I was overwhelmed, bummed out and I had no idea what to do, so I flew to London.
Years ago I was sitting lost in thought living by myself at my previous home. Twiddling my thumbs without any idea what I wanted to achieve next in life. I still feel as if I haven't truly achieved anything epic outside of marrying a sensational woman. That is not here nor there, I was sitting in my office lost in thought. After some time I decided that I wanted to begin my world travel. Seeing as this was going to be my first international traveling adventure since my days exploring Canada. Side note: I especially love Ottawa and Montreal, all great cities full of great people.
After a few pondering twirls in my office chair I decided on London, England! I wanted the country to be European and English speaking plus I really enjoy watching BBC! I stop spinning, set my target on the computer then dive into the interweb to compare ticket prices, it's a long flight so I should go ahead and spend the extra cash for First Class, right? Ouch, about five times the average price of a stateside adventure...it's to Europe though soooo... does anyone really want to be miserable for eleven or so hours? I broke down and cashed out on a first class round trip ticket to Heathrow Airport London, England!
A week later I board for the flight to London, in the sweet, mythical first class. First Class is a great experience, comfy seats, extra space both in the seat and around the area as a whole. The seats fully recline basically becoming a twin bed, there are no extra charges for food or drink. Alcohol included if you are into drinking such beverages. There are only two seats per side of the aircraft so you aren't getting the nightmarish middle spot. These are comforts I have not experienced on an airplane before, as everyone realizes all of the "free" comforts are paid for by the cost of the ticket and the profits from charging everyone not in first class all of the extra money based off luggage, food and drink. I encourage everyone to try these mythical First Class seats if they have an opportunity. I order myself a gin and tonic then kick up to relax for the duration of the flight. For long distance flights, mostly international, I will fall victim to commerce.
My single serving friend of the flight was an interesting lady who was a teacher at a Waldorf Education School. I was not familiar with the concept at the time, being the son of a retired high school English teacher, I enjoyed the discussion. Upon arrival at Heathrow I gather my things and observe the surroundings as I look around in excitement of arriving in England. I enjoy the idea of what to expect when you step foot in such a classy, if you will, country. There are a number of different shops and restaurants to explore at Heathrow if one has time to burn. I get my things and catch a taxi to the hotel to put my things up and head into London, England! Not only being at a major airport but in London, England makes it very, VERY convenient to catch a stereotypical London cab. Thankfully.
Upon entrance into the city I am consumed with admiration of the overwhelming history and status feelings that rush through my mind. I have made it to experience London, England. One thing that will remain fresh in my mind is that parked in front of the The Cavendish London Hotel I selected to stay at was a Porsche 918 Spyder, the only one I have ever in person or laid eyes upon in my entire life. Probably the only one I will ever see in person. Silly me, I took that as a great sign of what the rest of my time in London will be like. In hindsight it can be taken as foreshouding but not as one would expect.
As I walk into The Cavendish I feel on top of the world. The employees are very welcoming and courteous, at such a highly rated establishment I would have not only been shocked if they were not welcoming but have gone to another hotel. I found it to be a beautiful place, after checking in I made my way to my room to unload then head right back out to explore while I still had energy. Go where? Where ever the winds take me.
Upon exiting I searched for a local pub to no avail, so I made my way back to the Cavendish to grab a brew at the bar and grub inside to inquire the bartender about where I should head the following day. Why not take it easy? I have just flown across the Atlantic ocean...
The following day I awake with my stomach not being my friend...not just uneasy, sieging my wellbeing with anger causing me to vomit large quantities while causing me extreme pain. After two hours I reach out to the concierge who thankfully not only tells me where I can get supplies for aid but also sends a person to retrieve over the counter medicine and an orange hydration beverage. As I take the medicine and attempt to hydrate I reach out to my Mamma Bear back home in the states who encourages me to make my way to the emergency room, I accept her advice and tell her that I would love for her to come help me, how is she supposed to do that from the states? I guess I need to fly her out so I get my mother on the next flight into London, an eleven hour direct flight. Meanwhile I make my way to the emergency room...
As you probably know England, like most first world countries, has "free" healthcare thankfully. When I am checking into the E.R. they realize from my address that I am a foreigner who they still aid. They take me to the back after triage, they provide me with anti nausea medicine with a glorious I.V. that my body slurps up very, VERY quickly. The nurse who is watching over me is an excited man, excited because the Manchester United Vs. Liverpool game is taking place as my body is drinking the saline, Man U won the game. While my body is recovering I slip off into a nap. First day in London ends with a trip to the E.R. and me sleeping on a hospital bed not the fancy hotel bed.
Once I wake up then get released from the hospital I am feeling great. So great that I decide to attempt walking back to the hotel to get cleaned up. Mamma Bear is landing relatively soon. I confirm a room for her in the same hotel and her transportation from the airport to the Cavendish. It is nice that I have recovered from whatever bug I must have caught from the flight.
London, England April 2015
Mom arrives to London so it is time to explore. What are we going to do? After pondering we decide on checking out Stonehenge, 221 Baker Street, The Eye Of London and whatever else pops into mind such as mom must see all of the art available to view. I notice that they are promoting a new "Wallace and Gromit" film by having sheep statues randomly placed about the city, might need to gather some sheep...first things first: I need to get a jacket. I discover Barbour...I'm a fan. We also must go to "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" while we are here, we have been to them in different states and other countries, why not add London to the list?
My mother and I make our way to Piccadilly Circus to explore the area, as we walk and talk I attempt to take in the moment. The circus or circle makes me think of London as the British New York City, I imagine they are very similar in look and feel. Mom loves NYC as does my wife, me, I just enjoy exploring and seeing the world as a whole.
Once we make it to Piccadilly Circus the life of London covers us with lights, cars, people, businesses, if you can name it chances are it was there. Something that stands out to me is there is a theatre, this theatre is calling out to Mamma Bear and I. It is the Criterion Theatre, not only is it a stunningly beautiful theatre, 39 Steps is being performed. This is a brilliant production that my mother and I have seen performed stateside at Stage West Theatre, this means we get to see the play performed in two countries by two different interruptions with much different performances. We purchase tickets and grab dinner before we attend the performance in a couple hours.
To learn a bit more about how historic and beautiful the Criterion Theatre is click here. I am not sure if it is correct to say, however, to me it is equal to Broadway.
The performance is amazing, I am extremely thankful my mother and I were able to experience the show together. Now we have to decide what are we going to do next, we only have a week...
We make our way to Stonehenge. I won't waste your time telling you about this moment, we just wanted to scratch it off the list. It was a good time, we were in a small group so they allowed us to walk between and around the stones, no touching though. There is a farm of sheep nearby so you can admire fluffy livestock as well as an ancient formation of stones.
Next on the list: we make our way to 221 Baker Street where we get to explore the location and learn about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, it was a good time. Learning more about one of the most famous English speaking authors of all time with an English teacher mother is most certainly a good experience. In addition to this we made our way through Ripley's Believe It Or Not, the most memorably event of going through this museum for me was when there was a gate in the pathway. Literally, at this particular location they have a trick gate. Mom had stumbled upon it as I was enthralled in some other exhibit, she waited at the gate for me. When I make it to the gate there are a couple guys in their early twenties at most trying to figure it out. Mom asks them if they will let me give it a shot. The goal is to open the gate which is latched in an awkward unique way. I examine the gate for a moment then open it. Mom smiles and enjoys seeing me be able to solve the minor puzzle. As we walk away mom looks back and sees the two gents still baffled and unable to open the gate. Honestly, I didn't find it difficult and I doubt any of you would.
Ripley's Believe It Or Not London, Mystery Gate
Of course while we are in London we make our way to The London Eye. I suspect any visit to London, even England as a whole, has an unspoken rule requiring a visit to The London Eye. Much like Stonehenge I am not going to go into too much detail It is a fancy, large ferris wheel in the heart of London where you get to have a great, open view over the city. For the most part every major city has a similar experience available such as the Seattle Great Wheel or tall towers such as Reunion Tower in Dallas, Texas. One cool tidbit about the London Eye is that it overlooks River Thames and Big Ben.
The time in London is something that I will never forget, never regret and one of the few times if not the only time I will ever be thankful that I got ill beginning this adventure. If I hadn't caught whatever illness it was on the plane I would probably have ran around London by myself. Which means I wouldn't have had such a great time that I was able to share with my mother. I think the only thing I would change about the trip is have flown mom over to begin with and purchased two first class tickets as opposed to just the one.
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