Final Thoughts
Overall, we had a great trip, and it didn't rain as much as we expected. Temperatures ranged from 56–65°F. Unfortunately, the repercussions of the canceled flight created a lot of problems that had to be solved on the fly. I think next time we might use a travel agent.
As a big, cosmopolitan urban center, London can be pretty crowded, especially where tourists congregate. You have to be prepared for some tight situations, like standing in a crowded subway car or bus, walking on packed sidewalks around Piccadilly Circus, or being totally immersed in incalculable hoards of people at Heathrow Airport.
Traffic jam around Trafalgar Square
There is a lot of ethnic diversity in London, and you hear many languages being spoken. There is a lot of smoking and vaping on the street, but not indoors. We did see a Middle Eastern restaurant where men were sitting outside smoking hookah pipes.The drinking age is 18.
Food
We had excellent food in London. All of our meals were great. A big variety of cuisines are available. For example, we found Malevo, an Argentine steak house just across the street from our hotel. We enjoyed it enough to go back again before we left.
Public houses, or pubs, are an essential and historic part of the fabric of the neighborhoods. We ate at two outstanding pubs, the Morpeth Arms and Angel in the Fields. Both are in historic buildings.
After our visit to the Tate Britain, we came upon the Morpeth Arms. We had traditional Irish dishes along with ale and wine. The decor has been wonderfully maintained from an older time.
The bar at the Morpeth Arms
Our trip to Stratforn-upon-Avon led us through London's Marylbone neighborhood. Angel in the Fields came highly recommended for an authentic English pub vibe. The ground floor is a bar, while upstairs they serve food. Interestingly, no photography, cellphones, or computers are permitted, and there is no music. Most pubs and restaurants are noisy, with music and lots of people talking, but this place wanted to encourage intimate conversation. It was a refreshing departure from the norm.
Etched glass at the Morpeth Arms
Financial
London is expensive. It is a large city with a lot of wealth in evidence, and prices are accordingly high. The exchange rate also impacted us, which was effectively a 30% markup on all purchases. But hey, the best museums are free, and tipping is within reason—most restaurants add an optional 12.5% service charge that goes directly to the staff. We always paid that because it seemed fair.
These little black cabs are everywhere in London. We heard that they are expensive, so we used Uber.
One great convenience is that you don't need cash at all. Contactless payments are accepted everywhere, and many business don't even accept cash. This is really convenient when using the excellent public transit system. You just tap your card—no need to get a special transit card, top it off, etc.
A vintage bar truck on the River Thames in Greenwich
Ever since our visit to Italy over 10 years ago, we have been enjoying the tiny cars that we sometimes see in Europe. They are mostly gone now, replaced with larger cars.
On this visit, we encountered only one genuine tiny car, the electric G-WIZ, pictured here.
The original Little Cars page is still available on our Italy site.
Bonus: The Original Little Car Photos
While searching through some files recently, I came across a few of the original little car photos from our first trip to Amsterdam and Paris, before we started chronicling our travels on these web sites. I have also added a couple of more recent little car photos from Seattle.
Amsterdam, 2001
Paris, 2001
Seattle
Seattle