Ray

Well I got stuck there snowed in for 5 days ...poxy village...

Just Jenney

Wow, thanks so much for the newest suggestions! It's so exciting to look up some of these options, trying to figure out what to do and where to go. Unfortunately for me, Mark isn't as enthusiastic about the trip planning as I am (no surprise there), while he's the one with the most "insider knowledge" so it's sort of weird, in a way.

USAA confirmed that they do NOT cover our car rental internationally. I thought I had read that somewhere, but I must just have misunderstood. Cindy, I may very well be taking you up on your offer! And Wayne -- yeah, I'll be in touch about the London activities. Thanks to both of you for being so kind. I'll contact you directly via PM later.

Mark's opinion is that we're better off just renting a car for the whole time but if/when we go to London, we'll take a train there and back. It's insanity trying to drive and park there -- we'd rather just pay to take the train. Like I said earlier, we won't be spending much time in London at all, so it's definitely a good idea to have the car for the remaining time that we're over there.

I'm wondering if it's worthwhile renting a cell phone during our trip. I'd thought about it, if only so that his family (and mine back home) can get in contact with us if necessary. However, we don't use a cell phone now anyway, so it's not like it would be awkward traveling without one. I've looked at CellularAbroad.com, where you can rent the National Geographic phones. Anyway have any comments/feedback about that?

Oh -- I mentioned to Mark about people's recommendations about going to Bath (his parents have been there and said they really liked it as well), and his response was, "It's basically like Cambridge, only farther away" -- what do you all think?

~ Jenney

Dan B

I spent sometime pretending to be clever in Cambridge as well. Totally different. The buildings are the same colour though, so that's probably what he mean't.

Also, if you are down Bath way, and like Harry Potter, you can walk around Lacock Cloisters and see where they filmed a lot of the scenes.

Elvira

Okay, I don't have time to read through all this, so apologies if any of these is repetitive, but here goes:

Gardens:

Royal Horticultural Gardens just outside London:

http://www.rhs.org.uk/WhatsOn/Gardens/wisley/

The Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew

St. James's Park, Kensington Gardens/Serpentine....... etc...

Alternatives to the Visitors' Bus Tours:

Use your daily travel cards for the normal buses - routes 24, 38, 14, 74, 52 are some of the good routes that spring to mind - but get a bus map from a travel centre at one of the main railway stations (eg Victoria).

Free Museums and Art Galleries (but do try to donate a few $$$.... someone has to pay for the upkeep....):

- British Museum (a must - you need at least a day for this...)
- Natural History
- Science
- Victoria & Albert
- Imperial War Museum
- National Gallery (a must)
- National Portrait Gallery
- Tate Britain (a must - for the Turners alone!)
- Tate Modern

You may not have time for all of the above - check them out in a decent guidebook like the one by Dorling Kindersley.

Alternatives to the London Eye - you get a great and free view of London from the top of St. Paul's as well as the monument. (I think you probably have to pay to get into St. Paul's, but it's definitely worth a visit, as is Westminster Abbey). I think they are free on Sundays...

Theatre:

Go to the National Theatre website *now* and find out when the Travelex tickets for May go on sale - book them as soon as they become available. (10 quid for very good seats - a bargain.)
Half-price tickets from the OFFICIAL ticket booth in Leicester Square (do not be fooled by the dozen or so other outfits in the vicinity!) Tickets go on sale at 10 am each day.

Royal Opera + Ballet:

Book now for cheap tickets (from 8 pounds):

http://esales.roh.org.uk/tickets/res...px?perfid=4016

The Half-Price Booth in Leicester Square sometimes has tickets for shows at the ENO too.

Check out Time Out for what's on in London. Read a book on exploring London on foot. Bring comfortable shoes. And a brolly - just in case...

Elvira

Jenney - you want to spend as much time as possible in London. There is no place like it - it is the greatest city on earth! You want to give yourself time to enjoy everything it has to offer, otherwise you'll just get frazzled trying to do too much in too little time.

As for the cellphone, I would suggest you get one of Mark's relatives to order a Virgin PAYG phone - reconditioned phones sell for as little as 10 pounds, and the rates are very good, with no minimal charge.

basementwaj

you should go to Saffron Walden...... its 2 mins away and one of the oldest and most beautiful towns in the UK.....

Tootsie Frickensprinkles

Awww ... Suffolk's never had that much snow in my life time

Ray

I think it was around 1973 ..
The whole place was cut off for a week ..I think it was the
Swan Inn I had to stay in ....

Englishmum

Here's a link for free and cheap things to do in the UK from the UK Tourist Board site, 'Visit Britain':

http://www.visitbritain.us/things-to...lers/features/


You can even buy an Oyster card before you leave the US, just scroll down to the bottom of the page on the same link as above and click on the 'shop now' icon (when the page comes up, the info is for some weird reason, halfway down the page!).

Pharrya

Seriously? There's the 'maze', the 'castle' and ,er,um ?

cindyabs

I like the name, .

If it has an old church, then I'm done!!

Just Jenney

I remember seeing road signs for Saffron Waldon around Bishop's Stortford, but we never actually went there. Being that it's in England, I'd be shocked if there wasn't an old church there! Out of curiosity, I looked Saffron Walden up on Wikipedia:

Saffron Walden is home to the largest parish church in Essex. St. Mary the Virgin dates mainly from the end of the 15th century, when the previously existing and smaller church was extensively rebuilt in flint. In 1769 it was damaged by lightning and the repairs, carried out in the 1790s, removed many of the medieval features. The present spire was added in 1832 to replace an older ‘lantern’ tower. The church is 183 feet (56 m) long and the spire 193 feet (59 m) high, and is the tallest in Essex.

So, there you go.

~ Jenney

Just Jenney

Ok, I have another question for all of you: Where would you recommend exchanging US dollars for UK pounds?

I think we're going to bring some travelers cheques, because those are easy to use (and refundable if lost/stolen). But we'll need some cash on us when we get there, I suppose. The problem is that the banks just charge horrendous fees, and the exchange rate is already crappy enough as it is.

I actually work in the study abroad office of a university, so I deal with both American students going abroad as well as international students studying here. I emailed a couple of the UK exchange students and asked if they'd be willing to trade about $50 for pounds -- just a simple exchange at the going rate, no fees or anything involved. One said he didn't have that much with him (which is possible, I guess) and the other never responded. Oh well. It was worth a shot.

~ Jenney

cindyabs

I use my ATM from BOA at Barclay's no additional charges. 5 bucks though to use Lloyd's!!!

Dan B

just use the cash machines when you are over there.