I awoke to seagulls again, this time knowing full well where I was. I got up and pulled the curtains aside, letting my body wake completely. It was 8:35 am as I got dressed and went downstairs for my Full English Breakfast. I sat eating and observing everyone around me. There were some who sounded like they were there for the weekend, others for vacation from afar. So many people gathered in one place. I wondered how much of that I could find where I lived. Had it been that way and I just never noticed? I let the thoughts of home disperse from my mind as I drank my tea. I was on vacation and I needed to enjoy it more. Thinking about home and the work that awaited me would only get me depressed. Of course, if I didn't have my job I wouldn't have been able to travel here, I reminded myself. Still, it was as I told myself. If I thought about anything other than being in that moment, I wouldn't enjoy everything I could. I finished my breakfast and went back to my room. I had to check out that morning by 11 am, but there were still some things I wanted to do. I slung my writers bag over my shoulder and headed into the city. It was a little chilly that morning and I had my jacket on. As I passed two young women, I noticed that they had short skirts on. And here I am shivering, I shook my head. I went around, taking more pictures at the Circus, the Victoria Gardens, Royal Crescent, and anywhere else I could. I looked around me, admiring the beauty that lay before me. Sure, there were historic buildings back home, but I realized that I never appreciated them. It was funny at how much I paid attention to when I was going to leave. It looked at the watch on my wrist and saw that it was time to check out. I headed back to The Royal Hotel, collected all of my belongings, double checked that I wasn't leaving anything, went downstairs and signed out. What should I take? I had come to Bath Spa on the bus, but some of the staff the night before had told me to try the train. I went across the way and looked at the times. It was 11:12 and there was still some time before the arrival of the train to London. Well then what would I do? A memory of the night before flashed through my mind: I would take sweets on the train, if I were to go, Zoe had told me. You should try a Crunchie and a Double Decker. Bounty is good, too. And what are those? I asked. Well, a Crunchie is, well, a Crunchie. That wasn't too helpful. Sorry, I don't really know how to describe it. They are chocolate covered though. Then her eyes lit up. Oh! What you need to get, more than anything else, are Bonbons! Bon? Bons? Yes, they are absolutely delicious! Oh, I love bonbons. Especially coconut bonbons, blue raspberry bonbons, cherry bonbons, oh look at me, I could go on for days! Anyway, a bonbon is a filled candy dipped in chocolate. Sometimes flavored sugar is added to the outside. I was amused at her enthusiasm towards the sweet. Bon is also the French word for Good, Zoe had continued. It also refers to candy in general and I do think bonbons are doubly good! I will look into it, I assured her. I explored some of the shops I had passed by during my two days here. I found a Crunchie, Double Decker, and Bounty at a convenience store. I looked in some sweet shops and couldn't find the number one item I was told to buy. Bonbons seemed rare. I should have asked her where to go. With luck, I came across The Bath Sweet Shop on my way back to the train station. They had American candy bars, but the back wall was filled with shelves of glass jars, round sugary bonbons crowding the space. There were so many flavors to choose from. Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Brown, Purple, my mind was overwhelmed by the presentation. Being my first time, I decided to go light and bought a bag of Blue Raspberry, Cherry, and Chocolate. I looked back at my watch as the man behind the counter bagged my candy. I hadn't realized how much time I had spent looking for the sweets. I was about to miss the train! The man handed me the bag, I paid and rushed out. I arrived at the station, bought my ticket for London, and headed up the stairs to the Platform 2. Not even seconds later at 11: 43, the train rolled in and I stepped on board. After putting my luggage in a storage corner, I found a seat, my back towards my destination. The train pulled from the station and I brought out some of the snacks I had bought. As the green of the countryside sped passed my window, I tried everything I could and wrote down what they were like since Zoe hadn't been able to give me an answer: Crunchie - A honeycomb like bar covered in chocolate. Double Decker - Chocolate bar with fluffy chocolate (think Musketeer fluffy) on the bottom and crunchy wafer spheres on the top. Bounty - Almond Joy under a different name. I ate the candy, thinking back to the joy I had experienced the past few days. I had made it to a land which I had only dreamed of. I got lost, was helped, had tasted new food, and had become acquainted with some of the culture. I was living my dream and it had only just begun. The biggest part of my adventure awaited. London! I looked at the map of where I would need to leave the train. We came up on Reading (pronounced "Redding") by 12:47 pm and to my destination Paddington at 1:31. I gathered my bag and exited onto the platform. The station was huge with a curved ceiling towering over me and crowds of people speed walking through. Trains were coming and going and I was lost in it all. Then I realized that I really was lost. Again! I had to ask a few people who passed by, where the Tube was. I found a window that would give me a ticket to enter. During my research however, I had found that something called an Oyster card was a good thing to have. The website www.londontravelwatch.org.uk, told me that an Oyster Card was a smartcard that would help me travel around London. Of the two types, a season ticket or Pay As You Go, I got the latter. It was a £5 deposit to receive a card and I loaded twenty more for my first travel. Not wanting to hold up the line, I walked away and stood in a corner, observing people going through the gates. The ones with Oyster Cards scanned it to a surface and went through. That easy, huh? I moved forward and placed my card on the surface. The gate didn't budge. Seeing my trouble, the people behind me dispersed to other gates, not wanting to be held up. Burning with embarrassment, I tried again. I got the green light and headed through. It's just not my day. I traveled through a tunnel out to a large area. It looked like an old industrial tunnel, a curved roof covering half of it, open sky for the other half. Tracked separated the two platforms on either side, a walkway overhead. At one end, two buildings seemed to rise above, creating an open window to the outside world. If I went up to that walkway, I bet I could see beyond, I debated. I knew I didn't have time, though, as I heard my approaching train. I stepped forward with everyone else as the front light came into sight. I covered my ears as soon as the shriek of the brakes echoed off the walls. My god was it loud! I felt my brain wanting to shut down in protest. Finally, it stopped and the doors opened. I shook my head of the dizziness I felt and boarded. There wasn't anywhere to sit. I stood in the corner with my suitcase and people watched. There were a few people talking to each other, but for the most part, everyone was avoiding eye contact. It was a quiet ride as I observed people leave and board. At 1:45, my stop was called. I excused myself through the crowd to the doors that would open and left with a few others. The platform was encased as a tunnel. I had the feeling that I was underground. Following the crowd, I came to a large door and stood with them. The door opened after a minute to reveal a nice sizable elevator. We got on and it slowly took us all the way up to the surface world. Everyone spilled out, heading in a hurry to where they needed to be while I leisurely walked out onto the street. I was frozen in astonishment as I looked at the towering buildings around me. Back home, I lived near Chicago, a tall city as well, but I had never really visited it often. This was starting to feel more of a challenge than I had expected. I checked my map and found that my hotel was across the street. I stood at the corner, waiting for the light to change. Before the sign allowed me to walk, the crowd started forward. What the!? A second later, the walk sign lit up. I walked over with them, unsure of what had just happened. Momma had always taught me to wait for the go. This was a new thing. Weren't people afraid of getting run over? I reached the other side safely and turned left towards the row of hotels that lined the street. I reached my hotel, The Cromwell (Best Western). The lobby was clean, with chairs over by a bay window, the bar stretching around the corner. "Can I help you?" a woman asked from the reception counter. "Yeah, I had a reservation." I handed her my sheet I had printed out before the trip. She typed the information in and then gave a worried expression. "I'm sorry, sir," she said. "I'm afraid we've given your room to someone else." I was certainly surprised at this new information. I had never heard of this happening before. It also seemed pretty rude to me. "Okay," I tried to remain calm. "What does this mean for me?" She typed more things and then looked relieved. "I can put you in another room. It's in the basement, but it is bigger." Except that I never saw the other room, so I don't know if it is or not, I thought. Still, I didn't want to try an find another hotel. I agreed and she took me through double glass doors to an elevator. We went down one floor, straight forward a few feet and to the first door around the right corner. She inserted the key card and opened the door. It was pitch black, but my guide inserted the card into a device on the wall in the entry hallway. The room lit up instantly. "This will activate the lights when you come in, but you'll need to keep the card in the slot," the woman instructed me. "You have your bed, the desk, a full length mirror, this over here is your closet..." I admired the room. It was spacey, but smaller than the hotel rooms I was used to back in America. I looked into the bathroom. "Um...what is this?" I asked pointing to a metal rung by the toilet. "That is your towel warmer," she told me. "It will help them dry faster and stay cozy when you need to use them." That sounded useful. My guide finished by letting me know that she was sorry about the mix up and if I needed anything, I would just need to call the front desk. I thanked her and saw her out. The door clicked shut and I turned to my new dwellings. Being the mature adult that I was, I ran straight to the bed and leapt onto it. In a scene that would be from a comedy, I had forgotten that my rough, full suitcase was on the top. I collided into it, toppling back to hit the wall. "That had gone very differently in my head," I muttered as I got up. Aware of where things were, I fell back onto the bed and just laid there. I closed my eyes and listened. The city was loudly passing by out my window, the wheels on the pavement, which were buses and which were cars. I smelled the clean sheets of the bed and felt the soft pillow underneath my head. I opened my eyes and stood, realizing that I had forgotten to check for anything wrong with the room. I went through the checklist I had looked up online and found the room to be in perfect condition. With my mind at ease, I went into the bathroom to look more closely at the facilities. I stood at the toilet, checking the basics of its functions just in case I had to do any quick maintenance and felt a new sensation from my body. It was like nothing I had ever felt in a bathroom before. I looked down to realize that my leg was against the fully functional bare towel warmer. "My god, that's hot!" I jumped back, patting my leg. There was a red line forming just below my shorts where it had touched my skin. Note to self, avoid the metal at all costs. I cursed the towel warmer and walked back to the bed. I organized things, collected my writers bag, and headed out. Forgetting which way I had come from, I turned right (from facing the door) and started walking. I turned a corner and found another row of doors. I walked down the hallway and turned the corner again. Another row. NO! I screamed in my head. I cannot get lost in my own hotel. What is wrong with me? This will not happen! A half an hour later, I exited the maze into the front lobby. "How are you, sir?" the woman from earlier asked. "Fine, I'm fine," I felt a little too eager in my answer. "I'm glad, sorry about the room again." I nodded and left, not wanting to break down and ask for a map of the hotels halls, which I was certain they didn't have. I went back across the street to the station I had arrived from, called Gloucester Tube Station. My Oyster Card worked perfectly this time and I was on my way to Abbey Road. While I was a fan of the Beatles, a friends of mine was a fanatic and said, "You have to go there, no questions, just get me as close as you can with pictures!" So, I walked down from the Tube exit and started taking pictures of the area. Up ahead, I noticed a large crowd holding up traffic. That's the spot, I headed over. Sure enough, people were going across in fours, shoes optional, and pausing while a friend stood in the middle of the street and snapped a picture. Cars honked loudly to deaf ears. I snapped a picture of my own of the iconic crosswalk and surrounding area. What should I do after this? I snapped a picture of the studio itself. True, I had come to this location from the Tube, but I didn't quite understand it. Traveling around London on it would probably get me accustomed and it would be a breeze from then on out. I headed to the closest one and hopped on. It was fascinating seeing women put on makeup as the cars jolted back and forth. Strollers made their way onto the floor, groups of teens joined us and hung out near the doors. I decided to get off the Tube at Westminster and walked out into the daylight to find Parliament looming over me. Big Ben, housed in the tower, named Elizabeth Tower (or Big Beth as I heard it from some), helped mark the location. Even with my neck cranked back and standing across the street, I could barely take in the vast building. They don't do anything half way apparently. I turned right and went around the corner, coming to a long stretch of street. As I followed it, I came across protesters, beggars, tourists, soldiers on horses, and up ahead a tall pillar hoisting up a statue. I looked at the map to discover that I was in Trafalgar Square. I wanted to go all touristy, but hunger started to get the better of me. I popped into the first place on my right, a place called The Silver Cross pub. It was a dimly lit place, seeming to go for mood. I went around the banister and and up to the counter. "Excuse me," I got the bartenders attention. "This is my first time in England and I'm not exactly sure how to order. Do I talk to you or...?" "Yeah, just order up here and we'll bring it out to you," she said as she handed me a menu. As I checked the menu, I peeked over the top to look around. The pub had a low ceiling and alcoves with tables embedded in them, the lighting above them was intimate. People were drinking and laughing away while I, a stranger, stood awkwardly at the counter. "Figured what you want?" the bartender asked me. "Um...I'll have the fish n' chips, I guess." "Mush with it?" "Excuse me, what?" "Mushy peas?" That sounded interesting, but I asked if I could just go with peas. "Of course, find a spot and we'll bring it out to you." I sat at the closest table and reviewed with my travel companion Rick Steves London guide. I found that some places didn't ask for tips from a meal, but I was told to ask just in case. "What's your policy on tipping?" I followed my guide as the food was brought out. "Oh, you're from America?" I couldn't tell if that was because of my voice or because of my question. "No tipping," the server told me. "They pay us well here." I didn't know if that was an insult, but I figured it didn't matter as I ate my dinner. I looked around again and started to realize how lonely I felt. Sure, I was traveling a new place and interacting with some new people, but no one I could go out and have a drink with. I wanted to be able to just text my friends back home, but I knew my phone wouldn't work and calling from the hotel was expensive. E-mail and Facebook were the only options I could think of, but it wouldn't have the same effect. I finished my food around 6:54 pm and decided to head back to my hotel. From Westminster, I rode the Tube back to Gloucester/Cromwell and found that I had just missed the elevator to the top. As I waited for it to make its journey to the surface world, I noticed a few people kept passing me and disappearing around the corner. I heard shoe against concrete fade upwards. Curious, I peeked around after them and found a stairwell up to the station. Convenient, I approached the steps. As my foot hit the first one, I glanced over to see a sign that read: This stairway has 87 steps. Do not use except in an emergency. My goodie-two shoes personality kicked in for a second, but then I figured missing the elevator constituted an emergency. I started to follow others up the stairs, keeping with their pace. Twenty-seven steps later, I was wheezing and had to stop. Oh, yeah, I'm still fat, I reminded myself. I struggled the rest of the way and finally trudged out onto the street. I made it to my hotel and showered before collapsing into bed. True to my word, I pulled out the Ipad and e-mailed everyone I could. As I sat, waiting for a reply, I had to admit to myself that London was exciting, but a bit scary. There were so many things to discover and so many ways my trip could go wrong. I knew that Bath had been a good choice to get used to some of the culture. London would have ripped me to shreds if I had been there first. I signed off the Ipad and took out a pen and notebook from my writers bag. I made a plan for the next day, hoping that it would ease my worries. Finished, I turned off the lights and lay back in bed. The cars and buses were still passing, people were walking, and the sounds of London sent me to sleep. To be continued... Music for the Journey Pt. 4:
Waking on the Last Day in Bath Spa/Breakfast: こういう気持ちを何て言ったかな (Kouiu Kimochi wo Nante Itta Kana) by 横山克 (Your Lie in April - ORIGINAL SONG & SOUNDTRACK [Disc 1]) Last Minute Pictures: Suite for Solo Cello No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007: I. Prélude by Yo-Yo Ma (Bach: Cello Suites Nos. 1, 5 & 6) Robert's Sermon by Clive Carroll & John Renbourn (Driving Lessons - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Ohayou Gozaimasu! by Yokoyama Masaru, Tsutsumi Hiroaki (Yuusha ni Narenakatta Ore wa Shibushibu Shuushoku o Ketsui Shimashita. Vol.4 Special CD) The Bath Sweet Shop: Yasumi Jikan by Kawada Ruka (Kiniro Mosaic Sound Book - Itsumade mo Issho da yo) Traveling by Train to London/Arrival: Evacuating London by Harry Gregson-Williams (The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (Soundtrack from the Motion Picture)) Haikei, Alice desu. ~ Sound Diary "Alice no Tegami" Yori by Kawada Ruka (Hello!! Kiniro Mosaic Sound Book: Mata, Aeta ne.) Traveling the Tube: Duty of love by Hashimoto Yukari (Toradora! Original Soundtrack) The Hotel Maze: "Hito" Toiu Ji wa Hito to Hito ga by Mori Yuuya (Seitokai Yakuindomo Bleep Original Soundtrack) To Abbey Road: Here Comes the Sun by The Beatles (Abbey Road) Come Together by The Beatles (Abbey Road) Exploring London: Shibushibu Shuushoku Shita Mainichi by Yokoyama Masaru, Tsutsumi Hiroaki (Yuusha ni Narenakatta Ore wa Shibushibu Shuushoku o Ketsui Shimashita. Vol.2 Special CD) Up the Stairs: Okashi na Yousu by Nakanishi Ryousuke (Saikin, Imouto no Yousu ga Chotto Okashiinda ga. Original Soundtrack) Bedtime: Sono me ni Utsuru Mono by Yokoyama Masaru (kimikiss pure rouge Original Soundtrack) End Pt. 4: I Am the Walrus by The Beatles (The Beatles 1967–1970 (The Blue Album))
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Philip M. WardenI like to write and I like to travel. Why not put both together? Archives
June 2016
Categories |
Warden's World
Warden's World Travels
Proudly powered by Weebly
COPYRIGHT © 2016 WARDENSWORLD.COM ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED.
REPRODUCTION IN WHOLE OR IN PART WITHOUT PERMISSION IS PROHIBITED.