Advertisement
Published: November 16th 2010
I had a hard time deciding on a title for this one... Had such an amazing night followed by a really shitty day of travel. Finally ended up going with the positive 😊 I think that is the way to always try and go!
Thursday Alex and I went out dancing. We headed to Lester Square where there are multiple clubs, bars and so on in the area. We started at a club called Ruby's it was dark, low ceilings, with more of a lounge atmosphere although there was a small dance floor with a few people on it. We had a few drinks and talked with a few people before deciding to move onto the next place. Zoo bar was our next stop. This place had more of the club feel with 3 separate rooms playing music. We wondered around for a while, danced and had a drink then decided to step outside for a bit because it was very hot inside. We ended up talking to a couple of guys from Italy till they decided to head back in for a drink and to dance, we decided to head home it was only 1am but we were both
a bit knackered and knew that it would take us a while to get back. First we decided we had to stop for a Kebab and chips - which was awesome! Then time to make our way home, it took us 2 hours because the buses and trains are limited at night and early morning. We ended up back and climbing into bed around 4am. Over all I can’t say it was any different from the clubs you find in Denver, similar set up, similar music. Which was sort of a bummer because I was hoping to hear some new artists. I think next time I’d prefer to go to a pub with some live music, not just all the same music that we hear at the clubs in the States.
Friday of course was a lazy day. Alex and I slept in late, I did my laundry and started my packing. We watched a really great movie called The Boat That Rocked, I believe that in the States it is called Pirate Radio. It is great! If you have not seen it I highly recommend it, I think it’s one of my new favorites! We also watched The
Reader... Depressing, but good. That was about it for our Friday 😊
Saturday morning I got up and finished my packing. Then Alex and I walked into Uxbridge and I printed my bus tickets off at the library and we went for lunch at a pub in town. After that we took the train into London. Friday was Guy Fawkes day, also known as bonfire night, a holiday that is celebrated in the UK with fireworks and a HUGE bonfire. For some reason even though Friday was the actual holiday the city was doing fireworks Saturday. I love fireworks so it was a must 😊 Plus I had heard Alex tell me many stories about Bonfire Night 😊 Guy Fawkes/Bonfire Night originates from a plot to blow up the parliament buildings in 1605 with barrels of gunpowder. They were trying to kill King James I, so that a Catholic monarch could take over the throne once again. Guy Fawkes was taken into questioning before the barrels were to be set off, he was taken to the Tower of London where he was tortured until he confessed the plot. After being stretched to the limit on The Rack he was
sentenced to death. He was supposed to be hung, drawn and quartered, which basically means they were going to drop him gently on the noose so that it didn’t break his neck and then cut a cross across his chest and abdomen so that his insides would fall out while he was still alive! AHHH - Guy Fawkes apparently had a strong will for this not to happen and so even though he was badly injured from all the torture he had been through he jumped before they could dropped him. It was just enough to break his neck and so he was not alive for the drawn and quartering which they still did so that they could place his parts on stakes around the kingdom to warn people of what happens to traitors. The government decided to celebrate the rebellions failure and the fact that the king was still alive by making Nov 5th a holiday. We had to pay 6 pounds each to get entry into the park. They lit a Missive bonfire - the biggest one I have ever seen - and played music over loudspeakers, around 6 songs to be specific, Bon Jovi It’s My Life,
Don’t Worry Be Happy, I Feel Good, Coca Cabana, and I can’t remember what the other 2 or 3 songs were.... We listened to them for 2 hours over and over and over and over and over again... Thankfully when the fireworks started the music changed and the fireworks were synchronized to go with the songs! I have to say it was one of the best firework displays I have seen in a long time. They put our 4th of July fireworks displays in Denver to shame! Completely amazing and a great way to end my trip in the UK!
A farewell with fireworks!
Yesterday morning I got up at 6am finished packing the last little bits, took a cab to Heathrow Airport at 6:40. Arrived at Heathrow central bus station around 7:15. Waited for my bus to Luton Airport which left at 8:15. Arrived at Luton airport around 9:30. Luton airport is very small compared to Heathrow. I must have had that terrorist look on my face because I was questioned by El Al Israel Security till 10:45 (so around an hour) They made me unlock all my bags and took my passport. When they came back
they gave me my boarding passes and passport which had a large sticky note in it with the letter T on it. My boarding pass also had this printed on it. They told me that I needed to be at the gate by 11:30 for further screening. I made my way to the gate and grabbed a sandwich to eat quickly. The same security manager that had questioned me showed up and took my passport from me again. He came back with it 5 min later and then then I was taken into a small room off to the side of the gate. Inside were 5 chairs, there were 2 other girls in there. Their bags were taken and their shoes were swabbed so I assumed I would get the same.... No apparently I was more suspicious. I was taken behind a white curtain while they searched my carryon bag. I was patted down many times with cloths on. I then had to remove my shoes, pants, bra and take the braids out of my hair, I was patted down, scanned by a metal detector, and swabbed across the chest, around my pants line, in the arm pits, and down
the legs... So fun... NOT. They finished at 12:15(which was the scheduled departure time for the flight). I was escorted all the way to my seat by security and then finally left alone! Once I got to Tel Aviv I had to catch my connecting flight. I went to the bathroom and when I came out there was a guy with a walkie talkie looking at me funny, I thought about asking for directions on where to go to get my flight but decided against it and tried to walk by... "Are you Vanessa Farrell?" I’m sure I turned around wide eyed "Yes I am"... "I’m______(don’t remember his name) with security, we have been looking for you" Are you F*&%@ing Joking me!!! I almost burst into tears, then he continued "I am escorting you to your next departure gate, we are going to bypass you through security since you were thoroughly checked already" Oh how nice.... I would have rather gone through security twice without the strip search but guess it was my turn. He took me through a back way I never even saw the security area in Tel Aviv and ended up in the departure terminal. I got
a snack at one of the stores and sat and listened to music till my next flight. The flight to Joburgh was only 8 1/2 hours but it seemed longer, I was surrounded by kids, a rude lady next to me and an even worse one behind me who kept pushing my seat back up when I would try to lean it back. Words could not describe how happy I was to finally be in South Africa, through customs with no problems and with my family! Not the best day of travel I have had but it’s done now and I’m over it! Let the good times roll 😊
Advertisement
Tot: 0.061s; Tpl: 0.013s; cc: 7; qc: 24; dbt: 0.0392s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
tom
non-member comment
bummer
It doesn't really surprise me that Israeli security would be so tight. Hopefully that will be the worst of the security for the rest of the trip. tg