Canonuser Loc: UK and South Africa

No one in the UK driving in the dark, turns off headlights leaving only side lights on. No one ever has done this as it would be highly dangerous. Drivers are expected to dip headlights in the face of on coming traffic. Failure to do so is very likely to blind drivers coming in the opposite direction and this is why they can easily get upset.

SueScott Loc: Hammondsville, Ohio

If you know you're going to be driving with a stick shift in the UK spend some time before the trip "air practicing" how to do it - it's not difficult, especially since the gas and clutch pedals are in the same location. What can be difficult at first is gauging where you are in that left lane. Scottish roads (where we've driven) usually come equipped with a curb and little or no berm. Make sure you sight along the centre line, otherwise it is too easy to hit that curb with potentially disastrous results. Husband did this right after leaving the car rental in Edinburgh and about 20 miles later the front passenger tire blew. Thankfully, this was on a country road going about 35mph and not on the Forth Bridge where the traffic was 70mph - we would have been killed!

happy sailor Loc: Ontario, Canada

That's quite a trip you are planning, I hope you have allowed plenty of time. All the places on your list are worth a visit, although I would give the Isle of Wight a miss if time runs out.
When you enter Wales, Cardiff is spelt "Caerdydd", dd in Welsh is pronounced "ff".
If you need any advice please let me know.[/quote]

Thanks John, we are still planning, we are there for 22 or 23 nights, I will probably PM you through the summer with some questions. LOL, Isle of Wight has to stay on the trip, wife is doing some genealogy research of her ancestors so a few days in Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight. Also why we are hitting Glasglow. Me I just want to see Heton le Hole in the Durham area which is where my grandparents were married.

Last fall we checked out a little church in Tourouvre France where her ancestor was the stone mason that built the stairs in 1619 before coming to Canada in 1640.

wrangler5 Loc: Missouri

I promise you that in 1966, driving in Wales with a UK citizen as guide (we visited her grandmother who lived in Wales - first place I ever had grapefruit marmalade) it was headlights off, side lights left on when approaching another vehicle on 2-lane roads at night. The oncoming cars did the same. These were narrow country roads, and with the sealed beam headlights then in use it was fairly easy to light up an oncoming driver's eyes, especially if you were coming up over a rise where your low beams were lighting up the leaves overhead. Actual car-passing speeds were very low, IIRC, probably 10-15mph.

The Morris light switch, like the one on the Austin A-40 that our family had before the Morris Minor, and on a Jaguar sedan of that vintage that I have experience with, all made it easy to switch headlights off and on but took an extra twist or push to turn the side lights off, so it was hard to do accidentally while managing the headlights. On the Morris, for example, you turned the lights on by pulling the knob out from the dashboard, which turned on the parking lights. To get the headlights on you had to twist the knob (~1/8 turn) and pull it out another step. Then, just pusing the knob in turned the headlights off and pulling turned 'em back on, but the side lights stayed on unless you pushed the knob in (headlights off) and then twisted the knob and pushed it all the way in to the dashboard.

I take it that this is no longer the practice.

John N Loc: HP14 3QF Stokenchurch, UK

Those lights were rubbish anyway. 25w/45w sealed units full glowing yellow light scattered in different patterns depending on what you had on at the time - high or low.

David in Dallas Loc: Dallas, Texas, USA

Was there in 2007: DSC_0363.jpg by David Casteel, on Flickr

Was traveling with my church choir and we sang a concert in LLandudno.

Canonuser Loc: UK and South Africa

I was a Police patrol officer in 1966 and can assure you this was not common practice. Anyone doing this would likely be reported for driving without due care and attention.

issa2006.

Just got back from London and Edinburgh. E looks like it did when built. Our flat was built in 1500 .It did have plumbing now though. The accent in Scotland was hard to understand ,especially in the older folks. Have a great trip.

limeybiker

Best value for money in London is the open top bus hop on hop off, weather being considered.

huntmj

Please ignore the OP and enjoy your vacation in the UK