I'm off to London from the Wild Wop Wops....

Warbler

So glad you enjoyed the Thames Walk,and got some great shoes for many more excursions... I'm off to the RA this Thurs, it's wonderful to be able to visit from the South Coast for a day, though your hotel sounded amazing

Glad you both enjoyed yourselves.
There’s a few mudlarkers that I follow on Twitter, it’s fascinating what they find. I’ve not been to London for a long time, don’t know if my feet would put up with all the walking.
I’m going to have a look at the Gabor website.

You packed loads in Warbler. It's nice to hear you had a great time.

I'm glad you had such a good time. London is great even for a couple of days. Mud larking - did you find anything interesting. My DD when she lived there found quite a few bits of clay pipes etc.

I'm very impressed with how much you managed to do in just two days, and the mudlarking!

The excellent public transport makes it very easy to get out and about in London.

THANK YOU all so much for taking the time to write your kind and generous messages. Your informative missives were a great help in the short time I had. Two days was miniscule....but I certainly got about. Staying in a posh hotel in Kensington helped....and so special - having my lovely daughter with me. I loved it. Absolutely everything. We managed Borough Market, The Tate, a walk along the Thames in the sunshine, over the bridge just as the sun was setting..... bit of mudlarking, Kensington High Street, The Design Museum, a swim/sauna/steam and a hot tub! Lots of small videos....and of course, selfies! I hopped on a bus, I jumped on a tube. Selfridges, window displays, plenty of good eating places/coffee stops.....lots of lovely chatter, part one of a conversation (never to know part 2).....eye (watering) candy at times....and my feet.....oh dear my feet, but hey I found a fantastic pair of "rolling shoes" from Gabor that take the weight of your balls and your toes, lifting your arches....and your feet ROLL. (Anyone remember Masai Barefoot Technology?) These are going to be my walking shoes for London. Please may it be soon. My goodness.....Yeeesssss please! I can't wait.

The Atlas Obscura Guide to London is a good site for more unusual places to go/things to do.

Apricity

Aussies use the term 'woop woops' not 'wop wops' as in 'out in the woop woops' to mean the back of beyond, somewhere distant and rather vague. I've never heard Aussies use boonies or boondocks as I think they are American terms. So many old Aussie sayings are dying out and my grandchildren think I'm quite quaint and laugh saying "Oh, Gran you say the funniest things".

I should have rtt! Sorry Apricity

My Aussie DD uses that term to describe where they live.

MrsKen33

Bus pass. Is it only for the English? Can you use a Welsh bus pass. ?

No you can't.
It's very annoying. We've met up with friends in England, gone on short trips with them. They could use their bus passes but we had to pay.

The Wild Wop Wops
Commonly known as Woop Woop in Australia.

Have a good time.
I'd love to go again.

vegansrock

You can just use your contactless cards on the tube. No need to buy a ticket .

Only one person per card though.

Aussies use the term 'woop woops' not 'wop wops' as in 'out in the woop woops' to mean the back of beyond, somewhere distant and rather vague. I've never heard Aussies use boonies or boondocks as I think they are American terms. So many old Aussie sayings are dying out and my grandchildren think I'm quite quaint and laugh saying "Oh, Gran you say the funniest things".

You can just use your contactless cards on the tube. No need to buy a ticket .

The Salvation Army has a charity shop in Princes Street near Hanover Square which is near Oxford Street/Regent street.
Usually an excellent selection of clothes and, being near Mayfair, lots of up market stuff. A friend has shopped there for many years and she is always very stylish and well dressed.

If you want textiles, MacCullough and Wallis in Poland Street and Borovick Fashion in Berwick Street (both Soho) have lots. They were there in the 60's when I first moved to London.

Depending upon how many days you will be in London I would suggest that you restrict your area to one in which you can potter, or perhaps two. Otherwise you will spend a lot of time on the tube or walking miles.

Another tip - at the front, on top of a bus. After I moved to Suffolk, I used to get a bus from Liverpool Street Station to Sloane Square which took me past the Bank, along Fleet Street, the Strand, down Whitehall and then to Sloan Square.
Familiarise yourself with some of the bus routes and then you can rest whilst window gazing. London above first floor levels is beautiful. You may need to buy tickets from a machine at the bus stops or may get a pass for the number of days that you need.

Good luck and have fun.

You'll have a great time!

Thank you everyone who contributed to this thread. I have some lovely ideas .....and I am off on Thursday. Wooooooooo. I can't wait. My daughter has booked an hotel in Kensington.......I have my best walking boots and bags of energy.

Some good suggestions here for anyone visiting the Capital soon. It’s a shame the OP hasn’t returned to say if any are suitable.

Where are you warbler? Perhaps you are pushing your way through the crowds on the tube ?

for realistic priced material, go to whitechapel or fonthill road, finsbury park.
the park theatre is also there if you like that kind of thing.

Another good place in the Victoria area is
Westminster Cathedral. You can climb the tower steps and get great views from the top. No charge made but donations welcome. You can see the view from 4 sides of the tower.

All these places recommended have me longing for a couple of nights up there! We often went up when my daughter lived there for years.

I would steer clear of Oxford Street because the only large stores still open are Selfridges, M&S and John Lewis.

Please be careful as there are so many pickpockets around.

With all these destinations the op will need quite a lot of stamina and in some cases a large budget!

As a born and bred Londoner, now exiled in the wild wop wops of the Midlands, you are all making me feel home sick!

M0nica

The wild wop-wops is a new Zealnd term for the back of beyond en.wiktionary.org/wiki/wop-wops

I've never heard the expression before, but will remember it when I next see anyone we know from NZ. I know some Australians and New Zealanders who use the term out in the "Boonies" Boondocks, to refer to the back of beyond.

Visit Burough Market, pick up some lunch, then wander along the Thames, past The Globe and on to to Tate Modern where you can see the permanent collection for free. A lovely wander..