HELLO COSMO READERS! Cosmo accidentally linked to the travel section of my blog. My URL is www.glossaryzine.blogspot.com. To see my home page, simply click my blog header image. Thanks for dropping by!
Hello guys. Thank you for all your comments on the last couple of posts. I've tried to reply to you each directly in a comment. The weather has been cold and grey so I'm still not venturing out to take any pics. I thought I'd scribble up another London travel tidbit in the meantime! In April 2008, my mom and I went to London on a holiday. We stayed at The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) which is a university with various residences dotted around the West End in London. We were not in town to attend science lectures or anything to that effect - quite the contrary in fact! What the LSE does, is open their residences as hotels in winter, spring and summer which makes for a rather affordable alternative to staying at a hotel. It's not as glam of course but my guess is, it's a bit more pleasant to staying at a hostel! Not that I'm a hostel snob or anything - I'm all for traveling on a budget. I thought I would tell you about the LSE because when I was looking for affordable accommodation at the time, I waded through hundreds of websites before I stumbled across theirs. Hopefully I can save you some time and hassle if you ever plan on visiting Londres on the cheap. That said, the cheaper options are still ridiculously expensive for us South Africans once we've converted our precious rands. Back to the LSE - the website states that all the residences are situated within close proximity to the main tourist attractions. We stayed at Rosebury Hall which was situated across from the famous Saddler's Wells Ballet Theater in Angel, Islington. Islington is quite a nice, arty area - very trendy I believe but full of cute stores and cafes. You can catch a bus from outside the tube station which will deliver you quickly to Rosebury's doorstep. We walked the route with cases before we twigged on to the bus! My mom and I stayed in a small twin room which was small (as expected) but perfectly neat and clean. If you're worried about students throwing wild dorm parties - fear not! The LSE was very quiet and the students who were still there during the holidays were friendly and not of the 'beer-funneling' type! We had a basin in our room, twin beds (which were very comfy) with a side table, some cupboards, a table and chair. Down the corridor, there were his and hers bathrooms with toilets, a bath and showers for students and guests on our floor to use. Again, these were always kept clean. There was also a kitchen but we never used it. Breakfast is included in the price and we ate downstairs in the canteen everyday with students and fellow guests. They serve all the makings of a hot full English along with fruits and yoghurts etc. Nothing like a good brekkie before heading out on a day of sightseeing! There was also a laundry room which we could use and two computers with internet access. Oh, and very important, there was also a vending machine for late night Minstrel attacks! At the end of the day, it was lovely to step out of icy London winds and into the toasty LSE! As I said, it's not the height of glam but all I really require on holiday is clean sheets, a clean bathroom and a peaceful place to rest my head. Speaking of clean sheets, our room was tidied every day by some lovely cleaning staff. I see that the price of a small twin room is now 52 pounds. Split that between two and that ain't bad at all! I think it was 50 quid a day when we were there. So if you're heading to London on a budget, the LSE is one to consider. You can visit their website to find out more and make a booking. And just to let you know, I wasn't paid to write this or anything like that - I just like sharing good experiences and punting places that deserve it. The only pics we have of our room are well, really messy shots of the room! I'm gonna spare you images of our hairdryers and clothes scattered everywhere and instead post a pic taken in the plane and a pic of me standing in front of a flyered dumpster in Camden. Think I went a bit mad with the cross-processing tool back in the day. That is in fact a black raincoat I'm wearing!
PS: I've been blogging like a fiend lately and reckon I should probably give Gloss a bit of a breather! That said, I will be posting pics of my fave coffee shop as soon as they're ready. I'm so in love with this local gem, I want to give it a good punt because it truly deserves one. I will still be reading and replying to your comments (which are always appreciated) and nattering about nonsense on twitter!
