What do you LOVE to do in London?

[Oesta]

I'm a Londoner and I've been feeling really down in the dumps reading about crime in London.

I need some cheering up to remember that this city is full of life and happiness and joy. What do you love to do?

I personally love the museums and want to start moving into art galleries next.

I love London too, and feel happy every day that I now live here. Thanks everyone for such good ideas of places to go to.

Jesus, step away from Instagram, or reprogramme your algorithm to videos of kittens, Tate exhibitions, or anything other than crime!

Greenwich park, Hampstead Heath, st James’ park for picnics, Blackheath for walking in wide open space and Georgian buildings.

Op, I'm not trying to be unkind, but do put in your big girl pants. You've got 150 replies, giving multiple suggestions in each and you are like flipping Eeyore. It's like you are enjoying being miserable. Stop watching depressing shit or step away from this joyful thread. We can't stroke your hair and make you feel better - god knows we've tried. Stop watching shit on social media or move house, we can do no more.

Go to the theatre

That content is intended to make you feel that way. Maybe it’s worth blocking those videos when they come up? The more you watch them the more they’ll be pushed into your feed, which makes the problem seem much worse than it actually is. London is actually an extremely safe and clean city for its size.

I lived in London for 25+ years before moving to Australia. When I go back I always (re) do the galleries and museums so don't quite get the OP's response that they've done them already. There's aways something new to see on a visit.

Thinking of the IG reels - block them. Take sensible precautions when out and about. I'm 70 and this is what I would do.

If I had to go back to live in the UK, I would move to London in a heartbeat, except that I couldn't afford to buy a place to live there now.

The more you watch those reels the more you’ll see them. It’s as if you’re picking at a scan to stop it healing.

Start searching for reels about something more cheerful like ‘fun in London’ or ‘what’s great about London’ and you’ll see those instead.

Lived there 35 years and visit every 6 weeks for 2 or 3 days. Never been to Tower of London, done the Eye or Natural history museum.
I have membership for Tate and V and A, love quirky stuff and secret bars. On the list for later this year...Lee Miller, mudlarking and Cecil Beaton exhibitions, prostitutes graveyard, sexual violence in wartime at IWM, Viktor Wynd's museum ( a favourite with an absinthe bar) and the cheese barge.

You've had so many suggestions, OP. You sound fairly young, do you work very long hours? So many galleries and museums are open past 6pm. All the restaurants, street scenes, parks, theatre. Make the most of the long summer evenings. Stop feeding the phone snatching algorithms. Go to the gym in the morning and explore your city. Get tickets to a prom. Go and catch a late set at Wimbledon or soak up the atmosphere outside the grounds.

I lived in London for 30 years until 2018 and I'll be there next week. I have to squeeze in a museum or gallery, and used to make a point of seeing smaller ones like Foundling Museum.

Secret London on Instagram is great for ideas.

@Oesta crap happens everywhere of any size - it’s just so much more magnified in London by its sheer size -

At this time of year I'd go the Proms, and investigate options for getting a ticket for the last night. First night is 18 July.

If it hasn't already been mentioned, the London Docklands Museum is really really interesting.

www.londonmuseum.org.uk/docklands/

I've lived in London all my adult life and there are hundreds if not thousands of things I love about it. But consistently very high at the top of the list is to go and see, walk around, have a coffee by the Serpentine in Hyde Park. There you are, bang in the centre of London, and it's just so beautiful.

Have similar feelings for St James's Park and Embankment Gardens. And never forgetting the view from Waterloo Bridge.

I went to the Globe to see Romeo and Juliet. It was wonderful to see the sky darkening as the play progressed and then afterwards walk across the Millennium Bridge with St Paul’s all lit up.

Waterloo Bridge by night from the top of the 341 bus after a play or a concert or a film on the South Bank is one of my favourite views in the world.

@Oesta how many times have you actually been robbed or other such awful things- my son is 27 and lived in London 7 years- he has had one experience of getting held up for his phone about 5 years ago - horrible yes but that’s it and he’s out all times of day and evening using the tube and overground in all kinds of areas .this shitty stuff can happen anywhere it’s just London is 8 times the size of the nearest big city size wise and hence far far more incidents- I have a friend lives in a very nice area in Home Counties- she’s had her home burgaled twice in 2 years and her bag snatched once and another attempted one. Shit really can happen anywhere - just stop watching this stuff

Do you as a woman feel safe using the tube and public transport?

I’ve been getting around on London public transport for the past 25 years without any problems, including at night. I’m a small woman usually travelling alone.

Have you stopped watching the reels, OP? I think unless you do that, none of the posts on this thread about the joys of London are going to help much.

@Oesta I'm late 40s, female, born in London, lived here approx half my life in different parts of Zone 2 (NW, NE, SE). Always felt safe on public transport here - far more than on regional transport when you're in the middle of nowhere with drunk men/etc. There's CCTV, police, and crowds of people to step in if something happens - I've seen it.

Crime victims in London are disproportionately young black men, which is heart-breaking. I have to ask: are you posting in good faith? Because either you're getting lost in algorithmically targeted content on social media which is developed by far-right groups and intended to stoke fear; or you're a bad actor posting here to try and generate that exact level of fear and worry on MN.

I was feeling better but then I came across a very sad thread on MN (it's currently trending) about a woman's experience with a shouty man in public transport. And I just felt like crap again. I've never had a bad experience myself but I know many others do.

No I'm not a "bad actor". Trying to stoke up fear. I was just feeling shitty thinking about all this and asked for his post to make me remember there's so much good and fun in this city

OP, gently, this is you. There's no indication that the thread about the man shouting at the woman on a train took place in London, for instance. It's as though you are actively looking for material to reinforce your own fears.

I spent many years getting around London on public transport by myself at all hours of the day and night. I've never been mugged or robbed or sexually harassed. I've probably had the odd person behave strangely, but I've also had people offering me a seat when pregnant, helping me with suitcases or a pushchair on the stairs, starting a singsong on a night bus, giving an almost imperceptible nod of solidarity when we all got back on the tubes again after the 7/7 bombings etc etc.

@Oesta I live in London and use public transport every day.
I also spend time in the Midlands several times a year visiting family (2 different towns, both medium size ordinary Midland towns).
Shouty weirdos can be found in all 3 places.
They really can. It's not great but that's life.
Generally I feel safer in London as it's always busy. Tube stations have staff and emergency call buttons you can press. Shops/takeaways are open late so you can go into one to get help.
Up in the Midlands everything closes at half 5 and if you are waiting for a bus after half 5 you can almost see the tumbleweed go by in the empty town centre. It's very odd.

Okay thanks. For me personally I unfortunately went down a negative rabbit hole and I had lots of bad thoughts about "London isn't safe, it's hell here". I'm going to take a deep breath and think about all the good there is.

I'm going to do a spin class this evening and I'll enjoy that.