5 Things I Did Wrong in Girls.

London. A wonderful city indeed! And I was thrilled to explore and experience it for the first time last week.




However despite an overall tip-top experience, I decided that if I could do this first trip over again I would…with a few improvements. Perhaps you can learn from my rookie mistakes.
1) I stayed near Hyde Park

I know what you are thinking, “Hyde Park, that is a lovely part of London!” And you are absolutely right. In fact, lovely is an understatement (as a note, I found there wasn’t much the Brits didn’t refer to as “lovely.” Most. Used. Word. Ever.). The whitewashed buildings were elegant and calming. The neighborhoods were quiet, and in the evenings I appreciated coming back to such calm after the clamor of a busy, full day. BUT frankly, for a first time visit, it was too far off the path I needed to beat. The location is ideal for a second or third visit to London, but for the sparse time I had during this first visit I should have stayed closer to the Tower of London or Parliament.


2) I thought the underground in London was like the metro in Paris.



London is a big city…I mean really big. I did not have a good sense of its sprawl before my visit so I constantly underestimated the amount of time it would take me to reach my destination points via the underground. In Paris most everything is about a 30 minute metro ride so I used that poor assumption to set my schedule in London. *Insert a harsh buzzer sound to indicate my blatant wrongness* And it did cost me. The biggest disappointment was that I missed an evening walking tour about Jack the Ripper led by one of the foremost experts on the unsolved murders.Zut alors! (although I did hear the tour can be quite scary!). Dinner at the pub, Ten Bells – said to have been where The Ripper stocked some of his victims – was the only way I could make it up to myself.



A starter plate of eels paired with an Italian red at Ten Bells.

3) I stayed only 2 nights.

First time visit should really be minimum 3 nights. I stayed 2. You may press that buzzer again.
4) I didn’t see Buckingham Palace.

Embarrassing, I know. I went to London and didn’t see the official residence of the Queen of England. God save the Queen…just don’t shun me.

Some cool things I did see…



Parliament



Westminster Abbey – I also saw the boys choir sing during Evensong. Angelic.



Tower of London



Fierce guard in front of building where the Crown Jewels are kept.


Tower Bridge


The Eye of London


All Hallows-by-the-Tower – the oldest church in London

Interesting fact about this church, John Quincy Adam (our 6th President) married his wife in this church! To this day, he is still the only President to have married a woman not born in the USA.
5) I bought French food at Harrods.



I went to the most famous English department store in the world and ended up eating Frenchfood :). Actually the little restaurant, Galvin Demoiselle, in the striking fruit, vegetable and pantry food hall on the ground floor of Harrods was a perfect resting spot after exploring the bountiful accessory and apparel departments….


View of food hall from Galvin Demoiselle.



…and its cuisine was superb! This I would repeat.

Okay, so I made a few mistakes…and while my first trip to London wasn’t perfectly executed (no gasping allowed), I did succeed at something – whetting my appetite for a return visit! Afterall it is absolutely necessary…for heaven’s sake, I still have a certain palace to see.

P.S. Something I did do right was discover an EXCELLENT walking tour company called London Walks. The tour subjects are plentiful, thoughtfully chosen and I have never had better guides anywhere…ever. The cost is only 9 Euro per 2 hour tour. Really.

Travel for Book Research – Guest Post

I never expected to have the opportunity to travel to Eastern Europe for research on my series. Though I dreamed of visiting Russia especially, as my paternal great-grandparent emigrated from there during the 19th century pogroms, I believed that trip to be years in the future. But when pitching the first book (my Master’s Thesis) in the Serpent on a Cross series to a group of agents and publishers during my Creative Writing MA, one of the questions they posed was whether I had ever been to Poland and/or Russia.


I had, by this time, conducted roughly six month’s research via books, movies and still images on the medieval period in Poland and Kievan Rus (medieval Russia and Ukraine), in addition to medieval medicine, Jewish practices and beliefs. So why did I need to visit Poland and/or Russia? Because it would increase my knowledge of the area and the people about whom I was writing. Even though I couldn’t go back in time to actually experience medieval times in Eastern Europe, apparently it was enough that I visit modern-day Poland and Russia.

So I did. In September 2010, a friend and I trekked for about seven days through Poland, into Ukraine and Russia, mostly via train. We visited museums and medieval fortresses, experiencing the scenery and “feel” of the countries and people about whom I was writing. I could have planned better for a more structured research trip, which might have allowed trips to more medieval sites, but just walking the streets gave me, I think, a better perspective of the countries.

I was able to visit Oskar Schindler’s Enamel Factory in Krakow, which has been converted into a museum. It was a rather emotional experience. Though I may just be Jewish through my father’s line, I still identify as Jewish, and therefore, feel quite keenly the horrors suffered by my people throughout history. This is part of the reason I chose to have a Jewish heroine. And I wanted to portray someone who refused to be cowed by the prejudices to which her people were subjected at that – or any – time in history. She has a bit of my own personality, I suppose.

Kiev was lovely. The people were quite friendly. Even without knowing much of the language – I studied Russian for several months prior to the trip and so understood some words/phrases, but not much – it was still possible to communicate by using sign language and phrase books. I also asked each person I met whether they spoke English, not because I expected them to, but just so I would know whether we could communicate in broken English & Russian or if I needed to pull out my phrase books.

I loved Russia. Walking the streets of Moscow, even without being able to speak much of the language, I felt almost at home. People there were friendly as well. And I could sit for hours, I think, just watching the people. One young man who my friend and I conversed with on the train spoke very good English. When we asked where he learned to speak such good English, he said, “Armenian TV.” You just never know.

Though I traveled overseas several times in my 20s, I had never before traveled to a country where a Visa was required. Having the train stop in the dead of night on our way from Ukraine into Russia was a bit unnerving. Russian soldiers came aboard to check the passports of all passengers. At that moment, I prayed that my and my travel companion’s Visas passed inspection. I didn’t want to spend even a moment in a Russian prison. I listened intently for words I knew, but they spoke quietly, outside of our compartment. Soon, they returned, asked the standard, “What is your business?” questions, stamped our passports, and the train resumed its journey into Moscow.

It was a rather sobering experience, and makes me determined – as much as I wish to return to Russia someday and spend more time there – to keep well away from Russia’s boarders in the near future.

If I was unnerved traveling to Russia 4 years ago, when there was no unusual unrest, I would definitely think three and four times before traveling there during the CURRENT unrest. If I had no parental responsibilities, it would be a different scenario, potentially putting myself in harm’s way. But as a single parent, I plan to be as safe as possible in my travels.