Re: [9fans] Things to do in London When You're 9con-ing

[George Michaelson <ggm@apnic.net>]

Sir John Soanes house museum. It has the most eclectic collection of
ephemeral architectural remains around. Wonderful!

The Horniman Museum. fascinating collection of musical instruments. (The V&A is
also a good bet)

The reading room of the British Museum is now no longer a library but is at
last available to non-ticket holders to see inside.

Greenwich is fab. the Harrison chronometers are well worth a look.

The Science Museum has the babbage engine and the modern reconstructions
and a differential analyser made of meccano.

Hendon Air Museum has a Lancaster Bomber.

Brick Lane Markets. Everything on sale. including your own kidneys.

Camden Lock markets. Kentish Town may still have a very nice Moroccan Restaurant
called 'le petit prince' which does its own merguez.

Go to the houses of parliment before they build the glass screen across the
visitors gallery.

The London Underground Museum, and the Post Museum are small but good.

Go up St Pauls Cathedral dome. whispering gallery! (huge and works)

Also has the tomb of Nelson in the crypt. Also fab view from cupola.

Also the London Fire Memorial is worth a climb. 

(its a shame that he blitz got rid of both Gin Lane, and Grope-cunt street)

The best view of the London Skyline is from Primrose Hill, which is near
to Camden Lock. 

Richmond and Kew are fab. Kew House has a very good museum, you can see
the Pagoda. The modern HotHouses are ok, but the Paxton original with the
giant waterlily is the best.

UCL has a museum of Archeology (Flinders Petrie worked there) which has
historical weights and measures for the numerically minded. (like ancient
egyptian ones)

Oh, the V&A costume collection is also fab.

The Elgin Marbles in the British Museum. Also a room of Netsuke! 

Bookshops down Shaftsbury Avenue. 

Very good Army & Navy surplus store between Euston and Kings Cross. 

Speakers Corner has the new Memorial to the aussies who died in the wars. And
the Barrie memorial for peter pan fanatics.

Roman London is on display at the Barbican, both physically, and recreated in
the museum as is the fire of london.

Greys Inn is fun to walk through.

The Courtauld Institute is now down at Kings College. It has a lovely small
collection of Art. (anthony blunt, who worked there, specialized in the
Poussin collection which is down at the Dulwich Gallery, also lovely)

Sir John Soane did the wall alongside the Bank of England. Hawksmoor did a church
near by.

The Natural History Musuem and the Geology Museum are worth it, but don't try
and do them AND the V&A AND the Science Museum in one day.

The Science Museum has been ruined by too many re-re-re-organizations. But its
still worth a go. (quite apart from the babbage stuff)

Windsor Castle is within decent Travelling distance. 

Clerkenwell has secondhand books on sale from barrows early in the morning. Near
the old Communist Party publishing house.

BlackFriars Bridge is the scene of one of the worlds first electricity generating
systems for public distribution outside of the edison plants in the USA.

Walking around is good.

-George