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London
Transport
Companies
{{#ask: Connects city::London}}
Accommodation
{{#if: There are several options when it comes to finding a place to sleep. If the worst prevails and you're without a place, you're still not too bad off. Central London is relatively safe and you probably wont be bothered sleeping outside.
Wild Camping
Its quite possible to sleep out in London in considerable privacy despite its gigantic population of 10 million. Go North East to Trent Park (Picadilly Line North, second to last stop before Cockfosters - i.e. Oakwood Station). Find the directions for the university (Middlesex) campus and walk (or take the free bus) up the hill. Beside it and beyond the lake are quite a few miles of woodland and and it is incredibly beautiful. Someone lived here for 7 months during his final year of university. Be careful with park wardens, they eventually discovered him during the last few weeks of his studies. Build camouflage from ferns if staying for long. People are unlikely to be your greatest threat...dogs are. Dogs! A lot of people walk them here but you can find amazing places if you search hard enough. And if you search really really hard, you'll find a tree with the dates of the past dweller's residence...;)
Also, outside this station (Trent Park), there is a Greek Bakery. Behind it lie huge sacks of bread every night. Please go. Its crazy that this could possibly be wasted every night.
Squatting
London has such an abundance of squats that you shouldn't ever have to pay for accommodation. Having said that, most squats are places where people live and go about their normal business, so don't expect too much from them. Perhaps it would be good to find some friendly squatters by word of mouth or on couchsurfing or similar. Don't worry about the negative connotations associated with squats. They generally aren't crackhouses or scabies-infested punk hangouts. People of all types squat in London and their homes are usually very nice. They are especially helpful if you're planning to stick around for a while, but can also be great if you're just passing through. There is a strong community of squatters especially in the north east of London where a new group has been set for resistance and solidarity. The North East London Squatters Network are having meetings every month as well as a mailing list etc... For more info, get in touch with the Hackney Social Centre .. (unfortunately this has now been evicted).
rampART is a squatted social center in Whitechapel, east London. This place isn't a residential squat, but they do have a "crash room" for visitors. They make it clear that it is not a tourist hostel so you needn't bother them unless you are interested in getting involved with their project for some time while you're there. To stay, you need to contact them well ahead of time. If nothing else, it's a great place to meet squatters and find a place to stay. They also have free internet!(As of last month rampART was evicted by the police and is no more.) Interestingly, the new place at Bowl Court Road that was squatted a few months ago has already been evicted (August 2008).
The Advisory Service for Squatters is helpful for people that are planning to find a place to live and cannot really help you find a place to crash. It's located at the Freedom Bookstore in Whitechapel and is another great place to meet squatters as well as get online for free. The address is Angel Alley, 84b Whitechapel High Street, Whitechapel, London, England, E1 7QX. (Tel. 020-32160099)
There is another squat social centre on 195 Mare Street : [1]
There is something called London Nomad Community Space on 1 Rochester Square, Camden. |There are several options when it comes to finding a place to sleep. If the worst prevails and you're without a place, you're still not too bad off. Central London is relatively safe and you probably wont be bothered sleeping outside.
Wild Camping
Its quite possible to sleep out in London in considerable privacy despite its gigantic population of 10 million. Go North East to Trent Park (Picadilly Line North, second to last stop before Cockfosters - i.e. Oakwood Station). Find the directions for the university (Middlesex) campus and walk (or take the free bus) up the hill. Beside it and beyond the lake are quite a few miles of woodland and and it is incredibly beautiful. Someone lived here for 7 months during his final year of university. Be careful with park wardens, they eventually discovered him during the last few weeks of his studies. Build camouflage from ferns if staying for long. People are unlikely to be your greatest threat...dogs are. Dogs! A lot of people walk them here but you can find amazing places if you search hard enough. And if you search really really hard, you'll find a tree with the dates of the past dweller's residence...;)
Also, outside this station (Trent Park), there is a Greek Bakery. Behind it lie huge sacks of bread every night. Please go. Its crazy that this could possibly be wasted every night.
Squatting
London has such an abundance of squats that you shouldn't ever have to pay for accommodation. Having said that, most squats are places where people live and go about their normal business, so don't expect too much from them. Perhaps it would be good to find some friendly squatters by word of mouth or on couchsurfing or similar. Don't worry about the negative connotations associated with squats. They generally aren't crackhouses or scabies-infested punk hangouts. People of all types squat in London and their homes are usually very nice. They are especially helpful if you're planning to stick around for a while, but can also be great if you're just passing through. There is a strong community of squatters especially in the north east of London where a new group has been set for resistance and solidarity. The North East London Squatters Network are having meetings every month as well as a mailing list etc... For more info, get in touch with the Hackney Social Centre .. (unfortunately this has now been evicted).
rampART is a squatted social center in Whitechapel, east London. This place isn't a residential squat, but they do have a "crash room" for visitors. They make it clear that it is not a tourist hostel so you needn't bother them unless you are interested in getting involved with their project for some time while you're there. To stay, you need to contact them well ahead of time. If nothing else, it's a great place to meet squatters and find a place to stay. They also have free internet!(As of last month rampART was evicted by the police and is no more.) Interestingly, the new place at Bowl Court Road that was squatted a few months ago has already been evicted (August 2008).
The Advisory Service for Squatters is helpful for people that are planning to find a place to live and cannot really help you find a place to crash. It's located at the Freedom Bookstore in Whitechapel and is another great place to meet squatters as well as get online for free. The address is Angel Alley, 84b Whitechapel High Street, Whitechapel, London, England, E1 7QX. (Tel. 020-32160099)
There is another squat social centre on 195 Mare Street : [2]
There is something called London Nomad Community Space on 1 Rochester Square, Camden. |Please edit this page and add information about accommodation. }}
Meet fellow travellers on open source hospitality exchange networks: Trustroots {{#if: |, [ BeWelcome] }} {{#if: |, [ WarmShowers] (for bicyclists) }}
Food
{{#if: Cheap and free food abounds in London.
Free
Hari Krishna offer free food from several locations in London at lunchtime: outside SOAS by Russel Square at 1pm, for example. Expect to queue for 30 minutes, arrive early to guarantee a fill - the food does run out. Otherwise...
In the UK, the term for eating food that would otherwise be thrown away, is called skipping. Lots of people do it, all from people that come from poor countries and see all the food that goes to waist, to people that are political in there way of living. Many people, especially in the squat scene live totally out of food from the bins...
See Trashwiki for good place to skip.
Cheap
If you're going to self cater, stick to Sainsbury's and Tesco rather than the convenient Off-Licenses for better prices. If you are a bit out of Central London, you might as well look for Lidl, Morrisons, Netto or Asda. Anyhow with a decent and wise grocery, you can get your grocery for nearly a week for about 10-15 pounds at any of the mentioned supermarket with decent, fresh and healthy food (to cook). Be aware though that these supermarkets are not in any sense "ethical". They are wiping out local shops, taking monopoly on feeding us, destroying the environment and throwing away food every day that could feed hundreds of people. It's better to eat out of their bins.
If you get tired of peanut butter sandwiches or want to fill up for the weekend, try one of the many £5 all-you-can-eat Thai Buffets which are always always totally vegan! (some good all-you-can-eat start at £3,50). Go early, they get more expensive in the evening. While downtown, you can also get a '6-inch sandwich of the day' at Subway for 2 pounds.
The markets in Camden Town have cheap food around 5pm, especially in the Lock Market where, if you walk for a few minutes past all the initial food courts, you can easily find dishes of noodles for £2. |Cheap and free food abounds in London.
Free
Hari Krishna offer free food from several locations in London at lunchtime: outside SOAS by Russel Square at 1pm, for example. Expect to queue for 30 minutes, arrive early to guarantee a fill - the food does run out. Otherwise...
In the UK, the term for eating food that would otherwise be thrown away, is called skipping. Lots of people do it, all from people that come from poor countries and see all the food that goes to waist, to people that are political in there way of living. Many people, especially in the squat scene live totally out of food from the bins...
See Trashwiki for good place to skip.
Cheap
If you're going to self cater, stick to Sainsbury's and Tesco rather than the convenient Off-Licenses for better prices. If you are a bit out of Central London, you might as well look for Lidl, Morrisons, Netto or Asda. Anyhow with a decent and wise grocery, you can get your grocery for nearly a week for about 10-15 pounds at any of the mentioned supermarket with decent, fresh and healthy food (to cook). Be aware though that these supermarkets are not in any sense "ethical". They are wiping out local shops, taking monopoly on feeding us, destroying the environment and throwing away food every day that could feed hundreds of people. It's better to eat out of their bins.
If you get tired of peanut butter sandwiches or want to fill up for the weekend, try one of the many £5 all-you-can-eat Thai Buffets which are always always totally vegan! (some good all-you-can-eat start at £3,50). Go early, they get more expensive in the evening. While downtown, you can also get a '6-inch sandwich of the day' at Subway for 2 pounds.
The markets in Camden Town have cheap food around 5pm, especially in the Lock Market where, if you walk for a few minutes past all the initial food courts, you can easily find dishes of noodles for £2. |Please edit this page and add information about food. }}
{{#if: In Westminster, there's a public library which you can use for free Internet access. You might need to register yourself, though, and that process (and waiting for the next available computer) can take quite some time.
Go to the Apple store (on Regent St. near Oxford Circus), ask any local around Piccadilly or Regent or Oxford street and they should be able to tell you the exact location. |== Internet connectivity == In Westminster, there's a public library which you can use for free Internet access. You might need to register yourself, though, and that process (and waiting for the next available computer) can take quite some time.
Go to the Apple store (on Regent St. near Oxford Circus), ask any local around Piccadilly or Regent or Oxford street and they should be able to tell you the exact location. |}}
{{#if: |== Busking == |}}