November 2016

London, England

A 9-day adventure by Destination Unknown Read more

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Trip start
November 6, 2016
Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 1
- Sunday, November 6, 2016 at 2:00 PM
- ⛅ 54 °F
- Altitude: 112 ft
- United States East Meadow 40.72724, -73.5541140°43’38” N 73°33’15” W
Counting Down the Final Hours
November 6, 2016 in the United States ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F
Today's the day! We're leaving for London tonight! I'm at work today, even though I should be off, but I'm leaving at 3:00pm, just to give us a bit more time to get ready to get to the airport. I can't wait to go! London, baby!Read more
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 1
- Sunday, November 6, 2016 at 7:41 PM
- 🌙 48 °F
- Altitude: 56 ft
- United States John F. Kennedy International Airport 40.64404, -73.7824440°38’39” N 73°46’57” W
Waiting....
November 6, 2016 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 48 °F
Joe picked us up at 6:30 and dropped us off at JFK airport, terminal 4, the Delta Airlines terminal. Check in was very easy with no line at all. I was lucky enough to get TSA Pre check, which surprised me. Kathy didn't get it and had to go through the regular security checkpoints. I was through security fast and was shocked that Kathy got through nearly as fast as I did. Apparently, she didn't have any line either. I had wanted to get here early because I've seen reports on TV of people waiting on those security lines for hours. I was so afraid that would happen to us, but we just breezed right through. Right now we're waiting at our gate, B32. Boarding begins at 9:30 tonight. I hope the time passes quickly!Read more
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 1
- Sunday, November 6, 2016 at 8:07 PM
- 🌙 46 °F
- Altitude: 56 ft
- United States John F. Kennedy International Airport 40.64404, -73.7824440°38’39” N 73°46’57” W
Where is Everyone?
November 6, 2016 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 46 °F
We're still here at JFK waiting to go. I guess we got here at the airport a bit too early. It feels like we've been waiting forever! Still, I'd rather be too early than running late!
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 1
- Sunday, November 6, 2016 at 8:41 PM
- 🌙 46 °F
- Altitude: 56 ft
- United States John F. Kennedy International Airport 40.64404, -73.7824440°38’39” N 73°46’57” W
We're Ready to Go!
November 6, 2016 in the United States ⋅ 🌙 46 °F
It was a long wait, but we're on the plane and ready to go. Lots of people are still boarding so it's kind of crazy in here right now. Lots of jostling and people bumping things into each other. I'm glad we among the first people to get in for our section so we didn't have to deal with that too much. It's never fun.
Speaking of things that aren't fun, seated in our row, right across from us, is a little baby. Hopefully they will be quiet all night and not be crying all the time. Kathy and I are tired and would just like to sleep. The parents of the baby keep asking the flight attendant to move them to other seats. They want to be upgraded but don't want to pay the price for it. That's not right. I'm sure everyone wants to be moved to the first class area. Why should those people get it for free? I'm happy that the flight attendant refused to move them. It just wouldn't be fair to everyone else.
Starting to feel sleepy now but when we wake up tomorrow we'll be in London! We're so excited!Read more
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 1
- Sunday, November 6, 2016 at 11:55 PM
- ⛅ 30 °F
- Altitude: 902 ft
- Canada Bonne-Espérance 50.26033, -57.2529250°15’37” N 57°15’11” W
Meal Time
November 6, 2016 in Canada ⋅ ⛅ 30 °F
I'm currently up in the air, around 675 miles out from New York. The flight map is showing us as being somewhere off the coast of northern Canada. We were just served dinner, even though is a little past midnight. Kathy didn't get anything to eat because she was sleeping. I wish I was already asleep too because the food was horrific!
We were given a choice of vegetable lasagna, cold chicken salad or hot chicken with couscous. I went with the hot chicken and found it to be inedible. It's really saying something when my favorite part of the meal was the salad! I don't know if we're going to get another meal on this flight. I'm almost afraid to find out!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 4:40 AM
- Altitude: Sea level
- North Atlantic Ocean 58.37558, -38.6757758°22’32” N 38°40’33” W
Up in the Air
November 7, 2016, North Atlantic Ocean
We're in the air! I'm feeling so excited! Every minute takes me closer to London! My seat, after sitting in it for so long, is not very comfortable anymore. I really hope that we get there soon!
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 8:09 AM
- Altitude: Sea level
- North Atlantic Ocean 56.52206, -16.2520956°31’19” N 16°15’8” W
I Can't Sleep
November 7, 2016, North Atlantic Ocean
This flight feels like it's never going to end. Kathy is lucky that she's able to sleep while we're flying but sleeping on a plane is always very difficult for me. I can never seem to get comfortable enough or relaxed enough to fall asleep. At least I'm in the aisle seat so I don't have to wake Kathy up if I need to use the bathroom. I really hope that we get to London soon!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 9:27 AM
- ☀️ 41 °F
- Altitude: 253 ft
- England Pangbourne 51.48636, -1.1039151°29’11” N 1°6’14” W
Mapping it Out
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ☀️ 41 °F
I must say that I really like the personal video screens that each seat has. You can watch movies and television shows, play games, listen to music or get very detailed flight information and a map showing where you are. If I wasn't so tired, I'd watch some movies. They even have new releases like Star Trek Beyond, X-Men Apocalypse, The Secret Life of Pets and lots more. I'm surprised that they have such a big selection of Chinese movies available and even the American films have a version with Chinese subtitles. I'm guessing this plane's normal route is flying to Asia rather than Europe. Did I mention that all these entertainment options are free? Delta's customer service is really doing a great job. I'm impressed!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 3:05 PM
- ⛅ 45 °F
- Altitude: 59 ft
- England London 51.49937, -0.3142351°29’58” N 0°18’51” W
Mind the Gap
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 45 °F
We're in London! Right now we're on the Underground which, like the New York City subway system, doesn't always go underground. We're riding from Heathrow Airport to our hotel in Leicester Square. I keep hearing announcements to mind the gap and I can really see why! As seen here, the gap might be as space or a step, sometimes really to the extreme. I feel bad for anyone who's blind or in a wheelchair and needs to ride the London underground. I'll be watching my step while I'm riding!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 3:50 PM
- ⛅ 45 °F
- Altitude: 115 ft
- England Trafalgar Square 51.50988, -0.1297751°30’36” N 0°7’47” W
We Made It!
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 45 °F
Riding on the underground was fun but after traveling for so long on both a plane and now a train, we're so happy to finally have made it to our hotel here in Leicester Square. We'll be staying at the Radisson for the next several days. This place looks so impressive from the outside. I hope it's just as nice inside!Read more
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 4:05 PM
- ⛅ 45 °F
- Altitude: 115 ft
- England Trafalgar Square 51.50987, -0.1297751°30’36” N 0°7’47” W
In Our Room
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 45 °F
We made it to our hotel with no problems at all. We're staying at the Radisson Blu Edwardian Hampshire Hotel, located in the center of Leicester Square. It's only about two minutes away from the underground station so we'll have no trouble getting to anywhere we want to go.
As grand as this hotel looked from the outside, it seemed so tiny and cramped inside. From looking at this photo, you wouldn't think that this is a 5 star luxury hotel. I guess the standards of Europe and America are quite different. We were so happy to be in London that we didn't even really care. We weren't planning to be in the room very much anyway. We had so much sightseeing to do!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 4:09 PM
- ⛅ 45 °F
- Altitude: 115 ft
- England Trafalgar Square 51.50987, -0.1297751°30’36” N 0°7’47” W
Small but Homey
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 45 °F
Here's a view from the other side of the room. I'm laying on the bed, looking out over the rest of the room. Yes, it's very small but it's going to be home for the next several days.
The first thing we did was got our phones working on the British cellphone system. We're using a company here called Giffgaff and it was a bit confusing to set up at first but we caught on quickly.
While the phones were being set up we had a short rest and then decided to go out and get some lunch. We hardly ate anything on the plane and both of us were starving! As we were walking to the hotel we saw so many restaurants around us. There's no way we'll be going hungry here!Read more
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 4:12 PM
- ⛅ 45 °F
- Altitude: 115 ft
- England Trafalgar Square 51.50987, -0.1297751°30’36” N 0°7’47” W
A Room with a View
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 45 °F
Our hotel room only had one window, which was kind of small, and this is the view that we had. Quite uninspiring but I guess it could be a lot worse. At least it wasn't something like a brick wall right up next to us! I'm always hoping for a room with a great view but I guess we didn't get it this time.Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 4:24 PM
- ⛅ 43 °F
- Altitude: 112 ft
- England Trafalgar Square 51.50993, -0.1293451°30’36” N 0°7’46” W
Looking for Lunch
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 43 °F
This fish and chips place was right next door to our hotel and almost became our first meal in London. Kathy wasn't really in the mood for fish though so we went to Garfunkel's, right next door to this restaurant. We never did end up eating here, but I found no shortage of Chippys, as the fish and chips restaurants are known in London. That was my go-to meal for this trip!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 4:50 PM
- ⛅ 43 °F
- Altitude: 112 ft
- England Trafalgar Square 51.50992, -0.1293751°30’36” N 0°7’46” W
Garfunkel's Fare
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ ⛅ 43 °F
After checking into the hotel, and a brief rest to catch our breath, we were feeling hungry so we decided to go out and get something to eat. Leicester Square had no shortage of restaurants, many just footsteps from our hotel. Rather then going somewhere that we could also go at home, like a TGI Fridays or Pizza Hut, we went to a local place, Garfunkel's, right next door to our hotel.
Although we hadn't eaten breakfast yet, it was time for lunch according to what the local time was in London. I was able to get myself authentic British fish and chips and it tasted amazing! So much better than what we have in the US. I was definitely going to be eating this a lot while we're here! Kathy got herself a meat pie, which was pretty much what we would call a pot pie here. She liked her choice too. We certainly weren't going to go hungry in London!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:10 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 144 ft
- England China Town 51.51067, -0.1312951°30’38” N 0°7’53” W
M&M's World
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
The rest of our first night in London was spent wandering around the city and enjoying feeling that we finally made it here. There is so much to see and do in Leicester Square! It's sort of like the British equivalent of Times Square in New York. I'm really glad that we're staying right in the center of every thing.Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:15 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 131 ft
- England China Town 51.51114, -0.131751°30’40” N 0°7’54” W
Welcome to Chinatown
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
The first area that we came to was Chinatown. I'm glad that this neighborhood was so close to our hotel because I know that Kathy likes to eat in the Chinatown of what ever city we visit.
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:18 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 131 ft
- England China Town 51.51114, -0.131751°30’40” N 0°7’54” W
Waxy's Little Sister
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
A lot of the restaurants here in England have very unusual, but catchy, names. This one, in Chinatown, is called Waxy's Little Sister. Who is Waxy? Why did his little sister get her own restaurant? I hope that we have a chance to eat here. It looks like a nice place!Read more
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Destination Unknown London, England
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:25 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 135 ft
- England China Town 51.51121, -0.1314151°30’40” N 0°7’53” W
Chinatown Streets
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
Most of the Chinatowns I've been to seem very similar but this one in London felt very different. The streets were wide and uncrowded and everything was so clean. I really like it here!
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:26 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 105 ft
- England China Town 51.51151, -0.1308151°30’41” N 0°7’51” W
At Hong Kong Buffet
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
I really like how colorful London's Chinatown is. It really gives this neighborhood a very exciting and festive feel. We're seeing so many restaurants around here that we're thinking of coming back to try. Unfortunately, we're not going to be here long enough to eat everywhere that we want to. It's going to be hard to narrow down our final selections.Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:32 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 108 ft
- England China Town 51.51152, -0.1306851°30’41” N 0°7’50” W
Fresh Fruits
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
The ubiquitous fruit and vegetable markets, a staple of every Chinatown, are present throughout the London version as well. Just like everywhere else, every thing seems to be reasonably priced and very fresh. If we get a craving for some fruit, we know exactly where to go!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:34 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 118 ft
- England China Town 51.51177, -0.1296851°30’42” N 0°7’47” W
Walking the Streets
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
I'm still amazed by how empty the streets are in Chinatown. You would think it's like 2 or 3 in the morning but it's just past 7:30. Do people in London go to sleep so early? Doesn't anyone go out for dinner anymore?Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7:45 PM
- 🌙 39 °F
- Altitude: 118 ft
- England China Town 51.51177, -0.1296851°30’42” N 0°7’47” W
Ku Bar
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 39 °F
We never go to bars, or even drink, but sometimes I see a bar that looks very interesting from a photography standpoint. This is Ku Bar, an award winning gay bar in Chinatown. I'm not sure what sort of awards a bar, gay or otherwise, might win but the sign out front proclaimed that that place is a winner. I really like the lighting and architecture of this place. This must be a popular place because it's quite busy!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 8:02 PM
- 🌙 37 °F
- Altitude: 108 ft
- England China Town 51.51192, -0.1294551°30’43” N 0°7’46” W
Going Shopping
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 37 °F
I really love how colorful everything looks, even during the evening. The architecture is fantastic also. All the buildings in this neighborhood look so old fashioned. We've never seen anything like this in New York's Chinatown!Read more
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- Day 2
- Monday, November 7, 2016 at 8:05 PM
- 🌙 37 °F
- Altitude: 105 ft
- England China Town 51.51176, -0.1294951°30’42” N 0°7’46” W
Red is Lucky
November 7, 2016 in England ⋅ 🌙 37 °F
Like in every Chinatown, much of the architecture is done in a predominantly red color, since that's considered the most lucky color by the Chinese. Kathy doesn't really believe in that and wears clothing in all different colors. Her mom definitely prefers red though.Read more
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