UK
« Previous Entries Next Entries »Hyde Park London
By rocky | November 22, 2007
The Serpentine Lake, Marble Arch and Speaker’s Corner are all popular places in London and they are all part of London’s premier Royal Park Hyde Park. The park is home to many of the City’s celebrations and hosts many major events and concerts including the last years huge Live 8 concert. The parkland was originally owned by the Monks of Westminster Abbey but was acquired by Henry VIII in 1536 as a hunting ground. The park covers 350 acres and has over 4,000 trees a lake and lush meadow and is also home to the Princess Diana Memorial. There’s plenty of places for walks and picnics. For a something a bit special Winter Wonderland comes to Hyde Park from December 1st. to the 6th of January- with a huge ice rink, Christmas Market and ice rides, cafe’s bars and lots of entertainment.
Topics: UK | No Comments »
Black taxi political tours
By rocky | November 2, 2007
Well here’s a trip with a difference, imagine jumping in a black London taxi and touring the famous political icons of Belfast. This entertaining and informative tour takes in all the sites, the murals, the Falls and Shankill Roads and peac walls which have been so much a part of the political struggle over the last few decades in Northern Ireland. Tours vary a bit too depending on the point of view of the driver you get, so you never quiet know what you are in for. And if the tour wasn’t one of the best days you have in Belfast it only gets better at the end when you are treated to a tasty bowl of Irish stew and a pint of world famous Guinness. Each tour takes about an hour and a half but you can usually do a deal with the driver and cater it to your tastes for a few extra pounds.
Topics: Europe, Must see, UK | No Comments »
Xtreme fun in Scotland
By rocky | October 20, 2007
When you think of Scotland you think of lovely rolling hills, bagpipes, tatan and a bit of haggis well there’s so much more- have you ever thought of extreme adventure. Biking, hiking, skiing and wind surfing well take a look at our You Tube of the week and you will see theres some great fun to be had.
Topics: Europe, UK, Youtube of the week | No Comments »
Take him to the tower!
By rocky | October 13, 2007
On the banks of the River Thames The Tower of London is one of London’s most popular tourist attractions. The history of the tower dates back to 1078 and has had dozens of rebuilds and extenstions and just as many uses. For most of it’s life it has been a fortress but has also been a prison and home of torture and exhectution. The fortress has also been an armory, a mint, somewhere to house public records, even an observatory and a zoo. Today it is the home of the Crown Jewels which have been kept in the tower since they were stolen from Westminster Abbey in 1303. The burley Beefeaters guard the tower along with ravens which have been kept at the tower for over 100 years. Legend says that if the ravens ever leave the tower the British Monachy will fall- Good Old Lizzie better hope they dont find a better place to live.
Topics: Europe, Must see, UK | No Comments »
Quick as a flash on the Eurostar
By wattsy | September 19, 2007
The eurostar is the famous train that takes passengers from Waterloo Station in London to Paris’ Gare du Nord as well as to Brussels South. Travel time between London and Paris has been around 2 hours 35 mins in the past but recently by using a new high speed track in the UK a new record has been broken at 2 hours and 3 min. Previously once the train hit the UK the trains had to slow down to use the British rail network along side other trains. Now the new high speed track brings the trains to a new terminal at St Pancras at the same speed as the French side, proving the British can be as good as the French! If you need to get from London to Paris go the train instead of the plane, its the quickest way to get from the centre of one city to the centre of another. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Europe, Trains, UK | No Comments »
Want to buy a wild animal or some cheese?
By rocky | August 30, 2007
You can dream up just about anything and Harrods Department Store in Knightsbridge London will be able to source it, gift wrap it and even deliver it. The store is one of the worlds finest selling an amazing range of products. To shop in their store it is nothing short of an event they have seven floors and 300 departments packed with some of the finest products you could wish to buy. The food hall in the basement is extraordinary (and in many cases just like its prices) this beautifully tiled hall sells food from the four corners of the earth the range is incredible. Visitors beware there are doormen on every door ensuring no undesirables or badly dressed people enter, no backpacks, no torn jeans and no revealing skimpy costumes are just a few of the items forbidden. As tommorow marks the 10th anniversary of the tragic death of Diana Princess of Wales and Dodi Al Fayed (the son of Harrod’s owner) we must mention the moving shrine at the emporium dedicated to the both of them - this beautiful tribute is is well worth a visit.
Topics: Europe, Food, Must see, UK | No Comments »
Tate Modern London
By rocky | August 10, 2007
On the banks of the Thames housed in the old Bankside Power Station the Tate Modern is one of London’s newest and most popular attractions. Here there are 88 galleries displaying a huge collection of modern art. The Tate has some of the worlds most precious modern art pieces including works from Dali, Matisse, Rothko, Picasso and Warhol. Warhol’s Marilyn Diptych which was painted in 1962 is one of the more popular of the artworks. For book lovers the centre also has a book shop which claims to have more books than any other store in London, they have over 10,000 titles on hand, but many believe Waterstone’s in Piccadilly has thousands more. The best thing about the gallery is it is free except for special exhibitions.
Topics: Must see, UK | No Comments »
The Big One
By wattsy | August 7, 2007
Pleasure Beach is an amusement park in the popular holiday town of Blackpool UK, it is most well known for its huge rollercoaster the Pepsi Max Big One. The imaginatively named “Big One” was opened in 1994 and at the time it was the tallest in the world but has since lost the title to two other coasters in Rust, Germany and Fujiyama, Japan. The coaster was featured in the TV series “engineering at the cutting edge”. Sitting on the edge of the beach it takes a bit of foundations to get the thing to stay where it is, reportedly costing as much as the coaster itself. There are many tourist attractions and amusements in Blackpool, hit the next page to see the satellite view of Blackpool’s Pleasure Beach and follow the beach along to Blackpool’s famous tower and piers. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: UK, Youtube of the week, fun parks | No Comments »
Take him to the tower
By rocky | August 6, 2007
The Tower of London on the north bank of the Thames River has had a very colorful life over its 930+ years of existence. IT was originally built as a fortress and has been used as a royal palace, prison, a mint and observatory a treasury building and even a zoo. Today it is the home of the Crown Jewels of the United Kingdom and one of London’s most popular tourist attractions.
The Tower is guarded by the Yeomen Wardens or Beefeaters as they are more popularly know and the ravens. Ledged maintains if the ravens were to leave the tower the British monarchy would tumble.
Topics: Must see, UK | No Comments »
Westend show for half the price
By rocky | July 8, 2007
It can be quiet expensive to see some of the more popular West End shows in London, but there is a cheaper way if you are quick and lucky. Look for the TKTS booth which you can find on the south side of Leicester Square and you might be able to see you favourite show for a fraction of the price. Usually offerings on Mondays are cheaper and easier to get hold of you sometimes get tickets as low as 7 pounds 50. Not all shows are on sale at TKTS, there are some other bargain ticket places around the west end so a few laps on foot may really pay off, and it’s a really good chance to see all the different shows on offer.
Topics: Europe, UK | No Comments »