Day One – LONDON! – 4193 Miles Traveled

The Flight!

So, I decided at the airport to upgrade to “premium economy” for a little over $200 – since I had gotten such a deal on the flight (Using Sky Miles) I said why not!?! – What a smart move that ended up being. The plane was over booked in economy – so everyone was crowded back there, but I ended up with an empty seat beside me – SCORE!!

Premium Economy incudes several free drinks – snacks and both dinner and breakfast – which I did not anticipate. Honestly – for airplane food – neither was 1/2 bad.

This was dinner:

and breakfast:

The seats in premium economy are comfy, purple leather seats, with lumbar support and folding neck supports, and a decent foot rest that can be adjusted a couple of ways. All things considered I slept pretty well – and would have slept better if the older couple in the pair of seats beside me didn’t scream everything they said to one another, bless their hearts! (They both obviously had some hearing issues.

The flight was smooth and uneventful, and we arrived at Heathrow almost 1 hour ahead of schedule. Clearing  customs was easy, with fairly short lines, and soon I was on my way to the Tube.

Premium Economy  is pretty sweet!

Funny story about the plane ride: I did have a sweet older lady the seat over, who even at 30,000 feet determined I could assist her with technology – so – she kept asking me how to operate the tv console on the back of her seat – which she kept setting for Chinese. . . I finally got her set, and she happily watched movies and tv for the rest of the ride.

Virgin’s entertainment console was great, but I forced myself to mostly ignore it, because I knew I needed to try and get as much sleep as I could.

The Tube

There is nothing quite like baptism by fire. I got to navigate the tube, with luggage, during rush hour. Fortunately I knew which stops I needed to transfer at, and that all worked well. It is an efficient and easy to use tube line. I found my Hostel (Wombats London) very easily, and dropped off my luggage so that I could make the most of my first day in London.

The entire journey I was very thankful I had packed as lightly as I had. . . I could not imagine navigating with the amount of luggage I saw others with.

The Hostel!

Ok, so for a first hostel experience I may be spoiled. Wombats opened in December, so it is new, fresh and clean, and they have had time to work out any kinks they may have had at opening. The room is spacious, (I am in a 6 girl dorm), the lockers are HUGE and secured using your room key, and you have to use your key to access the building, elevator and the floor where your room is. Our dorm has a separate shower and toilet room, both of which are very clean and nice. The bed seems comfy, so all is well there. So far, I would recommend this location very highly. (There is also a great WomBar downstairs with reasonably priced beverages). The location isn’t bad, about a 10 minute walk from the nearest tube stations. I walked to the Tower of London in 15 minutes, and that included making a wrong turn (Street signs have been a learning curve – they are not always in intersections, and never in the same spot (and every road changes names 14 times in 3 miles)) – I’m glad I’ve got a good sense of direction, and feel comfortable exploring.

I will post Hostel pictures later, but as of this second I would highly recommend it!!

My Day exploring London

In an attempt to combat Jet Lag, I made myself keep moving today. I decided an overview of London was a good way to start, so I did Day 1 of my Original London Bus Tour. I only did one loop of the bus tour, because the narration and elevator music was not conducive to staying awake, so after I finished the loop I hopped off and decided that I would try the free boat tour that came with my 2 day bus tour – I thought wind and sunshine were the best option to combat Jet Lag – and that was a winner! I LOVED the boat tour – the guide was funny – and the views were incredible. #Minifigmerry V.1.0 was a casualty of the bus ride, unfortunately – she was posing for a picture on Fleet Street, good news is version 2.0 is ready to roll tomorrow with a set of fun pictures all over London.

Here are a few pictures from my phone (My DSLR was still in my luggage – so better images will come tomorrow.

And with that, I am off to shower and go to bed (at 9:00 PM London Time!) so that I am ready for an adventure tomorrow!