Staying in London

[Tony Hardie-Bick]

Hi Peter,

London is one of the most amazing cities in the world. I'm not sure that 
shopping is the reason for this, but if you want to visit Hamleys, then 
be sure to do this before midday, during the week.

As Martin says, the parks have a peaceful quality to them, a real 
contrast. Hyde Park, Regent's Park, Green Park and St James's Park are 
the lungs through which the city, and some of its occupants, breathe.

As an occupant, I find living here like a constant improvisation: 
anticipating tides and avoiding them, avoiding large events, avoiding 
walking the streets between 5pm and 7pm. It's easy: draw a graph of 
population surges, and avoid them. Then you will find London speaks in a 
whisper at night, low voices at morning, and a loud deafening screech at 
other times. It moves between these like an implacable orchestra, 
synchronised to the rotation of the planet. It's constant music, not 
always bearable, but utterly, utterly bewitching.

As for hotels, I must admit, I'm pretty clueless. The Paddington area 
would be excellent, as this gives you access to the less rediculously 
expensive restaurants, and the awesome diversity of Edgeware Road - 
where you can smoke a hubbly bubbly at four in the morning and eat food 
from places much further east than Dagenham.

Hopefully I'll be around on those dates (shame you aren't here a few 
days later, when the Galactic Emperor is due to visit), so, with the 
proviso that I dislike tourist-oriented attractions, shopping and 
crowds, it would be my pleasure to provide some guidance in person, 
although, even after many years, the place is a mystery, and my guidance 
surely as random as the sounds I enjoy listening to :)

Tony (HB)

Peter Korsten wrote:
> So... my wife, our four year old son and I will be staying in London for 
> a few days, from the 8th (Thursday) to the 10th (Saturday) of November. 
> It's not exactly a holiday, but whilst we're there, we might as well 
> enjoy London.
> 
> Would anybody know a good site to check for hotels, and for things to do 
> with a four year old boy with a relatively short attention span? We've 
> already thought of the zoo, and there's some massive toy store somewhere.
> 
> Our appointment on Friday is in Wimpole Street, Paddington, so smack 
> bang in the middle.
> 
> We'd love to hear your suggestions!
> 
> - Peter
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