Airplanes:
I really hate flying. Really, really hate flying. I’m pretty sure that 1st class would be better, but not much. I hate being confined with no option to leave or walk or choose the people within my view. Some very ugly people fly.
Nina is a champ flying with me. I extend 4 inches in both directions outside the parameters of my seat. That’s in my shoulders, not belly. I always book an aisle seat with Nina on the other side of me.
As much as I’m sure I encroach on Nina while flying, the flight attendants, beat the shit out of my aisle side body parts. On the return trip from Heathrow, one FA was flying on her last flight before retiring. She hit me with her fat ass more times than I can count. The captain asked everyone to congratulate her when we deplaned, so I did. I said congratulations, but you almost didn’t make it, if she had hit me with her butt once more on that flight I was gonna take her out! She laughed and said it would never be a problem for me again. Nice lady.
iPad mini mostly, but all in general:
While it’s a nice backup for someone like me that enjoys the internet, it will never replace a laptop for me. I enjoy the keyboard and larger screen. I can’t type on that screen keyboard to save my life. I know I can get a wireless keyboard, but then I may as well use the laptop. The iPad makes a great book reader and a nice game platform, and on this trip I abused both. I even decided to add to my game collection on the mini.
People:
People here are more friendly than in London. Until you get a comparison base line, you usually highlight the negatives about your daily encounters. If you open the door for an elderly person in London, 30 other people will try to push their way in to gain an edge in the race to get where they’re going. In this country, I never see that. I’m sure it happens, but it’s not often.
My feet:
While I abused my feet by walking the shit outta them in London, they are really in great condition compared to what they looked like prior to leaving. The humidity has to be the big factor in this. Nina noticed that she didn’t need to moisturize after a while while there.
We averaged 5+ miles per day while there and we saw a lot of London in the process. I was beat at the end of each day, and I assume Nina was too.
Drink:
Beer
While it’s no secret that I prefer beer while traveling in Europe, this trip has placed it even more firmly in my mind. I drank more beer this trip than ever. I love trying house brews at various pubs, but am a little troubled by the number of corporate pubs that are showing up lately. They buy out an existing pub and bring in their beers and ales. Fullers was the one we visited mostly, but there were a few others.
Coffee
I have no clue why, but coffee in Europe is better than here. It’s stronger, richer and has more flavor. No matter what we try here, it falls far short of what we’ve had there.
Food:
I LOVE pub food. Fish and chips are my all time favorite pub food. We’ve had pretty good food all through London while there. Fullers, see corporate pub info above, has some pretty fine people working in their kitchens. We always tried to do pub grub for lunch and other type of places for dinner. Breakfast for us was whatever was convenient.
Pub customers are freaking fanatics about their football, soccer to us Yanks, and they get real vocal when games are on TV. You can’t hold a normal conversation during a football game in a pub. It’s fascinating to watch as an outsider. I sat in a corner and just stared at these people for an hour. I thought that there’d be a fight at one point, but it didn’t happen.
Tube:
One of the greatest places in the world to people watch! I love watching the crowds ebb and flow through the tunnels. Very focused herd mentality. Just move and avoid.
Trip in general:
With Nina hurting her foot, this trip was different than planned. Slower. No big deal, we adapt when problems happen. Nice trip, but we’ve had better trips there. Still saw plenty, but as usual not everything we wanted to.
Peace.