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Thursday, January 6, 2011

London


It turns out that getting to Botswana is a trip in itself. I left Minneapolis at 11 am on Monday and touched down in Botswana at 5:30 pm on Wednesday. It was certainly a lesson in patience, but the 12-hour layover in London provided some perks.

They brought out banners when they heard I was
coming
I got into London at 6:30 am on Tuesday morning and didn’t have to be back for my next flight until 4 pm, so I took the Tube (London’s subway) into central London. The man selling tickets told me it was rush hour on the Tube and asked if I was sure I still wanted a ride, and I said “sure, how bad could it be?” Well rush hour was no joke; it felt like the entire city was packed onto that train. It was the densest packing of people I’ve ever seen, and it wasn’t without side effects. One man accidently elbowed a woman in the face and she confronted him about it.  He wouldn’t apologize and she went ballistic. I thought for a second that I was going to be breaking up a fight at 7 in the morning in the middle of London, but the situation defused.

Then there was a delay on the Tube as a person had flung themselves onto the tracks at one of the stops along the way, so I didn’t get to Central London until 8.  As I emerged from the underground platform, I felt hopelessly like a tourist as I was wheeling along my suitcase and had my nose buried in a map among the bustle of Londoners on their way to work. I managed to slip into a Starbucks and grab a light breakfast as I consulted the map for sightseeing destinations. I was hoping for free wireless internet as well, but apparently that doesn’t exist in London, as I asked the cashier if they had it and she said only if bought a Starbucks rewards card and used it for a purchase of 5 pounds or more. Then I asked if there was free internet anywhere, and she said no, and that my best bet was to pay for it at an internet café, so I kept that in mind.
The red phone booth and double decker bus seemed
like quintessential London

As I looked over the map, it looked as though the London Bridge was fairly close, and that was certainly on the top of my sightseeing wish list. So I headed off in that direction, but it turns out that I should’ve looked at the scale on the map a little more closely, as I walked for 45 minutes and wasn’t even halfway there. So I settled for a smaller walking bridge and I got a few good pictures of the Thames, Merlin Entertainments London Eye (the Ferris Wheel), and the clock tower on the house of Parliament.

Merlin Entertainments London Eye
Clock tower on the House of Parliament with
Westminster Abbey in the background
It turned out that Buckingham palace was much closer and so I walked down ‘The Mall’ where I encountered the Horse Guards (see pictures) and then at the end of the Mall was the palace. I was hoping to see one of the guards with the big poofy hats that aren’t allowed to move, but I must have gone at the wrong time. The path I took back from the palace brought me within sight of Westminster Abbey and the House of Parliament, but I think I needed a history lesson or two to fully appreciate the importance of those buildings.
The Horse Guards

Buckingham Palace
On the way back to the airport I stopped at a little hole-in-the-wall café that seemed to be one of the hot spots. It was noon by then and I was hoping for lunch, but they were certainly on a different schedule because I received a breakfast menu and received a blank stare when I asked for anything different. So I ordered the proper “full English breakfast”, which felt much like an American breakfast, with the addition of baked beans, and I was pleasantly filled (I had an elegant sufficiency).

Right outside my Tube terminal was an internet café so I stumbled in and got to check my email and the like for a very affordable rate.

The trip back to the airport was much smoother and my flight went off without a hitch. I thought London was going to be less like the other European cities I had seen, but in the end it felt very similar. I’m certainly glad I made the stop.

I have a habit of putting down what I had for dinner in my journal, and so I think I may carry it over to my blog (for lack of a better conclusion).

Chicken and penne on the airplane for dinner…


7 comments:

  1. Hey, what a day in London! Just testing the comment box, will write more later. Hope you are settled in Gabarone. Cheryl

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  2. Hey Mike, Sherry here... great travel writing - perhaps a second career in the makings. Typical bloody London, and the Poms just took the Ashes home after totally humiliating us!!

    The Sunshine State is underwater - one dam has water the same volume as Sydney Harbor passing over it every day! Biblical.

    Keep in all coming. Love to hear about your travels.

    Sherry

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  3. Hey Mike, we are loving the blog as Qld sinks slowly under more rain. The pictures are great and the stories fun to read.
    Isn't it a blast to figure out another culture - the important things to them, which we may not consider so.
    Keep em coming - my nieces love all the food talk as that is what they write about and photograph when they travel!!!!!!!

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  4. Wow, what fun to see those animals first hand. So quickly finding a game reserve so close by. Your commentary is great to read, keep it up, I'm picturing you with your gang, probably just like one in Mpls.
    Looking forward to more. Cheryl

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  5. Mike - this is Jerri, your mom's cousin who you met last summer.. I was so excited to learn of your adventure in Africa! Can't wait to read more about your experiences, and see the pics! What you've published so far has been so fun to read and the pics fantastic.. You have quite a talent!

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  6. Hi Mike, from Cheryl... Laurie told me of your mugging and camera and phone being stolen. So happy to hear you physically came out of it ok. We think of you there in Africa, hard to believe. I love your comment about all the international folks being there for the BBQ, happy etc, I always used to experience that when we traveled around the world playing volleyball. Meeting other cultures and how we all have the same basic love of family, food and peace. Take care and thinking of you, Cheryl

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  7. Hi Mike. Cheers from sunny Mooloolaba! Yep, its Di from the bookshop where Sherry & cheryl work sometimes! Lovely to read of your journeying. Glad you liked London....you have to stay longer to fully appreciate it, honest! Trust the continuation of your journeying is rich and stimulating and puissant! (My new word of the day)Ciao, Di

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