Crossing the finish line
So this morning (or perhaps you'd call it yesterday morning) I left London, starting with the Gatwick Express out of the well-known Victoria Station. As we pulled out of the depot, there was an incredible view of Battersea Power Station, but I was too lazy to take out my camera. Pink Floyd fans, AKA chunchmeow would've gotten a kick out of that.
Overall I'd say my London visit was a success. The weather was somewhat warm (thanks Gulf Stream!), and I know pretty much what I need to see next time I'm there (perhaps for more than 2 days). I enjoyed hearing the accent. The two cab drivers I rode with though were actually difficult to understand, speaking in an extremely fast somewhat slurred cockney accent. Finally, at the airport yesterday morning was an exceptionally cute example of it. When they called the flight before mine, I saw a little girl, maybe 4 or 5 years old, tugging on her mother's sleeve saying "Mummy, it's time to get on the aeroplane!"
The first leg of the journey was the 8 hour 20 minute flight to Newark Airport. Apparently we had to take a northern route (southern tip of Greenland) to avoid a "nasty piece of weather" in the mid atlantic. We also flew over the northern portion of Quebeck, which looked like a semi-mountainous (appalachian) tundra. It evolved into Vermont and New Hampshire, then I spotted the Hudson River and Albany and the Tappan Zee Bridge. We banked to the right, took a loop around Bergen County and over Passaic, Essex and Union, and looped again for a northbound landing.
Got through customs fairly easily and took it easy for a few hours at EWR. My LA flight was delayed, so I didn't get in 'til midnight (originally scheduled 10:45). Now I'm finally back in my lovely apartment.
Now to shake this jetlag..
Overall I'd say my London visit was a success. The weather was somewhat warm (thanks Gulf Stream!), and I know pretty much what I need to see next time I'm there (perhaps for more than 2 days). I enjoyed hearing the accent. The two cab drivers I rode with though were actually difficult to understand, speaking in an extremely fast somewhat slurred cockney accent. Finally, at the airport yesterday morning was an exceptionally cute example of it. When they called the flight before mine, I saw a little girl, maybe 4 or 5 years old, tugging on her mother's sleeve saying "Mummy, it's time to get on the aeroplane!"
The first leg of the journey was the 8 hour 20 minute flight to Newark Airport. Apparently we had to take a northern route (southern tip of Greenland) to avoid a "nasty piece of weather" in the mid atlantic. We also flew over the northern portion of Quebeck, which looked like a semi-mountainous (appalachian) tundra. It evolved into Vermont and New Hampshire, then I spotted the Hudson River and Albany and the Tappan Zee Bridge. We banked to the right, took a loop around Bergen County and over Passaic, Essex and Union, and looped again for a northbound landing.
Got through customs fairly easily and took it easy for a few hours at EWR. My LA flight was delayed, so I didn't get in 'til midnight (originally scheduled 10:45). Now I'm finally back in my lovely apartment.
Now to shake this jetlag..