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OJani
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24 Jul 2012, 10:45 am

So, finally I've made up my mind to take a visit to Albion, London, setting my feet on an English-speaking country for the first time in my life! I'm already very, very exited!

I plan to stay two weeks in London, from 8th to 22nd September.

I'm curious about the chance meeting other Aspies during my visit to London. Trafalgar Square has been already mentioned but is there a place where regular Aspie-Autie meet-ups happen, especially while I'm there?

The reason why I'm so bent on going is to fulfill my various interests and obsessions. I'm admittedly somewhat Anglophile and obsessed with Dickens's fictional character, Oliver Twist, whose story in large part takes place in 19th century London. Besides places mentioned in the novel I'm going to visit the Cleveland Street Workhouse which allegedly served as the inspiration of the one in which Oliver was born. Besides, I'm going to visit places that are known because of The Beatles and another fictional character, Sherlock Holmes (Baker Street). I also plan to visit "regular" famous places, squares, buildings, museums, etc. :)

(Maybe I'll bring a yellow cycling shirt with me and cycle around the City in it celebrating the new Tour de France champion, Bradley Wiggins...)

So, if you have any information about meet-ups, want to help, or maybe are curious to meet someone from Hungary, East-Center Europe, please let me know, I'd be really grateful!


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bnky
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24 Jul 2012, 12:54 pm

8) sounds like quite a trip. Good choice not to go during Olympic mayhem!!:-}
As far as I know there isn't a regular ASD place/time to meet. The best way to make sure a meetup happens is probably to start one. Start a poll for which days you'd like to consider. I find Saturdays best for off-peak train travel to London. (and Sundays often have detours and delays as a result of rail maintenance)
Once you've got some people interested I'm sure you'll get some help from local(ish) aspies/auties



Wandering_Stranger
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24 Jul 2012, 2:57 pm

I was planning to go to London at some point for a few days. But haven't decided when yet.



MightyMorphin
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24 Jul 2012, 4:49 pm

Honestly, because you like Dickens type stuff, you're better off visiting the country here. London isn't what foreigners think it is. We aren't stuck in the times :)

Isle of Wight might be an option if you decide to come back to England again. There's plenty of cottages and stuff there, or even anywhere along the Southern coast is a good bet.

Also, do as the above suggested. Organise a meet-up would be good, so that many people can enjoy the sights ^^



Wolfheart
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25 Jul 2012, 3:49 am

OJani wrote:
So, finally I've made up my mind to take a visit to Albion, London, setting my feet on an English-speaking country for the first time in my life! I'm already very, very exited!

I plan to stay two weeks in London, from 8th to 22nd September.

I'm curious about the chance meeting other Aspies during my visit to London. Trafalgar Square has been already mentioned but is there a place where regular Aspie-Autie meet-ups happen, especially while I'm there?

The reason why I'm so bent on going is to fulfill my various interests and obsessions. I'm admittedly somewhat Anglophile and obsessed with Dickens's fictional character, Oliver Twist, whose story in large part takes place in 19th century London. Besides places mentioned in the novel I'm going to visit the Cleveland Street Workhouse which allegedly served as the inspiration of the one in which Oliver was born. Besides, I'm going to visit places that are known because of The Beatles and another fictional character, Sherlock Holmes (Baker Street). I also plan to visit "regular" famous places, squares, buildings, museums, etc. :)

(Maybe I'll bring a yellow cycling shirt with me and cycle around the City in it celebrating the new Tour de France champion, Bradley Wiggins...)

So, if you have any information about meet-ups, want to help, or maybe are curious to meet someone from Hungary, East-Center Europe, please let me know, I'd be really grateful!


I don't know when the next meet up will be but September sounds like a good month.

In any case, if you like Dickens, you are better off coming to Kent as Dickens house is in Rochester, as well as Dickens world.

http://www.dickensworld.co.uk/



OJani
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25 Jul 2012, 7:17 am

Just a short note, thank you for your replies, I'll write in more detail soon. I've booked the flight so I'm coming...



OJani
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25 Jul 2012, 4:15 pm

Well, it seems a good idea to visit the countryside too. I haven't made arrangements for the accommodation yet, so I'm open to suggestions. Maybe I will move around. Oliver lived for a while in a house in Chertsey, the house he was supposed to rob. In Kent, I can visit Dickens’s last home, although I'm sure the museum in London is also great.

I've come across this article revealing the Cleveland Workhouse as possible inspiration of the one depicted in the novel. The article mentions two possible locations of Oliver Twist’s workhouse, "Kent or even Northamptonshire". Any idea?

Wolfheart, to be honest, I don't really get what Dickens World is about. Have you ever been there? If so, what was it like?

As for the meet-up, If Saturdays are really so good considering minimal traffic and crowd, I'd suggest 15th September for the day, but what time it would be? Certainly in the evening, I guess, maybe 16:00?

What do you think?


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25 Jul 2012, 5:24 pm

OJani wrote:
Well, it seems a good idea to visit the countryside too. I haven't made arrangements for the accommodation yet, so I'm open to suggestions. Maybe I will move around. Oliver lived for a while in a house in Chertsey, the house he was supposed to rob. In Kent, I can visit Dickens’s last home, although I'm sure the museum in London is also great.

I've come across this article revealing the Cleveland Workhouse as possible inspiration of the one depicted in the novel. The article mentions two possible locations of Oliver Twist’s workhouse, "Kent or even Northamptonshire". Any idea?

Wolfheart, to be honest, I don't really get what Dickens World is about. Have you ever been there? If so, what was it like?

As for the meet-up, If Saturdays are really so good considering minimal traffic and crowd, I'd suggest 15th September for the day, but what time it would be? Certainly in the evening, I guess, maybe 16:00?

What do you think?


Everything usually shuts around 5pm, and museums don't stay open past 5pm to be honest, so I would suggest meeting a lot earlier. London is busy 24/7. The time of day or even the day, doesn't change how busy it will be, unless there's a big public event going on.



OJani
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26 Jul 2012, 10:32 am

MightyMorphin wrote:
OJani wrote:
Well, it seems a good idea to visit the countryside too. I haven't made arrangements for the accommodation yet, so I'm open to suggestions. Maybe I will move around. Oliver lived for a while in a house in Chertsey, the house he was supposed to rob. In Kent, I can visit Dickens’s last home, although I'm sure the museum in London is also great.

I've come across this article revealing the Cleveland Workhouse as possible inspiration of the one depicted in the novel. The article mentions two possible locations of Oliver Twist’s workhouse, "Kent or even Northamptonshire". Any idea?

Wolfheart, to be honest, I don't really get what Dickens World is about. Have you ever been there? If so, what was it like?

As for the meet-up, If Saturdays are really so good considering minimal traffic and crowd, I'd suggest 15th September for the day, but what time it would be? Certainly in the evening, I guess, maybe 16:00?

What do you think?


Everything usually shuts around 5pm, and museums don't stay open past 5pm to be honest, so I would suggest meeting a lot earlier. London is busy 24/7. The time of day or even the day, doesn't change how busy it will be, unless there's a big public event going on.

What would be the ideal place and time to meet? Some place inside a museum, or maybe a quiet pub? Could you recommend a place or maybe places? Also, time?



OJani
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15 Aug 2012, 3:57 pm

In the meantime I've read through the 10th March and 4th April meetup-threads. I think it would be great to have a similar meetup in September, I'm just not sure I'm the right person to organize it. I'll come here as a tourist, and can't speak the language nearly as well as anyone who's been on the meetups, and I might have difficulties with knowing cultural subtleties too.

So, can I have your help please? Gemstone123, Wolfheart, MightyMorphin, bnky, maybe The-Raven, someone?

For me, ideally it would be on 15th September, Saturday, sometime in the morning. What museums would you like to visit? Currently these are on my list: The British Museum, The Charles Dickens Museum, Royal Observatory Greenwich, though I'm definitely open to suggestions.

Anyhow, I'll be there, open to meet anyone who turns up.


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gemstone123
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16 Aug 2012, 4:34 pm

OJani wrote:
In the meantime I've read through the 10th March and 4th April meetup-threads. I think it would be great to have a similar meetup in September, I'm just not sure I'm the right person to organize it. I'll come here as a tourist, and can't speak the language nearly as well as anyone who's been on the meetups, and I might have difficulties with knowing cultural subtleties too.

So, can I have your help please? Gemstone123, Wolfheart, MightyMorphin, bnky, maybe The-Raven, someone?

For me, ideally it would be on 15th September, Saturday, sometime in the morning. What museums would you like to visit? Currently these are on my list: The British Museum, The Charles Dickens Museum, Royal Observatory Greenwich, though I'm definitely open to suggestions.

Anyhow, I'll be there, open to meet anyone who turns up.


Best thing to do is to make a poll of ideas and see who is interested.


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16 Aug 2012, 4:47 pm

Wow - yes, I think that's probably quite a long time to spend just in London. I would try and get out and see the surrounding towns and cities too. There are enough of them down there.



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20 Aug 2012, 4:31 pm

Tequila wrote:
Wow - yes, I think that's probably quite a long time to spend just in London. I would try and get out and see the surrounding towns and cities too. There are enough of them down there.


Yes, like Basildon. Particularly Pitsea.



OJani
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21 Aug 2012, 2:08 pm

SabreToothBadger wrote:
Tequila wrote:
Wow - yes, I think that's probably quite a long time to spend just in London. I would try and get out and see the surrounding towns and cities too. There are enough of them down there.


Yes, like Basildon. Particularly Pitsea.

Yes, yes, I got the idea. :) I booked two nights each in Oxford and Canterbury. Maybe I'll visit Pitsea, too.



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21 Aug 2012, 2:51 pm

OJani wrote:
SabreToothBadger wrote:
Tequila wrote:
Wow - yes, I think that's probably quite a long time to spend just in London. I would try and get out and see the surrounding towns and cities too. There are enough of them down there.


Yes, like Basildon. Particularly Pitsea.

Yes, yes, I got the idea. :) I booked two nights each in Oxford and Canterbury. Maybe I'll visit Pitsea, too.


Haha, I dunno if you were just going along with the joke or if you didn't get it. Pitsea is a dump! :D



OJani
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21 Aug 2012, 3:10 pm

SabreToothBadger wrote:
OJani wrote:
SabreToothBadger wrote:
Tequila wrote:
Wow - yes, I think that's probably quite a long time to spend just in London. I would try and get out and see the surrounding towns and cities too. There are enough of them down there.


Yes, like Basildon. Particularly Pitsea.

Yes, yes, I got the idea. :) I booked two nights each in Oxford and Canterbury. Maybe I'll visit Pitsea, too.


Haha, I dunno if you were just going along with the joke or if you didn't get it. Pitsea is a dump! :D

:D

No, I didn't get it then, I'm that green...