trip's start

17 December 2007

We land at London-Heathrow (LHR) only to find out that the London Underground closes as midnight. We're able to scramble with all our gear onto the last Heathrow Express, with the conductor holding it as we're running down a deserted platform. That's why this photo is blurry: I'm still sweating and huffing from all the exertion, not to mention man-handling all the bags into the racks and stripping off several layers. We're at Paddington Station, and we spend a moment looking for platform 9 3/4, from Harry Potter fame. Unfortunately, being muggles, we only find platform 9. Still, it's worth a smile from Isaac. Who can resist taking a photo with a British icon, the rapidly-disappearing telephone booth? Isaac's inside, Lila & Rose outside. It's cold. Season's greetings at St. Pancras. I love seeing Christmas in Europe. Seems so much less commercial and contrived. Of course, I might just be wearing nostalgic tourist glasses :-) The kids stop to watch Santa Claus do some Christmas presentation, and at the end they're overjoyed to be able to join the line and get some toy or candy. Isaac is jumping for joy: we see the Eurostar high-speed train. Santa moved on to entertain a group of school-children, all of whom were wearing uniforms (something to which our kids are unaccustomed.) Christmastide at the Harrods candy court; nothing better say the kids (and Rose). The joy of sampling things we don't see in the USA is fantastic. We make it up to the kids toy area of Harrods, where there's a display of fake snow, a sort of cool-feeling non-melting jello flake thing. It's got a really interesting feel on the skin. The happy couple, relaxing while the kids run themselves ragged. I'm so glad I have an urbanite travelling wife and kids. I'm a lucky, lucky guy. Near the South Kensington tube stop is a Polish restaurant to which we return. This is the herring Lila craves. It *is* tasty. Lila hugs Rose to show how happy she is at this very moment. The kids tell us again and again how lucky they feel to be travelling around. The view from the front of a London double-decker bus. Lila on left, Rose and Isaac to the right. I don't tire of this view. If memory serves, this is the Kensington High Street heading from Harrods towards downtown. We get Oyster travelcards so we can use the busses and Tube for one set price. Perfect for the way we devour cities. The London Eye with Christmas decorations on the trees in the near-by mall. It's the middle of winter, near Solstice, so it's this dark at about 17:00 (5 pm). It's the Houses of Parliament and St. Steven's Tower (with the Big Ben clock high above), lighted, with the Christmas decorations of the boats on the Thames below. Ice-skating at the Tower of London makes for an arresting juxtaposition of centuries, espeecially with the blue modern lights versus the orange-yellow sodium-vapor lights used elsewhere. The fabulious Tower Bridge beautifully illuminated. It's better the later at night it is, and the colder it is. I know I've been in London in the warm, but it's the cold times that remain in memory. Christmas decorations on the high street, as seen from the bus heading in the other direction. We're all impressed by the snowflake-like things hanging in the middle of the street. The family is exhausted, and nobody but me really savors our time at the Belle Italia restaurant. I recall savory warm food on a cold night. And good cappucinni.