London, England after 31 Years

~ Dateline:
London, England - Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Arrived London, Heathrow Airport at approx 5:15am (local), or 3:45pm Adelaide time. Total time traveling or in transit - 24 hours and 15 minutes. We left Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia at 3am (local time).

Stayed at the airport until 8am or so, before catching train to Earls Court station and Earls Court Hotel. It did occur to me that I might get caught up in the morning rush hour, and sure enough, I got caught up in the morning rush hour. Luckily I just happened to be on the right side of the train which enable me to alight at Earls Court with a minimum of fuss. Thankfully, I didn’t have too many step to climb to get to the street. The hotel was only 50 metres or so down the road.

Checked in and climbed two flights of stars to room 31. For 45 GB Pounds I get two beds (one single and one double), small TV, and a tiny combined toilet and shower facility. Room (and hotel) is rundown but not unlivable. Power point is loose in the wall. Showering in the bathroom will be a real challenge. May need to sit on the loo while I shower.

Decided to stay up and not go to bed. Will sleep well tonight. Walked to Hammersmith Apollo and checked out the neighborhood. Bought Time Out London edition. Found internet café close to hotel. One hour cost one GBP. Sent email to family and a few others.

Couldn’t connect with my laptop, although it does seem to be connecting to unsecured wireless networks. Had to buy power adaptor to suit British power supply since the one I bought from home is suitable only for the US and Asia.

Temperature: 12C. Freezing cold wind blowing most of the day. No rain. Intermittent sunshine. Wore beanie to protect head from cold. Took a bunch of photographs. It was a cold, grey day.

Overwhelming impressions: English architecture is very distinctive. Long rows of cottage housing remind me of waves rolling along the sea shore. Many such blocks rise to three or four stories in height. It was probably felt that it was too much to expect that residents climb more than four floors.

I have been quite nostalgic for my past years here. The city has certainly changed. The ethnic mix of the city is much more diverse than back in the 1970s.

It is now 8.15pm and my head is starting to drop. It’s time to hit the sack. Night, night.

Total spending today: GBP: 25.75 (AU$55.75)

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