You will soon enough find out that life in London (and the UK) revolves around the Pub. As a Brit once said to me, you cannot walk more than five blocks in London, without finding a pub. People go there to meet friends, to unwind, to watch rugby or football, or just for the sake of the pint.

TIP: The Partners Club's Pub Nights Committee organises a pub night about once a month. It is a great place to meet up with friends and get to know partners.

The Bar is the modern answer to the Pub's traditional dominance. Bars are usually more trendy and eclectic (whatever that means). You don't usually have your pint there, but go instead for a cocktail, or at least an 'alcopop'.

Pubs are open until 11pm; you'll find none open beyond that hour. Bars, on the other hand, might be open until 1am, and that's actually the whole point of going to one. Remember that London's alcohol expenditure is strictly regulated: you've got licences (until 9pm, 11pm, 1am and 3am). Of course, these licences have different prices; so, the later the place can stay open, the more expensive the drinks will be.

TIP: The beer here has higher alcohol content than beer in America. Pace yourself.

Another thing, what is known in many countries as "beer", is called "lager" here. The UK "beer" has a darker colour, not so much golden as bronze, and is drank a bit warmer. And then of course you have the dark beer called stout (Guinness and the like).

The best place to have a free glass of wine or beer is Sundowners, which happens every Thursday at the LBS MBAr.

Pubs near the school include everyone's favourite, Windsor Castle, Feathers behind Taunton, Hobgoblin (which also serves great Thai food), and The Volunteer on Baker Street.

RESTAURANTS

Everyone has their favourite restaurant. Our recommendation is to purchase "Cheap Eats," a small book that is one of the best investments you can make.

TIP: Many restaurants offer early evening meals that are less expensive - it's a great way to go out for dinner without spending a fortune.

MUSEUMS

As of January 2002, most of the museums in London (not to say all) became free. Unless otherwise noted, the museums and galleries in this list fall under that category, which makes them not only a fantastic attraction, but suitable for the budget conscious as well!

The British Museum
Great Russell Street - London WC1B 3DG
Holborn/Tottenham Court Road
Saturday --Wednesday: 10.00 - 17.30. Thursday -- Friday: 10.00 - 20.30
The British Museum is one of the greatest museums of the world, founded in 1753. The Museum now holds national collections of antiquities; coins, medals and paper money; ethnography; and prints and drawings. For example, it has the largest and most comprehensive collection of ancient Egyptian material outside Cairo; the displays including a gallery of monumental sculpture, and the famous collection of mummies and coffins. Within the Greek Galleries, the displays include famous such as sculptures from the Parthenon, the Nereid Monument from Xanthos and sculptures from the Mausoleum at Halikarnasos.

The National Gallery
Trafalgar Square -- London
Charing Cross
Daily 10 am to 6 pm, Wednesday until 9pm.
The gallery houses one of the greatest collections of European painting in the world. The National Gallery's permanent collection spans the period from about 1250 to 1900 and consists of Western European paintings. The collection contains over 2,300 paintings by many of the world's most famous artists, including Van Gogh, Velasquez, Renoir, Monet, Leonardo Da Vinci, and Rembrandt, among many others. The National Gallery is a visit you shouldn't miss, even if you're moderately interested in art: you'll greatly enjoy it! And each Wednesday you can have a relaxing evening, when musicians from the Royal College of Music perform in Central Hall from 6 to 7:30 PM.

Victoria & Albert Museum
Cromwell Road - London SW7 2RL
South Kensington
10am to 5.45pm Daily, except Wednesday 10am to 10pm.
The V&A is the greatest museum of applied and decorative arts in the world. Its permanent collections include fashion and textiles, sculpture, ceramics and glass, metalwork, silver and jewellery, furniture, photography and paintings. The Textiles & Dress Galleries alone are definitely worth the visit for any woman.

Tate Modern
Bankside - London SE1
Southwark/Blackfriars
Sunday - Thursday, 10.15-18.00. Friday and Saturday, 10.15-22.00
Tate Modern is Britain's new national museum of modern art. Housed in the former Bankside Power Station, Tate Modern displays the Tate collection of international modern art from 1900 to the present day, including major works by Dalí, Picasso, Matisse, Rothko and Warhol as well as contemporary work by artists such as Dorothy Cross, Gilbert & George and Susan Hiller. Tate Modern is definitely worth a visit, if only to see the refurbishment of the power plant. And if you're not into modern art, you can always go to the Café on level 7, and have a nice snack, enjoying a spectacular view of London.

Tate Britain
Millbank London SW1P 4RG
Pimlico
Daily 10:00 - 17:50
Tate Britain is the national gallery of British art from 1500 to the present day, from the Tudors to the Turner Prize. Tate holds the greatest collection of British art in the world, including works by Blake, Constable, Epstein, Gainsborough, Hockney, Moore, and Turner. Tate Britain is a MUST if you're interested in landscapes and/or watercolours: then you can't miss the Clore Gallery, which houses the stunning Turner Bequest.

Royal Academy of Arts
Burlington House - London WIJ OBD
Piccadilly Circus
Daily from 10am to 6pm and until 10pm on Fridays.
The Royal Academy's Permanent Collection comprises examples of British art from the 18th century to the present day. The collection includes paintings and sculpture, plaster casts, artists' memorabilia, prints and drawings.

National Portrait Gallery
St Martin's Place - London WC2H OHE
Charing Cross
Saturday - Wednesday: 10.00 - 6pm. Thursday - Friday: 10.00 - 9pm
The National Portrait Gallery was founded in 1856 to collect the likeness of famous British men and women. Today the collection is the most comprehensive of its kind in the world. It comprises from Tudor portraits, to modern photographs. Since this gallery is just around the corner from the National Gallery, you could pay it a visit when you go there.

Museum of London
London Wall, London EC2Y 5HN
Barbican, St Paul's, Moorgate, Bank
Monday - Saturday 10am to 5.50pm. Sunday 12noon to 5.50pm
The Museum of London is the world's largest urban history museum with 1.1 million objects and Europe's largest archaeological archive. This museum spans the history of the city, from Roman times, through the Dark Age, Saxon, Tudor and Stuart periods, to the present day. It features the development of the metropolis (and its pyromaniac drawbacks), as well as an insight on how ancients Londoners lived, ate, dressed and behaved.

Dali Universe
At County Hall
Westminster, Waterloo
Monday to Sunday 10.00am-5.30pm
Admission: Adults, £8.95; Student, £6.95.
County Hall Gallery Ltd presents the Dalí Universe, a 3000 square metre exhibition dedicated to Salvador Dalí, the greatest surrealist, self-publicist and artistic genius of the twentieth century. Featuring over 500 works of art never before exhibited in the UK, the Dalí Universe is a unique opportunity to view Europe's most important collection of Salvador Dalí's art works, including the largest collection of Dalí's sculpture dating from 1935-1984, his drawings, lithographs, gold and glass objects and a Dalí-inspired furniture collection.

Science Museum
Exhibition Rd SW7
Tube: South Kensington
This is great fun for both adults and children with lots of interactive stuff to play with and well worth popping into for a visit. There is also an IMAX cinema.

The Fitzwilliam Museum (Cambridge)
Trumpington Street (approximately 500 metres from the city centre).
Tuesday to Saturday: 10.00 am - 5.00 pm, Sunday: 2.15 - 5.00 pm.
THE FITZWILLIAM MUSEUM was founded in 1816 by the bequest of the VIIth Viscount Fitzwilliam of Merrion to the University of Cambridge and contains magnificent collections of works of art and antiquities of national and international importance. These include antiquities from Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome, Roman and Romano-Egyptian, Western Asiatic and Cypriot Art; applied arts, including sculpture, furniture, clocks and rugs; coins and medals; illuminated manuscripts and printed books; paintings, drawings and prints (Titian, Veronese, Rubens, Van Dyck, Hals, Canaletto, Hogarth, Gainsborough, Constable, Monet, Degas, Renoir, Cezanne and Picasso).

Ashmolean Museum (Oxford)
Beaumont Street. Oxford OX1 2PH
Tuesdays - Saturdays: 10am to 5pm Sundays: 2pm to 5pm (but not the Cast Gallery)
The highlights of the Ashmolean Museum's collection include a special collection of drawings and watercolours by Camille Pissarro, the largest in the world and indeed the largest single collection of drawings by any Impressionist artist. The Ashmolean has one of the finest groups of Raphael drawings in the world and an important collection by Michelangelo. Additionally, the collections of the Department of Antiquities cover almost the entire span of human history from the Lower Paleolithic to the Victorian era. They incorporate the surviving parts of the Museum's earliest collections, notably the founding collections of the Tradescants, which were donated to the University by Elias Ashmole in 1683. (The department has a strict policy of not acquiring material that has left its place of origin illegally.)

TOURIST SITES

The following are the typical overpriced sites in London where millions of tourists visit every year. However, it's always fun to "play tourist" once in a while and see what the tourist hype is about.

• Madame Tussaud's -- If you want a tourist trap conveniently located to the school, try Madame Tussaud's. Never been inside, but from signs and posters, this wax museum contains the likes of royalty and celebrities from all over the world. A ticket is around £10, but just think: you'll get lots of good photos with lots of famous people. You can get a joint ticket which lets you into both Madame Tussaud's and the Planetarium next door for a couple more pounds. (Tube: Baker Street)
• London Zoo -- Also close to school is the London Zoo, located somewhere inside Regent's Park. I've never been there and have no clue how to get there, but from their colour brochures it looks great. Zoos are always a good place to take the kids. (Tube: Regent's Park)
• Tower of London -- One of the most famous buildings in the world, the Tower was constructed following the Norman conquest in the 11th century to dominate London. Here you can see the Royal Armouries and the Crown Jewels. (Tube: Tower Bridge)
• London Dungeon -- A medieval horror museum where you can see the horrors of the torture chamber depicted in living colour and full, graphic detail. Sounds cheerful, huh? (Tube: London Bridge)
• Segaworld -- This huge complex of arcade games, rides, and food has something for everyone. (Tube: Piccadilly Circus)
• London Eye -- From your glass-enclosed pod on a Ferris wheel, you can see all of the city below. (Tube: Waterloo)
• Millennium Dome -- Often talked about, rarely visited, the Millennium Dome is a conglomeration of sponsored exhibits highlighting different aspects of life. The Dome is divided into zones including the Body Zone, where you walk through a human body, the Work Zone, where you exercise your job skills, the Money Zone, where you complete a not-so-fun game of money spending, and the Faith Zone, which highlights different religions from around the world. There are many other "zones" as well as a centre-stage show and a movie which features Mr. Bean. And there are also tons of places to eat. Despite all the negativity, I enjoyed my eight or so hours at the Dome; and in those eight hours, I didn't even get a chance to see everything. (Tube: Greenwich)
• Rock Circus -- This is basically Madame Tussaud's with rock stars. Again, a great place to take pictures and spend money. (Tube: Piccadilly Circus)
• IMAX -- The IMAX theatre by Waterloo station offers big screen entertainment. (Tube: Waterloo)

• Buckingham Palace -- Ah, the home of Queen Lizzie. Maybe she'll ask you in for a cuppa if you drop by. At Buckingham Palace, you can stare at the building for a few minutes, take a few snapshots, and go on your merry way. Or you can pay the cash and see the Royal Mews. There's also the famous Changing of the Guard which takes place every day at 11:30am during nice periods and 11:30am every other day during the winter months.
• Tower Bridge -- At the tube stop by the same name, is the famous tower bridge, which most people mistakenly think of as London Bridge. You can walk across the bridge and see the Thames below.

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