London - First Full Day

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The Stones arrived yesterday July 6th at London Heathrow airport on two different flights. Tom and I arrived first on a Virgin Atlantic flight. (without a doubt this was the best flight to Europe I've ever experienced) We walked from terminal 3 to 2 and waited for the rest of the family to arrive on another flight. The trip to Europe is always harsh and laborious but such is the small price to pay for the pleasure of new experiences through travel. Once together we traveled by express train to Paddington Station then walked to our VRBO flat which promised via the pictures to be a 3 bedroom 4 bathroom luxury flat near Hyde Park.

Well the flat IS near Hyde Park. but no where near as luxurious as the pictures promised. It is roomy but very spartan and we were greeted with that musty smell some old buildings have. I shall move on and away from complaining about our digs in London..............we are in LONDON! Nothing bad about that. We dumped our luggage and went for an immediate walk in the Nottinghill area just to get a feel for our neighborhood. There was a street market in full swing. All kinds of clothing, food and knickknacks you could imagine. We stopped for a snack then made our way back to our flat. Our first evening meal was at this charming pub called Victoria's in Paddington. We chose to eat very close to our flat as we were exhausted and in need of sleep. One of Doug's good friends Riaz (born in London and here visiting he parents) joined us for dinner which was fun and delicious. It was after ten when we returned to the flat to sleep off the flight and time change.

July 7th.......

I woke up at 10AM and only because Tom poked my shoulder thinking it was time we get the day going, I couldn't believe I slept that long.......Doug, Joan and the girls were already gone for the day and said we'd meet up for lunch at noon. I jumped up and into the shower, got ready in 10 minutes and Tom and I were out the door and heading to the Paddington train station to get our Oyster Cards for the underground. (Oyster Card is a pass you prepay for to gain entrance and exit for the trains as you travel through the City's subway system) We had a little trouble getting our bearings because we were familiar with the Paddington area and we knew the others were now at the Tower of London on the other side of the City. London has proven over and over that the citizens and city workers are kind and want to be helpful and we easily found some people to help us on our way.

At this time of year London is especially crowded with tourists and it was very hard making our way through the underground system. We were slow searching for destination signs and train platforms while thousands of others whisked by us at a speedy pace knowing where they needed to be and how to get there. We eventually exited the underground at "Tower Hill" only to discover that we were on the opposite side of the castle. Tom was comfortable with a slow easy walk while I was internally wishing we could quickly transport and magically appear before the others instantly. The crowds were claustrophobic to me but we slowly made our way to Tower Bridge then down the stairs to the front of the castle. Having been at the Tower London before we ended up texting Joan to encourage them to see the castle at their leisure then meet at the foot of Tower Bridge and we'd head off to lunch.

Needing a good cup of coffee Tom and I went to Starbucks and stood at the back of a long line of teens on a Summer School journey to London. Once we were reunited with the family we headed over to Butler's wharf for a quick lunch. The plan was to fuel up, get on the hop on hop off bus and head over to the London Eye.

The London Eye is a cantilevered observation wheel on the South Bank of the River Thames in London. It is Europe's tallest cantilevered observation wheel.The structure is 443 feet tall and the wheel has a diameter of 394 feet. When it opened to the public in 2000 it was the world's tallest Ferris Wheel.

I am not a fan of heights but I will go on a tram or gondola if it is the only means of transportation. On previous trips up I have been known to sit on the floor and close my eyes and hug my knees until we reach the top, on the way up my Adrenalin shoots like lightening through my body every time the tram goes over a support pole, begins to sway and the happy riders are gleefully shouting "Whoa!"

I have been to London twice before this trip and both times have turned down the opportunity to go on the London Eye. It's very intimidating to stand beneath it and stare up as the pods every so slowly wind to the top and around again in a counter clockwise direction.

This trip everyone was excited to see London from the top of the Eye and I decided now is the time to concur my unreasonable fear and do it..... Just do it. We arrived at our appointed time and I appeared very breezy on the outside..........inside not so much, my brain was having an argument with my stomach but I remained poised and ready to go. My eyes were riveted to the ride as I scrutinized the mechanics of the enormous wheel. I did notice that it never actually stopped, even while on and off loading passengers. As it wound its way down to the platform the doors would open and the riders that were done would just step out. The pod would slowly continue to glide to the next gateway where new riders were quickly ushered on and the wheel continued its journey in a never ending cycle. Okay I thought, good.....no jerky stops and starts. I entered the pod with everyone, the doors closed and we were off..........slowly. At first I was mesmerized by the crowd of tourists immediately beneath us. I then noticed that you really couldn't even feel the motion of the wheel. Had I not been looking out the windows watching the ground pull away from us I would have thought we were not moving . I happily started taking pictures of London in all it's glory. I was surprised that I wasn't really bothered as we climbed into the sky and the entire skyline with a 360 degree view appeared before us. Once we neared the top I noticed we had in fact stopped, the scenery hadn't changed. I put my camera down, sat on the middle bench, closed my eyes and breathed. In 2,3,4,5 hold 2,3,4,5 out 2,3,4,5....I continued until the wheel once again appeared to be moving and made its way over the top and then we were on the way down. The entire ride only lasted about 30 minutes. The truth is, this was an awesome way to see London, I'm so glad I went!

We were exhausted by the end of the day still fighting off a bit of jet lag. We ended the day with a final ride on the hop on hop off bus, got off at Hyde Park and began to walk towards our flat. The time was early evening and the weather was calm and comfortable. We walked past a gated off pavilion and saw that Barbra Streisand would be performing today. Right now there was some soft rock and roll being play with the music drifting to all parts of the Park. People without tickets had brought their children, picnic baskets, and blankets and sat around the outside perimeter to enjoy a free show. We meandered past lakes and boathouses. ducks and geese were enjoying the day with their offspring. It was a lovely walk through the park. We sort of zigzagged through the park checking the maps every once in a while to ensure we were headed in the proper direction.

Tomorrow is going to be amazing.........Wimbledon and Court 1 tickets. Stay tuned!

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Comments

[Andrea]

Yay!
I am riveted! What did you eat and did you buy something at the market that was in full swing? I'm hoping for pictures of your flat the next time I see you. I'm so impressed that you went on the eye!!!! Miss you terribly but am happy to read about your adventures.

[Tom and Roberta Trips]

sooo far behind.
Hi lovey, So far behind in my blogs..................but thinking of you every day. I'm cracking up on this trip because most of our meals have been Italian!!!! Can you believe it? Now in Amsterdam and our first dinner last night was.................drum roll...........Italian. I'm not looking for it, it just worked out that way. Miss you guys terribly. I'm keeping up on FB.