Free Museums in London – Part 2

20 Thursday Sep 2012

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In Part 1 of this series, we discussed the merits of the large institution museums here in London – British Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the Natural History Museum, and the Tate Modern.  Now, we will review the four smaller museums Mr. Selfish and I visited during our stay – the Wallace Collection, the Victoria and Albert Museum of Childhood, the Hunterian Museum, and the British Library.

5.  The Wallace Collection – This is a smaller museum containing an exquisite collection of fine and decorative arts from the 15th to the 19th century.  It houses a painting which I’ve adored since college – “The Swing” by Jean-Honoré Fragonard.

I adore smaller museums since I don’t usually have the stamina for a really large museum.  The Wallace Collection was the perfect size and contained beautiful rooms with lovely exhibits.  I highly recommend it!

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Free Museums in London – Part 1

19 Wednesday Sep 2012

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As I write this post, the conversion from pound to US dollar is 1.58!  With that conversion, living in London can be pretty steep.  Mr. Selfish and I have accordingly become very fond of the museums since the vast majority of them are free.

We went to eight museums during our time in London.  This post will review the four larger museums we visited – the British Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, the Natural History Museum, and the Tate Modern.  Part 2 will review the four smaller museums that Mr. Selfish and I visited during our stay.

1.  The British Museum – Established in 1753, this museum focuses on human history and culture.  It contains over 8 million items in its permanent collection.  Mr. Selfish and I personally enjoy the Egyptian and Asian permanent exhibits.  We also visited the temporary Picasso exhibit, which contained over 100 etchings by Picasso.

It is always worthwhile to visit the British Museum.  Mr. Selfish and I have been here separately and together on a number of occasions.  The only downside is that it can get pretty swamped by tourists, especially the Egyptian exhibits.  I would recommend not visiting the British Museum on the weekends but going during the weekday.

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London Markets!

18 Tuesday Sep 2012

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Mr. Selfish and I discovered another cost-efficient way to spend an afternoon – browsing the markets.  From foodie heaven to antiques to alternative clothing, London has the market for you.

1.  Borough Market – Mr. Selfish and I could eat every day at this market.  Not only was the variety tremendous, but everything was fresh.  By far, the very best food stall at this market is Kappacasein, which sells the most delectable grilled cheese sandwich I’ve ever had.  Other yummy delights were from Pieminister for Cornwall pasties, Northfield Kitchen for salt beef sandwiches, and the Guildable Manor for their mixed grill sandwich.  Although there is very limited seating, you can always grab your food and head to the area in front of the Southwark Cathedral to nibble down.

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Fun with Expedia’s Best Rate Guarantee

17 Monday Sep 2012

Posted by in Travel Hacking

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After airfare, accommodation costs are probably one of the highest expenses you’ll incur when traveling (with the possible exception of food, if you’re like Mrs. Selfish and I!).  For stays over 5 days we like to rent apartments, but for fast travel we usually stay at a hotel.

For our trip to Ireland, however, Mrs. Selfish and I planned on driving through 6 cities in 7 nights.  This entailed staying at 6 different hotels – a booking feat which I used to loathe, but now enjoy.  Why? Because of Expedia’s Best Guarantee.

What is the Best Rate Guarantee?

Expedia claims to have the lowest price for all hotel rentals and flights everywhere and even go so far as to back it up with a Best Rate Guarantee:

“We’re so confident you’ll find the best price for your trip on Expedia that we guarantee it. Find a cheaper identical trip within 24 hours of booking and we’ll refund the difference–and give you an Expedia travel coupon worth $50.”

That’s right, in the event that you manage to find a cheaper rate, not only will they match the price, but they’ll give you a $50 coupon for your next Expedia purchase! This seems ripe for exploitation…

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Google’s New London Office

16 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by in Europe, London, United Kingdom

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My little cousin, who works for Google, was in town and wanted to check out the new London office.  Since we were with her, Mr. Selfish and I also toured the office. As usual, Google’s office seemed like a great place to work.

There were nifty submarine style doors, funky decorated areas, lots of places to eat, and tons of video conference rooms.

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On to the Next!

15 Saturday Sep 2012

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Today we’re saying goodbye to our cozy London studio flat, and are hopping on a train to Scotland to start our trip from London to Paris by way of Eastern Europe.  While two weeks would normally be a decent amount of time, we’re passing through 5 separate locations and covering over 2,100 miles, so I expect it will be a little frantic.

Along the way we’re hitting up:

Edinburgh

Home to kilts, haggus, scones, and a host of tough man stereotypes!  Mrs. Selfish and I plan on hitting up castles, pubs, Arthur’s Seat, and the Royal Mile.  For our three nights in Edinburgh, we’re staying at the Hilton Grovesnor hotel.  It’s slightly pricier than I’d like (about $120 a night), but with Mrs. Selfish’s gold status we should be getting wifi and free breakfast every morning – so not too shabby!

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Flashback Friday – Eating a Beating Snake Heart

14 Friday Sep 2012

Posted by in Asia, Flashback, Food & Drinks, Vietnam

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Mr. Selfish and I did a “homeland honeymoon,” which means we went to Hong Kong and Vietnam.  While we were in Hanoi, we decided to try snake.  We hired a driver to take us to a restaurant in the village where they serve snake.

The restaurant had an outdoor courtyard that was lovely.  We were relaxing a bit when they brought out a snake and started playing with it.  After a couple of minutes, the negotiation for the price started.  Once we settled on the price, they got to business!

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The Other University – Oxford

13 Thursday Sep 2012

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I took a day trip to Oxford while I was studying at Cambridge.  Because that day was unusually cold, I purchased a long-sleeved Oxford t-shirt to warm up.  One day when I was wearing that Oxford t-shirt back at Cambridge, someone screamed at me, “No, Cambridge is better!”  This was my first introduction to the rivalry between Cambridge and Oxford.

Admittedly, Oxford is older than Cambridge.  In fact, disgruntled faculty from Oxford left and formed Cambridge.  However, Cambridge consistently ranks higher in the list of world universities.  This year, Cambridge was ranked #2 (with MIT as #1) while Oxford was ranked #5.

Biased as I am, I also think that Cambridge is prettier than Oxford.  But you can judge for yourself…

Mr. Selfish and I started at Radcliffe Square.  We admired the Radcliffe Camera and climbed the tower in the University Church of St. Mary the Virgin to enjoy the fabulous view.

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Don’t Sit in the Chairs in the Parks

12 Wednesday Sep 2012

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Mr. Selfish and I were fortunate to have many beautiful sunny days in London.  We therefore explored the many, many parks around the city.

Regent’s Park – One of the first things we learned was not to sit in the green and white lawn chairs.  Apparently, once your butt touches the seat, you owe the park 1.5 pounds. We learned this the hard way when a man in a bright yellow vest came up to us demanding money.  We should have noticed that the older ladies near us had sprinted out of the chairs as soon as the man approached us.  However, we only had a 20 pound note and the vest guy didn’t have any change.  After he found a group of about ten people to harass for money, he left us alone (aka we ran off).

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The Little Differences

10 Monday Sep 2012

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It’s been one month since we left the States and started this whole Selfish trip, and while we’ve only been in London for a little less than a month, it strikes me that “home” has changed meaning in the last few weeks.  A few months ago, “home” was Orlando, but after packing everything into storage and renting out our house it’s safe to say that definition no longer applies. For now, home means our little studio in Highgate, but in a week, home will be a hotel in Scotland, and in a month, an apartment in Paris.

In the States (or maybe everywhere), we have a tendency to romanticize the European lifestyle.  35 hour work weeks! Amazing food and wine! Architecture! History!

Having spent a little time abroad now, I’ve definitely noticed a few differences between living in the States and Europe (or at least in England), which I will now present to you in rant form:

1. Doing Laundry is extremely time consuming.  I used to think this was the case back home, but man was I wrong.  In the States, a long time for laundry was 3 loads of laundry in 6 hours.  Here, it takes a day for each load, which is due to the fact that England seems to have a massive shortage of dryers. So instead of throwing things in the dryer, you have to hang your clothes up to dry.  After a few hours in the sun (if you’re lucky and it hasn’t rained), your clothes are ready to be brought in – only now they have a delightfully crunchy texture.  This is due to either the water here, or perhaps because of the lack of dryer sheets – I’m not sure what to believe. To combat this apparently a lot of Europeans iron everything, including socks and underwear!

2. Semi-Wet Bathrooms.  If you’ve never encountered one, you’re in for a treat!  Instead of simply elevating the shower or adding a curtain, you have a delightfully open shower with a drain in the floor.  Move ever so slightly the wrong way and water cascades off of your elbow and on to the floor (or worse, the toilet). To fix this problem, we use two different bath mats: one to sop up all of the water from the shower itself, and the other to wipe down the entire bathroom floor after we finishing showering.

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Highgate Village Attractions

09 Sunday Sep 2012

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Mr. Selfish and I are renting a flat in Highgate Village, which is in northern London.  It takes us about 20 minutes to get to central London on the tube.  On the days that we don’t venture into the city proper, we enjoy Highgate Village.

One of the main attractions in the area is the Highgate Cemetery, which is a Victorian cemetery opened in 1839.  With over 170,000 people buried in around 53,000 graves in varying states of repair, the cemetery has an eerie quality about it.  Notably, Karl Marx was buried in Highgate Cemetery.

Highgate Cemetery is divided into the eastern and western parts.  You can do a self-guided tour of the east cemetery for 3 pounds per adult, so Mr. Selfish and I chose this option.

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Carded for Caffrey’s

08 Saturday Sep 2012

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As I’ve mentioned previously, I spent the summer of 2000 in the UK.  During that time, I enjoyed many a pints of an Irish ale called Caffrey’s.  I came back to the States and started looking for it immediately.  I enjoyed a couple of pints of Caffrey’s at the Green Leafe, which is a bar on William & Mary’s campus.

Unfortunately, in 2001, Coors acquired the rights to distribute Caffrey’s in the States and decided to cease its distribution.  Apparently, Coors thought Caffrey’s would interfere with its marketing of Killian’s, its other Irish ale.

After finding out that Caffrey’s was still sold in the UK, Mr. Selfish and I knew we had to track down pints of what had become mythical Irish ale to me.  We discovered that Caffrey’s was sold at O’Neill’s, which is an Irish themed pub and restaurant chain.  The atmosphere is a little too polished for my tastes, but I didn’t care much since I wanted my Caffrey’s.

Outside of O’Neill’s, a bouncer was checking people for identification.  Mr. Selfish managed to walked in, but the bouncer stopped me and asked for identification. Apparently, I look like I’m 17 years-old, since the drinking age in England is 18.

In any case, I got to enjoy my Caffrey’s and it was as caramel-y and delicious as I remembered.  We only have a week left in London so I need to enjoy a few more pints before we leave!

Flashback Friday – Copenhagen Card

07 Friday Sep 2012

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In May of this year, Mr. Selfish and I spent about three days in Copenhagen.  Prior to planning this trip, I had no idea what was in Copenhagen – except for the Little Mermaid.

During my research, I discovered that Copenhagen has quite a few attractions and museums.  I also learned that one could buy a Copenhagen Card for three days for about $80 USD per person.  The Card covered about 70 museums and attractions, as well as the metro and the bus.  It seemed quite pricey but as I continued my research, I found that everything in Copenhagen is expensive (for instance a draft beer is close to $9).  I did the math and decided to buy the Card.

On Day 1, we went to the Danish Design Centre and Tivoli.  Both would have cost $25 per person without the Copenhagen Card.

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Don’ You Go Rounin’ Round to Re Ro

06 Thursday Sep 2012

Posted by in Europe, Living Abroad, London, United Kingdom

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While Mrs. Selfish and I have certainly enjoyed our time in England, we’ve noticed a  common problem – we can’t understand the English.  And to make things even more confusing, some times they can’t understand us!

Oftentimes it comes down to an issue of terminology. Shopping for groceries we had a devil of a time tracking down crushed tomatoes (“passata”). Or when we asked for cotton swabs in a local pharmacy the confused store clerk brought us to the cotton ball section.

But more often that not it comes down to the fact that we just can’t understand people’s accents – and there certainly are a range of them here in England.  The other day I stepped aside for some lady in a museum, and she responded with “S’cuse me guv’nor!”  To make matters even more confusing, London also seems to have a pretty large population of immigrants, whose British is even harder to understand!

One thing Mrs. Selfish and I have enjoyed, however, is British movie marketing.  We don’t have a TV, nor have we watched any movies in the theatre (not at 15 pounds a pop!), but we have seen a ton of billboards.

In American you’re on your own – I feel more rugged already!

You’d be a mug to miss it. – What’s a mug?!

The New Guv’Nor – When did Ford get so British?

Oosh! Bang Tidy! – This one makes me laugh every time.  We briefly considered watching Keith Lemon: The Film, but it had a 0% on Rotten Tomatoes and neither Mrs. Selfish nor I speak British that well.

With less than 3 weeks left in England, I can’t help but wonder whether things will be more or less confusing when we leave.  I wouldn’t be surprised if they speak English better in France!