Alright! I've bought the tickets!
Thufir (and anyone else relevant): I get to Newcastle at 6.27pm on Wednesday the 15th, and leave Newcastle at 7.40pm on Sunday the 19th.
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Alright! I've bought the tickets!
Thufir (and anyone else relevant): I get to Newcastle at 6.27pm on Wednesday the 15th, and leave Newcastle at 7.40pm on Sunday the 19th.
Naah, it's no problem. I worked it out in the end. Thanks to you and Succubus for the links!
Megabus is also pretty good, and cheap.
I miss the days when train tickets were reasonably affordable.
As a general rule, booking in advance is always cheaper, but I don't know if there's any difference in price between booking in advance online or over the phone and booking in advance atthe station.
Though I think I remember seeing some fares which were apparently only available online? Not a common thing, though, and I don't recall ever getting one of them, so they can't have been that cheap.
Right. I may already be at the theatre for dress rehearsal at 6:27, and even if not, I certainly won't have time to go home and come back out again, so Tasroth will have to show you to our house (Or apparently our mum driving you is an option). We'd be willing to fund your local travel (metros/buses to get around the area) as well, rather than making you pay extra to travel around when you've already paid just to get here.
Since you'll be here for all the performances, you can take your pick of which one you want to see - though again, if you want to go on the Saturday, that'd need to be booked pretty soon.
Any more takers for Pirates of Penzance? Anyone at all? Serp will be here! Please?
I'd really like to but I can't afford the £200 flight up there and back. Not between now and the end of March anyways. :smallfrown:
And I would love to come, too, but I won't ever be in England till May. Next time, I hope!
I can sing. I really do need to make it to one of these things...
Okay, this I don't get. Why is everyone ragging on mead? The stuff's absolutely delicious!Quote:
But even the gods think it tastes awful.
How dare you. :smallmad:[/QUOTE]
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/8...eromanosu8.jpg
Alright folks. My Dad has - quite justifiedly - nagged me to make sure I go out and see all the awesome stuff in the UK (rather than fall back into my old rut, which I'm very much at risk of doing). So...
1. What should I see in Newcastle?
2. What should I see everywhere else and how much will it cost to get there?
3. Anyone wanna come with?
I believe the Angel of the North is a must-see, although it's actually in Gateshead, not Newcastle. I'd also recommend visits to the Lake District and Devon at some point, but beyond that, can't help you much, I'm not really a "holiday" sort of person!
Warwick castle is probably one of your best choices of old fortifications to see.
Ooo yes. The Lake District is beautiful if you're an outdoors-y type person. Just be sure to stick to the routes provided. :smallsmile:
I've been living in Newcastle for the last two years, and I'd suggest that while you're here you have to take a walk along the Quays, preferably at night time. You also have to walk over both the Tyne Bridge (the big green one) and the Millennium Bridge (the one that looks like a blinking eye). You can also go to the Sage art gallery, if that's your thing, which is usually free. The castle itself is probably worth a quick visit, but it's not exactly the heart of the city (I met someone who, like me, had lived here two years and didn't even know there was a castle :smallyuk:). And I'd be up for meeting up to walk around, if you had time :smallcool:. I haven't done as much touristy stuff here as I'd like to.
The Lake District is also an absolute must-see. You could try basing yourself in Keswick, which is a bit expensive and a bit touristy but is in a great position to get to some really interesting walks (whether you want to go up mountains or just wander around the lakes) and also has some fantastic fish and chip shops :smalltongue:.
That's about all I can suggest, really. Every city has something really cool about it that's worth exploring (except maybe Birmingham :smallannoyed: :smallwink::smalltongue::smallwink:). The only stand-out place I've been to personally is Staithes, a tiny little village in Yorkshire, which is a fantastic maze of old cottages, curious little shops, and a wonderful beach.
I haven't been there for years, mind, so it might have changed, and at the time of year you're around it'll probably be far too cold for the beach, and in such a small place it may be hard finding somewhere cheap to stay (we used to have an aunt who lived there, but she moved away so that was the end of going there :smallfrown:).
Come to York at some point!
I might come along to Newcastle, really does depend on the job situation.
Aw :smallfrown: It's on multiple days...
Serpy's going to kill me. :smallfrown:
I've just gone through my games bag from the meet up and discovered a rather large slab of dark chocolate that appears to have come from an airport in Malaysia. I think I picked it up as everyone was leaving to head to Grlump's place.
Mah choklit! D:
I was wondering what happened to that...
Nah, that's okay. I actually gave it to Archon for waiting for me for so long, and the only reason it was a the meet-up was because he doesn't like chocolate (heresy!), and I forgot to open it.
OXFORD!
OXFORD!
Any time in the next three to five weeks. Not earlier because my socks are being worked off, but in two weeks I'll only have one tutorial every other week - or something - and lots of independent work on my essay meaning I can actually show you around places!
As long as I can still spend a wee bit a day on my essay it's cool. And by wee I mean . . . two hours?
As long as it's not for uber-long because I totes want and need a first.
But if you come in five weeks (dates to be provided later) I'll have handed it in and only be hanging around for a catch-up tute or two and waiting to be picked up to go home.
EDIT:
Why?
Oxford university and all its college. The Natural History museum, the museum of the history of science, Blackwells, Oxford castle (and dungeons), it's really really really old in general, very pretty, we can maybe get Archie and some London people up for a day because Oxford Tube (ironically a bus service) runs every other minute (practically) and it only takes an hour to get to London. Or vice versa and we can go see a show.
OOh!
Or you could go see a show here!
And the White Horse is really close. And Weylon's Forge. AND THE BODLEIAN IS DOING A FREE (and special) EXHIBIT ABOUT MEDIEVAL ROMANCE MANUSCRIPTS!
FOR FREE!
Also I'm meant to be an okay person to hang around with.
Ooo, I wanna see the White Horse... Alright, put it down all: I'm gonna go to Oxford sometime in the next few weeks.
...
But travelling suuuuuucks >.<
And I'd like it if you came with, Grlump!
Ooo...Oxford is doable for me if you ladies want some choklit thieving company. =3
Holy crap you guys! I need to see this! :O
Will have to check finances, but I might be able to come down to oxford for a weekend.
1. Tasroth's put together a list of suggestions. I've forgotten everything on it except Beamish, which would be my biggest recommendation (To everyone, not just Serp - if any of the rest of you come to Newcastle some time, seriously consider it)
2. No idea.
3. Me, quite potentially. Whether it's feasible is another matter of course.
Lake District is more a holiday location, I'd say. You can't so easily just go for a day or whatever. And Devon's a whole county, in which I'm not aware of any Playgrounders, so unless you had something more specific in mind, she might be better off continuing through to Cornwall while Kurli's home from uni.
Methinks you mean the Baltic. The Sage is a music venue (Which you could also visit).
Sidenote, incidentally fergo, since we brought up the Newcastle/Northumbria rivalry earlier, I was quite amused just now to see this picture someone posted on facebook:
:smalltongue:
I was going to be all "Yes! I'd love to- oh, wait, you meant Serps, that wasn't just an open invitation to everyone..." but now it seems everyone is kind of piling in and saying they all want to go to Oxford, so I guess I'll just add myself to that list of people.
Do eet. We've decided the Friday will be when Serp and Tasroth will be going, so if you can make it, they will be there.
Concerning an Oxford mini-meetup (one that is largely turning into a full-scale one):
My term ends Saturday 10th March.
I booking one week of vacation residence tomorrow after I have called the family to tell them this for the purposes of:
one extended essay
two tutorials
This should guarantee me the week of vac. res. I'm asking for.
I should therefore be returning home to Cornwall on the 18[su]th[/sup] of March.
So would these dates be good for people. I will be literally available any time (aside from when my tutorials are) assuming I get my vac. res., so literally any time people want to come down I can do.
WITHIN REASON.
Don't be calling me at seven in the morning from the bus station saying "Hi!" because you'll get the Amasa Treatment.
My birthday is the 23rd of March. I will be twenty-one.
So any time between the tenth and eighteenth would also be like a twenty-first birthday party. This cool with peeps?
Important information: I can't guarantee much aside from floor space for a few people. I only have two rooms and a bathroom, and that would be floor space.
We'd also have to watch out for the scout at around tennish unless I put the bin out in the corridor.
However!
I can do some research into booking the guest room (£17.50 a night) for those wishing to stay. There's also Oxford Backpacker's Hostel as well which does free breakfast and wifi amongst other things.
People interested/available for an Oxford meetup:
Koorly (well duh)
Serpy
Mercenary Pen
Succubus (I still want to call you Masamune)
Cassie
Thufir (and possibly brother along with)
(My friend, also known as Lawyer Friend, who will probably pop up if I tell her it's for my birthday)
People Who May Be Dragged There Against Their Will:
Grlump
Tasroth
Archie (it's nearly London)
We doing this thing?
We doing this thing.
The benefits of living in a tiny country as opposed to Trogland:
many mini-meetups
EDIT:
And because this is mainly a sightseeing/awesomeness thing, could people list things they'd like to see/visit/do if they came down/up.
We may be having an honest-to-God itinerary. Or at least going out for a meal one day.
See, I said you should have birthday celebrations! This was pretty much what I had in mind. Totally up for this. (Or down for this, I guess, geographically speaking?)
Putting in early request for the nicest bit of space you're willing to give me.
Is the exhibition at the MHS anything particularly interesting right now?
The Bodleian thing on medieval romance manuscripts sounds good as well.
I don't currently live in Devon, although I know Exeter very well (which isn't that picturesque due to WWII events). It does have a few museums and things but nothing that you couldn't see in a day or so and certainly nothing that warrants travelling all the way from Scotland for.
If you're willing to go a bit further afield, there's Plymouth which has good history on all things nautical (from the Armada, the dockyards and a good sized aquarium), and the Eden Project, although I suggest visiting that in the spring/summer. CurlyKitGirl would probably be better advising you on that as that's in Cornwall rather than Devon.
Other than that, there's various moors and national parks you can go hiking around, although Scotland probably matches that easily.
Kinda of on the way, you could visit Stonehenge and Cheddar Gorge, but that'd depend on how you're getting down here.
Edit: Forgot about Bath (World Heritage site) and Lacock/Castle Combe (mostly used for village backdrops in movies like Harry Potter and Stardust).