To feel slightly traumatised by trying to navigate around London?

[theeverydaydancer]

OK. I'm a 32 year old, reasonably intellegent mother of one. I went on a nice day trip on my own yesterday to London to see something at the Barbican, a venue I had never been to before. I am from the provinces, could probably be described as a bit bumpkinesque, particularly after trying to navigate my way round the public transport system etc. I got wobbly legs going down the big escalators to the tube (they are so high I had to really psyche myself up to get on it!), and had to ask about 10,000 people directions just to get there and back to Victoria Station, couldn't really read any of the maps etc. I felt like a lost 8 year old. Is this reasonable at my age to be so hopeless? Or is London notoriously difficult to get around?

Yy to madame and mrssteptoe the estate round the barbican is a maze. If you can mangage that the rest of london is easy.

YANBU

Far too scary for me.

I like my trains stations with no more than 2 platforms, a ticket booth and maybe a small vending machine

The touristy centre of London is pretty easy to get round and actually relatively small.
If you have a smartphone the tube apps are brilliant. I find Covent Garden slightly confusing as usually slightly uncertain if I'm going in the right direction. Stick to the tube if you can but make sure you're going in the right direction on the Circle line (assuming it's running)

Another yes to the Barbican being to blame. I'm a real townie and love nothing more than scooting around London - but I get to within 100ft of the Barbican and I have no sense of direction. I think there must be some sinister Matrix-like mind-warp going on.

Next time try the SouthBank?

I recall taking about an hour to get from Waterloo to the Hayward Gallery once - which is in the same complex I think as where you were going. It's probably easier to find your way from the Houses of Parliament to bloody Lewisham on foot than negotiate that!

London is piss easy to navigate around. Barbican estate is a maze. So you aren't really U for not liking that bit!

Rest of london and the transport system is easy peasy with CityMapper for you iPhone. It's amazing.

YANBU London is horrible to get around and the locals can be mean!!

I find it reassuring that I'm not the only one who finds the Barbican difficult to find. It felt like I was just walking down streets of offices and even when I was only a few corners away people who clearly had just finished work weren't sure where it was. I'm going to blame the Barbican and its matrix-like mind warp thing (that must have been it Berliner and not my navigation skills!).

Also with the escalator thing, I have a long standing fear of them and the ones for the tube are uber high up. Got really bad vertigo. I suppose if you don't have a fear of either escalators or heights they won't bother you.

I wouldn't say London was notoriously difficult to get around, but anywhere you don't know, especially if it's big and it's a busy time of year, is likely to be a challenge, so YANBU. The Barbican is a bit of a bugger to find too, not to mention getting around it once you're there –I still don't understand the different lifts that serve different floors.

I think some comments on here are supercilious and mean.

I hope you found people helpful and did actually enjoy your day?

I am a born and bred Londoner and close my eyes on the tube escalators and hold on with both hands!!!

TheHeadless "supercilious" is a brilliant and underused word.

Thanks Johnny! [proud]

I find it really easy to get near the the Barbican but the nearer I get, the harder it is to actually find. I have actually been in the Barbican Centre and struggled to find the concert hall.

I say this as someone who worked in the City of London for years and was happy and familiar with the streets around the Barbican. Just those last couple of hundred metres would throw me.

Oh and I don't mind most escalators. But on some of the high ones on the tube, the lines on the steps all blur together as I look down and it makes me dizzy and a little panicky. It's OK so long as I keep looking at the adverts on the walls.

Barbican is notoriously confusing: they had to paint a yellow line on the pavement leading from barbican tube to the barbican centre as otherwise nobody could ever find it!

Driving to the Barbican and parking there is a doddle.
It's using public transport and walking the last bit that is a mare.

Actually, is the Barbican the same as the Southbank? At all?

No. South bank is the south side of the river, where the eye and things are.

No wonder I struggle, Pob

The Barbican is a bloody nightmare to navigate. And I'm a Londoner. It's notorious for it. Sadly, it's the only arts centre or theatre in London designed by a woman.

I find Barbican quite easy, but everything seems to take longer than you think it will.

I always get lost in Waterloo and Westminster and I've been there more often.

I'm a Londoner, but I can't go on the tube anymore because I get terrible vertigo and panic attacks on the giant escalators now.

Crikey! I'm a total country bumpkin from the depths of Scotland but managed to get to Barbican the other week no bother. Then again I had my Tennant detectors on...

Oh hang on, I was on the tube though...

If you are not used to it, then yes, it would be hard. Also, London can be very intimidating, especially on the Tube.

It's not you, it's the Barbican, as other posters have said. There's no way to orientate yourself there, inside or out, it's not user-friendly.

But the tube is fine if you take your time, work out in advance where you want to go, on what line, in what direction and then just follow the signs.