To think we should avoid London right now?

[StayorgoLDN]

Due to visit London in the next few weeks.

Anxious with Palestinian protests and so forth in the news. I don’t want to be near that with young children, and worried that it may escalate to some sort of attack.

We are not Jews, but presuming as the U.K. is supporting Israel that we’ll all be fair game ie there might be an attack/bomb somewhere prominent to send a message to gov.

Have been in London during terrorist attacks before and I’d rather avoid.

AIBU to consider rescheduling our family trip to next year?

FYI, there's a train that takes you straight to Victoria Station (Where the shows are) from Beckenham Junction.

Why on earth would anyone spend a load of money to stay in Forest Hill or Finsbury Park?

South London here. I am sad and a bit angry you feel this way. How far away from London are you?

If we all stopped doing things because we were scared of something the world would stop.

Forest Hill - very low terrorist threat, because it is some random middle-class SE Suburb sandwiched between other lovely random suburbs with lovely restaurants, pubs and connections to C London.

Finsbury Park - a great nature green area and you've got a solid run straight into and out of C London (also there's that solid cafe inside Finsbury Park at Manor Road station). Stop thinking like a Londoner and start thinking like someone who's coming to stay has autistic children and has anxiety about terrorist attacks. Also might give OP a moment to converse with some minority communities living their lives just trying to get by etc.

That is what the OP has asked for. I think they're veering more for SE London now anyway, which is fine.

I know both of those areas well and cannot imagine spending a load of money to stay there. Why would you bother?

I also can't imagine randomly going up to 'minority communities' to interview them about their lives. Based on being a member of one of those communities.

Because OP, as a traumatised anxiety-prone mother of children with autism, wants to wake up in a relaxed environment knowing that they aren't in immediate danger. That is the first thing they have pointed out with this entire thread. They mentioned having a hotel near an embassy, and probably know a few things about how transport links get completely ruined during a disaster.

I want their family to be safe and if it takes them another 40 minutes to get in, that's alright? I think the main thing with autism is overstimulation and if there's a lot going on, it can't help your anxiety, either. So I also picked a more relaxed area.

If they're spending a lot of money getting to London, I'd rather they spend their money on tickets for Wicked, West End Shows and visits to the Natural History Museum. I know that there's that southeastern service in which is fairly reliable straight to Victoria, so OP and kids are happy with that connection. Forest Hill was just a place on a map, but it's got a nice Overground link I also suggested Beckenham, Crystal Palace etc, but they're all really close to one another.

When you've been in like, real danger you don't want to be in anywhere near a place that could have real danger. I class OP being a victim of a terrorist attack previously just that, so I'm respecting their feelings to the absolute maximum.

I engage with people in real life (who happen to be minorities) all the time, asking them how their days are; the weather; the news; and the economy if we get on; say 'thanks for the coffee we're just in from XXX will be nice to see you later in the week for breakfast!' Chances are you'll most likely strike up a converastion if you're carting kids around, no matter where you are on this planet.

I'd hardly classify that as an interview.

As for the minority comment, I also have membership. We just have different views on it.

I wouldn't recommend Finsbury Park to someone who's apparently terrified of any danger. I lived there for five years.

Honestly, I think @StayorgoLDN you are a great parent for considering all this. Your anxiety is your strength and all this planning for your kids is admirable. I know you'll find a great spot! Good luck!

Okay, well amongst my myriad suggestions, I remove Finsbury Park. P sure they're probably hitting up SE London anyway. Do you have any suggestions for a good place to stay bearing in mind it should probably be quiet and peaceful for kids that's cheap with links to the museum and Victoria Apollo? I'm sure OP would love to hear your thoughts.

I've given my thoughts already. Given that I don't feel that I can go to places in my own home city for the first time in my life, I'm not really in the mood for playing tourist guide.

What’s wrong with Finsbury Park?

Finsbury Park was OK a few years ago. Highbury, Crouch End ditto. Lots of green and woodland walks.

I lived there 2006-11. Also lived in Holloway before that and have lived in North London all my life (except for university).

FP is a dangerous and grotty area. The bit under the bridge near the station is one of the most unpleasant places to walk through at night, as is the area around blackstock Road. A lot of odd people around, a lot of gang related issues (Turkish vs kurdish mainly), a lot of stabbings. a lot of street drinking and drugs. Extremely nasty on Arsenal match days.

It's a completely bizarre place to suggest someone should stay if they are nervous of being in London. Just batshit.

@BlurredEdges I too have lived in the area my whole life and, while it’s not perfect, not many places in London are. Finsbury Park has open green spaces, lovely cafes and the reservoirs just around the corner in Stokey are amazing.

Anyway, I’m not here to change your view on an area you’ve lived in. Each to their own I guess. I just tend to get quite defensive when people talk badly about these parts of north London as, in my experience, they often come from some sort of prejudicial views somewhere along the way.

Not prejudice at all in my case @DrinkingMyWaterMindingMyBiz as I hope my earlier post indicated.

I thought you were implying that, but I presume you can see that's not the case. Many of my elderly relatives lived in places like Stoke Newington and Hackney when they moved out of the East End so I spent lots of time there as a kid.

I have a soft spot for Holloway and that end of Seven Sisters Rd, but i just found FP proper an uncomfortable place to live for many reasons. None of them to do with prejudice. I think there's a lot of anger and tension and crazy behaviour around the station. I never felt at all safe coming home late at night. I don't like the gentrification either, I think it sits very uneasily. And I hate Arsenal which doesn't help... saw some awful fights on match days.

Have seen some good gigs in the park though. And I like the bagel shop, don't know if it is still there. So yes each to their own. I still wouldn't recommend it to a nervous tourist.. peace out.

Fuck me someone's nervous of coming to London and get told to stay in Finsbury Park or Forest Hill!! They're having you on OP!

Finsbury Park has been gentrified it's true but it's still a bit sketchy and there's always a very tense vibe there in my opinion.

I'd defo recommend it to someone on a budget as it has great transport links and quirky restaurants and shops but not to someone who is considering the whole London safety aspect.

This thread is absolutely bonkers 😂

@BlurredEdges the Happening Bagel Bake is still there. I think the area round the station is sketchy too.

I know! Not to mention that FP is one of the few non central areas of London that has actually experienced a terror attack in recent years 🤦‍♀️

Oh for goodness sake - go on your trip maybe just avoid the Israeli Embassy, Gatton Garden and Holders Green

Hi, just catching up.

Interesting to read all of the information above, especially re. Finsbury Park as my DH is an Arsenal supporter 😂

Obviously a match is out for us, but we had thought about doing a stadium tour.

The comments regarding us having little contact with ethnic minorities aren’t on the money. About 1/3 of DC classmates are Muslim (some other religions/races on top of this, probably half the classes). I ate lunch in a Muslim run cafe yesterday.

There have been protests at home too, which we have avoided. But that is fine as we aren’t paying £500 a day to be here. We can postpone things we’d like to do or rearrange without financial penalty.

The money that is paying for the activities and some of the travel on this trip is coming out of DLA. It’s for our children’s enrichment and to cheer them up after some hard times with assessments/school etc over the last year.

We wouldn’t be able to write off a trip to London if disrupted and come again quickly. So aside from the concerns over managing children when there in the event of disruption there is a financial element.

Thank you all for the helpful replies.

Lol, yes agree. cringed at her need to mention that she ate at a muslim cafe to absolve herself of racism.

Oh for goodness sake.

Someone had said I need to come to London to be around ethnic minorities.

My point was our DC go to school where half their class mates are from ethnic minorities, where we live is very diverse and families are well settled, have their own businesses (such as I mentioned) in the area.

The issue is I don’t want to pay a huge amount of money to go to somewhere where we may face potential disruption and difficult circumstances for the kids. End of. I avoid protests/disruption at home (which is not NI anymore) too. This is just practicality.

0P, I remember last looking at this before the weekend. I can’t believe it’s still going on.

Don’t come if you don’t want to. There will always be the risk of disruption in London or any big city here or elsewhere in the world. Most of us live with it just fine, but it obviously bugs you