In May 2002, I went to London with anti-ringgit. That was where I met ST, anti-ringgit's aunt and we became very good friends.
This May, kimmikanuyi, anti-ringgit and I are planning a visit to London and Paris. kimmikanuyi has not been to London and she wanted me to plan for our trip. And this is what I am going to do in today's post. A pictorial guide on our future trip to London.. ha ha.. sort of.. with cost as we are on a very tight budget this time.
Future trip Day 1:
We could go to Buckingham Palace and the surrounding beautiful St James Park to cool ourselves down after a long flight.
Most of the places can be reached by taking the London Underground aka The Tube. The Underground Day ticket (i.e. unlimited rides for the day) cost ₤5.
London cab in the roundabout in front of Buckingham Palace
Then we could just drop by Big Ben, London Eye (₤11), Trafalgar Square and maybe shop in the famous Oxford Street (not that we can afford any of the designer labels there). We could also walk around Picadilly Circus. These are some of the must see "buildings" in London. What are their significance? Well, I don't really know. I guess this is the time where we can really tell the difference between a guided tour and a free and easy one. At any rate, we had better buy some Lonely Planet books to read up.
Big Ben. Behind me is a path that will lead to London Eye
London Eye from the same position I took the Big Ben picture.
Trafalgar Square
We could end the day in Westminster Abbey (₤6). The Abbey is a famous place because this is where the famous Kings and Queens of England are buried. It is also a place where royal coronation took place. It also serves as a place of worship every Sunday.
Westminster Abbey
At night, we can just laze around Thames River and have coffee (₤1) and my favourite roadside English hotdog with lots of mustard (₤2). Then rest.
To give an impression of cost of living in London: a latte in Starbucks cost ₤1.5. Fish & chips cost ₤5.5. McDonald's Value Meal ₤3.5. Beer = ₤0.80. Citrus bottled drink ₤1. Typical sandwich plus drink ₤3.5.
Future trip: Day 2
We could spend half day in British Museum (₤?). This museum is huge! We probably get to inspect real Rosetta Stone since we only get to see a replica in Cairo Museum. We could also find the Gaza Sphinx's beard in this museum too!
British Museum
In the afternon, we could stop by and see St Paul's Cathedral (₤0).. then rest for the rest of the evening in preparation for a musical at night. Maybe Les Miserables or Phantom of the Opera at the famous London West End in Leichester Sq? Or maybe The Lion King? That would cost around ₤40 each or less if we could get a half price.
St Paul's Cathedral
Future trip: Day 3
We could spend the morning in Madame Tussaud's Museum to see the wax figures (₤15). We could then go back to the city and see "London Bridge", actually the real name of this famous London Bridge is not called London Bridge but it is called Tower Bridge.
We'll end the day in Tower of London (₤12), a must visit place with guided tour.
One of the small castle in the Tower of London compound.
At night we could follow up with another musical (₤40).
Future trip: Day 4
I am thinking of going out of London to visit one of the famous castles as we didn't get to visit any the last time. Selena offered to take us to a small town called Bath to see a castle. Maybe we could take up her offer. So, Day 4 we'll probably spend the day out of the city in a traditional castle.
Future trip: Day 5
Buffer day in London. Maybe see Tate Museum (modern art museum ₤?). Or maybe just a relaxing day where we can drink more coffee and look cool. Maybe a Thames River cruise to the town of Greenwich to see the Royal Observatory? And one more musical?
Cruise down the Thames
Greenwich.. GMT +0
Future trip: Day 6
Another buffer day for shopping, going out lunch with ST and her mother.. or maybe I should visit cousin ML?
Future trip: Day 7 - Day 11
Go to Kensington and hope on Euro train to Paris.
I think we should spend more time in Paris. I have not been to Paris so I am not sure what we could do there. Some of the must see is of course The Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum (I think we should spend a day here), Notre Dame, that arch. Maybe a night tour of the city.. or a night trip up Eiffel Tower. Or maybe a Da Vinci Code tour.
Future trip: Day 12
Back to London and maybe fly back to MY. Post trip blues for a few months.
