The first time I traveled internationally it was to London, England. There was no question why, all the history, royalty, castles, and best of all they speak english. For me planning the trip can be as much fun as taking the trip. There is so much to see in London it can be overwhelming. I found out real quick I couldn't do everything I wanted to see in my first trip. Over the next several years I would get back to London three more times and I still haven't seen all I want to.
I had talked to many people about what to do and what to see and everyone had different answers. So the bottom line was what did I want to do? I have my passport, plane, and hotel reservations made.
With maps of London and the Tube (subway) packed, too many clothes packed (I will later learn less is better) it's off to the airport.
It's off to the airport for the big day, checkin goes fine I find my window seat and settle in for the nine hour flight. Going over to Europe most flights from the states leave in the afternoon so you get to your destination early the next morning. We land at London Gatwick Airport to spring weather, cloud cover and raining. But I wanted to come this time of year because it is their low season. This is a term the travel industry uses to describe the demand for this destination. Low season is during the winter/spring months when the weather can be cold and wet. Because of this air fare and hotels are cheaper than summer which is high season. London Gatwick is easy to get thru as the signs are in english (that's why I chose London) plus I just followed the crowd. I thought someone in the crowd must know where they are going.
I'm here in jolly ole England needing to get from the airport into London. Gatwick is about 30 minutes from downtown by the Gatwick Express train that runs about every 15 minutes. You can buy tickets for the train at the Gatwick Express booth in the airport. There are other options, bus or taxi but a taxi is very expensive as I will tell you at the end of this story. The train takes you right into Victoria Station in the heart of London. From here I would take the Tube to my hotel. I was staying at the Royal National Hotel in Russell Square. The hotel is just a few blocks from the Russell Square Tube stop, making it very easy to get to all points in London.
The Royal National Hotel is a large hotel with over 1600 rooms. This is a basic hotel with little extras, but it also is very affordable. You will need to decide how much you want to spend on your hotel. I have stayed at one star to five star hotels and everything in between.
If you know it's a one star then you know what to expect and same goes for the five star.
I have unpacked and taken a shower to help keep me going after that long flight. I have on a good pair of walking shoes, camera, my Tube pass (London Travelcard) and my maps ready to go. The travelcard is a must to have as it gives you unlimited travel on the Tube and city busses for a set number of days. There is also The London Pass that is like the London Travelcard but the London Pass also allows you to get into several London attractions for free. You will need to see which one works best for you as many of the sightseeing tours will cover the same attractions. So you would be paying for the same attraction twice.
My goal for the day was to find the first Hard Rock Cafe. I was lucky as the day promised to be sunny and clean with my map in hand off I went.
I was in no hurry as I had all day to explore London. I had booked a city sightseeing tour the next day. My first stop was Trafalgar Square it is one for, if it not the most famous squares in the world, with it's huge lion statues, Nelsons column and those pigeons. Next stop is St. James Park, this time of year the daffodils are blooming everywhere.
If hurry I can make the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. During the winter/spring months it doesn't happen everyday, so check with your hotel they should know the days. I find a good spot in front of Buckingham Palace and wait along with the hundreds of other people wanting to see what the British do best, put on a show.
I was starting to get hungry so I better find the Hard Rock Cafe fast. I knew from my map that it was near Hyde Park Corner Tube station. It's not far from Buckingham Palace. It doesn't take me long to find, and none too soon. Finally I had reached my goal for the day. By this point my feet were killing me, I was glad to sit and rest while I ate. After buying a few t-shirts it was time to move on.
As I wander thru Hyde Park the flowers were in their full glory. I was making my way to Kensington Palace. This would later become the home of Princess Diana.
The jet lag was starting to kick in so I decided to head back to my hotel and call it a day. Tomorrow I had an all day sightseeing tour. I would be pickup at the hotel at 8am and not get back till after 6pm. What took me most of the day walking only took minutes by the Tube back to my hotel. Thank goodness I was ready for a hot bath for my sore feet. As I pulled myself into the bed I knew tomorrow would be just as fun.
The morning came early but I was ready to hit the floor running. Maybe today I will wear two pair of socks to help my poor feet. The bus was right on time, today I had signed up for a full day city tour. The tour guide laid out the day for us letting us know how important it was that we stay on time. Letting us know that if we were not on the bus when it was time to go that we would be left. Our first stop was St Paul's Cathedral, the present building was built in the 17th century from a design by Sir Christopher Wren. This is the church where Prince Charles and Lady Diana were married.
Back on the bus the tour guide took a head count and we were missing two people. We waited what felt like hours but was only about 5 minutes. As the bus pulled away without the missing people the tour guide again told us how important it was to stay on time. She advised us with it being a full day tour we can not get behind waiting on people to get back to the bus. Next on the tour we would drive thru London having various sights pointed out. Up next was to drive by Big Ben (look kids, Big Ben) then Westminster Abbey and then the Royal Albert Hall.
Lunch was on our own, then it was off to the Tower of London. The Tower of London is over 1000 years old and it has been a royal palace, an armoury, and a place of imprisonment and execution most noted was Anne Boleyn. The Beefeaters that guard the tower walked us thru telling of its past and stories of ghosts and the ravens that live at the tower. Legend says that if the ravens leave the tower the British Kingdom will fall. So the Beefeaters keep a small group and keep their wings clipped so they can't leave. If you look around you will see the graveyard for ravens that gave their live to save the empire.
As we weave our way thru the colorful history of the Tower of London our next stop is the crown jewels. It's hard to believe the size of the gems and what the value of them would be. It has been said they are worth as much as 2.5 billion dollars........wow!
This was the end of our tour for the day so we were taken back to Victoria Station. I was told by some people on the tour that Piccadilly Circus is something to see at night. Piccadilly Circus is like Time Square in New York City. With my London Travelcard and Tube map in hand off I went, it took no time to get to my destination. As I walked out of the Tube stop I understood what they were talking about. It was a circus, people of every shape and size. There was a punk rock guy with an acid green mohawk so drunk his buddy was helping him get back home or to the next pub so he could drink some more. The neon signs were shining with all their glory, reds, blues, yellows it made the whole area glow.
It was getting late and I was hungry ...oh look a Burger King. I didn't think I would travel all this way and eat somewhere I could get in the states, but at this point any port in a storm. After eating off I went to the hotel for a good night sleep. Tomorrow I had another full day sightseeing, this time the english country side.
The next day, my last day in London, I woke to clouds and a light cold rain. I turned on the tellie (as they call TV) and the weather forecast called for this to pass early and the sun to shine. The tour bus was waiting for me as I walked out the doors of the hotel. Today we would see Warwick Castle, Stratford, Oxford, and a drive thru the Cotswolds. First stop Warwick Castle; as we pulled up to park the tour guide started giving us some history of the castle. It was built in 1068 by William the Conqueror and sits on a bend of the river Avon. Our guide sliced thru the crowd like a knife thru butter to get us to the front of the line. With a tour you can do that as the tour company buys tickets in advance. Inside we were given more history of the castle, we made our way to the Madame Tussaud's waxworks part of the castle. This display shows castle life in the 1800's.
Time flies as you walk thru the castle as you are transported back to another time and place. But the clock says it's time to head back to the bus and I'm not going to be left behind because I took too long in the castle. We head off to Stratford upon Avon the birth place of William Shakespeare, we would visit Anne Hathaway's cottage. Touring thru the cottage the one thing I notice right off is the low doorways. I mean these people must have only been 5 feet tall....watch your head.
With it getting close to lunch we would drive to an area of England called the Cotswolds known for charming thatched roof cottages, picturesque villages, tea shops and ancient inns. Here we would have lunch on our own.
Now that I'm full and ready for a nap we head off to Oxford, home to one of the world's most famous universities. Our guide would give us a walking tour thru the area that makes up the university. We looked like a bunch of baby ducks following its mother as we made our way around the grounds. Our guide gave us some history: Oxford is the oldest English speaking university in the world and dates back to 1096.
One more tour done and time to head back to London, the day goes by so fast. Well tomorrow I head back home my first international trip is almost over. It's time to pack everything up to get ready for the trip home tomorrow. It's amazing how fast you can throw your dirty clothes in the suitcase, when it took you what felt like hours packing to go on this trip. Ok the suitcase is packed and I found room for all the junk I bought to bring back.
The morning comes too early and I turn on the tellie as I'm getting ready, only to hear what no one wants to hear as they are getting ready to go to the airport. The trains and Tube are on strike today and today only. Now what do I do?......I call the front desk and hear the bad news that a TAXI is my only option. Well I better get moving as this will add time to me getting ?....yes...ok hurry let's get checked out of the hotel and get a taxi to London Gatwick. Good there are several taxis out front just waiting for stupid tourists that have to fly home today. Off we go into the great London traffic, thank goodness the big backup was going into London as the people that work in town had to drive into work. The taxi driver assured me he would get me to Gatwick in plenty of time to catch my flight. As the meter ticks away I start to panic wondering if I will have enough money to pay for this. Turning into the airport and up to the doors the meter shows 72.35 pounds. Thankfully I had 80.00 pounds left so I still have a little money to get me something to eat and drink in the airport. The flight back home was uneventful and I slept most of the way back.
Just remember to keep a little extra cash on hand for those unforeseen things that pop up during a trip.
