Book Review: Let’s Go Britain 2009

Let’s Go Britain 2009

Edited by Kimberly Hagan

In addition to giving you general information and recounting our own experiences abroad, we’ll also be suggesting resources to take advantage of before or during your time in the UK. One of the areas of additional resources is the travel book. Yes, travel books are most likely not used as much as they were in the past due to the internet, but there will always be people who prefer browsing through a book over clicking through webpages. If you’re one of the former, travel books are a great (and condensed) way to find things to do, or even to remind yourself of sites you want to see. For example, a friend and I were perusing through the available travel books at a hostel in Rome during some downtime one day. While flipping through one I was reminded of “The Mouth of Truth” (La Bocca della Verità) I had seen in the movie Roman Holiday. I decided that that was one of the places I wanted to stop at during our sightseeing.

This post will concentrate on Let’s Go: Britain 2009. Okay, so 2009 isn’t exactly up-to-date, but it was the latest edition of the Let’s Go Britain series at the local library and I’m not one to sit myself down in Barnes & Noble and outright read a book then and there. Let’s Go isn’t the first series that comes to my mind when thinking of travel guides. Fodor’s or Rick Steves’ books are among the popular options. (Speaking of Rick Steves, apparently he visited the aforementioned Roman hostel during our stay. He wanted to review it for one of his books. Unfortunately, since the hostel was tiny, there weren’t any openings available. My friend and I came back from the day out and the manager and one of the other guests were talking about getting pictures with him and having him sign various items—including one of his travel guides.) But the small font on the cover that states “[Britain] on a budget” caught my eye. As a student, the words “budget,” “sale,” and “free” were always enticing, as I’m sure they are with you too. 

One of Let’s Go’s strong suits is that it employs students as its researcher-writers. There is a page in the book with dedicated photos and short biographies of the writers. It’s nice to be able to see the contributors’ faces and know that they give a younger viewpoint on things. In general Let’s Go seems to strive to cater to younger travelers, especially student ones, over families or an older generation. I highly doubt that a fact like the annual per-person beer consumption would find its way into some of the other travel publishers’ books. Some basic chapter points include: communications, UK customs, suggested itineraries, and planning. The rest of the book goes into different regions in more detail, split up into the usual categories like “Entertainment and Nightlife” and “Food and Pubs.” Probably the most interesting section is “Beyond Tourism” which outlines volunteer, as well as short- and long-term work, opportunities. I don’t think everyone in necessarily interested in au pair and day farming jobs, but it’s nice to know that the options are available. Overall Let’s Go blends the more traditional sightseeing destinations with ones that might appeal more to students. This is most likely even more apparent in the company’s student and budget series of travel guides.

-L.

The US to UK Converter: A Necessity

One of the things that is a must-have on your packing list is a UK voltage converter and charger. Of the many electronic items you may choose to bring with you on your trip (laptop, iPod, tablet, e-reader, cell phone, digital camera, to name a few) most, if not all, require some kind of charging; hence the need for a converter to safely plug in your devices. UK outlets run at about 230 Volts while US outlets run at 120 Volts. So if you don’t want to potentially short-circuit your pricey equipment, look for a converter rather than an adapter. Adapters work perfectly fine on most things, but to save yourself some worry I’d suggest getting a converter.

For some reason when I was shopping for my trip abroad I had a hard time finding US to UK converters. I needed one for my laptop and cell phone. (I decided to bring my cell phone from home to use rather than purchase one over there. The options you can take regarding cell phones will be discussed in another post.) The only one I could find was this monster of a converter. I’m not sure why I didn’t think to check Amazon. I don’t remember exactly where I bought it, but I think it might have been Fry’s. Since I was leaving soon and it was the only one I could find in stores at the time, it ended up being the one I brought with me. It certainly took up a considerable amount of room and precious luggage weight. I can only describe this converter in the following way:

Picture a brick. Imagine its general weight and dimensions. That’s what my first converter was like. A brick. It was similar in size and was definitely heavy enough to be comparable. 

Why yes, I did lug something like this around with me to and from England. (source)

I used my converter all the time while I was in England. Beside its size and weight, the only issue I had with it was that it got hot after it was used for a while. That was until I found a much more compact one. One day I went to the electronics store Maplin to find a watch battery and stumbled upon one much more conveniently sized. Considering the Maplin in my area had a small storefront, I wasn’t expecting to find anything of sort, especially a US to UK converter (UK to US, yes I would have expected). Compared to my original converter, this new one was tiny so I bought it. Yes, I did have to pay a lot more for it due to the dollar/pound ratio, but it was worth it. It ended up being a wise purchase because I took the smaller one with me when I traveled within the UK and often used both at the same time in my flat: one to power my laptop and the other to charge my phone. Sadly, I didn’t think to buy a European plug converter as well, so there were a few times when my camera ran out of power while I was on vacation and I had no way of charging it.

A little basic info on the difference between converters and adapters

-L.

Bath

Bath (Part Two but posted first. I like to be contrary. In Part One I will discuss Bath’s main attractions.)
 
You might well wonder if I’m not referring to personal hygiene. No. Nor am I referring to the giant porcelain tub in your home. This is not about home renovations or installing fixtures. I am referring to the beautiful city found on the southwest coast of England.

Bath, located in Somerset County, is rich with history and culture. The city is best known for the Roman Baths located on the main drag and while the baths, the museum and Bath Abbey are definitely must sees if you are visiting this area, today I would like to speak a little about the shops and interesting finds you can discover here.

One of my favorite little hole-in-the wall finds (that happens to be part of a VERY small but successful chain) is called Ben’s Cookies. They are located on a side street and have the most mouthwatering, delicious cookies I’ve ever had. They differ from the average cookie due to the almost cake like texture. I’ve never had anything like it, and miss these cookies greatly. Truly amazing.

 Another gem is a beautiful tearoom called Hands of Bath.  They have an absolutely lovely cream tea (tea served with a scone, clotted cream, and strawberry preserves). It isn’t fussy or particularly grand, but you are sure have a relaxing rest from touring the city.

Now, don’t forget to scope out the live statues situated around the baths. They somehow manage to paint and clothe themselves in colors almost exactly matching the bath limestone used in the buildings.  Some are quite serious and others like to play with the tourists. They tend to be one of those unique little quirks that are fun to find in a new city.

Also, if you are a Jane Austen fan like myself, it’s fun to just wander around the central area down pokey little streets and alleys. The whole area, despite being filled with modern shops such as House of Fraser, Lush, and Monsoon, retains its aura of Regency glory. Many of her books had scenes based in this wonderful city. It is often used in Austen films considering, I imagine, that it’s rather difficult to reproduce. I still maintain that one of the streets near the baths was featured in a pivotal scene in Persuasion where Anne grabs Captain Wentworth before he leaves. It was exciting to see and yes, I’m an Austen geek. Somewhere I have a photo of that street!

Wandering can be the best way to discover your own finds. You may be attracted to some other little shop or the Postal Museum, or a graffiti covered wall like a coworker of mine. One of my favorites was an AWESOME Oxfam (like Goodwill) bookstore right as you are walking toward all the shops.  I found some hard to find books there! It’s all about your interest and what you like. Go explore.

 -S.

Money Matters—Banking

Lauren’s POV

Probably one of the last things on your mind after being accepted to study abroad in the UK is banking. Such banalities like paperwork and transferring money are the least interesting of topics to contemplate. Your mind is more likely focused on all the fun possibilities in meeting new people, traveling, or moving to another country. Depending on your length of stay and banking preferences, there are a couple of ways to go about handling finances. This post will concentrate on the option of opening up a local bank account as it is the route I took during my time abroad. I chose to open an account in the UK because I was studying there for a full year and wanted immediate access to funds without having to deal with the multiple transaction fees I’d get from using my bank at home.

There are a few different banking groups to choose from when opening an account. Personally, I can’t say which bank is better but I would advise researching the different options beforehand (something I didn’t do much of when opening my own account). Some brands include: Barclays, Lloyds, Royal Bank of Scotland, HSBC, and NatWest. Many banks offer student checking accounts; a good way of determining which ones are popular is to take a look around your campus for ATMs and/or small branch offices because they will probably be the most student-friendly. Your university’s orientation packet will also likely advise you on suitable options and what kinds of documents you need such as proof of full-time student status.

My university in Norwich was a little different from most UK schools in that it had a central campus (instead of being broken up into multiple areas). On campus, there were three tiny branches where they made it a priority to open new student accounts during the first week of school. As mentioned earlier, I didn’t put a lot of thought into which bank to choose, so I initially opened an account with the one whose name I had heard of the most. To my surprise, there was a minimum fund limit. I had brought money with me, but nowhere near enough to maintain the minimum, so I was looking at the prospect of losing money because I couldn’t keep the base number in my account. Still, I opened the account thinking that the other banks had similar rules. A couple of days later I found out that the other banks actually didn’t have the same minimum requirement, there were actually no minimums at all. (This was at the time of my stay, but regulations might have changed since then.) So off I went to open an account at a different bank and I closed the first account a few days later. The lady at the desk was most likely wondering why I had opened an account only to close it in the same week. Moral of the story is: research the different banks or ask other students which ones they would recommend.

On a side note, if you currently have a Bank of America checking account, you might not need to open a UK account at all. Bank of America and Barclays are part of an agreement between certain banks throughout the world called the Global ATM Alliance. In the Global ATM Alliance, Bank of America debit card holders can withdraw money from Alliance-approved ATMs (or cash machines as they’re referred to in the UK) without an ATM transaction fee—the kind say, you’d be charged if you were to withdraw money from a Wells Fargo ATM using a Bank of America card. However, you may be charged an international transaction fee. If you rather not go through the trouble of opening a UK-based account and already have a B of A account, or if you are only in the UK for a semester or so, this might be an alternative you want to consider.

-L.

One of my favorite places…Nando's!

Nando's!!!

I’d like to wax poetic about a little (BIG) chain of restaurants in the UK called Nando’s!  Now, if you are residing in or around Washington DC or Maryland, you may have seen/eaten here. It came to the US a few years ago, but still hasn’t made it out of DC and Maryland yet. Sad.

Moving on, this gem is an inexpensive but tasty place to eat. They tout themselves as a Portuguese grilled chicken restaurant. I don’t know whether or not it’s particularly Portuguese and I don’t care. All I know is I LOVE their food. They have a variety of heat levels that range from the wimpiest Lemon and Herb (that’s herb with an ‘H’…if you say ‘erb,’ they look at you like you’ve sprouted wings) to Extra Hot. Just about everything is chicken, though they have some Vegetarian fare and one beef option, though why you’d choose beef is beyond me. And this is coming from a confirmed beef lover.

My dinner of choice: Lemon and Herb Chicken Breast Burger, a side of chips and some Perinaise (Peri-Peri sauce is their signature sauce that comes in a variety of heat levels, though only one is used for the Peri-Peri mayonnaise). I’m in heaven just thinking about it.

If you haven’t tried it, give it a whirl while you're in the UK. I won’t guarantee you’ll love it, but you might and that in and of itself is worth it.

Check out Nando's!

-S.

One of My Favorite Places…The Pound Shop

Taking into account the pound-dollar exchange rate and average college student’s budget, saving money is a must while in the UK, especially if you plan on socializing and/or traveling. One of the areas to cut back on is basic needs/flat shopping (e.g., tissues, toilet paper, kitchen accessories). Rather than become a coupon addict (not that there is anything wrong with using coupons, I use them regularly), take some time to browse your local pound shop. Pound shop fare costs, well, a pound. But don’t be scared off by the idea if you’re imagining a mirror image of dollar shops in the US. Of the times I’ve been to dollar shops (not including the amazing Daiso stores where face massagers and chopsticks are a couple of feet away from each other), I’ve never really felt compelled to purchase anything. Most of the time this is because I’m usually not interested in the merchandise offered. Not at the pound shop, though.

Pound shops are a great resource for cheap batteries, cleaning supplies, and an assortment of brand-name snacks (emphasis on “brand-name”). Want to try Vegemite without buying a huge jar? Go to the pound shop. Need some garbage bags? Go to the pound shop. Of course like any dollar store, there will be random merchandise as well. If you’re in need of a random generic music cd or toy cars, the pound shop is your shopping destination. I would suggest taking a look at the cutlery there as well, especially if your stay is only a semester long. Why buy an expensive set when you’re in the country for only a short period of time? I bought a mug at the pound shop in Norwich and still use it to this day.

A major chain, Poundland, can be found throughout the UK— if there’s one in your area I highly suggested taking a look.

-L.

What Happens When Your Kitchen Doesn’t Have an Oven…

(source)

Having lived in the dorms and eaten at my college’s dining hall for my freshmen and sophomore years, the prospect of living in a suite-style flat while abroad was exciting. Probably the thing I most looked forward to was the kitchen. While I don’t love cooking (baking is another story), I had dreams of making lasagna, stuffed pasta shells, and other goodies in my flat’s kitchen. No more ramen cooked in the microwave for me; it was like I was going to be a true grown-up. Or as a certain wooden puppet-turned-human storybook character would say, “I’m a real boy girl!”

So when I arrived at the university the first day and walked into my flat’s kitchen, I was more than disappointed to learn that there wasn’t an oven. Everything else was there: fridge, stovetop, sink, microwave, and table. No oven. According to my welcome packet, the microwave had an oven function. After one failed attempt at using this mysterious oven setting, I gave up on the idea of baking anything. I then had to think of everything that I could make using the stovetop or without cooking at all. My diet in England mostly consisted of:

• Sandwiches-Easy, didn't require any cooking whatsoever.  
• Cereal-Again, no cooking required.
• Spaghetti-Substitution for my lasagna dreams.
• Eggs-Boiled or scrambled, eggs were fast and easy to make.
• Stir fry-The local Morrisons carried prepackaged vegetable stir fry mixes. Thrown in a pan with some sauce, these required very little effort. 
• Premade meals from the supermarket-Supermarkets in the UK have a variety of refrigerated and frozen options. They aren’t like the sectioned-off plastic container ones that come to mind when you think of frozen meals in the US. They actually taste good.

Not the most well-rounded diet ever. There were times when I actually put some meat into the things I cooked, but I survived mainly on the above items. Hopefully during your time in the UK you’re more creative. Your kitchen might even have an oven (my blog coauthor has informed me that her flat didn’t have an absentee oven problem).

-L.