ave YOU ever planned a trip to a big city overseas, and thought "I wish I knew someone who was born there, so I could ask them for offbeat things to see and do?" When the Olympics came along this year, lots of my friends and work colleagues who knew I was born and grew up in that world capital, asked me that question – "tell me some nifty things to do, that others might not know about."

Having spent a lot of my life as a radio broadcaster on three top LA radio stations with my show "John Clayton's Travel With A Difference," and as a result been invited on numerous travel media press trips to the UK (and London!) yes, I knew how to answer their requests. With that as background, and given the large audience of the Traveling Boy website, herewith those ideas. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did. And still do!

1) If you want to find any sort of toys – for young kids to much older ones, go to Hamley's – it was my most favorite toy store when I was growing up – I loved their Hornby train sets. Their selection of toys and related "stuff" is enormous, and I know you'll be entranced by what you find in this superb store – as a kid or an adult. It's halfway down Regent Street on the left hand side if you're coming FROM Oxford Circus.

2) If you've never been to London, the best way see London fast, and is to get on a special tour Double Decker open top bus. You can get on and off wherever you like, and they show you lots places and things in London, that you probably never knew existed. Which means you can then go see them at YOUR leisure, the next day. www.theoriginaltour.com.

3) It was a store I loved as a child growing up in London, and I loved the various aromas and what I can only call "foodie" smells that wafted into my sense in the food section – and indeed in almost every department in the store. It was then, and still is now, very upscale and very sophisticated. I'm talking of course, about the one and only Harrods in Knightsbridge. It's become (sadly, some think) a huge "tourist trap" but I still I urge you to go there just to say you have, and because I know you'll be intrigued by everything you see and yes, smell!

4) The best store for clothes and a wide variety of "other stuff," including a mesmerizing food and fresh produce area, is Marks and Spencer. There're all over the UK, and the best two in London are at Marble Arch and at Oxford Circus. Whatever they sell is always top quality and First Class – but with much lower prices than you'd find in other such stores. I always go a bit overboard when I go there from a health point of view, as I buy a carton of very fresh raspberries and some cream. Be advised that British cream is exactly that – CREAM. They sell it in what they call SINGLE cream and DOUBLE Cream. The Double is so thick and creamy that you can stick a teaspoon in it, and it'll stand up by itself! I mix the cream and raspberries together and, to be totally decadent, I then also buy something called "A Cadbury flake" chocolate bar. Aaaaah, totally delicious!

5) BTW, never get any money changed at an airport. You get lousy rates. Always do it BEFORE you go at either your bank or at some currency exchange place.

6) Ride the Tube, or Underground, as it is the best and fastest way to get around London. Trains are fast, frequent and comfortable, but VERY crowded at RUSH hour. All your questions are answered at www.tfl.gov.uk/tube/

7) There are numerous ways to get from Heathrow (LHR) into London. By bus. Too long, too costly. Taxi – far too expensive. Or the tube on the Piccadilly line. Best way is the Heathrow Express. Fast 14 minutes to Paddington station. Ticket prices vary – you can get them online; on your mobile; at the airport or on the train. The best bargain by far, is to get it online. Just type in Heathrow Express, and you'll get all the info you need. Trains run EVERY 15 minutes, so get your ticket online and save money.

8) Get an Oyster Card from your travel agent, or in London. They are OK for the tube, bus, certain rail lines, trams etc, and they're a bargain. See London's Oyster Card | visitlondon.com

9) You can also get a one, two, three or more day Travel Card that lets you travel by above cheaply. A great bargain. www.londonpass.com/travel-card

10) Check out VisitLondon.com – it's a great website and VERY helpful.

11) Make sure you enjoy a ride on the DLR – that's the Docklands Light Railway. This is a rail line that has driverless trains. Take it to Greenwich, and get off at Island Gardens (this station is just AFTER a great named station called Mud Chute!) and after you exist the station, turn right and you can walk UNDER the River Thames and go over to see the famous Cutty Sark and the Meridian of Greenwich, where you can stand in two time zones at the same time. Get on the DLR at a wide variety of places, and to do that go to their website and check out their route map. I usually get on at Tower Bridge. www.dlrlondon.co.uk

12) Take a walk from Piccadilly (in addition to the famous statue there, Piccadilly is also a street) over to Green Park, turn in a left direction, and take a pleasant walk over to Buckingham Palace – get a photo in front of same.

13) Be sure to ride the Thames River Clippers. They're a totally unique – and a very refreshing way – to see London in a completely different format – on the famous River Thames. What amazed me is that it's a bus service, and it's so good, it made me wonder why no one had thought of doing this many years ago. Find out more at www.thamesclippers.com.

14) If you want to see a world famous Cathedral, plus one that has a unique American connection --- take a fast trip to St Pauls Cathedral. In WW2 over 28,000 Americans lost their lives fighting for freedom in Europe. The British people wanted to commemorate their sacrifice, and built a special American Chapel in St. Pauls. The Cathedral is awe inspiring, marvelously majestic, and its centuries of history, is something you'll always remember. History buffs of WW2 will recall a very famous B&W photo from the London Blitz that showed St Pauls surrounded by smoke and fire, and yet completely unharmed by the previous night's devastating bombing raid by the German Luftwaffe. www.stpaulsusa.org

15) Tower of London. There is a stunning, truly unique ceremony here that has been carried out every night, yes every night, for the last 700 years, and it's called The Ceremony of the Keys. Just type in your computer Tower of London Ceremony of the Keys for more information. It is far more riveting than the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, and you'll be able to tell all your friends back home, that you did something that you are sure THEY never heard about - yet it is so British, it's as good as seeing the Queen up close and personal.

16) Super, low cost deals on London Theater tickets. Lots of shows in London ARE very costly, but NOT if you go to Leicester Square to the Clocktower building, and you do it on the day you want to go, and you'll get really low prices. More info is at www.tkts.co.uk or www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk

17) Rent A "Boris Bike" in London - for an hour or even much longer. One of the most unusual – and really nifty ways – to get around this giant metropolis called London, is by a "Boris Bike." They're all blue and are lovingly named after London's very colorful Mayor, Boris Johnson. The fastest way to learn more about them, and what they offer, is to go to this newsy website that covers just anything and everything you need to know about Blue Bikes - Barclays Cycle Hire - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

18) Winston Churchill as YOU never knew him - one of the most fascinating, intriguing and truly riveting museums in all of London, is the one that is not only a museum about this world famous man, but one that also includes the actual War Rooms that, in the early 1940s, was THE place in all of Great Britain where the war was planned and run – with the often overbearing, but very charismatic figure of Winston Churchill, who was constantly scheming how Britain could survive and actually win the war. I found it to be the most interesting museum I've ever visited. Yet again the best place for news about it all, is on Wikipedia!!! Churchill War Rooms – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Want something else that's fast, different and yes, exciting!? People often asked me when I was on LA radio, what about doing something else while I'm here in London – even if it means traveling a bit. Well my answer then, and still is today, go to Paris – but get there by going UNDER the English Channel. How do you do that you say, well by the Eurostar.

It is faster by two and a half hours than flying and, even better, it takes you from the center of London to the center of Paris in only 2 ½ hours – that are incredibly fast at 180 miles per hour, and it's all hassle free. Here's the real thrill though, the train goes under (yes, UNDER!) the English Channel for 31 miles, with that part of the journey taking 20 minutes in the tunnel. When you get to Paris and walk towards the exit, be sure to stand in front of the "engine" and take a photo of the group for the folks back home.

It departs from the London station of St. Pancras (PAN - CRAAS) and there are at least 18 trains a day. 3 classes of service. Standard. Premier (FC) or Business Premier. I highly recommend standard. When you go to St. Pancras, allow at least 45 minutes for shopping – as they have a super collection of nifty shops. Also, be sure to spend some magical moments drinking champagne on the VERY, VERY long Champagne bar on one of the platforms. A unique thrill and experience. The train takes over 16 million passengers each year to Paris – and as noted, it is faster than flying. And it's called HI SPEED. Check it out at www.raileurope.com - or just type in Information on the Eurostar train.

Pronunciation. I noticed on the NBC TV Olympic coverage, all US announcers mispronounced British words. In the Marathon they kept referring to the MAL. Londoners and all Brits call it the Mall – MAWL. Leicester Square in pronounced LESTER Square. Buckingham Palace – American announcers kept saying Bucking - Ham Palace. Brits say it quickly, so it comes out as Buckin'am Palace.

PS: I'd love to hear how YOU enjoyed London – tell me about it by email jdcradio@cox.net.

Related Articles:
London Tour Part 4; Wimbledon Tour; London Tour Part 3; London Tour, Part 2; Eurostar: London, Paris and Brussels; B17 Bomber; Buckingham Palace; The Ritz, London; An American Student in London