Guest Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Was watching a show on policing London's bike thieves the other night - I was googling for bike locks and got distracted - and it reminded me again what an achingly beautiful city London is in parts. Some parts of London are exactly what a city should be and beautiful beyond words...I want a parallel life where I can wander endlessly in London with a bottomless wallet...my nirvana...even better if Boris's bike lane plans come to fruition and I could cycle around....youtube scares me with all the crazy London cyclist/car videos...the more cycle friendly London becomes the better city it will be imo: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/mar/10/boris-johnson-plan-to-make-cycling-fun. Well done Boris, wish we could swap you for Quirk Newman who have small minded city vision... I'm no fan of Boris - beneath that bumbling image I think he's a cold, scheming manipulator - but compared to Campbell Newman even he comes off well. Friends in Brissy who work in the public sector are full of horror stories about his reign of terror in slashing jobs and services. I just hope the Liberals don't take his lead nationally if they get in in September. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 A (Brisbane) friend lived in London for 12 months and absolutely loved it, one of the things was that he cycled everywhere and he said he found London drivers so much more courteous and 'friendly' compared to Brisbane. Greenwich Park, one of my favourite places on a summer's day. Then stroll down the hill for a few pints in The Trafalgar on the river.Heaven! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Greenwich Park, one of my favourite places on a summer's day. Then stroll down the hill for a few pints in The Trafalgar on the river.Heaven! So even though its mobbed theres plenty of parks you can go for some peace and quiet or are they mobbed aswell? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammy1 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 My earliest memories are of walking on Wimbledon Common with my Mother, looking for wombles. Sundays were my favouirte day of the week in London, so much to do and see, but at a relaxed pace, especially if the sun was shining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 So even though its mobbed theres plenty of parks you can go for some peace and quiet or are they mobbed aswell? No, there's always little pockets of solitude you can find if you know where to look. London's great success is that there's something for everyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 I'm no fan of Boris - beneath that bumbling image I think he's a cold, scheming manipulator - but compared to Campbell Newman even he comes off well. Friends in Brissy who work in the public sector are full of horror stories about his reign of terror in slashing jobs and services. I just hope the Liberals don't take his lead nationally if they get in in September. If you have to have a conservative I want one that sees the value cycling adds to a city. Even though Tony Abbott rides a bike I still envisage him spending a disproportionate amount on roads, roads and more roads and letting public and active transport languish Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northshorepom Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 So even though its mobbed theres plenty of parks you can go for some peace and quiet or are they mobbed aswell? Loads of parks, loads of room. Even some of the central parks (Hyde Park and Regents Park for example) are massive. Further out there are some vast tracts. Wimbledon Common for example, Richmond Park, Victoria Park in East London, Hampstead Heath - these are big spaces Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Loads of parks, loads of room. Even some of the central parks (Hyde Park and Regents Park for example) are massive. Further out there are some vast tracts. Wimbledon Common for example, Richmond Park, Victoria Park in East London, Hampstead Heath - these are big spaces I'll just set up my tent there for the week lol saves on a hotel! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northshorepom Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Was watching a show on policing London's bike thieves the other night - I was googling for bike locks and got distracted - and it reminded me again what an achingly beautiful city London is in parts. Some parts of London are exactly what a city should be and beautiful beyond words...I want a parallel life where I can wander endlessly in London with a bottomless wallet...my nirvana...even better if Boris's bike lane plans come to fruition and I could cycle around....youtube scares me with all the crazy London cyclist/car videos...the more cycle friendly London becomes the better city it will be imo: http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/mar/10/boris-johnson-plan-to-make-cycling-fun. Well done Boris, wish we could swap you for Quirk Newman who have small minded city vision... I thought London was *OK* for cycling until I came to Sydney. Upon which I realised that London is brilliant for cycling I remember living in Ealing, working in Hammersmith, and having a choice of 5 or 6 different routes all of which had some decent cycle paths/off road sections to get to work. Even the direct, busy route (on Uxbridge Rd for much of it and then Askew Rd) had a nice widish bike lane that made it pretty safe.....if I felt like something pretty I could drop down to the river in Chiswick and cycle along the Thames....or cycle through bits of East or South Action on effectively traffic free roads - the type where suburban streets have been bollarded off to stop rat running, but you can go through on a bike. Heaven Now I have to do battle with the Pacific Highway. 2/3 narrow lanes, no bike lane or path, no quarter given, no alternative. hmm.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
northshorepom Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 I'll just set up my tent there for the week lol saves on a hotel! Stick "Wimbledon Common", "Richmond Park" and "Hampstead Heath" in Google images to get an immediate idea of the scale and feel of these spaces - guarantee you'll be surprised Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Stick "Wimbledon Common", "Richmond Park" and "Hampstead Heath" in Google images to get an immediate idea of the scale and feel of these spaces - guarantee you'll be surprised I was having a look earlier, quite suprised! Bloomin hell that harry potter tour is dear! Anybody know if its worth it? My aunts friend went and said it was good but she had her grandchild with her who was a massive fan. I think i'd have to choose between HP and the lion king musical! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pablo Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 London is amazing just for the fact that you have boris as a mayor lol he cracks me up everytime i see him on tv. I think he should be PM! He's a dangerous bigoted man beneath that bumbling friendly idiot persona he puts on dimples,bad man, imo anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest76088 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Try Christ Church college instead ( where many interiors filmed). Oxford is a far richer experience for a tourist visit than a museum. BigD I was having a look earlier, quite suprised! Bloomin hell that harry potter tour is dear! Anybody know if its worth it? My aunts friend went and said it was good but she had her grandchild with her who was a massive fan. I think i'd have to choose between HP and the lion king musical! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 He's a dangerous bigoted man beneath that bumbling friendly idiot persona he puts on dimples,bad man, imo anyway A secret evil genius lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest51810 Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Try Christ Church college instead ( where many interiors filmed). Oxford is a far richer experience for a tourist visit than a museum. BigD I'll take a look. If i go this year i'll probably just fork out for the HP tour because i can go see the lion king in edinburgh. Just need to save harder! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanielJ Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 I can say as a foreigner who's been living in London for the last 8 years (with 1 year break for Essex coast) that yes, it's possible to get tired of London, without being tired of life. And no, it's not like every foreigner likes London, it's just that either natives aren't really interested or some foreigners are afraid to say what they think. It's just like any big city with its problems. I can honestly say that it is the best city in Europe to visit as a tourist (comparing with Rome, Paris, Warsaw, Madrid, Berlin, Vienna). Amazing things to see, convenient to travel on weekends and surprisingly cheap if one knows where to go. Some parks are great - especially Richmond, but Bushy or Greenwich are also great. Restaurants are great. But for me it's awful to live in every day, especially living in Lewisham (recently mentioned on BBC as the most dangerous borough in the UK). It's crowded, driving anywhere is a pain, dirty, there's a big mess with social housing spread among other buildings and immigrants not integrating with the locals (and that's coming from an immigrant), everyone is trying to get to the lowest possible denominator. Every business just MUST be located in the centre, like there wasn't a huge open space around M25. As a result morning and after commute are a pain when thousands of people needlessly have to get to the same place and get out from the same place. Some people will love it. Some of my friends do, especially those that prefer restaurants and theatres to open, wild places. For me it's a pain. But just 2 more months;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pablo Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 A secret evil genius lol A t##t basically,a calculating devious one at that too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red Rose Posted May 2, 2013 Author Share Posted May 2, 2013 I can say as a foreigner who's been living in London for the last 8 years (with 1 year break for Essex coast) that yes, it's possible to get tired of London, without being tired of life. And no, it's not like every foreigner likes London, it's just that either natives aren't really interested or some foreigners are afraid to say what they think. It's just like any big city with its problems. I can honestly say that it is the best city in Europe to visit as a tourist (comparing with Rome, Paris, Warsaw, Madrid, Berlin, Vienna). Amazing things to see, convenient to travel on weekends and surprisingly cheap if one knows where to go. Some parks are great - especially Richmond, but Bushy or Greenwich are also great. Restaurants are great. But for me it's awful to live in every day, especially living in Lewisham (recently mentioned on BBC as the most dangerous borough in the UK). It's crowded, driving anywhere is a pain, dirty, there's a big mess with social housing spread among other buildings and immigrants not integrating with the locals (and that's coming from an immigrant), everyone is trying to get to the lowest possible denominator. Every business just MUST be located in the centre, like there wasn't a huge open space around M25. As a result morning and after commute are a pain when thousands of people needlessly have to get to the same place and get out from the same place. Some people will love it. Some of my friends do, especially those that prefer restaurants and theatres to open, wild places. For me it's a pain. But just 2 more months;-) Hi Daniel, 8 years is a good stint in London. Where are you off to next? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterJa Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 sorry but i'm gonna have to use the Bull sh!t card here... crime in London is no better - no worse than any other big city, work/life balance is a personnal choice so work less play more simples taxes are the same as the rest of the country and if you mean council tax then I beleive only a couple of boroughs in london make the to highest band rates. Public transport in london is one of the best in the world, a bit expensive but its runs very well. I hope you find somewhere that you can enjoy, may I ask where you are going when you leave? Bullsh1t because you don't agree? That's as dumb as your photo. I had a great time here - made lots of good friends, lots of good times - but my point is it's not a place to raise a family if you've the option of living elsewhere. I've no idea how crime rates compare to other cities, but for youths London is not an easy place to be. Lots of gang crime, lots of the postcode cr@p (ie if you're from the wrong postcode or can't tell a group of yobs what postcode you're currently in then expect trouble), and the nice parts of London aren't far from the bad bits so kids do go into the wrong areas. Look at the riots, they were only two years ago.... and all because an armed drug dealer got shot. There was even a kid chased through Victoria Station at 5pm one weekday evening by a gang of 20 and knifed to death in the station. I've a lot of Russian and Eastern European friends and their kids can't believe how bad the schools are and how the kids "waste a free opportunity to do well". Your comments on the transport made me laugh out loud... sitting at home. I probably won't find them so funny when I'm squeezing into a packed central line train at 6:30am tomorrow, or getting home too late to put the kids to bed because of "signal failure" or whatever excuse they've made up. London transport works great in the middle of the day or in quiet weekends but when you rely on it for work it's appalling. I'm glad you like it, I think it's a wonderful place, especially if you want to make money. But for families - it's tough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perthbum Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 London is superb IMO, so much buzz and life about the place, London is not for boring quiet people. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perthbum Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 He's a dangerous bigoted man beneath that bumbling friendly idiot persona he puts on dimples,bad man, imo anyway Mates of cameron and the slimy George Osbourne, all together in the bullington club...bunch of @@@@@@@@s. https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=bullingdon+club&client=safari&hl=en-gb&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=jeuCUYSqIenR0QXazIFY&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1024&bih=672#biv=i%7C0%3Bd%7CgS7SJrS281kV5M%3A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpodom Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 London is superb IMO, so much buzz and life about the place, London is not for boring quiet people. Hey PB where you been? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DanielJ Posted May 2, 2013 Share Posted May 2, 2013 Hi Daniel, 8 years is a good stint in London. Where are you off to next? Brisbane :-) And we will see how it goes... I didn't quite expect to stay so long in London, but then year after year after year - and I haven't even noticed how quickly the time passed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish.01 Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 I thought London was *OK* for cycling until I came to Sydney. Upon which I realised that London is brilliant for cycling I remember living in Ealing, working in Hammersmith, and having a choice of 5 or 6 different routes all of which had some decent cycle paths/off road sections to get to work. Even the direct, busy route (on Uxbridge Rd for much of it and then Askew Rd) had a nice widish bike lane that made it pretty safe.....if I felt like something pretty I could drop down to the river in Chiswick and cycle along the Thames....or cycle through bits of East or South Action on effectively traffic free roads - the type where suburban streets have been bollarded off to stop rat running, but you can go through on a bike. Heaven Now I have to do battle with the Pacific Highway. 2/3 narrow lanes, no bike lane or path, no quarter given, no alternative. hmm.... A case of don't know what you've got until it's gone ...temporarily at least in your case Your commute sounds bad even by Australian standards which as you know aren't quite copenhagenized Good to see London looking to step up to the next level though...really think it will add to the city...Dublin has made some great improvements as well. I must stop watching all those helmet cam videos the London cyclist commuters put on youtube of screaming matches with car drivers...sounds like I'm getting things out of proportion... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest chris955 Posted May 3, 2013 Share Posted May 3, 2013 As with everything for every one bad video you see there are 100 where nothing happens. A case of don't know what you've got until it's gone ...temporarily at least in your case Your commute sounds bad even by Australian standards which as you know aren't quite copenhagenized Good to see London looking to step up to the next level though...really think it will add to the city...Dublin has made some great improvements as well. I must stop watching all those helmet cam videos the London cyclist commuters put on youtube of screaming matches with car drivers...sounds like I'm getting things out of proportion... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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