Jonas Larsson wrote: > > So I'm going to Leicester for a couple of weeks. Work and not play > unfortunately but a bit of spare time should be able to be arranged. > Anyone that has any hints for going places in this area or in the town > itself?
Hi Jonas, Leicester is a multi-cultural British city whose Asian community is the largest in the UK. Demographically, Leicester is a city of nearly 300,000 people and is the only UK city that is ethnically less than 50% "native British". This is reflected in the wide variety of cultural activities and also in the superb selection of restaurants in the city centre. There are many "Indian" restaurants - which are actually more Pakistani than Indian - and several Chinese and one superb Thai restaurant that are all worth visiting. I don't know Leicester well, but I have visited the National Space Centre which is well worth a look. Take some fast film and a good polariser for shots of the exhibits that include American and Russian spacecraft, plus a replica of part of the International Space Station, plus some older rockets including the 1960s British "Blue Streak". I like the way the exhibits concentrate on the human element of space travel rather than the technology. This is the only space museum I have visited where the astronauts and ground support engineers are given due recognition for their work as individual human beings. And yes, I have visited the Kennedy and Johnson Space Centres in the USA plus space exhibits at the Smithsonian. They do a good job of promoting the equipment and the astronauts as Gods, but Leicester shows a more human side in my opinion. (I used to work for an organisation which became the largest peaceful user of remote sensing data in the world, and have been fascinated by space since I was a three year old listening to Sputnik 1's first bleeps, hence the enthusiasm!) There is also a preserved steam railway which operates at weekends. The "Great Central Railway" runs from Birstall (on the Leicester ring road at the most northerly point) to Loughborough. The railway operates like a steam main line railway (for that is what it was) and offers dining trains on Saturdays (lunch and dinner) and Sundays (lunch). Book well in advance for these. One of Loughborough's claims to fame is that no American has ever been heard to pronounce it correctly. It should be pronounced "Luff'burra" with the accent on the Luff, but I remember travelling from London on a train to Loughborough with an American who insisted on calling it "Lurgerburger". ;-) I would recommend visiting the following web sites before your visit: Leicester City Council's "Enjoying and Visiting Leicester": http://www.leicester.gov.uk/departments/page.asp?pgid=180 National Space Centre: http://www.spacecentre.co.uk/ Great Central Railway: http://www.gcrailway.co.uk/ Leicester City Football Club: http://www.lcfc.co.uk/ Good luck! Enjoy your visit! John W (freelance travel writer & Pentax-using photographer)
