Travellin to the UK?!

[Wanderer]

Am off to the UK, London in a few months and was wondering if anyone out there had any advice or stories
:) :)

[optimistic]

take a good jumper!

[Wanderer]

think Ill need a bit more than that!!:) :)

With my usual impeccable timing, going go winter to winter, but as I usual seem to avoid the sunshine shouldnt make to bigger difference,

guess just wondering if any advice on the important things in life, clubs, drugs, music, people and so on

[Optimus Rhyme]

English people are ugly
take some girls with you

[w0rm]

Originally posted by Optimus Rhyme
English people are ugly



This can work in your favour. It's a well known fact that fat chicks put out more.

[Morphee]

Statistic I was told when over there last winter.

80% of sexually active females over the age of 16 have one for of STD. Watch where you stick your dick.

[w0rm]

Originally posted by Morphee
Statistic I was told when over there last winter.

80% of sexually active females over the age of 16 have one form of STD. Watch where you stick your dick.





Should I be worried?

[Trancematic]

im heading over there this coming fri apparently slinky on fri nights goes off like a massive rave every week

i cant wait

[Trancematic]

http://www.slinky.co.uk/

[Optimus Rhyme]

Originally posted by w0rm






Should I be worried?

You?
No.

:)

[Pigman]

Originally posted by Morphee
Statistic I was told when over there last winter.

80% of sexually active females over the age of 16 have one for of STD. Watch where you stick your dick.

Yes that true.

Everyone also stops what they are doing every day at 4pm for tea and scones.

All English are only allowed one shower a week by law.

Oh, and they also have little hot plates on the bar to keep the beer warm cos they can't stand cold beer.


If you bear all the above thruths in mind you should have a great time.

[Scratchy]

You will probably have some of the best nights of your life IN England.

Slinky is good, check out Godskitchen@Code in Birmingham and then on to Sundisential@Sanctuary. Massive night there. Cream got closed in Liverpool which is a shame as I had some good nights there. Sankeys Soap in Manchester is Very good, small venue, top DJs and good lineups most of the time.

But as stated above, at 4pm don't forget to have tea and scones whether or not your on a come down :tripping: :tripping:

[Wanderer]

Thanks for that, heard that sundessential is meant to go off, does anyone know what the pill situation is like over there, Ive got a mate whose arrived recently that reckons there crap, but am hoping she just hasnt hooked up with the right person!!
:) :)

[Scratchy]

Originally posted by Wanderer
what the pill situation is like over there, Ive got a mate whose arrived recently that reckons there crap, but am hoping she just hasnt hooked up with the right person!!
:) :)

The situation in the UK is very very cheap. Its about 2.50 UK price for a pill (thats about $7 for a disco biscuit) the thing is u may be amazed that they are really cheap but its like a pick 'n' mix when getting them, you are either going to get some really strong ones or you are going to get some god awful ones. At Creamfields last year I saw about 12 different varieties, about 6 of them were probably any good. If ur buying quite a few, just buy a couple and drop them to see what there like, if there good then buy the rest the next day. Don't pay anymore than a $15 for one whilst over there, thats getting ripped off mate.
Enjoy your stay.

[Debz]

yeah you pay less for drugs because everything else is so bloody expensive... check out the price of rent & petrol over there and you'll wish you were back in sydney :P

snot very nice saying english people are ugly :~(

[numerz]

Do you have anything to declare?
Don't go to London.

[WYLD]

im just about to come home from london.
firstly english girls are not all ugly, infact, most of them are damn good, they tend to put a lot more effort into what they wear and how they look. it's been really hot lately, and they are not shy to show themselves off. get used to drinking tea constantly, when offered a cuppa i said i dont drink tea.. they honestly thought there was something wrong with me. if your gonna live in london, buy a scooter.. they only cost a grand second hand, run on bugger all fuel and will save you so much time and distress of the tube, buses and walking. dont expect many decent meals, and dont buy 'steak' in a box, they are bassically hamburger patties in the shape of steak, infact, dont buy any meat in a box, except mcain microwavable chicken wings.. the bbq flavour ones are sensational!
avoid the walkaboout pubs.. go there at midnite on a saturday nite and you will understand. feel free to drink snakebites, but be careful!
probably a good idea to get in contact with a few job agency's before you go, makes life easier when your looking for work, but dont expect much in the way of pay... im an electrician and had so many people telling me aussie tradesman are paid top doller (or pound as the case may be) but although i earnt decent money, it really wasnt anything exceptional and the cost of living is very high over here.
expect to see lots of rubbish and people spitting on the streets.
in london, dont expect anyone to acknowledge your presence, they tend to be very grumpy, but once ya break down the barriers, most of them are great people.
dont have sex with a girl from essex, or you will get an std for sure.
if you smoke.. try to quit, ciggies are very expensive, and you only get packs of 20, but for some reason when you buy a pack of 20 from a machine in a pub, you only get 16, and they cost about 50p more.
check out www.thegumtree.com and www.tntmagazine.com both very good websites full of info and messages boards to meet people, i recommend the gumtree personals if your after easy sex.
be sure to read TNT magazine, they are free each monday and useually found at tube stations, apart from being full of info, they are funny and have some great stories in them. i will miss tnt for sure.
as far as clubbin goes, they say london is the best place in england. generally speaking it is, whatever style your into, you will be sure to find it in london, but for the best clubs and parties, id head outside london. just read mixmag gig guides, they have the names, places and costs of most of the best clubs.
in london, if ya clubbin round brixton, be very carefull on your own, infact i wont even think about going to brixton on my own. in brixton theres a few big clubs, ive only been to the fridge and the brixton academy, both were on hard house nites, and there seemed to be a fair few dodgy folk around, and lotsa aussie/kiwi/saffa backpackers. ministry is just south of the river in elephant castle, amazing club.. but pick your nite to go, they have diff sounds most nites. if your in elephant and castle, be sure to check out coronet.. very new club and from what ive seen and heard, it's really good. theres a great club near charing cross called heaven, it's often a gay club, so once again pick your nite to go if that sorta thing bothers you. heaven has been around since close to day 1 with oakie puting on lotsa parties there in the late 80's. bedrock parties are on there on the last thursday of each month. they used to have gatecrasher on there every last friday of the month, but thats been axed and now every friday it hosts schooldisco, not really a clubnite as such, but a damn fun time, if you like dress ups and horny girls dressed in school clothes, schooldisco is also on saturday nites at po na na in hammersmith. turnmills in farringdon is a great club too, fair bitt of history there like heaven. theres allways diff parties, fridays are great when it hosts 'the gallery' parties, but there are allways diff nites on there so just check gig guides and see whatcha wanna do. farringdon is also home to fabric, great club to get very lost in... you will understand if you go. very trendie crowd and as such their music policy is very up front stuff. theres a few clubs around camden, as far as clubs go, ive only been to the camden pallace, went to a few diff parties there, mostly hard house and the odd trance nite... little bitt dodgy place, but generally good nite out, like brixton academy, allways a bunch of backpackers around, esspecially on frantic nites. camdens pulling point for me is the little bars, i cant really think of any stand outs, except maybe the loch tavern (i think thats it's name) anyways on a sunday arvo theres a very chilled vibe and there allways surprise bigname dj's turning up for lazy sunday arvo sessions.
for me personally, i find aussie clubs much better than the ones over here, theres a diff vibe here, still great fun, but maybe just not as friendly or something.
be very carefull buying drugs, unless you got contacts, ive been ripped off countless times, if i could give one bitt of a advice, if you dont have contact, wait untill you get inside a club, look for a fairly obvious dealer, chances are they are somewhat resident dealers and wouldnt sell dodgy gear, everytime ive got stuff from those sorta guys, they have been good. but expect to pay a little more in a club, but dont pay more than 5 quid.. then your really getting ripped, if you know the right people, and buy enough, 1 quid pills are pretty common.
generally speaking, i find the pills over here a little bitt weaker than back home, but maybe i was just spoilt with good ones at home?.
hmm cant really think of much more to write about.. just go with a good attitude and friendly face, and you will have a ball, all the backpackers tend to be a fairly tight knit group and it isnt hard to make good friends.
my biggest advice is get out of london.. maybe go there when ya first arrive for a few months to make some friends and earn some money. but get out.. go live elsewhere... londoners are really very grumpy folk, it's not really the nicest city either. most of the english people ive befriended are not from london, and even the londoners i know say that you gotta get out of london to meet the happy english folk. sadly i got stuck in london, but i did get up to newcastle and had a ball.. got to see diggers play for 5 quid at shindig, also, newcastle was just voted the naughtiest city in england, bassically everyone is out for a good time and if you cant pull a chick, well you got major problems. everyone raves on about manchester, bath, brighton, blackpool (if you really like shaggin) and bournemouth. plus at diff times other places can be good fun, oxford is great around uni break ups.. and it's within an hour from london on the train.
anyway, im ranting on when i should be packing.
good luck over here, as i said, if you keep ya head up, you will have a ball.

[Wanderer]

Cool thanks alot everyone, esp Wyld and Smiley, for most of the rest of you, Im actually a chick, so dont need to worry to much about skanky english ho's, although cant imagine the guys would be in much the same boat.

Cant wait to head off there, dont know many people there so if anyones on there way give me an email and perhaps we could catch up there.

:tripping: :)

[Scratchy]

Originally posted by Wanderer
Cool thanks alot everyone, esp Wyld and Smiley, for most of the rest of you, Im actually a chick, so dont need to worry to much about skanky english ho's, although cant imagine the guys would be in much the same boat.

Cant wait to head off there, dont know many people there so if anyones on there way give me an email and perhaps we could catch up there.

:tripping: :)


Smiley????? Don't be fooled by the Avator, its Scratchy....have a good time

[Wanderer]

:blush:;) Whoops, sorry Scratchy never seem to be able to get my head together on Tuesdays, bit of a delay from the weekends,

[Minxie]

For shopping head to the Topshop store on Oxford Street. It rules and I miss it soooooo much. Check out www.topshop.co.uk for a selection of some of the stuff that they sell.

Also for great shoes try Schuh and Faith.

Be careful of the North and South divide both in London and in the country generally. It is very insulting to call someone from the south a northerner or suggest that they are from north of the Watford gap.

[WYLD]

oops hehe ohwell, it's pretty much the same story for the english guys, they look good and dress well, and tend to be pretty smooth talkers.

[Muggaz]

Yeah.. see you there in September next year :)

I love the fact that i have never set foot in England, and when i get there, they will be all like "Welcome Home Sir" due to my English passport!!!!

Thanks Dad
:lol:

[w0rm]

Originally posted by WYLD
oops hehe ohwell, it's pretty much the same story for the english guys, they look good and dress well, and tend to be pretty smooth talkers.


;)

[Scratchy]

Originally posted by WYLD
oops hehe ohwell, it's pretty much the same story for the english guys, they look good and dress well, and tend to be pretty smooth talkers.

got it in one :lol:

[spaceball1]

Got back recently myself, pretty much what WYLD said...
Doesn't matter what kind of tunes you're into, you're definately going to find it in London. And pretty much any night of the week you can find something good to go to..
I wouldn't really say the Camden area is the greatest place, pretty dodgy (second to Brixton,watch out for the (mainly jamaican) guys offering everything on the streets!! ) .
One of the best places is The End .Check out www.the-end.co.uk (http://www.the-end.co.uk) for info - in my opinion, saturdays are the greatest - Layo n Bushwacka, Derrick Carter, Darren Emerson, Jon Carter but to name a few!! oh the memories!!! But get there EARLY ie no later than 1030pm if u don't want to wait for 30-60min..
Also, Bedrock is the FIRST thursday of every month at Heaven :
http://www.bedrock.org.uk , which is easily the best value for money club anywhere - join the free email list and it's 6pounds before 11pm, and almost every month it's John Digweed plus other great acts ...
As mentioned before, people are rude on the streets, that's just the way it is - get used to it. But somehow they manage to be rude in a polite English way... you'll see!
Also as WYLD mentioned, for your own sake stay away from the Walkabouts and the Redback...if ever there was a disgrace to the aussies/kiwis/saffas, they are it.. Go once and do not return unless getting shitfaced on alchol and almost certainly into biffs is your thing...
One of the most often enjoyed things We seem to find over there is a six pack of 500ml cans of Stella for 5pounds from the local dodgy offy (basically a grocery store that sells booze).The best value start to a night out!
Also recommend thegumtree for accommodation options...
Biccies, definately no more than 7pounds each in a club, but mates rates are certainly around 1-3/biccy depending on how many u buy - don't expect the quality you get here, but at less than a bourbon and coke, what are u going to take when u go out?????? 4 biccies please :P
Weed over there isn't the cheapest thing, but don't worry, there's always Amsterdam, only 45minutes flying time from Heathrow (BMI do good deals to get there) ...Ahhhh....:D
One of the best things i found in England was the number of different nationalities working there. Australia sees itself as pretty multicultural, but we ai'nt got nothing compared to England (London mainly). Germans,Irish,Scots,Italians, Danish....the list goes on....and so many quality times and experiences can be had - When was the last time you went clubbin with a Spaniard, German,Italian, Russian, and Scotsman whilst listening to some of the world's best dj's?
My last words would be that while over there, we always complain that it's dirty(true),cold(very true), and the food from supermarkets is crap(see WYLD's meat comment!)(true) , but now thadt i'm back, god damn i wish i was back there!!!!!!!!
ENJOY IT!!!!!

[Muggaz]

Guys (and Galz) who know...

What would be you opinion on living over there? i mean, i am definitely going for a while... but what if i like it too much?

[Wanderer]

Well, Im off with an open mind, dont have a UK passport or ancestory so only have the 2 year visa, but fortunately or (unfortunately) I work in an arse job that not many want to so should be able to be sponsored, think part of the visa changes are to allow Kiwis, Ozzies and Sarfies to be sponsored more easily, which alot of poms get over here, reckon if your going to pack your bags and go to the other side of the world, you might as well forget long term plans..

So excited about going, going to stop off in Amsterdam first, well after a couple of weeks and stay with a dutch mate so will be peeling my delicate little bum off the floor, although growin up in NZ I should be well used to strong weed!

:tripping: :) ;) :offchops:

Bring it on I say.

[Scratchy]

Originally posted by Muggaz
Guys (and Galz) who know...

What would be you opinion on living over there? i mean, i am definitely going for a while... but what if i like it too much?

If you are going to live there, stay up North (Above the midlands basically) standard of living is so much cheaper and job availibilty is on the boom. Down Sarff is quite expensive, don't even think about living in London unless you have a really good job and some sort of financial security. So much different than living in other parts of the world hense the "Rip-Off Britain" tag that it has. Try and base urself (i don't know how old you ur so sorry if this can't apply) in some university areas such as Manchester, Liverpool or even Newcastle. The night life in these areas is fantastic, cheap drinks (on tuesday nights you will find Pound a Pint offers in many student bars) If your into the clubbing scene (stupid query) then you find many clubs all in ur area that ur staying. As England is really small, we used to often get the train somewhere at saturday at about 1pm, get to the destination at 4pm, trashed by 9pm, clubbin at 11pm and then back in bed for around 9am the next depending if you have been to an after party or not. The weather is England can be really shit or really good, just look at the heat wave they have just had. Its really good at Christmas, it may be cold but there is nothing better than having a white christmas (i don't me Coke) and being pissed up in a good ole English pub with yer mates. If u have any other queries, feel free to post or PM me mate :)

[spaceball1]

Muggaz: You will like it, but not TOO much.Trust me you will definately want to come back from about october to march - the winters there are straight up miserable. That being said, the character of english pubs in winter are unbeatable - bars in Oz just don't have that feel - think about it, being in a 200-300 year old building drinking a pint of lager, after just having a couple of lines of charlie...mmmm mmm!!! wonderfully warm :)

Wanderer : If u have a degree then it'll be reasonably easy to get sponsored, but there is still a massive checklist to pass before you'll have any luck(and it's not an easy process).If you don't have a degree, good luck!!
Re; the strong weed..hahaha, well, all i can say is it's a good idea to be with someone after u step out of a coffee shop into the red light district - the charas/hash that some places sell...boooooyeh! heeheehee...The women in the windows are waiting for you ;)

In regards to staying in the north, well what scratchy said is true, however London has it all(albeit pricey...but u can still find cheap options...)...However the trains around England are pricey.. Living in London is expensive, but you can definately get by on a piss poor job like bar work - u just need to learn how to save wisely - ie buy 20 biccies instead of 2, do some shopping with your flatmates and share certain things....DON'T take taxis unless u r super rich - especially dodgy minicabs-unless you're with a few others to share the cost..
Don't expect (in London) to have your own apartment/house - u will be sharing...and that won't be in the city - think 10-15km outside the cbd...

But then there's Edinburgh - If u want a dirt cheap place to party and live for a few months, Edinburghs' the place! the whole town is up for it all the time, there's quality clubs n pubs, and it's an awesome town to meet other travellers..

[Wanderer]

Hmm Edinburgh, heard good things about that ie walk out of club and gaze at castle, also like Scottish people bit more than English (to make huge generalisations) got a better sense of humour.

Whats the job scene like there??

Cheers for all dee advice, dont think Id find this in Lonely Planet

[w0rm]

Originally posted by Wanderer
, also like Scottish people bit more than English (to make huge generalisations) got a better sense of humour.




Do they? I thought they were all suicidal smack heads?

[Wanderer]

That dark sense of humour, and you got to luv the way those sexy scottish men say murder

;)

[sabriel]

hey babe,
you are one lucky thing.
A little hint, go to Oxford. Its only about an hour outside of London, and there are buses that run from Victoria Station to the heart of oxford.
Oxford has no unemployment so there is heaps and heaps of jobs available, and the accomadation is heaps better than in London.
It has a fairly big nightlife and since there is 2 universities in the city there is always something going on.
It is also a lot cleaner than London, so not as much horrible pollution, and it tends to be a little bit warmer.
Oxford is also fairly small, so you can pretty much ride a bike or walk everywhere.
I seriously reccomend it, if you want close cheap (only 15 quid return on the bus) access to London, but dont want to put up with the hassle of it.
oh and TNT rocks, it is the best mag over there.
And have fun.

[twistandshout]

Originally posted by Pigman


Yes that true.

Everyone also stops what they are doing every day at 4pm for tea and scones.

All English are only allowed one shower a week by law.

Oh, and they also have little hot plates on the bar to keep the beer warm cos they can't stand cold beer.


If you bear all the above thruths in mind you should have a great time.

:lol: Golden.

[w0rm]

If you are in England during the "summer" may I suggest that you pay a visit to my home county of Cornwall, where I'm living at the mo. Its down at the bottom South West of the country. Its where people go on their holidays, lots of pretty scenery, good pubs, old buildings, wierd unintelligable locals (I dont understand them and I live here!) and great beaches with passable surf. It can be nice in the winter too, because although it gets really wet and windy, theres no better reason to hire a cottage with your mates for a week and sit round a roaring fire.

Oh, and in terms of cheapness etc, things are relative - yes rent is expensive, and so is food - but for instance music is my life, so it is considerably better in England than in Oz. Cds, vinyl and club nights and drugs are all far far cheaper. And then take into account the wide range of choice you have whilst shopping etc, so theres good points too.

What people have said about getting out of london is true- mainly because it will force you to stop hanging around with aussies all the time. As you can see, the people who made the effort to do so in this thread are the ones writing better reports than those who didn't.