However, we're starting to think about another trip and I can't be two trips behind, now can I? Sooooo, here we go. London. We'll just jump right in.
For Herbstferein (Autumn Break), we chose to head to London, England. None of us had been there other than the Heathrow airport a handful of times. As there are many other places we want to see, we can't just assume we'll hop over to London another time soon, as much as we might like to. So, we decided to "go big" and just really pack it full of our "must see"s as we just don't know when we might head back. London is expensive, ya'll.
There are about 5 "London" airports and you can fly really cheaply to some of them from Berlin but then you learn how huge London is and that it will take you, like, 2 hours and a bunch more money to get into London from these budget airports making your cheap ticket pointless. Heathrow wasn't really in the budget but we found Gatwick was. It wasn't too pricey AND we used some of our CaptialOne miles to buy every single ticket: free flights, Yo! :)
We flew Norwegian Airlines from Berlin's further away airport (Schönefeld) which involved the lengthy trip out there. I mean, it used to take us going on an hour to get to Denver's airport so really it's not all that different but still, to get to Schönefeld it's a (very) short walk, two U-bahns and a bus to get from door to door.
Boy, did we cut it close getting out there! Our airline didn't leave from the terminal we got dropped off at. And we had a hard time figuring out which gate we needed. We were rushing through the airport. A little stressful for those few minutes. But we made it, of course, and hopped on the two hour flight to London Gatwick.
After the flight, it's on to the somewhat pricey Gatwick Express train for the half hour journey into London...and then we had to buy our "getting-around-London" cards but didn't know exactly what we'd need (zones and kids and blah blah blah) so I had to ask for help in a long line in an office in the Victoria Station while Jason kept an eye on the kids who, you know, knocked over a display of Halloween chocolates among other behaviors. Oh wait, this is a London blog: behaviours.
Finally, Oyster cards in hand, we headed to the line we needed to get us to "our" station: Paddington. Perhaps interestingly (perhaps not), for Jason's 40th birthday I gave him this super cool clock that we hung in our kitchen (he likes clocks, and fleurs de lis, and decorating our new house, you know, when it was our new house) ...you can see it here:
...and anyway, it said, "Paddington Station, London" on it!! :) Who'da thunk?!
Gosh that was a great house. I am really missing it seeing this picture here. :(
Anyway...
We rented an "Airbnb" for our first time and the host just gave us a lock box code to let ourselves into the flat. (By the way, cannot recommend the place...it was cheap for London, fit our family, and had a great location....but that's about it. The kids were like, "What the...?" It's like the dude just went to stay at his girlfriend's while we were there as there was his loose change and receipts on the counter. A pair of sunglasses... I don't know. London is humid and it's a basement flat so it just had this strange, permanent mildewy, inside of a rental ski boot smell. It was not at all "hotel like"...not that it should have been, but really it was like we were staying in someone else's house--which we were--but, like, while they were there. Whatever. We weren't planning on being there too much. London was calling!
We set off on foot from the flat towards the large and famous Hyde Park. Planning to enjoy a lovely lengthy walk through the park towards the other side where I had surprise dinner plans.
We made it to the other side and headed down to our destination of Harrod's.
We got a little turned around inside but finally made it to the door of the Disney Cafe on the 2nd floor of Harrod's at 6:32. The website said they closed at 7:00 so...whew!...only, they let us know that, "Sorry, the kitchen closes at 6:30". Seriously. Two minutes?!?! If only we hadn't posed for that picture or taken too long to find the escalator. If only we had walked up the escalator stairs rather than stood still. Ugh!
We left (sad) and went in search for other food nearby and ended up at some ridiculously expensive Italian place. There was only a couple other tables in use and --amusingly-- no one but us (not even the staff) were speaking English. In England.
We ate expensive and boring pasta, pizza, garlic bread, and olives (the boys really like olives, the weirdos. I say weirdos because I do not like them. Olives, I mean. I do like my boys. I do not like olives).
Seriously so expensive. It was depressing. I don't want to talk about it anymore, actually.
We found a train or two back to Paddington and went to bed. Maybe we stopped at the Sainsbury's in the station for some groceries. I forget. We did have quite a few things I'd packed from home to last us a morning or two.
Anyway, at the flat, the boys shared a bedroom and Autumn was "supposed" to have the fold-out in the living room but it was sort of spooky and lonely and she was sad so we pulled the mattress off and made her a little pallet on the floor of mine and Jason's room. Much better. I wouldn't want to sleep out there either.
Our room was fun...look at this big row of cupboards...
Only....
Surprise!
That's a fun little bathroom tucked in there. My favorite part of the flat. That's how sad it was.
Tomorrow was going to go better...or was it?
Day 2 is here.
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