5 Takeaways From an American Visiting London
I recently returned from a two week trip to London. We stayed in the City of London, which some may be surprised to know is different from “Greater London” where most of the tourist attractions are located. The City of London is basically the financial district (outside of Canary Wharf).
We generally stay in the City because my wife travels to London regularly for work. It’s an interesting area because most people do not live there (approximately 10,000 full time residents), but during the week it has tons of commuter traffic (approximately 400,000 daily).
You can imagine what the weekends look like. It’s dead, and almost nothing is open before noon on Sundays. So the area has a very different vibe than tourist hot spots like Covent Garden.
The hotel we stayed at was the Pan Pacific, which was near Liverpool Street Station and just off the bustling Bishopsgate street. I was there with our one-year-old given I’m the stay-at-home dad. We took new adventures each day, and although I had been to London multiple times before, I had not experienced it since the pandemic and never with a toddler.
So here are my top 5 takeaways from an American’s perspective after visiting London. Also included are two honorable mentions below.
1. COVID-19 no longer exists in the U.K.
We traveled to Heathrow from JFK in New York. Most people at home in New York City are relatively conscientious about wearing masks in indoor public spaces like the airport and grocery store.
When we arrived in London though, Heathrow was insane. You may have heard about their summer travel woes and how they are trying to limit the airport to 100,000 travelers per day. Not every airline is listening.
Not everyone is listening to mask recommendations either. In the lengthy customs line at Heathrow to enter the U.K., the line was wrapped around multiple hallways, as far as the eye could see. Turning the corner only to find more and more people was demoralizing.
And nobody wore a mask. I mean, nobody.
The ventilation was fine, I’m sure, and the hallways were large and expansive. The risk was probably low, but it was surprising to see it coming from New York City.
When we arrived at our hotel, we put our masks on before walking inside. We were the only people with them. During the course of our stay, I simply gave up. I noticed others doing the same.
We had tea in the Orchid Lounge one Saturday, which is just off the lobby of our hotel. We had a direct view of everyone checking in. Almost everyone arriving with luggage (likely from the airport) had masks on. When I saw many of those same guests throughout the course of our stay, they had given up too.
This mentality is pervasive throughout London. We went to most of the neighborhoods during our two weeks there, and practically nobody wears masks anymore. I guess COVID doesn’t exist in London?
Although the data suggests otherwise.
2. The male dominated pub scene
We went to London in late June through early July and the weather was amazing. It was overcast for maybe two of the days we were there. For the remainder it was sunny and stunning.
What do the British do when the sun comes out? The pubs in London go mad. People spill out onto the streets, a pint glass in one hand, and maybe a cigarette in the other.
In the City though, there were almost no women at any of the pubs, and we walked by quite a few. On almost any day of the week, the after work crowd was present, holding court on the street outside the pub. We had to weave through the throngs of men imbibing after a day at the office.
Where were the women? And how did these men get away with drinking after work on a Tuesday and not going home to their families? Do the women/wives just accept it?
It was fascinating to witness. I’m not sure how many of these guys were repeat customers throughout the week, but some had to be because of the sheer mass of people outside these pubs Monday through Friday.
What’s more, almost none of these pub patrons live in the City. As I mentioned earlier, the City has few full time residents. So they were just hanging out mid-week in an area not within walking distance of home, while many of them probably had a home with a wife and children to get back to. Most were not young guys.
New York City may have a happy hour scene, especially on Thursdays, but nothing quite like what I witnessed in the City of London. Back when I worked in finance, if I regularly met the boys for pints on a Tuesday my wife would have had a few things to say. I don’t think she would be alone amongst American women.
Given the remarkably sunny weather though, perhaps the two weeks I was in London were an anomaly. I don’t recall having seen these pub crowds and gender disparities before.
3. The breakfast meeting scene
One of the bad things about staying in a luxury hotel is the cost of everything. I didn’t want to pay almost thirty pounds per morning just for my breakfast. So most mornings, my son and I went on breakfast adventures.
After failing to get into Duck and Waffle multiple times, I was shocked. I started making reservations at places.
The breakfast scene in the City is nuts! At one place we made a reservation, The Ivy City Garden, I didn’t see one unoccupied table. My son and I were the only people I could spot not in business attire.
Is it common for the British to have meetings over breakfast? It seemed a little aggressive to me, but hey, I guess it beats a dull conference room?
I come from a city of power lunches. I had never heard of anyone meeting for breakfast to discuss business, but hey, what do I know?
4. The intensity of Bishopsgate
Bishopsgate is the main street that goes through the City of London. This old Roman road is home to numerous skyscrapers and office buildings. And it is absolutely packed with people during the week.
As mentioned, I live in New York City so I’m no stranger to crowds or intensity. But I was admittedly thrown off by the intensity of Bishopsgate.
The Pan Pacific Hotel is just off this street, so most mornings my son and I would walk onto it to start our day. I had him in the stroller, or buggy/pram as the British would call it, and it was difficult to navigate on the crowded morning streets. Most people wouldn’t move aside for us, something I would expect more in New York City than London.
Everyone also walked extremely fast.
Now, I’ve worked with many British people and Londoners during my career, and hardly any of them worked as hard as these people on Bishopsgate walked.
Prior to this visit, I remembered London as a more relaxed version of New York City. My London colleagues were almost never in a rush to do anything. There was a lot of courting and “faffing about” required in order to inspire any real action.
But not on Bishopsgate. If you head onto that street during the morning or evening rush, prepare yourself for some intense walking beforehand.
5. Self-service checkout and shopping is everywhere
Funny story. I walked into this store, Argos (similar to Target), looking for a small bathtub for my son. Our hotel only had a shower and given the amount of time we were there, our little guy needed a suitable place to bathe.
My wife and I had found a bathtub on the Argos website ahead of time, so I had an idea of what I was looking for. When I walked into Argos though, I was very confused. There was nothing in the store except for a few people standing around in Argos uniforms. There were cash registers and rows of monitors.
I started wandering around, pushing the stroller, looking for the lift that I assumed would lead to a large retail store in the basement. After making a couple circles, a woman asked me from behind the cash register, “Sir, can I help you?”
My response was confused and incoherent. So she asked, “Are you ready to check out?” All I could say was, “No.” After we stared at each other for what felt like minutes she asked, “Do you want to buy something?”
I said, “Yes.” Then I asked, “Where do I buy merchandise here?”
She showed me to the monitors where another Argos employee helped me navigate the screen until I found the bathtub I was looking for. I selected it, paid, and it arrived at the pick up counter a few minutes later.
Amazing!
I had never experienced a store like this – it seemed very un-American. No shelves to browse, no displays to sucker you into something you don’t need. I’m not sure this model would work in the states, but I loved the efficiency.
Argos wasn’t the only place with self-service checkout and shopping in London. Practically every grocery store from M&S to Waitrose and Tesco all predominately have self-service checkout. We have that too in the U.S., but not at the scale London does.
Even stores like Uniqlo have “smart” bins that detect what you dropped in without you having to scan anything.
It’s practically a cashier-free society!
Honorable Mentions
My son and I spent one day eating lunch in Hyde Park, one of my favorite green spaces in London. I had forgotten how green London is. There seems to be a pristine park at every turn. Coming from New York, there’s obviously Central Park and Prospect Park, but most of the city is filled with “squares” and concrete.
Londoners love their green spaces, and with a toddler, I really appreciated it.
Next to Hyde Park are a few neighborhoods that made my eyes pop. Knightsbridge and Belgravia.
Knightsbridge is home to Harrods and lots of foreign money. Belgravia is similar, with many embassies lining its picturesque streets. Both neighborhoods are just south of Hyde Park. And both neighborhoods smell of money laundering.
I have never seen so many supercars and Rolls Royces all in one place. Interestingly, many of them had parking tickets, as if their owners were giving the finger to parking enforcement, basically saying it’s easier for you to ticket me than for me to worry about paying for parking.
Do they not have the boot in London? Or tow trucks?
Overall, London was a fantastic experience for two weeks. Yes, even with a toddler. The black cabs in particular make it easy for anyone traveling with a stroller, buggy, pram, or whatever you want to call it. You don’t even have to disassemble it! Most will fit inside the backseat comfortably.
For anyone in the know, please enlighten me if I misunderstood or mischaracterized anything above. I’m interested in your perspective.
Cheers.
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