I loved visiting London and I think it is a great city.
I got to see all the city landmarks like Big Ben, Westminster Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the Tower Bridge, and Piccadilly Circus. I was at the Trafalgar Square as well and I saw the National Gallery Museum but did not go inside. Trafalgar Square is a nice area with fountains, statues of lions, a statue of Charles James Napier. I also went to Bankside where the Shakespeare’s Globe is located. If you ask the common American about the Bankside they might not know what you are talking about. Nearby is the Thames River. I didn’t know I was going to see boats and cruises there even though with all due respect the Thames is polluted but it Is still in the middle of such a famous city.
I know many museums are free in London Museums are free but did not take advantage of them not all of them are free though
When you are in London you know you are in a world city. In fact London is rated as an alpha plus plus city according to a GaWC Study. The only other city in the world that has this status is New York City. London has so much to offer whether it is theatre, shopping, finance, the efficient public transportation, diversity, and dining. London is also characterized by its world city aesthetics (think Bankside, and the tube). Also there was a protest outside that area near Big Ben against Ethiopia’s occupation of Eritrea. The Foreign and Commonwealth office was nearby so this is probably why I saw this protest. This doesn’t even happen in other world cities so maybe London is special?
London is almost 2,000 years old it has to be special if it is this old and is still a major world city.
Since it is a major world city and an important beacon of opportunity, it is no wonder that the city draws people from around the world. When I was on Queensway, I saw German and Russian newspapers being sold. Hyde Park had bathroom signs in four languages—English, Spanish, French, and I think German.
London is such a global city that it is the top city for global investors, even beating New York City.
London Top Target for Global Investors, Secondary Markets Gain Popularity - WORLD PROPERTY JOURNAL Global News Center
Since I am from the NYC area I will be comparing and contrasting London to NYC.
I like how London is not as dense as NYC but still feels like a world city. English architecture is so different than in the United States. It feels more crowded than in the US.. I also noticed how many streets split creating a triangular square in the middle of the intersections. You see this on High Street in Camden as well as near the Hammersmith station and another station on the section south of Hyde Park. I think Peckham has this too. I don’t know why that is or if there is a history to it but I did find it interesting. The main public squares like Trafalgar Square and the one in Piccadilly Circus were elegant. Piccadilly Circus had a fountain with a statue of an eagle on top and Trafalgar Square had a fountain and a monument.
Another thing I noticed in Europe is that they have shared streets and I think more alleys than in the US.
London seems like a red city. The iconic red phone booths, double decker bus, Buckingham guards are all red. I wonder why they are all red.
One thing I noticed is that in London everything is smaller than in New York City. The buildings are smaller and you definitely do not see as many skyscrapers as you do in New York City. Even the financial district does not have as many skyscrapers when you consider the fact that London is a major financial centre, probably second only to New York City. Areas like the south of Hyde Park also do not have any skyscrapers at least I did not see any, even though these areas are examples of prime real estate. I wonder if these are historical preservation areas and since London is such an old city I wouldn’t be surprised if they were. The buildings in the Hyde Park area are beautiful and I would not want them to be destroyed by glass skyscrapers. However, despite the low density of buildings and the fact that you do not see as many skyscrapers the sidewalks and other public places are still just as dense or maybe even more dense than in New York City.
Aside from landmarks, I got to see various neighborhoods in London. I believe I was in London’s financial district. I saw the Swiss Re Building not that far from me. Financial district not as many skyscrapers even though London is a major financial center in the world, probably second only to NYC.
I stayed in a hotel in the Bayside just one block away from Queensway. I loved Queensway. There is a diverse selection of restaurants including Italian, Persian, Chinese, and Indian. It is evident that it is touristy not just because of the wide array of restaurants but also souvenir stops, hotels and even the currency exchange stores. Now I did some research and it appears that this area, the section north of Hyde Park is looked down upon. Now I admit that that it is not as elegant as the area south of Hyde Park, which includes Kensington, Chelsea, and Shepherd’s Bush, but I still think Bayside and Queensway are lovely places to visit. Bayside is safe, has dining and shopping, is close to public transportation, and is even near Hyde Park. There are nice hotels north of Hyde Park too.
I will say that Hyde park is a nicer park than Central park in Manhattan.
I went to the area south of Hyde Park to get to Harrods. This area sure is elegant. Unfortunately Harrods was closed but I did not have to enter to see how elegant the store is. I believe I passed through Mayfair as well, this is an exclusive shopping center in London. It is so exclusive that De Beers has a store here. I stopped at South Kensington for a bit. I wanted to go to the upscale Chelsea but did not know how to get there because I was misinformed and thought there was no tube station.
I was also in south Kensington. I saw a shared street where pedestrians and vehicles share the street. You don’t see this in the US. There is also a visible French presence in South Kensington. I read there is a mix of ethnicities here and that even Americans live here.
Soho was a nice area in London. Even though it was not as elegant as South Kensington or Mayfair, it was still nice and there was a diverse selection of restaurants that seemed more authentic and inexpensive. Even though this neighborhood is known for its sex shops I do not remember seeing any sex shops, not like I was looking for any lol.
London really comes alive at night. I spent the night out in the Piccadilly Circus area. There were a lot of people out at night and Piccadilly Circus looks nice and lit up at night. I even got to walk around Chinatown, which is much smaller than the one in NYC. In New York City you have a theatre district near Times Square and the theatres are concentrated around Broadway in Times Square. However in London the theatres are scattered throughout the West End. A gypsy offered us flowers at night as well. This is probably the first time I knowingly ran into a gypsy.
London is laid out like NYC where you have the nice and touristy areas in the city center (or Manhattan) and you have nice areas and not so nice areas as well as immigrant communities in the outer boroughs.
I noticed many tube stations are on street level. In New York City, you have many stations like this but many others are stations where you walk downstairs to the subway station on the street. The London Underground System is complex. I like the London Underground System more than the New York City Subway system. The stations look more modern and I think they are as filthy as the ones in New York City. I saw a rat once in a NYC subway station. The bus stops tell you when the bus will come. I think buses run more frequently than in New York City. In New York City the buses arrive every thirty minutes. In London they arrive around 10 minutes I believe, of course I guess it depends where you are at. One downside however is that the tube system is not open 24/7 like it is in NYC.
Another difference is the subway cards. In New York City you have a MetroCard and $2.75 get you anywhere even to the Bronx if you are coming from Brooklyn. In London, the Oyster Card depends on where you are going. The more zones you pass, the more the fare costs. And I think they make sure you paid the right fare because you have to scan your card before hopping on the train and after, unlike in New York where you just swipe it and you can throw it out afterwards because you don’t need to exit the train.
Still I like the London taxis. Even the taxis are unique. I read they are called Hackney Carriages and I think all taxis in London have this same look. Even though there are a lot of buses and trains in London, there are also a lot of taxis. I wonder if there is Uber in London.
London is a city known for its high end shopping. I did not get to Harrods because it was too early but I did not have to go inside to kind of see how elegant it is. I passed through Mayfair on the bus. Mayfair is so exclusive De Beers has a store here. I walked through Oxford Street. Oxford Street was VERY packed but I liked it. Oxford Street seems like the main shopping street in London with Regent coming in a close second. I liked it because instead of having malls you have main streets although I know London has malls as well and large ones.
Although London is known for being expensive, the city does have cheap alternatives. There is Sainsbury and there are pound stores (like our dollar stores). Plus a lot of the major museums are free. I did not walk into a museum because I did not have time but I wanted to.
I also noticed many British chains like Boots, Whiteleys’s? and some American chains. Caffe Nero is big here, it is like the Starbucks of London and just like in NYC its everywhere in London. Pret A Manger is common to find in London and you have this in NYC however I did not know this was a London based restaurant.
I also walked along Strand, another major commercial thoroughfare.
Despite Brexit, I think the British, well at least those in London, embrace diversity more than we do in the States. Most of London actually wanted to remain in the EU. London is a major city so I know it is different from the rest of the UK but I would say London embraces diversity more than NYC and is more integrated than NYC I saw whites and blacks together more than in NYC. I saw white black and East Asian youths together near Harrods near a tube station. I hear interracial couples between whites and blacks are common to see in England. I also read many, I think about half, of all Caribbean blacks in England marry outside the race. Even Latinos in the United States don’t intermarry in such high numbers and Latinos are the most likely to intermarry out of all minorities in the United States. Although this could be because there are just a lot of Latinos in the United States that they all would not have to intermarry.
There are many Muslims, mostly from Pakistan and Bangladesh I think. The hijab Is common here. Although I know Muslims aren’t that well integrated in England or Europe for that matter. Something I noticed is that in the United States “Asian” means East Asian but in the UK “Asian” means South Asian.
There is some xenophobia in London. However even the Polish are targeted so although racism is probably still an issue in London, a lot of it is probably just xenophobia.
Even though the British are not well known for their cuisine London has a rich variety of world cuisines. You can find Indian, Middle Eastern, Italian, Jamaican, Chinese, Cuban, Mexican, and even Peruvian food here. London has become so diverse that traditional British fare is now influenced by other cultures. For example, all the Fish and Chips restaurants I saw were halal. Plus it was cool that I went to a pub. The pub I went to had live performances. I know the pub is a big part of British culture. The Indian food in London is great and British candies are amazing. There are a lot of Middle Eastern and Indian restaurants. Not that many Italian or Latino restaurants like in NYC.
The English language in England is different than in the United States. For example an elevator is called a lift a check is spelled a cheque and a bathroom is simply called a toilet.
I noticed that people are more polite than in NYC. The bus driver said “ are taking too long” in a polite way. If this was NYC , he probably would have been more aggressive. My professor once talked about British politeness and said that when you break the TV fee law here the police confront you about in a polite way. Even the guy who worked at the hotel was polite and calm. I know this sounds like an overgeneralization but people here do seem polite at least more polite than in New York. People in London tend to also seem more calm, orderly, and more reserved than people in New York City. It is a big city so would expect people to be impatient because big cities tend to be fast paced. New York City also seems more chaotic. I didn’t see breakdancing or musicians preforming in the London Underground like I do in New York City or even panhandlers or children selling candies. I think people in London dress well, women were beautiful, many were overweight but of course I have no problem with that.
A lot of people think of London as just these touristy areas but there is more to it. There is also Brick Lane and the markets of Camden Town and Brixton. I wanted to go to Camden market but got lost I should have asked for directions. I was in Camden Town which I read is dangerous but it seemed pretty ok to me. In fact It reminded me of one the safest parts of Brooklyn. It reminded me of Greenpoint but without the Polish influence and instead with a non-ethnic feel. I heard rap music out loud from a nice car kind of like I would see in the States. High Street was a bit run down though.
We don’t have markets like this in NYC a lot. Mostly commercial streets.
I took the tube to Brixton Market. This is probably where I got to see how London is more integrated than New York City. I saw an East Asian in a Jamaican restaurant that didn’t even look that elegant. There were plenty of whites in Brixton Market, in contrast to New York where you find many commercial areas that are primarily black or Hispanic and you rarely see whites. I walked into a store where they sold Danish products. You can’t even find Scandinavian products in NYC but then again London is much closer to Scandinavia than NYC is. Some parts really did feel like an outdoor market. Brixton Market is alive with Afro Caribbean culture. Vendors sold African clothes and Jamaican flags there. I also got to see a Colombian restaurant there. This was interesting because there are not that many Latinos in England. In fact Latinos are not even their own ethnic group in England.
I also went to Brick Lane, one of the most famous ethnic neighborhoods in London. I understand Brick Lane is the shopping center of a large Bangladeshi community in London. It seemed like a genuine working class area but I did feel safe here. I wonder if there has been gentrification here. I also noticed that there were many murals. I guess I would compare it to NYC’s East Harlem although it is much nicer and safer than East Harlem.
I didn’t go to west or north London except for maybe Camden Town. Most tourists don’t go here anyway I know there is not much for tourists to do in Western London I wish I could have seen the Turkish community in North London or maybe walked along The Broadway in Southall where there is a large Indian presence.
England seems more progressive than in the US. There are some homeless people in England but definitely not as many in NYC or in the US. I heard housing is a right in England. I also noticed there were public bathrooms and water fountains where you can put water into your bottle.
I talked to the guy who worked at the hotel about London. He said in NYC it is 1500 for rent and in London it is 1800. East London guy at hotel told me there are artists and students moving there because it is cheap London he says is safe because there is a large police presence but of course that alone doesn’t guarantee safety
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