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Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Tracula posted:

I wanted to check something here. I had already posted a thread about it but wanted to double check here in case my thread falls through the cracks. I'm going to be going to the UK for a period of time to stay with a friend, about four months. I'm going to be taking some computer components along: hard drive, motherboard, power supply (maybe), etc. I'm positive I can package them safely. I've got static bags, bubble wrap, foam, etc. Is there anything I should know about putting them in a carry on, such as if they need to be declared or anything? It is some circuitry with loose wires and poo poo bundled with it and I admit to a fair degree of paranoia about flying since it always feels like everyone is pretty jumpy about stuff.

You're not going to get shot at by TSA if that's what you're asking, but it will almost certainly be a pain in the rear end. Maybe you should look into laptop computers instead of bringing a bitcoin miner.

To be somewhat less snarky, also keep in mind that the voltage is different in Europe (220V), so your power supply might not work (it probably will, but check--e.g. the Xbox power supplies do not work on the normal voltage ranges).

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Tracula
Mar 26, 2010

PLEASE LEAVE

Saladman posted:

You're not going to get shot at by TSA if that's what you're asking, but it will almost certainly be a pain in the rear end. Maybe you should look into laptop computers instead of bringing a bitcoin miner.

To be somewhat less snarky, also keep in mind that the voltage is different in Europe (220V), so your power supply might not work (it probably will, but check--e.g. the Xbox power supplies do not work on the normal voltage ranges).

Well I'm going to be spending a few months there and the friend I'm staying with does have a spare case and power supply as well as some other things. It would really be a matter as simple as sticking it all in the case and hooking it up once more. I do have an old as dirt laptop I plan to take as a backup but having my primary machine while over there would be nice.

Arnold of Soissons
Mar 4, 2011

by XyloJW
Honestly, it seems like it would be a lot simpler to just bring it as a tower.

I had a Turkish style coffee grinder that is basically a long metal tube with a bunch of interlocking gears inside, and I brought that through a number of international check ins in several countries and never had a serious problem, but I did always pack it on top and wait near by so I could explain.

Mango Polo
Aug 4, 2007
Hey Euro Goons, I've got a few more questions concerning my Iceland roadtrip (8 days).

The plan is doing the golden circle then driving to Vatnajoekull/Skaftafell National Parks.



I'm wondering:
1) Is there anything else of note to see along the way to Vatnajoekull/Skaftafell? Or any specific recommendations actually.
2) Is there anything that would be better done on the way back? Seems a bit sad to drive almost 400km and then come back to Reykjavik via the same route with nothing to do.
3) Any specific spots good to stop & sleep over on that route?
4) What's the best way to sign up for the various tours outside of Reykjavik, like the boating & jeeps?

Alkazard.exe
Mar 25, 2008
I'm not sure exactly what you're looking for, but I'm heading there in two weeks and just finishing deciding which ones to do.
I've been looking through http://www.extremeiceland.is/ which seems good. I don't know if there are cheaper sites around, but I'm not expecting any of them to be cheap tours anyway, let alone in Scandinavia.

MOVIE MAJICK
Jan 4, 2012

by Pragmatica
I want to take a ferry from Split to Italy, preferably a town close to Rome. What's a good way to do this? Online booking? The sites I've looked at are unintuitive as gently caress. Can I just walk up and get a ticket reliably?

In the middle of my Europe trip right now. Been to Berlin, Prague and Budapest. Budapest is loving amazing had to stay here past my plan. Prague sucked a bit. Berlin was also awesome.

Rojkir
Jun 26, 2007

WARNING:I AM A FASCIST PIECE OF SHIT.
Police beatings get me hard
Ferries you can almost always (99.9%) just walk up as long as you don;t have a vehicle with you.

Kase Im Licht
Jan 26, 2001

duralict posted:

Scandinavia is much more expensive so if you want to spend your money on booze, go south. Copenhagen actually has great flight connections to everything north of the Alps, but you'll have a hard time getting back there cheaply from the Mediterranean. Based on what you said before about what you're looking to do, Berlin and London are both excellent choices. Berlin is considerably cheaper and has a confusingly vast variety of nightlife so I'd point you more in that direction. It makes more sense on paper to go to London if you want to also see Amsterdam, but if you're flying it really won't matter because they're both like an hour flight.

I'd still advise against any more than three main stops, since you only have ten days. You can easily squeeze more stuff in as day trips but switching hostels every night is exhausting and you waste a lot of time on handling logistics.

Thanks for the advice. I'm glad I didn't come back here for more suggestions every time I thought we had decided on an itinerary, since we inevitably switched to something else 3 days later. Next time I do this I'm just making the plan and inviting people to join. None of this consensus bullshit. We're wasting a lot of money on flights that we wouldn't have if we just booked everything a couple weeks ago. Oh well.

We were super close to doing a berlin/prague thing in addition to CPH, but literally just today, two weeks before this is all going down, decided to fly from Copenhagen to Belgium/Netherlands, where we will rent a car and then drive around visiting various places before heading back to Denmark and then back home. We're going to do 2-3 days in Amsterdam, probably a couple in Belgium, and then have a couple more to be flexible with.

Any suggestions of places to see in Belgium/Netherlands? Could be cities to stay in or just places to stop by on our way between cities. We could also sneak into Germany or France but probably wouldn't want to go too far. Random, off the beaten path stuff is good. I think we'll get a good chunk of our partying quota out of the way in Amsterdam. What are the beaches like?

I really want to go to a Monastery where they make Belgian beer.

Rojkir
Jun 26, 2007

WARNING:I AM A FASCIST PIECE OF SHIT.
Police beatings get me hard

Kase Im Licht posted:

We're going to do 2-3 days in Amsterdam, probably a couple in Belgium, and then have a couple more to be flexible with.

Any suggestions of places to see in Belgium/Netherlands? Could be cities to stay in or just places to stop by on our way between cities. We could also sneak into Germany or France but probably wouldn't want to go too far. Random, off the beaten path stuff is good. I think we'll get a good chunk of our partying quota out of the way in Amsterdam. What are the beaches like?

I don't have many unique off the beaten path advice, but it's probably best to leave the car at home for your amsterdam leg. Parking fees are murderous. If you take it anyway, it's maybe best to park it at a transferium like at Amsterdam Arena, but please google it in advance, if there is some mega concert there your hosed anyway. I guess your arriving soon, so forget the beaches for anything other than hiking (except if you're into kitesurfing or something), this spring is one of the coldest in years. Off the beaten path I think Belgium has some awesome world war one stuff and the breweries you mentioned. I guess if you have a car the deltawerken dikes in Zeeland are pretty epic for a quick sight. The Netherlands also has a bunch of pretty cool cities, Rotterdam is cool if you want to see how poo poo was build up after the Germans leveled it 60 years ago, makes for a nice contrast with most historical centres you find in the Benelux. Rotterdam can be combined with Kinderdijk (not off the beaten path tourist trap), which is a bunch of windmills. Similar trap like is Volendam/Marken, but many tourists seem to go there so it must have something going for it (makes a nice bicylce daytrip from Amsterdam if you're fit and used to cycling) In general: Just rent a bicycle and see where it takes you.
I love Groningen (good for boozing, doesn't close) and Maastricht (good for eating and boozing in what feels like a middle ages town), but they're kind of out the of way. Utrecht is nice as well, 30 minutes by train from Amsterdam.

Doctor Malaver
May 23, 2007

Ce qui s'est passé t'a rendu plus fort

WYA posted:

I want to take a ferry from Split to Italy, preferably a town close to Rome. What's a good way to do this? Online booking? The sites I've looked at are unintuitive as gently caress. Can I just walk up and get a ticket reliably?

In the middle of my Europe trip right now. Been to Berlin, Prague and Budapest. Budapest is loving amazing had to stay here past my plan. Prague sucked a bit. Berlin was also awesome.

I think ferries from Split go to Ancona only. The only other line I've heard of is Split - Pescara but it's not available at the moment.

Jerry Manderbilt
May 31, 2012

No matter how much paperwork I process, it never goes away. It only increases.
I'll be in Copenhagen while in Europe; are there any hip or cool bars or cafes to hit up in the city? Has anyone ever been to Hamlet's Castle?

Alkazard.exe
Mar 25, 2008

Typical Belgian places to visit are Ghent, Brussels and Brugges. Brussels is pretty cool by all regards. Ghent is a bit of a university town, Brugges is a more.. historical type of town, I guess is my awful description of it. More relaxed, old buildings, "Christ's blood" etc.

Mango Polo
Aug 4, 2007

Alkazard.exe posted:

I'm not sure exactly what you're looking for, but I'm heading there in two weeks and just finishing deciding which ones to do.
I've been looking through http://www.extremeiceland.is/ which seems good. I don't know if there are cheaper sites around, but I'm not expecting any of them to be cheap tours anyway, let alone in Scandinavia.

Thanks, that looks interesting. At the very least it's a nice list of activities to consider.

Arnold of Soissons
Mar 4, 2011

by XyloJW

Kase Im Licht posted:

I really want to go to a Monastery where they make Belgian beer.

I'm fairly positive that none of the monasteries offer public tours, although I would be happy to be mistaken.

fake edit: I guess I'll look them all up and we'll find out together

Westvleteren and Westmalle have café's within sight of the actual monasteries, but the grounds of the monestaries are closed to visitors, period the end. Chimay seems like it's the same deal, the only brewery visit mentioned on the entire website is a "virtual visit" where you can look at some photos.

The monastery where they brew Orval is open to visitors with a guided tour, but you can't go into the brewery, it's only around the grounds and the ruins of one of the old buildings.

The monastery where they brew Rochefort seems to be open for Mass and to offer lodging for groups of 20 or more, but not for tourism. I don't have Brew Like a Monk handy, but if I recall correctly this is the one that is supposed to be the most beautiful brewing room on earth.

The monastery where they brew Achel is open to the public for Mass but nothing else, and they brewery is listed as "no visits."

The monastery where they brew La Trappe offers brewery tours which look like they might be outside the buildings only, but I'm not positive. It isn't in Belgium, but it's just on the other side of the Netherlands border. You can contact them here to set up a visit. This is news to me and I'll be heading there soonish. 10€ per head, daily at 2pm or saturdays at 1:30 and 3:30 pm. There are also more expensive tours available on request. They don't explicitly mention that the tours are available in languages other than Dutch, but I'm sure English tours are available.

Sint Bernardus will show you where their beer is made, which is where Westvleteren used to be made, and it is actually in Belgium, although kind of off the beaten path. I've done this tour and it was very nice. Contact them here.

I don't know when you'll be visiting, but if you want some beer stuff to do in Belgium, Cantiollon's open brew day is worth going to. They have one at the opening and another at the end of brewing season, but the next one isn't until November. You can stick your head in and see the rows of aging beers any time, though. If you show up during normal business hours, they'll show you the rows of aging beers and you can buy a bottle and enjoy it and pet the cat.

Arnold of Soissons fucked around with this message at 11:35 on May 25, 2013

Doctor Teeth
Sep 12, 2008


I'm in Groningen, Netherlands for a week for work. Most of my time will be occupied by that, but I was hoping to get some ideas from locals/confirmations that my ideas are good (places to go, places to eat, activities to do, etc.). I'm looking at:

Groninger Museum
Museum de buitenplaats
Martinitoren/kerk
Pancake Ship (supposedly touristy as hell but it sounds cool so I don't care)

I'm really looking for a place with good wines as well.

Regarding English usage, should I begin by saying I don't speak Dutch (Ik spreek geen Nederlands, correct?) or should I just start speaking in English? Will people get annoyed with me one way or the other?

Arnold of Soissons
Mar 4, 2011

by XyloJW

Doctor Teeth posted:

Regarding English usage, should I begin by saying I don't speak Dutch (Ik spreek geen Nederlands, correct?) or should I just start speaking in English? Will people get annoyed with me one way or the other?

If you walk up and start in English pretty much no one will say anything or be rude to you and they will all understand and reply in English, but if you ask if English is Ok first they will all think you are being more polite. "Is English Ok?" is fine, the Dutch would be "Mag ik in Engels spreken?"

Rojkir
Jun 26, 2007

WARNING:I AM A FASCIST PIECE OF SHIT.
Police beatings get me hard
I think Louis XV has good wines, but I'm not a big wine consumer. Jazzcafe de Spieghel has a good atmosphere and is nice if you like Jazz. Der Witz is a well known typical Dutch cafe (I love it). I haven't been in Groningen for a while and I'm not really sure anymore where the food is good now (the Japanese restaurant on Grote Markt is probably a safe bet, expensive though). Language wise you're fine either way, everyone speaks English.

elbkaida
Jan 13, 2008
Look!

elbkaida posted:

Does anyone have recommendations for cool stuff to do/see in France in the area between the German border, Lyon and Paris? I will be traveling through and am not in a hurry.

Quoting myself from last page, nobody with tips on eastern France?

sweek0
May 22, 2006

Let me fall out the window
With confetti in my hair
Deal out jacks or better
On a blanket by the stairs
I'll tell you all my secrets
But I lie about my past
Going to Slovenia with some friends in just over a week... We've got a lot organised, mostly spending our time around Lake Bohinj and Ljubljana. Anything particular anyone would recommend?

Kinkajou
Jan 6, 2004

Any good day hiking recommendations for Norway, Sweden or Iceland? The whole trip is about 35 days and we'll have a car for all of it. I know Norway is a hiker's wet dream, but I'm having a little more trouble with finding great hikes in Sweden.

El Wombato
Mar 19, 2008

Mexican Marsupial
I've got (hopefully) about two weeks after a conference in Berlin this summer, and I've been going over two possible routes and wanted some input.

First route would take me west across northern Germany to Belgium, maybe the Netherlands as well.

Second would go south along eastern Germany, through Austria, and then northern Italy.

The main pro of the first one is, of course, the beer, but I feel like the food and sights might be better on the second. I'm a little worried about the crime in Italy, though, since I'm traveling alone. I'm also not sure if the second is too much travel for two weeks, seems like I might spend half my time on trains.

Anyone have any recommendations either way?

MOVIE MAJICK
Jan 4, 2012

by Pragmatica
My girlfriend wants to go to Romania but she has a phobia of dogs. Is it as bad with strays as they say it is? Will the dogs approach you in packs? She's almost fine with Single dogs but if more than one approach she gets anxiou

HookShot
Dec 26, 2005

Kinkajou posted:

Any good day hiking recommendations for Norway, Sweden or Iceland? The whole trip is about 35 days and we'll have a car for all of it. I know Norway is a hiker's wet dream, but I'm having a little more trouble with finding great hikes in Sweden.

This isn't very specific, but when we went to Abisko, Sweden years ago I know there were a lot of people there who went to hike. It was a beautiful area, so I'm not surprised, I just know nothing more than that sorry.

sleepy gary
Jan 11, 2006

WYA posted:

My girlfriend wants to go to Romania but she has a phobia of dogs. Is it as bad with strays as they say it is? Will the dogs approach you in packs? She's almost fine with Single dogs but if more than one approach she gets anxiou

I only spent a few days in Bucharest. There are stray dogs who calmly walk around. I saw a couple fighting with each other in a construction site. I was never approached by one nor did I ever see anyone being approached by one. If they do approach people, I'd imagine it is just to beg for some scraps. Maybe it's worse elsewhere, but I doubt it. Tell your girlfriend you're a big strong man and you can protect her from the dogs, but she's on her own when it comes to pickpockets.

Winklebottom
Dec 19, 2007

Jerry Manderbilt posted:

I'll be in Copenhagen while in Europe; are there any hip or cool bars or cafes to hit up in the city? Has anyone ever been to Hamlet's Castle?

Plenty of bars around, just be aware that the prices can surprise you if you haven't been to Scandinavia before. 80 - 100 DKR (13.50 - 17.50 USD) for a cocktail is pretty standard. Beer usually go for 30-40 DKR.

If you like cocktails I can recommend Gilt, Ruby and Library Bar. If you want craft beer Mikkeller's two bars are the places to go. For straight drinking there are tons of bars in the inner city where you can just drop in and see if the atmosphere is good.

Kronborg Slot (Elsinore) aka Hamlet's Castle in Helsingør, about an hour north of Copenhagen by train. The city itself is pretty quaint if you like that stuff and the castle is a fine example of the Renaissance period, if that floats your boat.

E: Keep in mind that Shakespeare actually never visited the place, he probably just needed somewhere "exotic" as a setting.

Winklebottom fucked around with this message at 21:34 on May 27, 2013

peak debt
Mar 11, 2001
b& :(
Nap Ghost

Kinkajou posted:

Any good day hiking recommendations for Norway, Sweden or Iceland? The whole trip is about 35 days and we'll have a car for all of it. I know Norway is a hiker's wet dream, but I'm having a little more trouble with finding great hikes in Sweden.

I did three days of hiking here http://en.skaneleden.se/the-trail/sl-4-osterlenleden/ between Ystad and Simrishamn and it was quite charming. There's quite a few nice little B&Bs around to sleep and the coastal area especially in the first part is very pretty.


Abisko was great too, I did that for a week but the midnight sun was very interesting the first night, and just annoying every night after :mad: The Reindeer herds are cool though.

Winklebottom posted:

E: Keep in mind that Shakespeare actually never visited the place, he probably just needed somewhere "exotic" as a setting.

Hamlet is pretty clearly a play about English kings but he needed plausible deniability to keep his head due to the topic so he placed it in some backwater kingdom nobody cared about.

peak debt fucked around with this message at 21:40 on May 27, 2013

Kase Im Licht
Jan 26, 2001

Rojkir posted:

I don't have many unique off the beaten path advice, but it's probably best to leave the car at home for your amsterdam leg. Parking fees are murderous. If you take it anyway, it's maybe best to park it at a transferium like at Amsterdam Arena, but please google it in advance, if there is some mega concert there your hosed anyway. I guess your arriving soon, so forget the beaches for anything other than hiking (except if you're into kitesurfing or something), this spring is one of the coldest in years. Off the beaten path I think Belgium has some awesome world war one stuff and the breweries you mentioned. I guess if you have a car the deltawerken dikes in Zeeland are pretty epic for a quick sight. The Netherlands also has a bunch of pretty cool cities, Rotterdam is cool if you want to see how poo poo was build up after the Germans leveled it 60 years ago, makes for a nice contrast with most historical centres you find in the Benelux. Rotterdam can be combined with Kinderdijk (not off the beaten path tourist trap), which is a bunch of windmills. Similar trap like is Volendam/Marken, but many tourists seem to go there so it must have something going for it (makes a nice bicylce daytrip from Amsterdam if you're fit and used to cycling) In general: Just rent a bicycle and see where it takes you.
I love Groningen (good for boozing, doesn't close) and Maastricht (good for eating and boozing in what feels like a middle ages town), but they're kind of out the of way. Utrecht is nice as well, 30 minutes by train from Amsterdam.

This was awesome. Thanks so much.

We'll be flying into Amsterdam first so we don't have to worry about parking fees there. We'll just pick it up on our way out.

Beaches would be for more typical beach stuff, so if it's cold, that won't be any good for us. Our spring has been lovely here too, though it looks like it finally got good.


This was also quite awesome. Thanks. Disappointing to hear that we can't actually go to many of them for the most part, but now that I think about it that makes sense. Will probably hit one of those two you did find though. Thanks.

kissekatt
Apr 20, 2005

I have tasted the fruit.

HookShot posted:

This isn't very specific, but when we went to Abisko, Sweden years ago I know there were a lot of people there who went to hike. It was a beautiful area, so I'm not surprised, I just know nothing more than that sorry.
That's Kungsleden, which is one of the classic hiking trails in Sweden.

HookShot
Dec 26, 2005

kissekatt posted:

That's Kungsleden, which is one of the classic hiking trails in Sweden.

The more you know! Thanks for that! I actually wouldn't mind going back some day and walking (part of, I had no idea it was that big!) the trail, it was such a beautiful area.

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

peak debt posted:

I did three days of hiking here http://en.skaneleden.se/the-trail/sl-4-osterlenleden/ between Ystad and Simrishamn and it was quite charming. There's quite a few nice little B&Bs around to sleep and the coastal area especially in the first part is very pretty.


Abisko was great too, I did that for a week but the midnight sun was very interesting the first night, and just annoying every night after :mad: The Reindeer herds are cool though.


Hamlet is pretty clearly a play about English kings but he needed plausible deniability to keep his head due to the topic so he placed it in some backwater kingdom nobody cared about.

In the time Hamlet is set, the King of Denmark is the King of England (or more realistically, vice-versa): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/House_of_Kn%C3%BDtlinga

sausage king of Chicago
Jun 13, 2001
I'm going to London this Saturday and have a couple of questions.

Firstly, I am going for a week with my friend and it's the first time either of us have been. We have a guide book that we plan on using to get around and see stuff, but I'm not entirely sure that is a good idea. We are staying in Trafalgar Square and right now the only things I know I want to go see are Westminster Abbey and the British museum. What are some other must-see things?

Secondly, how much cash should I bring? I know the pound is like 1.5 US dollars right now and heard London is expensive, but really don't know how much to carry. I was thinking $500, but then my friend laughed at me, so now I'm thinking $1k?

Thirdly, we were thinking about going somewhere else when there. I want to go to Paris and he wants to go to Amsterdam. Which one should we go to? Is this not a good idea since we will only be there for a week? I was thinking we could take one day and go to Paris, as I heard it's only a 2 hour train ride and would love to go there and see sites and eat. I also know nothing about Amsterdam and don't know what there is to do there other than the red light district, which I really don't have an interest in. Which one would make for a better day trip?

LaserWash
Jun 28, 2006
Definitely do the Underground Churchill Museum.

St. Paul's is architectually interesting (read about Christopher Wren if you don't know about this), but if you've been to some of the better stuff in Europe (Notre Dame, Kölner Dom, St. Peter's Basilica, etc.) then you wouldn't be missing anything by not going inside. I would invest the time and money in Westminster as I think it's more interesting.

Go see the Medieval and Eariler Manuscripts (old bibles, written music by the greats, Magna Carta, etc.) at the British Library.

British Museum has stuff from all parts of history.

Look at some of the art at the National Gallery. All British owned museums are free.

Walk, run, or bike along the Thames. Also walk from Westminster to Trafalgar down the Mall to Buckingham Palace. Walking down Pall Mall will make you feel poor and totally uncultured. Then walk down Oxford Street for British shopping or go to Hyde Park and chill.

Go to an authentic English pub and drink a warm pint.

I spent a summer in Kent and think that Canterbury (High Street, St. Augustine's Abbey, and Cathedral) and Dover (the castle) are interesting day trips. But I'm biased because in some sense, I kind of lived there for the summer.

Other trips Cambridge and Oxford.

Get a weeklong OysterCard and then sell it back when you are done. You will want to be familiar with the Underground and bus system because London is usually too big to walk unless you really like walking. Get something like the "Metro" app on iTunes App Store.

LaserWash fucked around with this message at 18:05 on May 28, 2013

3peat
May 6, 2010

WYA posted:

My girlfriend wants to go to Romania but she has a phobia of dogs. Is it as bad with strays as they say it is? Will the dogs approach you in packs? She's almost fine with Single dogs but if more than one approach she gets anxiou

Depends what city in Romania you're visiting, and even then, what neighborhoods and at what hour. It's not like strays are everywhere, most times you're more likely to see a pet dog in a leash than a stray. Packs are more in back streets in working class neighborhoods, and they tend to gather around at night.

Pablo Bluth
Sep 7, 2007

I've made a huge mistake.
There's more than enough in London to stay busy for a week, so better to do one place properly than two in a rush. Look at it as an excuse to come back another year!

Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

idontcare posted:

Secondly, how much cash should I bring? I know the pound is like 1.5 US dollars right now and heard London is expensive, but really don't know how much to carry. I was thinking $500, but then my friend laughed at me, so now I'm thinking $1k?

Thirdly, we were thinking about going somewhere else when there. I want to go to Paris and he wants to go to Amsterdam. Which one should we go to? Is this not a good idea since we will only be there for a week? I was thinking we could take one day and go to Paris, as I heard it's only a 2 hour train ride and would love to go there and see sites and eat. I also know nothing about Amsterdam and don't know what there is to do there other than the red light district, which I really don't have an interest in. Which one would make for a better day trip?

Re: Cash, if your hotels are covered and if you don't want to go shopping (except small souvenirs) or eat out at nice places, then you won't get anywhere close to spending $1k. $500's reasonable for food + transport + museums + souvenirs for a week. I've spent a lot of time there as a tourist and almost never spend more than £30/day.

It doesn't really make any sense to go to Paris or Amsterdam if you only have a week AND you have to fly out of London. If you can fly out of Paris or AMS then it's more reasonable (I wouldn't do it, or even recommend doing it, but it's not an insane idea). As Pablo said, there's more than enough to do in London for a week, and you can do more reasonable daytrips to Windsor or Lincoln or wherever.

MagicCube
May 25, 2004

I'm on the last day of a week in London and I've gotten by on £40 a day for food and attractions (minus one or two exceptions, drat you London Eye). There are tons of things to do in London and I've not had any trouble keeping busy. Along with the other things mentioned I'd recommend the Globe Theatre tour if you're a fan of Shakespeare. I know it's a recreation, but it was still pretty cool. Also I did a day trip to Dover for the castle and I enjoyed that. It's especially neat if you're interested in World War 2 history as they have a tour of the secret tunnels used during the war and how they planned the rescue at Dunkirk from there.

Overall I enjoyed London a lot, but I wasn't prepared for the massive amount of people. The crowds at the Tower of London and going from the London Eye to Big Ben and Westminster were unlike anything I've ever seen. Oh and I guess it didn't help that I had to spend an hour trying to find a way around a marathon and the EDL protesting against Muslims.

elwood
Mar 28, 2001

by Smythe

idontcare posted:

I'm going to London this Saturday and have a couple of questions.

Firstly, I am going for a week with my friend and it's the first time either of us have been. We have a guide book that we plan on using to get around and see stuff, but I'm not entirely sure that is a good idea. We are staying in Trafalgar Square and right now the only things I know I want to go see are Westminster Abbey and the British museum. What are some other must-see things?



Your guide book will probably have the Imperial War Museum as a major attraction, just so you know, that is closed at the moment. Another tipp, if you are thinking about buying a travel card, make sure you buy one from a national rail counter (from a train station, not from an underground station). With that and a printed voucher from http://www.daysoutguide.co.uk/2for1-london you get 2 for 1 entry to lots of attractions. You save around £20 alone on the entry to the tower that way.

Grouco
Jan 13, 2005
I wouldn't want to belong to any club that would have me as a member.
Anyone have any tips on the cheapest way to fly from the UK to Turkey? Would be traveling to Ozdere, so possibly flying into Izmir?

Pablo Bluth
Sep 7, 2007

I've made a huge mistake.
Take a boat ride down to Greenwich to see the naval museum and observatory. Other than the fact it's currently on loan to the French, you can see Nelson's blood soak jacket with musket hole.

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Saladman
Jan 12, 2010

Grouco posted:

Anyone have any tips on the cheapest way to fly from the UK to Turkey? Would be traveling to Ozdere, so possibly flying into Izmir?

Get to London, then fly EasyJet to Izmir (actually it's probably cheaper to fly to Istanbul and take a Turkish bus, but only if losing 10 hours in additional transit is worth £20 to you).

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