7 May 2015 - London, Day 1: Arrival and Quite the Trek

My flight from Montreal to London went off without a hitch. I did get selected for "additional screening" when going through security, but that was no big deal. All it involved was standing in a tube with my arms up to get scanned, and then I was on my way again. Having a free checked bag made moving around the airport and getting on the plane so much easier, since I only had my backpack. The flight was long but I did manage to sleep a little bit. I wished I had thought to accept one of the pairs of headphones the flight attendants were handing out--I didn't know you could watch entire movies on planes now, and choose which movie you wanted! I could have watched The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies instead of sitting there for over six hours. In the last hour and a half or so of the flight, I put it on with subtitles and watched it that way, which wasn't too bad. In any case, I had better things than a movie to look forward to!

Arriving at London Heathrow airport was quick and easy. The duo-tang I had put together with all of my reservations and plans in it came in handy when I wasn't sure what to indicate as my address on the entry form. I was able to show the border officer where I would be staying in London, and then I was on my way! My bag was even one of the first ones on the baggage carousel. In fact, the whole process took so little time that I was ready to leave, but it was too early to check into my hotel. I took my first Tube ride into London (I still can't get over the fact that there are Tube stations IN Heathrow) and I loved it, just as I loved the public transit system the whole time I was there. The Underground trains are clean and comfortable and it's nice to occasionally go above ground. It's easy to follow the signs and indicators to figure out where to go.

I tried ringing the bell at the Hotel Orlando, where I stayed for my week in London, but there was no answer, so I hung around in the Broadway Shopping Centre, which is connected to Hammersmith station on the District and Piccadilly lines' part of the station. I used some free Tesco Wi-Fi to post an update for family and friends, letting them know I was okay. Little did I know that Tesco would become one of my favourite places for the rest of my trip!

I finally got checked in and went up to my room for the first time. It was small and simple but plenty nice enough for me, seeing as I wasn't going to be spending entire days in it. It had a bed, a bathroom with a shower, a TV, a little desk, and a closet and nightstand to store my stuff. Pretty much everything I need from a place to stay. Plus, the free breakfast is pretty good. Same thing every day, but a hot meal in the morning was very welcome, and the staff are nice. If you're looking for a not-too-expensive place to stay in London, the Hotel Orlando is a good choice. It's not luxury, but the neighborhood feels safe and you get all of the essentials.

After dropping off my suitcase, it was finally time to put my Travelcard to use and start exploring London! My first stop was Kensington Palace, which I had a bit of a hard time finding after getting out of the Tube. It was a nice neighborhood to walk around in, though, with expensive-looking houses, and I ended up walking down a grand, guarded street lined with mansion-like embassies on either side. I finally found the palace and its gardens, and it was all very beautiful.

There were still a few flowers on the palace gates to celebrate Princess Charlotte's birth a few days earlier. At first, I wasn't intending to go inside and visit, and I started walking around the gardens and taking a couple of pictures before moving on to Buckingham Palace, but I decided it would be silly to be there and not see any of the inside, so I bought a ticket and went in to see the rooms. They were very ornate and well-preserved, and the whole place really made the history of the palace and its gardens sink in. Realizing that I was looking out on essentially the same gardens that royalty had viewed and walking through the same rooms they had used when they lived in the palace was striking. Here are just a few of my favourite pictures from inside.

The birth announcement for the princess

After seeing Kensington Palace, I started the trek over to Buckingham Palace. I say "trek" because I had somehow got it into my head that it was only a 20 minute walk or so from Kensington Palace. It turned out to be over 45 minutes and more than two miles! Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park were beautiful to walk through and all, and I did have excellent sunny weather, but my feet and back were less than pleased with me by the time I finally reached Buckingham Palace. There were a lot of people there, so it was impossible to get a clear shot, but I did get some pictures.

By that point, I was pretty tired and hadn't planned to see anything else on my first day, so I got back on the Tube to Hammersmith station and picked up some supper at Tesco. Tesco suppers would become the norm for me for my whole trip, because they offer an excellent meal deal and label their products very clearly when it comes to allergens, which is a big deal for me, especially on an international trip. They have a large variety of sandwiches and wraps to choose from, so I never got bored, and plenty of snacks to take back to your hotel room for the night. I enjoyed watching Ghost Adventures, NCIS: Los Angeles, and Traffic Cops while having a cup of tea and some interesting English chocolate bars. We definitely need Caramac bars in Canada.

Overall, the first day was very tiring but also a lot of fun, and put me in a very good mood about the rest of my trip!

Continue to Day 2