f

I left after 90 minutes. With still a few more hours of free time this afternoon, I decided to visit the Imperial War Museum. Again, it was easy to catch a bus there.

The IWM is free, and is huge. I can imagine one can spend a whole day there. I had only about 90 minutes to spare, so I decided to visit the Holocaust exhibit which is highly recommended here.

Not that I have gone to too many Holocaust museums, but this was really very well done. Apart from the usual texts and photos, there are a number of TVs stationed throughout the exhibit. The TVs show video interviews of several Holocaust survivors. Watching these videos bring a much more personal experience to the exhibits. A number of visitors were sobbing.

I had little time left after the Holocaust section, so I quickly ran through the Trench experience in WWI section, and the Blitz experience in WWII section. I'll have to return to IWM in the future.
http://london.iwm.org.uk/server/show/nav.00b

I took the bus back to Northumberland House for my requisite afternoon nap.

Plan for that night was seeing In Celebration starring Orlando Bloom at the Duke of York's Theatre. Despite having 1/2 price tickets on sale, the theatre was not full. My seat was in the Balcony.

Anyway, the play is rather boring. It is about a coal-miner's family reunion in the 1960s with the homecoming of the 3 sons. The play is set in Northern England, so it took me at least 15 minutes to get my ears used to the Northern accent (which is not the easiest to comprehend). Orlando Bloom played one of the 3 sons, and his character is the most introvert and awkward amongst the three. Throughout the entire play, he rarely spoke, and when he did, it was just plain awkward.

Now I understand why they were selling tickets at half-price.

When I left, I saw another crowd of very enthusiastic women waiting in the alley way for Orlando. I passed.

Dinner that night was in Chinatown. I ate at HK Diner on Wardour Street. I found this place last year and thought the food was quite good. Since I ate such a heavy lunch, I decided to go for a bowl of congee with shredded duck, and a plate of stir-fry baby bok choy. Dinner was £13.

Day 4
Hampton Court Palace

When I was planning this trip, I initially was going to visit both the Kew Gardens and HCP on the same day by taking a boat ride on the Thames which linked the two. However, the day before I left, when I checked the ferry schedule again, they have changed the sail times. If I stayed with my original plan, I would have just 3 hours at HCP. I decided to skip Kew Gardens completely (I'm not a horticulturist).

I took a bus to Waterloo station, and from there it was a easy 35-min ride on the train to HCP. r/t ticket was £5.70. Train to HCP leaves 2x/hr.

It was a Friday when I visited HCP, and I was very surprised by how uncrowded it was. I somehow had visions of it being like Versailles, packed with tourists and tour groups after tour groups. That was not the case at all at HCP.

I had a voucher from daysoutguide - buy 1, get 2nd half price. Since I already had a valid rail ticket, I decided to "recruit" a visitor to join me so that we could both save a few £. It worked and it came out to £19.50 for 2 (audioguide included).

I'm embarrassed to say that even though I had visited HCP 14 years ago, I had no recollection of what it's like (except the front facade) nor understood the historical aspect of it. Hopefully I'll remember this visit better.

Throughout the day are guided tours of the Palace. Each one is about 30 minutes and led by a costumed guide. I took 2 of these tours. One is a tour of Henry VIII's Palace. Only a few rooms of Henry VIII's tudor-style remained, but fortunately that included the Great Hall. 500 years later, it still WOWed me! The other tour is of the King's Apartments (King William). The year is now 1700 and the current style is Baroque. It very much reminds me of the French palaces.

I also toured the rest of the palace on my own including the Tudor Kitchens, Queen's Apt, and the Georgian Rooms.

There are 2 other smaller exhibits. A permanent exhibit on the historic background of the Palace; and a temporary exhibit on the young Henry VIII.

After the Palace, it's time to visit the Gardens. A small section of the gardens was fenced off - they were filming a movie called Young Victoria starring Miranda Richardson. I could see many actors in costumes, but couldn't make out who's who from a distance.

I had lunch at the Tiltyard restaurant. I ordered a French Onion soup, a salad, and a yogurt drink. It was £11.50.

I visited the Maze, then the rest of the gardens - Privy Garden, Fountain Garden, Knot Garden, Pond Garden, and the Banqueting House.

On my way out, I remembered to visit the Lower Orangery - where Mantegna's Triumphs of Caesar panels were hung. I have to say, I wasn't that impressed. I don't know if it's because of the lighting, or if it's the poor state of the paintings, or if there's a thick build up of grime? It seemed very dark inside and I just had a difficult time seeing the figures, the paint etc.

All-in-all, I spent 6 hours at HCP. I think that's a good amount of time there, and I'm certainly glad that I didn't try to squeeze in Kew Gardens in the same day.
http://www.hrp.org.uk/HamptonCourtPalace/

After my nap back at Northumberland House, I woke up fresh and ready to head out for the night.

I took the bus to Royal Albert Hall for a BBC Proms Concert. It was the penultimate concert of the 113th season of BBC Proms. I had bought a regular seated ticket in advance (£20) instead of the last minute £5 standing tickets.

My seat has a decent view, though it was advertised as "limited leg room." They weren't kidding! I am only 5'2" and could just fit my legs in. I don't think anyone taller than 5'4" can sit there comfortably.

Tonight's concert featured the Boston Symphony Orchestra led by James Levine. The programme consists of
Elliott Carter Three Illusions for Orchestra
Bartok Concerto for Orchestra
Brahms Symphony No.1

I'm by no means a classical music fan though I do enjoy going to symphony concerts. Of course I enjoyed the Brahms most because it's such a familiar piece. The audience wouldn't let the orchestra leave - so 2 encores were played.

The concert ended at 10, and I began my walk towards my dinner destination - Tom's Kitchen on Cale Street.

Tom's Kitchen is a cheaper branch of the michelin-starred Tom Aikens Restaurant. My reservation was for 10:30pm. When I arrived on this Friday night, the place was still packed and buzzing.

The maître d' asked if I mind sitting at the bar facing the open kitchen. Of course not. I thought it would be fun to watch the chefs cooking.

As it was late, I decided to order just a main course. I asked my waitress for suggestions. In the end, I picked the Pan-fried Sole with Peas "à la française." The entree comes with a side and I requested a green salad instead of potatoes. I also ordered a beer.

It was entertaining to watch the kitchen staff working their magic. It reminds me of Hell's Kitchen on TV - but of course far more professional. The main chef in the kitchen would bark out orders such as "one medium filet" or "two soles" and the staff would respond "Yes Chef!" Other exchanges include,
"Where's the garnish?"
"How long for the sole?" "Three minutes, chef!"

After each dish is put together, it goes under inspection by the head chef, Ollie Couillaud, before it goes to the hand of waiters to be served.

Within the first 20 minutes of my arrival, the kitchen was hectic. It was still gettting plenty of orders. But by 11, it quiet down and the kitchen staff began to clean up for the night.

In the meantime, the maître d' came over to keep me company. He was very friendly. He was interested to know why I'm dining alone so late, where I was from, what I'm doing in London etc etc. He himself is French and hoping to make it to NYC some time.

My meal was delicious. I never had thought I would like peas. And the salad dressing was divine! I also had a Banoffee cheesecake for dessert. Everything was great and dinner was £30.
http://www.tomskitchen.co.uk/
NYT review: http://travel.nytimes.com/2007/08/05/travel/05bites.html

After dinner, I walked a few blocks towards King's Road, and caught a bus back home. Another fabulous day in London!

That'd be your 3rd visit to Hampton Court. The first one was 25 years ago, though I don't think we went inside. Only the grounds.

yk, I went to "In Celebration" at the end of august. I left at the interval.

A couple of the actors kept forgetting the lines, and between that, the boredom and the girls fawning upon Orlando ...

I should have gone to "Elling", but you must learn ...

Cova

Hi Kmowatt: fascinating! - rather than hijack yk's thread, would love to chat with you on email. Mine's bokhara77 at hotmail dot com

Cova - Well, the performance I attended wasn't nearly as bad as yours. I think overall the actors did a great job, especially the one who played the father. It's just the play itself is boring and the plot never got anywhere.

Day 5
Royal Academy of Arts, Wallace Collection, Marylebone, Tate Modern, and Dinner with a famous Fodorite!

Today is Saturday, my last real day in London. I started with the Royal Academy of Arts at Piccadilly. The current exhibition is Impressionists by the Sea. I had pre-booked a ticket online, but turns out it was not sold out. It is quite a nice show and one can see how the subject and style changed over a span of about 20 years (1860s-1880s). The paintings come from many musuems on both sides of the Atlantic.
http://www.royalacademy.org.uk/exhibitions/impressionists/

My next stop was the Wallace Collection. I decided to walk there from the RA via Bond Street. I sat down briefly on the bench between Churchill and Roosevelt for a photo-op.

This was my first time visiting the Wallace Collection. Admission is free. One can get an audioguide, but that really isn't necessary. Each room has information leaflets on the highlights. I was very surprised by how rich the collection is. I also did not realize the crux of the collection is French (age of the French Revolution). Wallace was the illegitimate son of the 4th Marquess of Hertford. Several generations of the marquesses had been collecting lots of art, and the 4th Marquess lived in Paris during the time of the French Revolution. A lot of furniture, paintings, porcelain went on sale after the revolt and the marquess bought lots of it. Wallace eventually inherited the collection and brought it back to London.

Some of the highlights include
~ Many beautiful sets of Sèvres porcelain (It boasts the finest museum collection in the world. I think the best collection is in the Queen's collection.)
~ French Rococco paintings by Boucher and Fragonard
~ Furniture used to belong to Louis XV and Marie-Antonette; and also 'Boulle' marquetry furniture
~ Great collection of Dutch paintings, including Rembrandt's Titus, and the most famous painting there - The Laughing Cavalier by Frans Hals.

Wallace's widow bequeathed the collection to the nation, but with the terms that "nothing may be added to it or taken away." Hence, one has to travel to the museum to see its art as nothing are allowed to go on loan.
http://www.wallacecollection.org

I ate lunch at the new Wallace Restaurant. It is in the enclosed courtyard and a beautiful setting. One-half of the courtyard is for dining a la carte. The other half is for a cheaper "light fare." Since I was in a hurry, I went for the light fare.

The menu is quite french, to go along with the collection. I ordered a plate of melon and prosciutto. I think this is the only non-French dish on the menu. Lunch was quite expensive at £11. The service was also not the best. The waitstaff is nice, but terribly understaffed.

I wish I had more time to spend at the museum, but I had to get going as I wanted to take another walk with London Walks.

I walked to Oxford Street and joined the 2pm Old Marylebone Walk. Given it was a Saturday, the group is quite a bit larger than the Hampstead one I took a few days earlier. We had about 30 people. The guide actually took us inside the Wallace Collection, and it was nice to pick up some tidbits that I had missed.

The walk started near Bond Street, but ended in Baker Street. It was nice, but I think I enjoyed the Hampstead Walk more.
http://www.walks.com/Homepage/Saturday/default.aspx#157

After the walk, yes, you guessed it right, I went back to Northumberland House for my afternoon nap. I had to energize myself for the evening.

My last art stop was Tate Modern for it's Dali and Film exhibit. To get there, I took the bus to St Paul's Catherdral and then crossed the river. I had also pre-booked the exhibition ticket for 6:30pm entry (Tate Modern is open late on Saturdays), which was again not necessary.

This was a huge show. Very crowded also (it closed the following day). A lot of Dali's paintings are quite small in size, so it's hard to get close enough to see the details without being pushed aside. It has several films on view, including Un Chien Andalou, L'Age d'or, and the Disney movie Destino. I had seen some of these in a previous Dali show "It's All Dali!" in Rotterdam. My favorite is the photographs shown in the last room from the book Dali's Mustache - a photographic interview by Philippe Halsman.

One could easily spend hours at this show, and I wish I had known that as I would have skipped my nap and gone earlier.

I had about 20 minutes to spare before leaving for dinner, so I rushed through the 2 floors of permanent collection. It was really quite a shame I had so little time. Even though I last visited Tate Modern in 2006, I believe the curators have rehung most of the permanent exhibits. I was able to pause for a few moments in my favorite gallery - the Rothko Seagram Murals room.

I left Tate Modern at 8:15pm as I was meeting fellow Fodorite 111op and his mom for dinner at 9pm near Goodge Street. I walked back to St Paul's and took the tube to Tottenham Court Road. It turns out I had more time than I thought, so I got out there and walked towards Goodge Street instead of changing for the Northern line.

111op had made reservation at Pied à Terre on Charlotte Street. I know that area very well as way back when I spent 8 months living in a dorm on Charlotte Street, just a block or 2 from the restaurant.

Even though our reservation was for 9pm, we weren't seated until 9:15. We waited upstairs at the bar, which was completely empty. All 3 of us decided to go for the £80 tasting menu.

I asked for tap water, and 111op joked that I had to nerve to order tap water at such a fancy restaurant. I thought overall the food was good - but not great. The tasting menu had 9 courses:
Oyster, Scallop, Foie Gras, Halibut, Lamb (the main course), sorbet (palette cleanser), cheese, dessert, and then petit fours. You can see the menu here:
http://www.pied-a-terre.co.uk/default.asp?V_ITEM_ID=81
(Our first course was changed to poached oyster as they had run out of tuna.) We also had an assortment of amuse-bouche before our first course.

You can see photos of the food taken by 111op (begins with photo 36)
http://tinyurl.com/34qekb

My favorite course was the lamb. Several of the dishes were rather salty. I was glad we ordered tap water - otherwise we would probably consume several bottles of mineral water because of the salty food!!! The service was fine - but we noticed multiple waitstaff dropped a number of things. I found out (much) later that Pied à Terre actually has 2 Michelin stars. I have to say, I have never dined at any Michelin-starred restaurant. I don't think our dinner experience deserves 2 stars. Since we didn't order any other drinks, our bill was £90pp.

It was fun to catch up with 111op again (I think we meet up once or twice a year?), but I hope his mom wasn't too bored.

By the time we finished, it was almost midnight. We caught the tube back to Northumberland House - they were staying there also.

I'd forgotten to comment on the clumsy waitstaff.

It was fun to see you again also -- and thanks again for taking the time to help with my reservation problem at Northumberland.

My mom enjoyed meeting you again -- actually she remembered that when we met in 2005, you didn't wear glasses. I, of course, didn't remember.

For what it's worth, her favorite was the foie gras. She also thought it was better than Da Fiore.

Personally I still haven't had a really, really memorable dining experience. I mean, these places are nice, but $180 for a meal? Ultimately I don't think that that money spent is really worth it, but it is a nice experience dining at these places.

It's like buying a shirt for $350. Could a cotton shirt really be worth for $350?

I think that there were some interesting flavors apart from salty. The chef is Australian, and I think there're some Asian influences.

By the way I checked the paper edition of the Michelin 2007 guide for London today. Yes, the restaurant does have **. So I guess this was a good way for you to embark on your culinary adventure (even it was a little disappointing -- as these experiences usually end up, as I said).

Gordon Ramsay is still the only restaurant in London with 3 Michelin stars.

yk: totally enjoying your report.

Cova: Hello dear. I'm sick in bed, but have the laptop, which is fun.

I wish I knew who Orlando Bloom is! I feel out of it. However, I do like Brendan Fraser, and Blast From the Past is genius. Christopher Walken is so amazing.

By the way, I should add that as a point of comparison, we spent 229 euros at Da Fiore, and I left a 10 euro tip. So Da Fiore wasn't much cheaper than Pied a Terre. I'd say that P a T was actually reasonable value -- if I dare say so. Da Fiore has one star, but Pied a Terre has two.

And we just ate at a Japanese restaurant tonight near Union Square. It was about $80 a person.

Sadly money just doesn't go far these days.

It turns out that Tom Aikens used to work at Pied a Terre before he branched out on his own. I'd be interested to try out his Michelin-starred restaurant next time.

Thanks for another great report yk - we seem to head to London about the same time! I have the RA exhibit on my list this time, stopping for breakfast at the Wolseley first. Glad to hear that it's a good exhibit.

I have 3 London Wlks planned and Old Marylebone is one of them - was it just the crowd that made it not as great as the Hampstead Walk? Does it cover the great Regency architecture in the area?

I really like the Wallace Collection, not just the art but also to ge a feel of what a London town home was like in those years.

Thanks again for the report - I know they take a lot of commitment to finish.

kmowatt - When are you leaving for London? Have a great trip! Apart from serving a good breakfast, I've read that Wolseley offers a good afternoon tea as well.

The Marylebone walk doesn't cover any architecture, IIRC. The guide mainly focused on the history of that district. Basically we started at Bond Street station, went up St Christopher's Place, then to Marylebone Lane, up to Wallace Collection (we spent about 30-45mins there), to Marylebone High, to Paddington Gardens, and lastly, about 15 minutes in Regent's Park. It wasn't so much about the size of the group, but more of just people (local folks) everywhere. It was still interesting to me, as that is an area of London I've never really spent time in. It's just that if I have to compare the 2 walks, I like Hampstead more. I think these London Walks are a great way to see the city as the guides take our concentration away from the shops and restaurants and focus on history. This is the first time I've taken any London Walks, and I'm definitely take more in future trips.

Day 6
Time to head home

It was hard to believe the week flew by so quickly. My flight out of LGW was at 10:20am, so I got up early and checked out at around 6:15am.

Even though I could take the train from Charing Cross to Gatwick, I decided not to risk my luck on this Sunday morning.

I have been burned before getting to LGW on a Sunday morning - I almost missed the flight. It seems like the railway companies tend to do track maintainence on Sundays and cut down or cancel trains on Sundays.

I decided to take a bus to Victoria Station and then take the Southern train to Gatwick. And if there is a hiccup on the Southern service, I can always fall back on Gatwick Express as Plan B.

There was supposed to be a Southern train at 7am for Gatwick. When I got to Victoria station, the announcement board indicated that all Southern trains that morning would be departing from Blackfriars station instead of Victoria. Of course, without any hesitation, I went for the Gatwick Express (£15.90 1-way).

I got on the 6:45am GEX and arrived LGW at 7:20am. At the AA check-in desk, I asked about upgrading to Business Class. Afterall, this was my birthday present to myself. The gate agent indicated that the J cabin is full, and even if a seat opens up, my co-pay would be $300 + £80 (the UK airport tax). I passed. $300 is one thing, but $460 is a lot...

Thanks to my brother who had been checking the seat map on my behalf while I was in London, he managed to change my middle seat to an aisle seat. The return flight actually wasn't too bad. I watched Ocean's Thirteen and finished reading an excellent book - City of Falling Angels. The food on this flight was edible.

We were expected to arrive 20 minutes early, but due to thunderstorms in DFW, we had to cirle around and around. At one point, we were threatenend to divert because our plane was running low on fuel. Fortunately, we finally were allowed to land and arrived almost 30 minutes late.

I really like the immigration at DFW. Never a line and folks are friendly. Since I had no checked luggage (I managed to squeeze my purse into my rollaboard at LGW to comply with the 1-bag rule), I was out at curbside within 15 minutes of deplaning.

Overall, a lovely week in London despite how expensive it is. London remains my favorite European city. To quote Samuel Johnson, "when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life." Fortunately, that hasn't happened to me yet!

I will post a review of Northumberland House and also my total expense for this trip shortly.

How full was your flight?

Our flight out of Heathrow was quite empty. I got our seats changed to the bulkhead row (I asked for exit row, and I was told that wasn't available, and I had to ask what bulkhead means...). I noticed that there were quite a number of seats empty in the middle section and there were some people who were able to lie down and sleep.

I also noticed that AA has published E-savers for London from JFK for less than $400. (Not sure if that fare includes taxes -- I think so.)

It looks like the summer travel rush is over.

I've really enjoyed your report. Thanks for all the links to the sights. Any other pictures besides food?

Review of Northumberland House
http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/vacations/residences/northumberland.htm

As I have mentioned previously, this is one of the dorms belong to LSE. In my many previous trips to London, I've always used Priceline and got a good deal. But when I found out about Northumberland (thanks to Fodorite WillTravel and 111op), I realized no Priceline deal can match it's rate. A single en-suite room is £42. No breakfast, but that is not a big deal for me as I usually don't eat breakfast anyway.

There are other LSE dorms that are cheaper and include breakfast, but majority of them do not have private bathrooms. And who can beat the prime location of Northumberland House???

My single room is small, but I'd say about average size for a European single. It measures approx 15'x15'. The bathroom is extremely small, maybe 3'x3'. It's fine for me to stay there for 5 nights, but I feel bad for the students who stay in these rooms for months...

The room has a single bed, bedside table with a reading lamp, a desk and chair, and a full length closet with drawers. Amenities are minimum - bedsheets, blanket, 1 bath towel and 1 hand towel and that's it. No alarm clock, no TV, no hairdryer, and there is no soap (fortunately I brought one with me). I got fresh towels every day, and the trash is emptied daily.

The bathroom is so small (with shower only) that the entire bathroom floor is wet after a shower.

Even though it's located in a busy part of town, my room faces the inside of the building. I kept my window open at night and it's very quiet. Also, in the section where my room is, all the other rooms are singles. So, apart from no TV noises, there's no one talking aloud as there's no one to talk to! The House also has a rule for quiet hours from 11p-7a.

I slept very well. I found the mattress very comfortable, more so than the ones I've slept on at 4* hotels.

There is a communal kitchen for every 6-7 rooms. I did not use it but I peeked inside. There is a stove, 2 fridges, an electric kettle, a microwave. I don't think there are any cooking utensils but I'm not 100% sure. In the basement of the building is a laundry room, but I didn't check it out.

The location, again, is great. As you have noticed, I took buses for the majority of my trip. There are so many bus lines that go pass Trafalgar Sq and Charing Cross that one can practically go everywhere in London by bus. I enjoy taking buses more than the tube because it allows me to see the city rather than underground. Of course, the bus is cheaper as well.

Overall, I find it an excellent value for a single. Where else can I stay for so little $ in the heart of London? But I would only recommend it to folks who truly are not fussy about their accomodation. Also, if I were on a trip with DH, I would stick with Priceline.

I seriously think that only 111op, his mom, and myself are the only people who stay at a dorm yet eat at 2* Michelin restaurants.

< How full was your flight? >

The J cabin was full. Not sure about F. In Y, it's about 80% full. There were some empty seats in the middle section (it's 2-5-2). My seat was the aisle of a "2". The man who sat in the windown seat next to me never got up once. Not ONCE! And this was a 10-hr flight! I think I got up to use the bathroom at least 3 times.

What's the Damage?

Flight: $708 + $300 (1-way upgrade)
Accomodation: £213.50 (5 nights)
Transportation (all public transport): £52
Admission fees: £66
Entertainment (1 play, 1 concert): £47.5
London Walks: £12
Food (1 tea, 1 breakfast, 4 lunches, 4 dinners): £214
Snacks: £12
Guidebook and Programmes: £10

I didn't do any shopping except for a few postcards, and while I was at LGW waiting for my flight home.

Total: about $2262 (using £1=$2)

---------------------------
I forgot to mention, while at LGW, I spent most of my time at the BA Terraces Lounge. I have PLT status on AA, so I got an invite to use the lounge. I like it more than the Admirals Club lounge in DFW. There's some snacks for breakfast (croissants, biscuits, cereal), and lots of reading materials. It was a nice way to spend my time since I arrived at LGW so early.

Well for me there's a huge premium on location. I'm not fussy about amenities since I hardly stay in the hotel. For example, on this trip to London we checked in at 2 am. I was out at 6:10 am for a wedding. I got back around 8 pm and changed briefly and then met you for dinner. After dinner I went out until about 4 am. Then we checked out at 10:30 am.

So though Northumberland House is a dorm, I found it perfectly adequate -- except for the way they handled that reservation mixup. I don't see any way I can beat that location for that price.

And they even offered free internet access!

I guess it's just a personal choice. Obviously I can see the argument that even if you just spend a few hours in a hotel room, a nicer one is better. I'm just more interseted in eating. So I prefer to splurge on meals than on hotels.

One thing that I don't think you mentioned -- Northumberland offered towels but not soap. I couldn't believe it. Fortunately I was with my mom, and she had a small bar of soap with her. I guess that's thing about traveling with mom -- that she has anything that you can possibly need on the trip. I'd not have thought that I'd need to bring my own soap.

I was very surprised that she managed to pack everything into a carryon and even stuffed her handbag in at LHR so we complied with the one-bag rule.

Photos

I've decided to post the photos on my trip report on Travelerstogo. It includes photos of Brendan Fraser and Orlando Bloom. Here's the link:
http://p099.ezboard.com/feuropetogofrm16.showMessageRange?topicID=383.topic

Hi yk!
I leave next Saturday morning!

My cousin stayed at the Covent Garden LSE accommodation and thought it couldn't be beat for the price also - her room was private en-suite as well as small kitchenette; located just around the corner from the M&S on Long Acre this came in very handy - I'd definitely do the dorm thing when travelling solo.

Thanks for the review of the Marylebone walk - based on that, I think I'll skip it and do my own walk up Portland Place and into Park Crescent. I'm very familiar with the route you took on the walk and have seen the Wallace Collection twice already.

I'm really looking forward to the terracotta warriors exhibit at the BM - I see on the website that they are releasing tickets every morning at opening so still a chance to get in!

You made a good point about the dorm. Nearby the Northumberland House are:
Tesco Express
Marks & Spencer Food Mart
Pret-a-Manger

Thanks for the review of London School of Economics accommodations. I have wondered about staying there...

yk, thanks for another well-done, detailed report. I have already forgotten so much from my trip, and my London stay was just before yours.

It's interesting that you would mention the crashing dishes at the restaurant. The last time I was in London, we ate dinner late at night at the Wolseley (never again-my friend COULD NOT finish his steak-and he eats anything, it was so tough, but their desserts were good) and then, crash! we heard what sounded like a hundred plates hitting the floor-you could hear it throughout the entire restaurant-everyone stopped talking for a few seconds, the noise was so loud. The next day I went to a tearoom, crash! I heard a smaller number of plates falling to the floor in the kitchen, at which point I was thinking to myself ah, yes, I AM here in London, home of the less than stellar waitstaff... Then, I swear, the next night we went to another upscale restaurant in the West End, and, once again, crash! out on the floor one of the wait staff dropped a couple of dishes! At this point I was expecting it, but it did make me wonder. What is up with the clumsy waitstaff in London?

Well, Girlspy, the waitstaff didn't drop any dishes during our meal. I think they dropped some utensils a few times. The other thing I didn't mention is that all the waitstaff at Pied a Terre have heavy accents. When they brought our dishes out and annoucned what they were, we had a hard time understanding what they were saying.

topping for anyone else who's interested

Thanks, I really enjoyed reading your report. I'm intrigued by the dorm accomodations and will look into them in the future.

Thank you so much for the great trip report. I'm headed to London at Thanksgiving and hadn't been aware of the new Terracotta Army exhibit at the British Museum. Thanks to you, I'm buying an ticket now to secure entry!!

If only you could give me advice on how to secure a ticket to Led Zeppelin's reunion concert.

thanks again. Pat.

yk, while I don't post on TTG I frequently check in there and was delighted to find your photos. WOW. great shots, thanks a bunch.

Aloooha yk!

Answering your question here. What a fabulous meal you shared! Isn't he the sweetest?!?

I met him at work. First I was working another movie while my husband was working School Ties - his and many others breakout movie - in the town of Concord, MA. I then worked with him on With Honours, shot around Harvard and Cambridge - the night of the wrap was the memorable embrace and kiss! The hug was huge and heartfelt and the kiss grazed my cheek with sincerity. I then worked with him on one other occasion doing Mrs Winterbourne. He was with a girlfriend, who may now be his wife. He was sooooo in love.

I just new from that platonical hug and kiss the kind of person I was with....a very generous, kind and cureous, gracious gentleman. And 10 years after, it seems I was right!

kealalani -
What a great story to tell! We actually talked a bit about Massachusetts during our dinner (before I knew who he was). I told him I spent 8 years in Boston (for school), and he said he spent some time in Middlesex County in the early 1990s (must be when he was shooting School Ties). He even remarked that we both began our careers in MA!

What a great trip report. Thank you! Marlybone High Street has (had? hope it is still there!) one of my favorite bookshops--Daunts - A bookstore for travelers