China, Xinjiang

Why Visit Xinjiang?

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When I first decided to relocate to China to continue my ESL teaching career, my head was filled with the travel possibilities that I would be presented with living in one of the largest and oldest nations in the world.

Days spent exploring Beijing’s countless iconic sites such as Tienamen Square, the Forbidden City, and the nearby Great Wall; dining in cosmopolitan Shaghai; rolling the dice in Macau or exploring Hong Kong Disney; sunbathing in Hainan; or checking off any of my 10 different places to visit in China.

Then there were the other places within a short flight. I could spend some time in Japan or catch up with old friends in South Korea. I could jet off to South East Asia to do a little more scuba or have a jaunt up to Mongolia to get my yurt on. I could winter in Vladivostok or brave the heights in Tibet.

So, when I found I had a week’s vacation coming to me for May Day (or Golden Week), my mind raced with the possibilities. Originally my mind turned to the sun-dappled beaches and cheap cocktails of Hainan, but then my friend Kara had an interesting suggestion.

Why not visit Xinjiang?

I’d first heard of China’s westernmost (and largest) provinces after I posted my very popular 10 Different Things to do in China entry a few weeks ago. The most vocal comments were wondering why I hadn’t thought to include China’s mountainous and vastly different province. And truth be told, I hadn’t even heard of it.

After Kara’s suggestion, I knuckled down and did a bit of research. I found out plenty to make me excited about a prospective week in Xinjiang. Here’s just a sample of what I found:

  • Sharing borders with Pakistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Kyrgyzstan; Xinjiang province has an incredibly diverse population dominated by the Central Asian minorities rather than the Han majority that rules over most of China.
  • Within a single day you can travel from densely built up urban areas to parched deserts and on into visually stunning snow-capped mountains.
  • You can see K2 (the world’s second tallest mountain) from Xinjiang.
  • Xinjiang’s Uighur people are renowned across China for their food – particularly lamb kebabs, naan, and a ‘deadly dessert’ which I’ll discuss later.
  • Uighar girls are considered to be among China’s prettiest. After all, they combine the best features of the Han with the dark skin and eyes of the Central Asian nations.
  • China’s Muslim population is centered largely in the province.

Couple this new-found knowledge with the glowing recommendations from a number of my readers and Twitter followers, and you had me hooked. It didn’t hurt that Josh from Far West China was on hand to give a little encouragement. It’s just a shame such a fantastic resource on China’s oft forgotten western province is blocked in China…

What the hell is Xinjiang?

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if you hadn’t heard of Xinjiang. The majority of tourists seem to flock to China’s built up eastern coast. But to discount Xinjiang from your Chinese itinerary would be doing you a great disservice. You’re not just ruling out a land of startling natural beauty, but also one with a lot of history of its own.

How big is it? Xinjiang is larger than any one European country not named Russia. That gives you a pretty damned big area to explore, and while my own trip would focus almost solely on the area around Kashgar near the Sino-Pakistan border, I could have spent a month or more exploring and still not done the province justice.

And while the region is now experiencing a rapid introduction into 21st century Chinese culture, it is still possible to see the region as the predominantly Central Asian/Middle Eastern place that it was for a very long time. Whether I was wandering through alleys lined with vendors selling lamb & silk (not together, obviously) or hunkering down over a fire outside of a yurt in the mountains – I never really felt like I was still in China. Hell, we were often hard pressed to find somebody who spoke enough Mandarin to help us get by, let alone English.

Not that Xinjiang’s a simple hop, skip, and jump away from the east coast. My flight from Nanjing to Urumqi took almost five hours, and it was another ninety minutes from relatively modern Urumqi to the more isolated Kashgar on the western side of the country.

Not Quite China

While Xinjiang is rapidly being absorbed into modern China, it is a long way from feeling like the densely built up and commercial place that the western world is coming to know. Oh, there are still garish neon lights and China Mobile stores on every block – but these are interspersed by dusty market streets and livestock. It wasn’t unusual to see a pristine company car pulled up alongside a donkey drawn cart in Kashgar.

And while it exists roughly the same distance away from Beijing as Perth is from Sydney, Xinjiang still runs on Beijing time. This leads to some very confusing moments where you’re in bed at 11pm and still having sun filter through your curtains. Officially, the locals run on Beijing time – but it proved generally safe to operate on a two hour delay. Most things stayed open until the 11pm sunset.

Xinjiang is a somewhat (some would say completely) reluctant part of China. It’s officially an Autonomous region, but the dissatisfaction with Han dominated society is evident in the semi regular riots that occur in the region. Having spent a week in the region, it was somewhat easy to understand why the minorities that make up Xinjiang’s majority might not be satisfied with their lot.

It’s not just the rigid adherence to a Beijing time that frustrates the locals. The discrepancy between the standard of living between the native Uighur and the controlling Han is stark, and the Han government’s treatment of traditional sites in the region leaves a lot to be desired. In a later entry I’ll tell you about (and show you) the beautiful Golden Grasslands – a lush tract of land that has been taken from the nomadic people who called it whom in order to increase tourist revenue in nearby Tashgorkan.

Xinjiang presents a land of startling contrasts – not just geographically and ethnically, but also culturally. In the space of a week I experienced so many wonderful, weird, or downright confronting moments. It was a week I’ll remember fondly – food poisoning and all – for the rest of my life.

So, why visit?

Over the next fortnight I’ve got eight entries packed full of photos and stories from my week in Xinjiang. Ranging from crowded market bazaars to towering mountains, from breath-takingly clear blue lakes to the dry expanse of the world’s second largest shifting sand desert, Taklamakan – there really is no shortage of reasons to add Xinjiang to your Chinese itinerary, or even the focus of your visit.

But if I had to choose five, they would be:

The People

Moreso than eastern China which, like it or not, has a reputation with tourists as being somewhat rude and standoffish, I find the Uighur people (and the other ethnic groups) to be warm, open, and helpful. While there were obvious language barriers and the cultural differences one would expect when interacting with an Islamic populace, by and large people seemed genuinely happy that we were taking an interest in their region and it’s culture.

Our guide, himself a Uighur, often stopped to shake hands with people along the way and on multiple occasions wound down his window to ask a local for directions. Not once was he shooed away or greeted without a smile.

Posing with Uighur girls in Xinjiang
Kara and I posing with the female staff of Ruslan Restaurant, Kashgar

A highlight of the people for us (my friend Kara and I) were the wonderfully warm and inviting staff of the Ruslan Restaurant in Kashgar. Situated across from the New Delhi Business Hotel, the charming Uighur restaurant not only had fantastic food – but also had a staff that beamed with excitement at the prospect of Westerners in their establishment. Two in particular fawned and doted over us on both of our visits, and we left feeling more welcome than I’ve ever felt in a restaurant before.

The History

While it’s history might not stretch back quite as far as the more well known Chinese dynasties, there’s still no shortage of stories to be found in Xinjiang. From 40,000 year old mummies in the desert to ancient stone fortresses like that in Tashkorgan to Muslim sites such as Abakh Kojah to the long history of nomadic existence in the mountains of the region – there’s plenty to see and soak in.

Stone Fort in Tashgorkan, Xinjiang
The 1,500 year old ‘Stone Fort’ that gives Tashkorgan its name

Of particular interest for me was learning about the many smaller kingdoms that once made up the area and the way they related to one another. Hearing stories of political marriages with Afghani kings or about the ancient Silk Road traders who risked their lives in the perilous pursuit of wealth transported me to a time much harsher than my own. It was a real pleasure.

The Food

I should preface this by saying that the Xinjiang diet focuses pretty heavily on lamb – a meat I generally detest. My view of the meat was not changed by the visit. If anything, the mere smell of cooking lamb now makes me gag.

But when you look past that steadfast reliance on the meat, there’s still a wealth of flavors to be experienced in Xinjiang. I was particularly fond of what translates into ‘big plate chicken’ as well as a delicious dessert known as Doha. The former, a plate of chicken and potatoes served in a spicy sauce, is particularly good at the aforementioned Ruslan Restaurant. The latter – a so-called deadly dessert – is a delightfully chill bowl of shaved ice, yogurt, and sugar syrup that really hits the spot on a stinking hot day.

big plate chicken
The aptly named ‘Big Plate Chicken’ is a delicious Uighur specialty

I’ll do a separate entry on the foods of Xinjiang, but suffice to say – there was something there even for a picky bastard like myself.

The Desert

I have an enduring fascination with deserts. Having lived in the Australian outback on two separate occasions and seen first hand just how danger and beauty can be so intrinsically linked – I’ve long wanted to explore deserts abroad. The Taklimakan Desert, sometimes known as the Desert of Death, is a vast expanse of shifting dunes that dominates over 337,000 square kilometres of western Xinjiang.

Taklamakan Desert
Battered works on the fringe of the Taklamakan Desert (Desert of Death)

While it’s possible to take buses or trains that traverse the entire desert, day trips to the very borders of the desert offer some insight into just how tough the traders on the Silk Road had to be. With its shifting sands and hostile wildlife, it’s not hard to envisage just how good one of the oasis towns must have looked when they came into view.

It’s not quite the Sahara, but if you’re at all interested in deserts or desert life, the Taklamakan is a great option. And it should garner you mad cool points to say you camped a night in a placed labelled the Desert of Death, right?

The Mountains

While the desert was beautiful, it’s the mountainous terrain that really drew me to Xinjiang. Coming from the flattest continent in the world, the very idea of mountains is an alien one to me. Australia’s Mount Kosciuszko is a paltry 2,228m above sea level – placing it some 800m lower than Tashkorgan and close to 5,000 meters lower than K2 in the province’s far south.

Mountains behind the Stone Fort
Mountains loom over Tashkurgan’s Stone Fort in far west Xinjiang, China

And while my brush with altitude sickness was far from pleasant, I can say that the nausea and headaches were worth the stunning mountain views I was able to witness. The drive along the Karakoram Highway is laden with breath-taking vistas to take in, and my poor Canon earned its keep (and burned through three sets of cheap Chinese batteries) in attempting to take it all in.

The option is there to climb a lot of the mountains and I’m told areas of Xinjiang are popular for skiing and other winter sports, but simply seeing them was a real pleasure and totally worth the experience.

But wait, there’s more!

This is the first of an envisaged nine part series on my experiences in Xinjiang. I’ve got more focused entries on Kashgar, Tashkurgan, Urumqi, the Karakorum Highway, Yarkand and the Taklimakan Desert, Xinjiang food, Xinjiang sights I’ve yet to see, and Xinjiang’s burgeoning bazaar culture to come. Brace yourselves!

 

Countdowns, Europe, Great Britain

10 Different Things to do in the UK

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While compiling my list of 10 different things to do in London recently, I confessed my general disinterest in visiting the seat of the Commonwealth of which my own nation is a member, but that isn’t to say that I have no interest in visiting the land affectionately known in Australia as ‘the Old Dart’ or its neighbors: Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. And let’s not forget the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland either. It alone is reason enough to plan a holiday to Ireland.

Freshly back from a week of deserts, bazaars, camels, and middle eastern cuisine in China’s Xinjiang province (more on that soon), I thought I’d change things up by compiling my dream list of different experiences to be had in the British Isles. With a growing number of options for self-catering holidays in the UK, it’s becoming a more affordable option to spend time in the UK.

So here are 10 different things to do in the UK. Enjoy!

#10 – Soak in the Coast

Britain may not be well known for its beautiful beaches, but it would be a gross oversight to discount its coastline just because the weather isn’t suitable for sunbathing and surfing.

Boasting stretches such as the Jurassic Coast, the Lizard Peninsula, and the world renowned White Cliffs of Dover. And let’s not forget the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland, either.

While the tradition might be to soak in England’s history and the rolling green hills of its interior, don’t overlook the stunning vistas and breath-taking scenery to be found all along the coasts of the Isles.

#9 – Explore the Eden Project

I stumbled across this one while researching and I was immediately intrigued. Boasting ‘the world’s largest rainforest in captivity’, the Eden Project in Cornwall is something I never imagined I’d find on the shores of fair Britain.

Like something out of science fiction, the Eden Project’s domes (or biomes) house a number of different climates. There are waterfalls, sculptures, streams, and plenty of information about sustainability and nature for the inquisitively minded. Whether you love nature, science, or simply want to put your camera through its paces – I daresay a visit to the Eden Project should fit the bill.

#8 – Test Drive a Tank

It’s becoming a ‘must do’ activity in South-East Asia to fire an automatic rifle or throw a grenade, so why not step things up by getting behind the wheel of a retired tank and reeking a little havoc? It’s not just tanks, either. You can fire antique muskets, lob a few shells from a mortar, or participate in other military themed challenges guaranteed to bring out the big kid in any man worth his salt.

While you do pay for the privilege (the Full Monty package goes for around 250 pounds), it’s certainly a little beyond the normal visits to Big Ben and the Tower of London. You can learn more about it by visiting Tanks Alot’s website.

#7 – Witness the World’s Largest Football Game

It’s not a secret that the Poms are obsessed with their football (or soccer, if you’re American) – but the people of Ashbourne take it to a whole other level with their massive, two-day game every Shrove Tuesday and Ash Wednesday. With an entire town’s worth of participants, a three mile long field, and the kind of mind-boggling rules that only the British could understand, the Royal Shrovetide game is a must see if you want to experience British life as it was (and still is) outside of the cosmopolitan cities.

With the game taking place over two days every year, you’ll need to time your trip right to make it happen – but witnessing this bizarre spectacle should make your UK trip stand out, that’s for sure.

#6 – Embrace Your Wild Side at Nae Limits

The highlands of Scotland have long been associated with being just a little wild, and Nae Limits takes that to its natural conclusion by giving adrenaline junkies and thrill-seekers an action packed playground to explore. William Wallace himself might have balked at the laundry list of adventure sports on offer. To name a few:

  • White Water Rafting
  • Canyon Tubing
  • ‘Sphereing’ (similar to zorbing)
  • Abseiling
  • ‘Bugging’

For the mild at heart, there are more tame options such as 4WD safaris, pony riding, and clay pigeon shooting.

After having fallen in love with Queenstown’s adventure culture, a place like Nae Limits sounds like the perfect way for me to break up visits to museums and cultural icons. You’ve got to let loose sometimes.

#5 – Explore London with Urban Freeflow

Casino Royale might have brought the ‘sport’ of parkour (or free-running, although they are slightly different things) to the public eye – but very few people realise just how accessible the sport can be. Urban Freeflow offers classes three days a week for as little as ten pounds per person.

While not all of us are equipped for vaulting over low walls or tic-taccing our way up to a balcony, the lessons offer a great chance to experience something new while also taking in London’s built up urban environment. Urban Freeflow classes are just another way to take in traditionally sedate environments in a much more heart-pounding way. Me gusta!

#4 – Attend the Highland Games

Maybe it’s because I hail from Australia’s self professed Celtic capital (Glen Innes), but I’ve always had an abiding fascination with the unusual sports and the fantastic warrior culture of the Scots. It seems a natural decision for me, then, to include the world renowned highland games on my UK itinerary.

With bag pipes blaring, traditional dance, and manly pursuits such as caber tossing and the always fun tug-of-war competition, a highland games experience is part festival and part Olympics. There’s no shortage of options (highland games are run by shires and counties across the UK), so it’s just a matter of timing your visit right and choosing which festival looks like the best fit for your family.

And whatever you do, man up and try some haggis.

#3 – Participate in a Murder Mystery

Images of the fog-shrouded moors and mysterious English manors have long been staples of murder mystery fiction, so it stands to reason that there’s big appeal in the opportunity to participate in a live action murder mystery of your own.

A little research leads me to believe that one of Joy Swift’s Murder Weekends is the way to go, and while 270 pounds might seem cheap – this does include an entire weekend of fun, mystery, food, and board in an authentic British country manor. You’re not just there to play the part in a mystery, either. The weekend also involves games, dinner parties, and a themed party – not to mention the opportunity to meet your fellow cast members as you work to solve the mystery.

With new plots cycled in regularly and a number of venues across the country, a weekend of indulgent role-play might just be what a former theater major like myself needs.

#2 – Experience the UK’s haunted past

I’m a sucker for the macabre (as if the previous entry on this list didn’t give that away) and there are few places with the grisly history of the United Kingdom. While the lion’;s share can certainly be found in the storied streets of London, sites like Haunted Places in the UK lists off a shopping list of manors, castles, houses, hotels, and locations where the spirit world has (allegedly) bled into our own.

If you’re not up to exploring on your own, Haunted Happenings offers a calendar of paid tours all across the UK that should get hairs raised on the back of necks and skin crawling. Whether you’re a skeptic or a true believer, the opportunity to overnight in a spooky spot should be a tempter.

#1 – Drink it all in!

I do love a good drink and the British are no slouches when it comes to brewing a good beer or distilling a fine spirit. Whether you’re sampling the stouts, lagers, and IPAs with a good old fashioned London pub crawl; savouring a Guinness in one of the brand’s Irish breweries, or enjoying a good Scotch whisky – there is no shortage of opportunities to imbibe while on the isles.

The mad-men at Beer Travelers took the pub crawl to extremes by integrating a little rambling in a mammoth five day bender, but there are more organised (and less time consuming) options for those without the testicular fortitude for a working week piss-up. The London Pub Crawl Company offers a selection of tours, guided or otherwise, that should suit the hardcore and the casual alike.

The Scottish Whisky Experience gives fans of the fine spirit a chance to explore a distillery and taste a variety of whiskys, and tours of the Guinness Storehouse are a must if you’re a fan of the Irish drop.

There really is no shortage of opportunities to drink in the UK. Pub culture is alive and well in the Old Dart and a fan of the grain should be able to find or organise a suitable crawl or tour without much trouble. I’m thirsty just thinking about it…

Your Suggestions?

This list is the result of a few days of intensive Googling as I research a trip I might never take, so I’d love to hear from those of you who have actually hit the UK already and found a few less conventional ways to experience it all.

What would you recommend to a UK visitor looking to add a little something beyond the typical stops?

China, Taste Drive

Test Drive: Eating Like the Pandas Do

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I’m 0 for 3 so far when it comes to finding a Chinese snack food I would actually voluntarily eat in the future, so let’s see if China’s most famous residents – the pandas – have the right idea.

This week I’m trialing some kind of spicy bamboo shoot. We all know how much pandas love their spicy food.

Will the fourth time be a charm? Or will I once again leave with my taste buds defeated and my stomach upset?

Yeah, you can call me Dances with Pandas…

China, Taste Drive

Test Drive: Of Nuts and Human Fingers

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Back again with another of my Test Drive segments.

What’s that? Well, each week I’ll bite into another weird and wonderful treat and share my experiences with you. I haven’t tried these foods before and in many cases, haven’t the faintest idea how they’ll taste.

Watch in awe as I struggle to control my gag reflex! Gasp as I fight back tears!

This week sees me sampling some kind of chewy, nut filled treat.

You know it’s good when your first thought upon biting into a food is ‘this feels like I am biting into human fingers‘.

On with the show…

Great Britain, London

10 Different Things To Do in London

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If I’m being brutally honest, the desire has never really existed within me to visit London. I know that must make me some kind of Philistine, but I’ve always struggled to see the appeal of dreary weather over crowded streets in one of the world’s most expensive cities.

It’s not that I have no desire to visit the United Kingdom – far from it – but the ‘lure’ of London just seems lost on me. Sure, it might be cool to say I’ve been in the Tower of London or seen Madam Tussaud’s, but at the end of the day, very few things infuriate me more the press of a crowd.

But with the London Olympics just around the corner, what better time to turn my eye to the old dart and suggest some different things to do in London? Much like I recently did when discussing different places to go in China, I’ve put together a list of ten slightly less clichéd things to do in London.

crowd at a football game
Live sport gives a fantastic insight into a city’s culture

#10 – Check out one of the ‘other’ footballs

While it’s true that England is most famed for football of the soccer variety, it certainly isn’t the only game in town. London also plays hosts to teams playing rugby union and rugby league. Why shell out a few hundred quid for a seat at Emirates (Arsenal) or Stamford Bridge (Chelsea) when you can get a seat to watch the London Broncos in the English Super League, or the London Wasps; Harlequins; or London Irish in the English Aviva Premiership.

While you won’t get the pageantry of a singing crowd at a ‘soccer’ football match, you’ll still be seeing a traditionally English sport being played and you’ll be spending of a fraction of the price.

If seeing the round ball game is a priority for you, why not opt to avoid lining the coffers of Chelsea, Arsenal, or Tottenham in favor of supporting one of London’s less internationally renowned clubs? Charlton Athletic, Fulham, Millwall, Leyton Orient, and Crystal Palace are all viable choices if you’re looking to see football without the billion dollar squads. A ticket to see Leyton Orient play will set you back as little as 14 pounds.

Heck, go balls deep and aim for the really cheap seats. Catch powerhouses like Cray Wanderers, Tooting & Mitcham United, or Dulwich Hamlet FC hoofing the ball about in the lower tiers of England’s immense footballing pyramid. You can see mighty Dulwich Hamlet run around for a humble 8 pounds.

#9 – Indulge in some people watching in Shoreditch

This suggestion comes courtesy of the supremely talented photographer, Kyle Hepp, who you can follow on Twitter @kylehepp. A bit of people watching is one of her favorite things to do in London.

Somewhat akin to Sydney’s Newtown, Shoreditch is a built up area of trendy eateries & night spots; street markets; and a bit of an indy shopping mecca. And much like Newtown or hippie cities such as Portland in the United States, Shoreditch is a great place to sit down and while a way an hour or two people watching while you eat at one of the countless eateries in the area.

Whether you’re bargain hunting in Brick Lane Market or sipping a cocktail in one of the many unique bars and night clubs in the area, the formerly trendy London suburb still has a lot to offer those wanting a step away from the grind of High Street.

borough market
The crowd at Borough Market

#8 – Browse the Borough Markets

Two separate readers suggested a visit to Borough Markets as one of the best things to do in London, so I’m taking that as fairly high praise. While I’m not one for shopping at markets, I do enjoy the festival atmosphere and the sense of community you can experience when people get together to buy and sell all manner of odds and ends.

Borough Markets is all about that most important of vices – a good bit of gluttony. Boasting the best of food from around London, the UK, and the world – there’s no shortage of tempting tastes and sumptuous snacks to sink your teeth into. The sights and smells alone are likely to be worth the trip, but there’s plenty of opportunities to eat while you’re browsing the stalls and admiring the work of the artists who also display their wares on site.

With the markets running on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, there should be ample opportunity to fit a visit into your itinerary.

#7 – Gorge yourself at the Pieminister

My good mate Brendan (who I still owe about five Long Island Ice Teas) suggested this one and I was hooked as soon as I browsed the site.

There are a few foods that are distinctly British in my mind. Fish & chips, beer, a good curry (albeit via India), and the humble pie. A staple in the Australian diet, the folks at Pieminister have taken it to a whole other level with an utterly mind-blowing selection of pies in all shapes and flavors. From the traditional meat pie to minty lamb, steak and blue cheese, fish, and everything in between.

There’s even a selection of sausage rolls for those who prefer their meals with a bit more phallic innuendo.

It might not be a day trip and it certainly won’t be good for the waist line, but you’ve got to eat like the locals do – and better a fancy gourmet pie than a dodgy one from an even dodgier corner store, right?

monopoly

#6 – Do a Monopoly Pub Crawl

This one will someday warrant an entry all on its own, but thanks to @Seduniatravel for suggesting that a Monopoly themed pub crawl be added to my imagined itinerary.

Hell, I’m contemplating a visit to London solely so I can attempt this feat myself.

There are several websites dedicated to suggesting routes for your Monopoly Pub Crawl and the traditional one includes no less than twenty six pubs. That’s a whole lot of beer if you’re sticking to the rules and sinking a frosty pint at each stop…

With pubs ranging from shonky dives to classier establishments, you’ll not only be getting blind – but taking in London from a completely unorthodox angle as you stumble, stagger, and bus your way between the iconic stops on the world’s most recognizable game board.

Where do I sign up?

globe theatre london
Take in a play at the historic Globe Theatre

#5 – Experience the majesty of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

This one goes against my original guideline of avoiding the crowded tourist clichés, but what kind of thespian and Shakespeare lover would I be if I didn’t pay a visit to the grandest tribute to ‘the bard’ that there is. It really is my #1 must do on this list of things to do in London.

While the original Globe burned to the ground in 1613, the reconstruction was built to be as close to the original as possible. What results is an impressive open air theatre that embraces the rowdy, raucous, and communal feel of theatre as it was performed before the audience were sealed off behind the fourth wall in comfy chairs.

While tours of the Globe Theatre are available for around 13.50, to truly experience the theatre you need to see a play performed as it might have been in Shakespeare’s lifetime. A year round schedule of classic performances is available from the Globe Theatre’s website and is a great chance to embrace England’s classic culture.

Of course, London is known for more than just the theatre of the Bard. Plenty of companies offer deals including a London show and hotel that might be worth checking out.

#4 – Soak in London’s haunted past

In a city as old as London, there is no shortage of horror stories to be told. From Jack the Ripper’s violent ‘crusade’ against prostitutes to the horrors of the Black Plague; it’s no surprise that the English capital boasts a vast selection of companies offering to guide you through the city’s sordid past.

Having taken a Rocks ghost tour in Sydney last year, I have developed a bit of an addiction. While I certainly don’t expect to encounter a supernatural being, there’s something very enjoyable about hearing a city’s darker secrets while you roam its even darker streets. The guides are typically performers with a real talent for weaving a picture with their words, and the streets of London are a perfect backdrop.

Ghost tours of London are a great way to learn a bit of history and fill up those usually dull evenings spent locked in hotel rooms or cafes. There’s also a very interesting looking death & debauchery tour that touches on the likes of Sweeney Todd and other haunted locales.

What’s not to love?

#3 – Go white water rafting or zorbing

The popular image of the prim and proper Brit perhaps make it surprising that there are a number of extreme sports to be had right in the heart of the old Empire. While rock climbing, kayaking, and even ice climbing are all options – I couldn’t go past the danger double of a bit of white water rafting and a thrilling zorb ride.

The zorbing through Zorbing UK certainly isn’t cheap at 49.99 a ride, but from my own experiences zorbing in Rotorua have convinced me that everybody needs to give it a whirl at least once. I mean, what’s not to love about tumbling down a hill inside of a giant ball? It’s awesome!

A bit of white water rafting not with Lee Valley White Water Centre not only looks like fun, but it would also help me check off an item from my ever-growing (and rarely dwindling) Bucket List. A somewhat hefty 49.99 gets you out on the rapids for some adrenaline pumping fun and change of pace from London life.

While white water rafting is the big draw at Lee Valley for mine, there are certainly other options. These include kayaking, ice skating, orienteering, horseback riding, and sailing.

speakers corner london
Listen to the words of the inspired or the just plain nuts at Speakers Corner

#2 – Be ‘enlightened’ at the Speakers Corner

The original ‘speakers corner’ exists in the north-western corner of London’s Hyde Park, and it’s certainly an interesting (and free) way to kill some time while in the city.

A place where free speech is taken to extremes by its collection of kooks, would-be politicians, and eccentrics – there’s never a shortage of interesting tales (intermixed with nonsensical ramblings) to be found at the notorious spot.

Pull up a chair, grab a sandwich, and enjoy a bit of live theatre. Heck, nut up and give a speech yourself!

#1 – Take a walk!

There are so many different walking tours of London available that I found it impossible to just highlight one or two of them. London Walks has done a fantastic job of compiling an exhaustive list of fascinating walks covering everything from rail history to horror to sex to sites from classic literature such as James Bond or the works of Dickens.

While I was disappointed to find there was not yet a tour dedicated to the sites of Neil Gaiman’s fantastic Neverwhere, there are certainly enough alternatives to ensure I’d get plenty of exercise while I learned all about the many facets of London.

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What did I miss?

Not having been to London myself, I relied pretty heavily on Google and the suggestions of friends to put this list together. I’ve no doubt left off a few interesting spots not named Buckingham Palace or Big Ben, so feel free to let me know what I’m missing out on. What are your favorite different things to do in London?

Who knows? You might even be the one who convinces me to go.

While it’s true London isn’t the cheapest city in the world to visit, I think I’ve highlighted a few good reasons to go beyond the obvious. And with it getting easier and easier to find a cheap holiday rental apartment, the dream isn’t so unattainable.