Well, all my paperwork is in for a summer externship in London.

[TheMightyFavog]

All I have is my interview on the eighth, find some way to pay for it, and I'd be off to work in London for two months. I'm nervous and excited at the same time.

[soleft]

1. What kind of an internship is it?

Have you been to London before? I've only been once, after having dreamed of going my whole life. We stayed north of Hyde Park. It was really cool.

[TheMightyFavog]

3. Hopefully, something in TV or Radio production

Dream: Intern for the BBC, On the set of Top Gear. I don't care if I'd be constantly taking shit from Jeremey Clarkson for being an American, just being around some of the cars on that show..... (please let there be a Caterham Seven, my dream car...)

I've never been out of the United States for more than a day. (Couple of side trips into/through Canada as a kid)

I'd be staying at the International Students House on Great Portland Street, which I'm told is in Central London.

[soleft]

4. One thing I was surprised about in London is the coffee situation

Unless you're in a restaurant or Starbucks you can't get real coffee. If you go into a convenience type store or fast food all they have is this instant stuff called nescafe.

Also, it's interesting getting used to pounds as coins. I'm so used to paper dollars, I was constantly holding open a handful of change to people and asking "Is this enough?"

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. As of August 2006, there were a lot of homegrown coffee chains,

especially Caffe Nero, and one other whose name I forget. Not having been in England since 1967 before that, I was favorably impressed with the quality of the options for food and drink. Back in 1967, it was all starch and grease. Now it's any food from any country in the world.

Whatever you do, bring money. London is fantastic, but things cost about twice as much as they do here. Also, be sure to take some weekend trips out into the smaller cities and countryside, which are full of history and charm. Oxford, Cambridge, Canterbury, and Bath are all easy day trips from London on the train.

I always recommend that people going to a country for the first time read the Insight Guide connected with it. There are Insight Guides for England, Scotland, and London. They start out with cultural and historical outlines and finish with descriptions of the sights, all illustrated wiith fantastic photographs.

[soleft]

7. I went to Bathe as part of a Stonehenge tour

It was cool to see the place where they film all those period films.

[TheMightyFavog]

13. Why would I want coffee in London?

I expect to learn a lot about tea whilst I am there.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

14. "Whilst"? You're getting Anglicized already!

The most important thing to learn about tea in England is that it's usually drunk with milk.

[pitohui]

17. there are 200 starbucks in london, seriously, you can look it up

getting coffee will not be an issue

[Kutjara]

18. Not to mention Caffe Nero, Costa Coffee, Coffee Republic,...

...and several other chains. Small, family run Italian sandwich bars also do good coffee. The upmarket Pret a Manger sandwich shop chain makes a decent cup, as does the Eat chain of health-conscious cafes.

Don't worry about getting any food or drink you want in London. It's one of the world's capitals for cuisine. Make sure you pick up a copy of the Time Out Eating & Drinking guide. It's the difinitive source for good eats in and around London (and that's not just because I write reviews for them).

[Lydia Leftcoast]

31. Thank you! I was trying to remember the names of those

other coffee chains.

I was never starved for coffee in England, and I'm FUSSY about it.

[TheBaldyMan]

6. Jeremy Clarkson - give him a veggie burger from me.

Steaming great twerp that he is ;)

pls could you PM me with the realidentity of the Stig if you find out.

[TheMightyFavog]

8. And risk getting kicked out of the program and possibly sued? No. Bloody. Way.

I would never reveal who the Stig is.

[Kutjara]

19. The current one, or the one who drove the Jag...

...off the deck of an aircraft carrier and was never seen again? :hi:

[emad]

11. Great Portland Street is right in the middle of town, 5 minutes from

Regent's Park (great for days out regardless of the weather but really wonderful in the sunshine). The US Ambasasador's residence is in the Park in the Outer Circle. They're always having garden parties in the fine weather. Try for an invite by registering at the US Embassy in Grosevnor Square (10 -15 minutes walk from Great Portland Street) and they'll give you their list of what's on for US expats and visitors in the London area.

Democrats Abroad is also pretty good source of information.

Also recommended is the Rough Guide to London which list all the free events such as concerts, gigs, recitals, plays etc. A weekly London listings magazine called Time Out is also excellent source of where to go, what to do, help with finding work, connecting with other people.

Travel is expensive so buy an Oyster card which cuts fares by aout 50%. Get a free bus and tube (ie subway) map map when you arrive and use it for getting around town. The Students' Union for Westminster University is about two minutes away from Great Portland Street and has a useful noticeboard for visitors, travellers and anybody wanting to make contact. Ditto the University of London Students Union in Mallet Street (7-8 minutes away) which deals with over 250,000 UK and foreign students in London. They have a good swimming pool and gym at their offices, not too expensive and always a hub of activity.

Getting out and about in town should be easy if you're walking and have your map. For a really great day out take a bus or tube to Hampstead Heath in North London - it's like being in a different world, you'd never know that you're bang in the mkiddle of a huge metropolis. There are some great swimming ponds there (men's, mixed and women's. Don't know if the nudist one is still open). West Heath is the gay cruising place to be at if so inclined.

Soho is brilliant for night life. Camden Town for its market and for scoring weed (but be careful, lots of undercover cops around the Lock). The south bank of the Thames is one long great walk full of unexpected stuff and takes you to the Tate Modern Gallery - free entry.

Hyde Park is staging about ten concerts this year. If you can't get a ticket you can sit nearby and listed for free. Trafalgar Square also hosts concerts rght in the middle of town.

Hope you have a great time!

[TheMightyFavog]

12. So where would the Imperieal War Museum be in relation to Great Portland Street?

I've always been eager to see the exhibits there.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

15. Go to your friendly local large bookstore and get a map of London

The existence of the Tube and a comprehensive bus system means that distances don't mean so much.

Be sure to buy an Oyster card, which is a debit card good for both the Tube and the city buses. If you don't use an Oyster card, the Tube costs £3 ($6) per ride. When your Oyster card runs out of money, you just go to a machine in the station and put more money on it.

[TheMightyFavog]

16. I think we're going to be provided one of those though our International programs

End of Line.

[Kutjara]

22. The best map to buy is the A-to-Z.

http://www.a-zmaps.co.uk/

They come in book form, in a wide range of sizes from huge atlases to tiny pocketbooks, so pick the one that's easiest for you to carry. A-to-Zs are used by most Londoners when they need to know where they're going. You can get the books at any bookstore, magazine shop and even some of the streetside newsstands. They're hard to miss.

And remember, when asking, it's "A to Zed." :)

[TheMightyFavog]

25. How much do those books run?

End of Line.

[Kutjara]

27. About $8-10.

Amazon.co.uk is selling the spiral-bound one at GBP 5.20 and the paperback at GBP 4.40. The exchange rate is in the $1.90 to GBP 1.

[Kutjara]

21. The war museum is in Lambeth.

It occupies the premises of the old Bethelem insane asylum (the place that gave us the word 'bedlam'). It's a reasonably short Tube ride from GPS to Lambeth.

[TheMightyFavog]

24. Sort of appropo for a war museum to be located on the former grounds of an asylum.

End of Line.

[Kutjara]

30. Isn't it though?

I don't know if they still have it (it's been a few years since I last visited), but they used to have an incredible WWI and WWII exhibition in the basement. It focused on the human experience of war, the deprivation, loss of life, loneliness and fear, rather than glorifying the conflict. At the entrance to the exhibition was a clock that counted the number of people who had died in wars during the previous century, and were continuing to die in ongoing struggles around the world. The last digit was changing almost too fast to see.

[Kutjara]

20. Time Out does a great travel guide too, in addition to their...

...listings magazine. My wife told me to say that, because she's the editor.

[TheMightyFavog]

26. Are they looking for writers?

I might be willing to bang out a couple pieces while I'm over there.

[Kutjara]

28. They use freelancers extensively...

...so it's likely they'll commission you to do some stuff. A lot of full-time staff have left recently, so they'll probably be even more amenable to outside help.

[maddezmom]

2. Good luck

We really enjoy living here. Hopefully this summer won't be so bloody hot!

[theNotoriousP.I.G.]

9. Good luck!

You will have the time of your life.

[trof]

10. Do learn to speak Brit before you go.

Torches, lifts, loos, fags, boots (and Boots), offside wings, etc.
As Churchill (I think) said:
"Two peoples separated by a common language."
Have fun.
Eat lots of pub food.
;-)

[Kutjara]

23. Three things to be aware of:

"Fanny" in British English does not mean the same as "butt." To Brits, the fanny is the female reproductive region. Only call that thing you wear around your waist to hold your wallet and keys a "fanny pack" if you want to see a lot of people rolling around laughing. Brits call them "bum bags."

"Pants" means underpants. If you want a long legged garment to wear on you legs, ask for "trousers."

"Pissed" means drunk. If a Brit tells you he's pissed, it means he's off his face, not angry. "Pissed off," means angry (actually, you'll more often hear "fucked off" - Brits aren't so squeamish about the use of language.)

[TheMightyFavog]

29. Who here has flown United transatlantic?

I wish I could get a Cheaper British Airways Flight. At least there I'd have complimentary Meals and drinks.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

32. They still have complimentary meals trans-Atlantic on United

although you do have to pay for booze. (I sprang for a vodka tonic on the way back, because I had three pound coins left over, exactly what they were charging.) You also get a seatback TV screen with a choice of about six films.

The meals are...airline meals. You get a "dinner" and a "breakfast." At least, that's what they're called.

You can increase your comfort level somewhat by paying $299 for a twelve-month Economy Plus Access pass. This lets you sit up in the front of the coach cabin with 3-6" more leg room ( although everything else is the same) on both domestic and international flights for a year.

I did it last year, and I flew on United enough to make Premier status, which gets me Economy Plus automatically.

The seats on the flights to England are 2-5-2. If you get a window seat on the left, you can see the countryside as you fly into London.