London Or Bust!

It’s time for TruLondon!

I’ve never been to London, or Europe for that matter, and I’m really excited!

The very amiable Bill Boorman is hosting the second TruLondon conference this coming week and it’s sure to be an exciting and informative event.

With speakers from all over the U.S. and Europe, the topics span from best practices in HR to the cutting edge of social media recruiting – topics I’m mildly interested in!

If that weren’t enough, on the 18th there is a Tweet Up planned that is rumored to have a red shoe spin to it. The #truCurrytweetup is taking place the first night of the event and will surely be a great way to meet the various track leaders and help a worthy cause in the process.

Even if you aren’t attending TruLondon, I would encourage you to stop by to be a part of the festivities! As a small piece of advice, I’d recommend establishing a Twitter account before arriving.

Beyond TruLondon, this week will also have me visiting the Rackspace facility in the UK. Having spent the past five months working at Rackspace on a variety of initiatives, I’m very excited to meet the UK team in person! A number of the UK-based Rackers will be joining me for the conference and engaging in the topics presented.

I don’t know what to expect from this upcoming week, but I’m sure it will provide more than a few experiences worthy of blogging about.

As always, thanks for stopping by! If you have anything that you would like me to check in to while in London, be sure to leave a note below. I’ll be (hopefully) throwing up a photo stream soon for everyone to follow along with. The pictures will probably vary from the conference to various shots around London… I’m feeling adventurous!

Anything you recommend for me to see while in London?

Photo Credit, Dimitry B

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Tagged as: Bill Boorman, London, Rackspace, Recruiting, Social Media, TruLondon, Unconference

crossingovertothedarkside

Hi Michael! These are my little black book recommendations for London. I used to travel there frequently for business and didn't have that much time to explore, but these were always on my list of must-do's:

Take a black cab at least once even though it's expensive. The drivers' banter and knowledge of the city is extraordinary.
If you've got the bucks, go to Oxo for drinks and dinner. I'm not sure if the weather will be cooperating but the outdoors area has a fantastic view of London and the river.
Borough Market is open Thursdays to Sundays. Go to this centuries-old farmers market (our term) to gawk at the fresh produce, eat sausages, cheeses, pies, puddings, cakes, you name it. Upstairs in Borough Market is one of my most favourite restaurants: Roast. You must order the roast pork belly with goose fat roast potatoes.
Definitely go to a pub. There are too many to recount but there are some historic ones in the City that are gorgeous. One was a former bank converted into a pub. I forget the name but I'm sure your UK friends will know what I'm talking about. (Tip: To get a drink, walk up to the bar and catch the eye of the bartender.)
Museums: I love the Victoria & Albert and the Tate Museum. The latter is a converted power plant.
Tourist traps: I know it's always overrun but my favourite is still the Tower of London. It's fascinating looking at these cells where the doomed queens lived before they were hauled off for execution. And marvelling at the Crown Jewels. There are also revolving exhibitions. The last time I was there in October there was one called Henry VIII: Dressed to Kill, and it was all the armour and weaponry he and his horses used. I have to say that by his last battle, they needed triple the amount of armour he had when he started wearing it!
If you're with your girlfriend, she'll want to go to Topshop and Selfridge's on Oxford Street.
Have a proper fry-up breakfast. I like Smiths On Smithfield's (SOS). Get the works: Bacon, eggs, baked beans, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms, toast!

Finally, watch out for American terms that get the giggles in the UK. “Fanny” for us means female private parts for them. “Pissed” for them means drunk, not angry. Our elevators are “lifts”, our trunk of the car is the “boot”. Etc. There are lots of sites comparing English English to American English.

Remember to look carefully before you cross the street as they drive on the left, not the right. And enjoy!
crossingovertothedarkside

Hi Michael! These are my little black book recommendations for London. I used to travel there frequently for business and didn't have that much time to explore, but these were always on my list of must-do's:

Take a black cab at least once even though it's expensive. The drivers' banter and knowledge of the city is extraordinary.
If you've got the bucks, go to Oxo for drinks and dinner. I'm not sure if the weather will be cooperating but the outdoors area has a fantastic view of London and the river.
Borough Market is open Thursdays to Sundays. Go to this centuries-old farmers market (our term) to gawk at the fresh produce, eat sausages, cheeses, pies, puddings, cakes, you name it. Upstairs in Borough Market is one of my most favourite restaurants: Roast. You must order the roast pork belly with goose fat roast potatoes.
Definitely go to a pub. There are too many to recount but there are some historic ones in the City that are gorgeous. One was a former bank converted into a pub. I forget the name but I'm sure your UK friends will know what I'm talking about. (Tip: To get a drink, walk up to the bar and catch the eye of the bartender.)
Museums: I love the Victoria & Albert and the Tate Museum. The latter is a converted power plant.
Tourist traps: I know it's always overrun but my favourite is still the Tower of London. It's fascinating looking at these cells where the doomed queens lived before they were hauled off for execution. And marvelling at the Crown Jewels. There are also revolving exhibitions. The last time I was there in October there was one called Henry VIII: Dressed to Kill, and it was all the armour and weaponry he and his horses used. I have to say that by his last battle, they needed triple the amount of armour he had when he started wearing it!
If you're with your girlfriend, she'll want to go to Topshop and Selfridge's on Oxford Street.
Have a proper fry-up breakfast. I like Smiths On Smithfield's (SOS). Get the works: Bacon, eggs, baked beans, grilled tomatoes, mushrooms, toast!

Finally, watch out for American terms that get the giggles in the UK. “Fanny” for us means female private parts for them. “Pissed” for them means drunk, not angry. Our elevators are “lifts”, our trunk of the car is the “boot”. Etc. There are lots of sites comparing English English to American English.

Remember to look carefully before you cross the street as they drive on the left, not the right. And enjoy!