Frommer's Irreverent Guide to London
Chapter One
Basic Stuff
As with any big-city vacation, a London visit demands a
strategy-maybe more so than most, because this city's so big
and sprawling and there's so much to see. Decide what your priorities
are. Does history turn you on? Is art your interest, or
are you happiest just hanging? Time spent here is weather-dependent,
too, since everything from the mood on the streets
to the choice of activities changes in the rain. Fortunately, since
rain can set in for 3 weeks without respite, there's plenty of
scope for lousy weather.
Getting Your Bearings
The most important thing to do is to buy a copy of the pocket
street atlas London A to Z (called simply "the A to Zed"-even
Londoners themselves usually have one on hand). Buy it at the
airport or at a newsagent in town (it's available everywhere) and
navigating the city will become much easier. What follows here
is a potted geography of London, containing the only parts of
the A to Z you need to know.
West End: the center-you'd call this downtown. It's the
younger of the two historic centers from which London grew,
dating from 1050, when Edward the Confessor moved his court
here and founded an a ... read full excerpt from Frommer's Irreverent Guide to London, 5th Edition ebook
