[HDNG]INTRODUCTION:[EHDNG][PARA][BULL] The Institute is part of University of London and students are [PARA]entitled to use its facilities.[EBOLD][PARA][BOLD]For general information about London: [EBOLD]see [ULNE]University of London[EULNE][BOLD]. [EBOLD][PARA]Right by Waterloo Bridge, in the elegant 18th century Somerset [PARA]House, are the main offices of the Inland Revenue. Totally [PARA]unconnected, but sharing the same building (round the corner, [PARA]facing onto The Strand), is the Courtauld Institute of Art. To the [PARA]east is Fleet Street and the City (London's financial centre), to the[PARA]west, the West End and (at the other end of The Strand, about [PARA]500yds) is Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery. Also in [PARA]Somerset House, which is strewn with [ITAL]splendid [EITAL]sculptures and [PARA]architectural features, is the Institute's remarkable collection of [PARA]art, books and manuscripts which is open to the public. It is [PARA]hardly surprising then to know that the Institute is the UK's only [PARA]college specialising solely in the teaching of the history of art. It's [PARA]only a bus ride/tube trip/energetic walk to ULU, whose facilities [PARA]Courtauld students are entitled to use. [ULNE]King's College, London[EULNE] is [PARA]next door and [ULNE]LSE[EULNE] just round the corner.[HDNG]ATMOSPHERE:[EHDNG][PARA][ITAL]The Courtauld Institute used to have a reputation for being little [PARA]more than an elitist finishing school: this is no longer the case, [PARA]although female students educated outside the state system do [PARA]form the majority. The main influences on the atmosphere, [PARA]however, are its size and intimacy, its proximity to King's and the [PARA]shared interests of the students. The atmosphere is friendly, if [PARA]detached from the rest of the University, and many lasting and [PARA]interesting friendships are formed.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][ITAL][HDNG]LIFE IN LONDON:[EHDNG][EITAL][PARA][ITAL]Samuel Johnson wrote 'When a man is tired of London, he is [PARA]tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.' [PARA]Obviously, he wasn't living on a student grant at the time; for there[PARA]is only a certain amount in London that a student can afford. SJ [PARA]was right in that London is second to none in its diversity, but you [PARA]can't do it all. It's easy to feel that you're not making the most of [PARA]London if you're not spending every waking minute at the theatre,[PARA]ballet, opera or cinema, in clubs or fashionable markets, and in [PARA]museums and galleries, sports grounds and parks. However, if [PARA]the truth be known, even taking advantage of the many freebies [PARA]you can dig up if you try, you'd be broke within a week if you tried[PARA]to keep up with the tearaway pace. When it comes to [PARA]opportunity, choice and life in the fast lane, London is the [PARA]turbo-boosted Porsche. London is supposed to be the city that [PARA]never sleeps, leaving the bright lights burning all night long. In fact,[PARA]as international metropolises go, this one tends to shut down [PARA]when the pubs close. Getting more than a cheeseburger after [PARA]midnight can be as difficult in London as it is in a Turkish jail. Not [PARA]everyone likes the pace or the impersonal atmosphere that many[PARA]find in London. Whilst it's hard to be alone, it's easy to be lonely, [PARA]and most students in London find this at some time. London can [PARA]be oppressive and if you're not streetwise, or at least street [PARA]sensible, it can be a dangerous place. Bomb scares are usually [PARA]just that, but violent crime is on the up. [EITAL][PARA][ITAL] There are a number of responses to the high cost of living in [PARA]London: (1) burst into tears; (2) mug someone; (3) live on credit; (4)[PARA]ask daddy for lashings of cash. Alternatively, if these don't [PARA]appeal, you can always use the following methods: (1) Limit your [PARA]spending by only going out when and where you can afford it [PARA](ULU fits the bill, offering cheap events for students). (2) Buy [PARA]second hand - for books, there's ULU, Charing Cross Road and [PARA]Waterloo and, for clothes, try Camden Market, Greenwich, Brick[PARA]Lane and Portobello Road. (Many a London student falls prey to [PARA]fashion, but not always at vast expense.) (3) Get a job - [EITAL]more [PARA]London students have part time jobs than anywhere else.[ITAL] [EITAL][PARA][ITAL] London also has more overseas students than almost [PARA]anywhere else, which, in Britain's most international city, is an [PARA]appropriate addition to the already spicy variety of life. The extent[PARA]of London's cosmopolitanism is unique. Nowhere else are there [PARA]as many students of every different shape, colour, vintage, creed[PARA]and flavour.[EITAL][PARA][ITAL] To be young in London and have flexible demands on your [PARA]time is an ideal recipe. The daily downers such as the time spent[PARA]travelling have a minimal effect, whereas the opportunities are all [PARA]there. If you happen to live in London, it's good to be a student, [PARA]but if you're a student, London isn't necessarily a good place to [PARA]happen to live.[EITAL][HDNG]ALDWYCH:[EHDNG][PARA]Aldwych and The Strand are close to Covent Garden, the West [PARA]End and, over the Thames, the South Bank Complex (National [PARA]Theatre, Hayward Gallery, National Film Theatre, Royal Festival [PARA]Hall, etc). This is not a residential area and [ITAL]it's an expensive place[PARA]to buy a canned drink, let alone bread and cheese. It's extremely [PARA]well served for entertainments and culture though.[EITAL][HDNG]TRAVEL:[EHDNG][PARA][BOLD]Trains: [EBOLD]London is the centre of the network: Bristol (1:40hrs, 1/hr); [PARA]Birmingham (1:40hrs, 3/hr); Manchester (2:30hrs, 1/hr); Glasgow [PARA](5:20hrs, 12/day); Edinburgh ( 4:20hrs, 1/hr); Newcastle (2:45hrs, [PARA]2/hr); Leeds (2:30hrs, 1/hr); Norwich (1:49hrs, 1/hr). Trains come [PARA]into the 8 mainline termini and if passing through London (for [PARA]example from Canterbury (Kent) to Manchester), it is often [PARA]necessary to travel by tube (at extra expense) between mainline [PARA]stations .[PARA][BOLD]Coaches:[EBOLD] London is also the centre of the National Express [PARA]system and a whole variety of other national bus services (Green[PARA]Line, Blue Line and so on). Some example National Express [PARA]journeys: Birmingham (ú9.50, 2:30hrs, 1/hr); Bristol (ú12.50, [PARA]2:15hrs, 1/hr); Edinburgh (ú25, 7:50hrs, 3/day); Glasgow (ú25, [PARA]7hrs, 7/day); Manchester (ú16, 3:30hrs, 7/day); Newcastle [PARA](ú17.50, 5:10hrs, 7/day).[PARA][BOLD]Local Trains: [EBOLD]Network SouthEast operates local overground [PARA]trains [ITAL]which are a speedy and sometimes pleasant way to travel [PARA]and are moderately efficient. The main problems are the ease of[PARA]use (a fair level of understanding is necessary), the high fares [PARA]and the early closing[EITAL] (last trains between 11pm and 1am).[PARA][BOLD]Underground:[EBOLD] The 'tube' is the largest underground train system [PARA]in the world and generally,[ITAL] it is fast, easy to use, efficient (well, [PARA]maybe not the Northern Line) and takes you just about anywhere [PARA]you want to go, although South-East London is a bit hard done by.[PARA]However, it is often crowded,[EITAL] shuts down at midnight,[ITAL] it's often [PARA]disrupted by bomb scares[EITAL] and the minimum fare is 90p. [ITAL]Talking [PARA]to other tube passengers is tantamount to threatening their [PARA]mother - the only people who do it are tourists and people who [PARA]want to talk to you about Jesus.[EITAL] Nearest tube to Senate [PARA]House/ULU Building: Goodge St (Northern Line).[PARA][BOLD]Local Buses: [EBOLD][ITAL]In the tube you can't see the real sights, so why not [PARA]take the buses which are just as efficient,[EITAL] offer even more [PARA]destinations and are slightly cheaper (50p minimum). [ITAL]But buses [PARA]are slow and, until you know your way around, it's difficult to [PARA]know which ones take you where.[EITAL] After midnight, buses come [PARA]into their own - Night Buses are London's only form of all-night [PARA]public transport and[ITAL] if you don't mind how long it takes,[EITAL] you can [PARA]go almost anywhere within 10 miles of the centre.[PARA][BOLD]Travelcards:[EBOLD] For a legal way of dodging the expense of tubes, [PARA]buses and trains, Travelcards are available at ú2.60 for a daily [PARA]pass for the central 2 zones of the network.[PARA][BOLD]Taxis: [EBOLD]There are 2 types:[ITAL] the classic black cabs which are well [PARA]regulated and enormously expensive, and dodgy merchants in [PARA]Ford Escorts which are almost as expensive. There are now [PARA]also some run by and for women. Basically though, forget all [PARA]taxis, except late at night when all else fails and/or you're in a [PARA]party of 4 or more.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] [ITAL]Parking in Central London is impossible, and, although there[PARA]is only one rush hour every day it lasts from 6 in the morning to [PARA]midnight. Driving in London is excellent training for being a [PARA]volcano.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Air: [EBOLD]Served by 4 airports, including Heathrow, the world's [PARA]busiest. Regular flights to anywhere and back.[PARA][BOLD]Hitching:[ITAL] [EBOLD]Not possible from Central London, but get out a little [PARA]way on to the city's escape routes or beyond the M25 and a [PARA]thumb's a first class ticket.[EITAL][PARA][BOLD]Bicycles: [EBOLD][ITAL] A popular form of student travel given the pros: it's [PARA]cheap and you can get through traffic. But there are the cons: [PARA]London is big, full of exhaust fumes, lacking in cycle lanes and a [PARA]Houdini-proof lock is advisable. It's also an easy way to die.[EITAL][PARA][PARA][BOLD]Trains:[EBOLD] The nearest mainline BR stations are Waterloo, Charing [PARA]Cross and Blackfriars.[PARA][BOLD]Buses:[EBOLD] 1; 4; 6; 9; 11; 13; 15; 15B; X15; 68; X68; 77A; 168; 171; 171A; [PARA]176; 177Ex; 188; 196; 501; 502; 505 and 513 and endless night buses.[PARA][BOLD]Car:[EBOLD] Very limited parking. Forget the car.[PARA][BOLD]Underground:[EBOLD] Aldwych (limited opening) or Covent Garden (both [PARA]Piccadilly Line); Temple (Circle and District Lines).[HDNG]LIBRARIES and COMPUTERS:[EHDNG][PARA][STAT][BULL] Books: 100,000[ESTAT][PARA]The Institute's libraries are among the country's major sources [PARA]for art history. The Witt, Conway and Slide Libraries have over [PARA]1.6 million reproductions and 800,000 photographs. Computer [PARA]facilities are limited, but students have access to the facilities at [ULNE][PARA]King's College, London[EULNE].[HDNG]FAMOUS ALUMNI:[EHDNG][PARA]Emily Barr (journalist, research assistant); Anita Brookner [PARA](writer); Alex 'Bruiser' de Cadanet (Amanda's brother, compared[PARA]himself, in his first essay, to Leonardo da Vinci); Neil MacGregor [PARA](National Gallery); Vincent Price ([ITAL]scary[EITAL] actor); Nicholas Serota [PARA](Tate Gallery); Brian Sewell ([ITAL]waspish[EITAL] 'Evening Standard' critic); [PARA]Peter Wayne (architecture expert, ex-con, dropped out). Anthony[PARA]Blunt (spy) was the Director here for several years, before he [PARA]was fingered.[HDNG]FURTHER INFO:[EHDNG][PARA]Prospectuses for undergrads and postgrads.[PARA][PARA]
