I've got a cheap day return to London tommorow: where should I go for some good shopping and general touristing? (already seen the British Museum and Covent Garden).

I love the Imperial War Museum in Covent Garden. The war cabinet rooms in Westminster are also really cool except you have to pay to go in them. The next time I go to London I'm hoping to go the new Somme museum

Cabinet rooms sound good: how do you find them? Is it where Big Ben is?

There is the natural history museum or the museum of london they are both good.

I always like going to Greenwich, its nice for a wander about there are some nice places to eat and drink etc.

Can you stand on the meridian line?

My favourite museum in London is the Picture Gallery. Some sections of the V&A, Tate Modern and National Portrait Gallery are worth seeing too. I love walking slowly between Waterloo Station and Southwark Cathedral on the Southbank side, specially if it's a sunny day, however it isn't really a shopping area. Ever been to Camdem Town? Everybody I know loves it (except for myself).

Hi Juno. When you arrive, buy a TimeOut London. This weeks edition is full of cool things to do in London. They've even dedicated their feature pages to old-school things to do in London. There are very interesting free exhibitions, on page 27. I would say, avoid Tate Modern as it gets extremely busy on Saturday. It's not an enjoyable experience at all, looking at wonderful artworks while surrounded by dozens of screaming kids, loud group of adults etc...

Enjoy your day here

Thanks for the advice, guys. Nimrod, I've only been to Camden Town if St Pancras station counts.

404: I'll definitely pick up one of those; thanks for the information.

You can stand on the meridian line

If you do go to Greenwhich, go through the foot tunnel to Island Gardens on the Isle of Dogs and take the DRL to Canary Wharf or get off @ East India Dock for some nice places to eat on the river. East End- best end!

Thanks pea, though read the post too late to act on it.

Tricky, I went to the meridian line, the nerd in me was very exited to be there! The observatory is great.
Nice market at Greenwich too.

The Cabinet rooms are a short walk away from Westminster Abbey. If you go to London first week of August I'll be singing in Westminster Abbey with a choir I'm in

I live near Camdem town - mentally busy, but nice for a mooch about. I would suggest wandering down by south bank going to the Tate and then up back through St. Paul's coming up to the Strand. Then I'd have a look round the National Portrait Gallary.

Whoops - just realised that I was a bit late with this reply! Did you have a nice time? St. Pancras is in King's Cross BTW...

Thanks Bobby, had a good day: got a tube pass and went a few places (Greenwich, Harrods, Notting Hill market). There's just so many things to do, it would take a week's stay in London just to get round them. I was amused by the museum at the Greenwich observatory - the story of John Flamsteed, the first Astronomer Royal, sounded familiar to me:
a) his funding was crap so he had to spend half his research time teaching;
b) half his instruments didn't work or were badly built;
c) He had Issac Newton on his back demanding results every week, and
d) then Newton went and published the results as his own!

Not much changes in the world of research