![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Okay since our busy-ness is catching up with us, this is going to be a quick recap of yesterday and the night before. Numbered, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
amand_r-style!
1. Once we discovered no luggage, and figured out that the people in front of us in Hamburg who had put in that they had 4 bags and only turned in 2 so the British Airways worker thought our bags were their's, and filled out the appropriate claim forms, sigh, we took our little overnight rescue kits and headed for our hotel. Our first impression after getting off the train was one of crazy hustle and bustle, a gazillion taxis zooming about, people walking and talking and I mean people of all sorts of nationalities and colors, striding about, seemingly in fine moods. Lots of trees, an immediate impression of cool buildings, houses smashed together as city houses are (and not at all like in Texas so to my eyes? Very cool, very different. Noisy and colorful and exciting...
[Bad username or site: the saga of life with no luggage continues @ livejournal.com]
WE WERE IN LONDON AT LAST!!!!
WITH NO LUGGAGE!
2. Nick, excellent navigator that he is, got us to our hotel the Royal Lancaster. Excellent! We got...um...room 1313 on the 13th floor. LOL. After talking with the ever-helpful concierge, we knew how to get to the Adelphi theatre, complete with map and whatnot. The London underground is an experience, just for the tightness of the tunnels and the busy-ness, the quick but not frantic pace. The underground is an alien world to me (not so much maybe to Nick) but I loved the flavor of it, the decidedly old brickwork, tunnels, arches, the general dirtiness which comes with things of a great age.
We snagged our tickets after speaking with a super-helpful ticket guy (and, I swear, every single Londoner was awesome, interested in helping us--which we both LOVED!) we hopped on board and took off.
It didn't take long for us to get the hang of the tunnels, directions, etc. Nick of course is used to dealing with trains and such but I am not--except for the times I've been with him.
We zoomed to our station we had to get off on, then hopped onto the Covent Garden tube, and got out to a fascinatingly vibrant area of London. Being a Friday night (and Nick operating on no sleep due to the desocking and me, much to my relief, on my five hours I snagged so that despite the time change it was me, not Nick, who was the perky one) we headed with tickets in hand for the Adelphi to see Derren Brown.
Because we were sworn to absolute secrecy which forbids us to share any detail about the show, other than we loved it (though it had one part that slowed down a bit, and beer and tiredness got to us both) it was great fun. Brown is a definite showman, having the time of his life out there. The crowd? Rambunctious, enthusiastic, and without doubt, sold out. Next to us with a seat between us were a really funny couple--the girl reminded Nick of Claire so that meant she was great fun and...okay she was pretty loud but she was also really cute. LOL. Her boyfriend too was funny. Then this reeaaalllly big guy came and smashed himself inbetween us. He was very nice, no one would go with him to see the show so he bought a single ticket. These were tiny seats, so he wasn't too comfy I think, and...very warm. LOL!! Nice guy though and it was loads of fun.
Intermission--everyone bought ice cream. (notice I fail at writing short like amand_r).
ANYWAY! Show over! We were stunned with his brilliance at show's end, as he knew we would be! I sure hope that girl who unknowingly drank the vinegar wasn't sick later...
3. We had a blast, and walking back through this part of London? We loved it. The vibes were so good, there was no sense of imminent danger (like in San Francisco) nor fear that my purse would be lifted, Nick's wallet snatched. No fear, no fear or worry at all. It felt GOOD in London. Hope we weren't being naive, but we were loving it, and wished, wished mightily, we had more time.
We could not return the way we'd come as it was Friday night and each train that showed up was PACKED and I mean it, those people? They PACKED themselves inside! No way! Nick whipped it out I mean whipped his map out again, and figured out an alternate route. I tell ya, if you ever need a navigator on a trip, hire Nick. Srsly. He is excellent at it. Finally, he got us back to the hotel. We were dead by then, starved too--no food. None. There were cookies in the room at least...
London--we will be back to see you again.
Oh, and got back to the hotel--no luggage.
4. We slept fiercely well that night. FIERCELY! So FIERCELY well that we, uh, forgot to set our alarms...and overslept the next day until 10:30.
No luggage, no breakfast. Oh, and the night before? No time for dinner either!
5. We checked out, and still needing a map on how to get to Cardiff (seriously, we failed in this area--srsly failed) we decided, since we didn't have our luggage, and yes we still had the same clothes on, eek, we decided to walk along Oxford Street to find a bookstore the conceirge recommended to us.
So, our backs slightly aching for some reason(?) we headed down Oxford and were soon finding ourselves smiling and enjoying ourselves, the return of the fast pace, the hustle and bustle as people headed to their own appointments, or shopping as we were very much in the shoppy district. Vendors were handing out tea samples (TEA! I MISS YOU SO, COLD ICE TEA!) and we once again were surrounded by people from all over, all ages, a real mixing-pot of races, cultures, languages. Not what we expected, honestly. We kinda failed at finding the bookstore and just decided to head back to the airport, but we were glad we took the walk.
Oh, we saw a wedding in Hyde Park--carriages! Prancy horses! MONEY! LOL. We also realized a Gay Pride march was happening when police started to put barricades up. Dang it, we missed that! We really had to go! We were sad!
We took a dive back down to the tube and this area? AWESOME OLD! Just...character character character, just wanted to film it, remember it, reexperience it later. We had to wait for the traintubething we needed and sat down on a bench, ended up talking to a lovely (and I really mean, lovely) black woman with an undefined accent. (So many accents, so much cool). We talked with strangers ALOT! Normal for me, not so much for Nick, but I think he can't claim the "I'm Shy" mantel any longer. It is over, baby--you are not shy. You are AWESOME!
We had to hop on then, and head back for Heathrow to get the car (I was getting pretty nervous by then, you know). We ended back at the main train station (or whatever it is called--it is hard not to think of things like we're in Germany) and we grabbed a Starbucks because remember, no food since our bagel the day before. At lunch.
That is when Nick discovered something. He'd, uh, thrown away the return tickets we'd bought.
Thankfully, the gentleman who was to check our tickets was the one we talked to about it, and he could tell by the ol' deer-in-the-headlights look we had that yes, we really weren't fibbing. He let us anyway, but had a bit of fun teasing us about it. LOL. We didn't care, we were grateful!
See, that is the way Londoners are. They are NICE! Every single person we encountered was like this. NICE! Is that not awesome?
For me, this was especially wonderful. I love going to Germany. LOVE LOVE LOVE Berlin, really like Hamburg a lot, and Kiel? Well, Nick is there so I can deal with it. But this was so wonderful for us both, to be in another country where though we were facing differences that neither of us had encountered, were in a place where it was absolutely okay to ask questions, our questions were cheerfully answered, every person was just so NICE!
From the train guy to later that day, the people at Heathrow who took us through security and tried to help, again, with finding our freaking luggage (which, yes, had indeed been sent to Phoenix, AZ!), to the girl at Pizza Hut in Cardiff with whom we enjoyed talking about tipping differences between the three countries, to our amazing, wonderful hosts Paul and lol especially Stuart, who is ADORABLE! the people of London and of Wales who we have talked to and dealt with have been phenomenal.
We've both had to train our ears a bit to get used to the variety of accents--it is very clear there are differences. I can understand Stuart a little more easily than Nick...in fact there are some accents I can handle more easily, others that neither of us have a problem with. And if we don't understand? We can ask, and the person addressing us cheerfully repeats themselves. No snarls, no fuss, no growls. I'm used to that to a degree as Texans are generally like this, but honestly, no other place we've been together, US or Germany, has been as friendly and NICE!
We are quickly falling for this place, for the people, and for many other reasons are feeling very, very glad we decided to come on this trip.
Driving here? A little scary. LOVE the car, diesel-fueled Skoda. it is comfortable, very very comfortable, and nope, I have not wrecked it at all. Driving on the left-hand side is weird at first, but with Nick's help (seriously) it is getting easier. It is kind of taking both of us to do this--him to navigate with maps in hand and trying to figure out street names--TRYING because the darn Welsh do not believe in street names! Or maybe all of the UK, I do not know! But...there are some street signs...and mostly none! But little by little, I'm getting the hang of it. Taking it slow and easy, and following others helps. Learning all the different road signs, and the paths the cars have to take? Even those that make no real sense (like roundabouts) are a real trip, but we're getting there. Mostly.
Roundabouts. OMG.
I leave you guys with this, as it is getting late and we want to turn in early to get a good head start tomorrow. I give you Exhibit A: Proof that the Welsh (will pick on the Welsh for this, though the English have these too and okay Nick tells me the Germans like them also, and those damn narrow streets! OMG! So narrow!) are crazy about roundabouts. We found this one by some apartments on our walk to Cardiff Bay the first time today...OMG! I mean come on, WHY IS A ROUNDABOUT NEEDED HERE?
Seriously. Is this just not taking it a little too far? What is funny is, while we were shaking our heads at it, a car drove around it. Perfectly. Just like one is supposed to.
Crazy.
That pretty much takes us up to today's adventures. We have alot of pictures that need to be resized that we took today on our long walks before we can get them posted, but y'all should come back tomorrow or possibly Monday (as we are planning a six hour road trip tomorrow around Western Cardiff, seeing some of the coastal cities like Swansee to the south and Cardigan and other areas to the North) to see those. I hope. Unsure when we will get back, much less the condition of the driver--me--after all those hours of driving against-the-ingrained-instincts. LOL. Meep.
Know what would be really awesome though? Is if we got back tomorrow and our freaking luggage was here! OMG! We still don't have it though it is with the courier now! *thunk*
Later kids, and be thinking of us tomorrow!
C, and of course N
(and if there any typos in this? I don't care, too tired to care! Too nervous about tomorrow to care! AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!) Oh and laverbread is truly strange. But I liked the little cockles.
amand_r-style!1. Once we discovered no luggage, and figured out that the people in front of us in Hamburg who had put in that they had 4 bags and only turned in 2 so the British Airways worker thought our bags were their's, and filled out the appropriate claim forms, sigh, we took our little overnight rescue kits and headed for our hotel. Our first impression after getting off the train was one of crazy hustle and bustle, a gazillion taxis zooming about, people walking and talking and I mean people of all sorts of nationalities and colors, striding about, seemingly in fine moods. Lots of trees, an immediate impression of cool buildings, houses smashed together as city houses are (and not at all like in Texas so to my eyes? Very cool, very different. Noisy and colorful and exciting...
[Bad username or site: the saga of life with no luggage continues @ livejournal.com]
WE WERE IN LONDON AT LAST!!!!
WITH NO LUGGAGE!
2. Nick, excellent navigator that he is, got us to our hotel the Royal Lancaster. Excellent! We got...um...room 1313 on the 13th floor. LOL. After talking with the ever-helpful concierge, we knew how to get to the Adelphi theatre, complete with map and whatnot. The London underground is an experience, just for the tightness of the tunnels and the busy-ness, the quick but not frantic pace. The underground is an alien world to me (not so much maybe to Nick) but I loved the flavor of it, the decidedly old brickwork, tunnels, arches, the general dirtiness which comes with things of a great age.
We snagged our tickets after speaking with a super-helpful ticket guy (and, I swear, every single Londoner was awesome, interested in helping us--which we both LOVED!) we hopped on board and took off.
It didn't take long for us to get the hang of the tunnels, directions, etc. Nick of course is used to dealing with trains and such but I am not--except for the times I've been with him.
We zoomed to our station we had to get off on, then hopped onto the Covent Garden tube, and got out to a fascinatingly vibrant area of London. Being a Friday night (and Nick operating on no sleep due to the desocking and me, much to my relief, on my five hours I snagged so that despite the time change it was me, not Nick, who was the perky one) we headed with tickets in hand for the Adelphi to see Derren Brown.
Because we were sworn to absolute secrecy which forbids us to share any detail about the show, other than we loved it (though it had one part that slowed down a bit, and beer and tiredness got to us both) it was great fun. Brown is a definite showman, having the time of his life out there. The crowd? Rambunctious, enthusiastic, and without doubt, sold out. Next to us with a seat between us were a really funny couple--the girl reminded Nick of Claire so that meant she was great fun and...okay she was pretty loud but she was also really cute. LOL. Her boyfriend too was funny. Then this reeaaalllly big guy came and smashed himself inbetween us. He was very nice, no one would go with him to see the show so he bought a single ticket. These were tiny seats, so he wasn't too comfy I think, and...very warm. LOL!! Nice guy though and it was loads of fun.
Intermission--everyone bought ice cream. (notice I fail at writing short like amand_r).
ANYWAY! Show over! We were stunned with his brilliance at show's end, as he knew we would be! I sure hope that girl who unknowingly drank the vinegar wasn't sick later...
3. We had a blast, and walking back through this part of London? We loved it. The vibes were so good, there was no sense of imminent danger (like in San Francisco) nor fear that my purse would be lifted, Nick's wallet snatched. No fear, no fear or worry at all. It felt GOOD in London. Hope we weren't being naive, but we were loving it, and wished, wished mightily, we had more time.
We could not return the way we'd come as it was Friday night and each train that showed up was PACKED and I mean it, those people? They PACKED themselves inside! No way! Nick whipped it out I mean whipped his map out again, and figured out an alternate route. I tell ya, if you ever need a navigator on a trip, hire Nick. Srsly. He is excellent at it. Finally, he got us back to the hotel. We were dead by then, starved too--no food. None. There were cookies in the room at least...
London--we will be back to see you again.
Oh, and got back to the hotel--no luggage.
4. We slept fiercely well that night. FIERCELY! So FIERCELY well that we, uh, forgot to set our alarms...and overslept the next day until 10:30.
No luggage, no breakfast. Oh, and the night before? No time for dinner either!
5. We checked out, and still needing a map on how to get to Cardiff (seriously, we failed in this area--srsly failed) we decided, since we didn't have our luggage, and yes we still had the same clothes on, eek, we decided to walk along Oxford Street to find a bookstore the conceirge recommended to us.
So, our backs slightly aching for some reason(?) we headed down Oxford and were soon finding ourselves smiling and enjoying ourselves, the return of the fast pace, the hustle and bustle as people headed to their own appointments, or shopping as we were very much in the shoppy district. Vendors were handing out tea samples (TEA! I MISS YOU SO, COLD ICE TEA!) and we once again were surrounded by people from all over, all ages, a real mixing-pot of races, cultures, languages. Not what we expected, honestly. We kinda failed at finding the bookstore and just decided to head back to the airport, but we were glad we took the walk.
Oh, we saw a wedding in Hyde Park--carriages! Prancy horses! MONEY! LOL. We also realized a Gay Pride march was happening when police started to put barricades up. Dang it, we missed that! We really had to go! We were sad!
We took a dive back down to the tube and this area? AWESOME OLD! Just...character character character, just wanted to film it, remember it, reexperience it later. We had to wait for the traintubething we needed and sat down on a bench, ended up talking to a lovely (and I really mean, lovely) black woman with an undefined accent. (So many accents, so much cool). We talked with strangers ALOT! Normal for me, not so much for Nick, but I think he can't claim the "I'm Shy" mantel any longer. It is over, baby--you are not shy. You are AWESOME!
We had to hop on then, and head back for Heathrow to get the car (I was getting pretty nervous by then, you know). We ended back at the main train station (or whatever it is called--it is hard not to think of things like we're in Germany) and we grabbed a Starbucks because remember, no food since our bagel the day before. At lunch.
That is when Nick discovered something. He'd, uh, thrown away the return tickets we'd bought.
Thankfully, the gentleman who was to check our tickets was the one we talked to about it, and he could tell by the ol' deer-in-the-headlights look we had that yes, we really weren't fibbing. He let us anyway, but had a bit of fun teasing us about it. LOL. We didn't care, we were grateful!
See, that is the way Londoners are. They are NICE! Every single person we encountered was like this. NICE! Is that not awesome?
For me, this was especially wonderful. I love going to Germany. LOVE LOVE LOVE Berlin, really like Hamburg a lot, and Kiel? Well, Nick is there so I can deal with it. But this was so wonderful for us both, to be in another country where though we were facing differences that neither of us had encountered, were in a place where it was absolutely okay to ask questions, our questions were cheerfully answered, every person was just so NICE!
From the train guy to later that day, the people at Heathrow who took us through security and tried to help, again, with finding our freaking luggage (which, yes, had indeed been sent to Phoenix, AZ!), to the girl at Pizza Hut in Cardiff with whom we enjoyed talking about tipping differences between the three countries, to our amazing, wonderful hosts Paul and lol especially Stuart, who is ADORABLE! the people of London and of Wales who we have talked to and dealt with have been phenomenal.
We've both had to train our ears a bit to get used to the variety of accents--it is very clear there are differences. I can understand Stuart a little more easily than Nick...in fact there are some accents I can handle more easily, others that neither of us have a problem with. And if we don't understand? We can ask, and the person addressing us cheerfully repeats themselves. No snarls, no fuss, no growls. I'm used to that to a degree as Texans are generally like this, but honestly, no other place we've been together, US or Germany, has been as friendly and NICE!
We are quickly falling for this place, for the people, and for many other reasons are feeling very, very glad we decided to come on this trip.
Driving here? A little scary. LOVE the car, diesel-fueled Skoda. it is comfortable, very very comfortable, and nope, I have not wrecked it at all. Driving on the left-hand side is weird at first, but with Nick's help (seriously) it is getting easier. It is kind of taking both of us to do this--him to navigate with maps in hand and trying to figure out street names--TRYING because the darn Welsh do not believe in street names! Or maybe all of the UK, I do not know! But...there are some street signs...and mostly none! But little by little, I'm getting the hang of it. Taking it slow and easy, and following others helps. Learning all the different road signs, and the paths the cars have to take? Even those that make no real sense (like roundabouts) are a real trip, but we're getting there. Mostly.
Roundabouts. OMG.
I leave you guys with this, as it is getting late and we want to turn in early to get a good head start tomorrow. I give you Exhibit A: Proof that the Welsh (will pick on the Welsh for this, though the English have these too and okay Nick tells me the Germans like them also, and those damn narrow streets! OMG! So narrow!) are crazy about roundabouts. We found this one by some apartments on our walk to Cardiff Bay the first time today...OMG! I mean come on, WHY IS A ROUNDABOUT NEEDED HERE?
Seriously. Is this just not taking it a little too far? What is funny is, while we were shaking our heads at it, a car drove around it. Perfectly. Just like one is supposed to.
Crazy.
That pretty much takes us up to today's adventures. We have alot of pictures that need to be resized that we took today on our long walks before we can get them posted, but y'all should come back tomorrow or possibly Monday (as we are planning a six hour road trip tomorrow around Western Cardiff, seeing some of the coastal cities like Swansee to the south and Cardigan and other areas to the North) to see those. I hope. Unsure when we will get back, much less the condition of the driver--me--after all those hours of driving against-the-ingrained-instincts. LOL. Meep.
Know what would be really awesome though? Is if we got back tomorrow and our freaking luggage was here! OMG! We still don't have it though it is with the courier now! *thunk*
Later kids, and be thinking of us tomorrow!
C, and of course N
(and if there any typos in this? I don't care, too tired to care! Too nervous about tomorrow to care! AAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!) Oh and laverbread is truly strange. But I liked the little cockles.
Tags:
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-05 11:52 pm (UTC)Stay well, hope your luggage turns up!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 12:06 am (UTC)1. Dude, those roundabouts? WTF?
2. You guys sound like you're having fun, regardless.
3. NO LUGGAGE YET? ALSO, WTF?
4. This post is strangely devoid of stalkery behaviour. STALK MOAR.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 12:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 01:33 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 02:24 am (UTC)2. I love roundabouts! Though stoplights are pretty cool too -- my grandparents' village just got their first ever stoplight this summer! They are a-movin' and a-shakin'!
3. HAVE SO MUCH FUN!!!!!! Seriously, enjoy the shit out of Wales.
4. 12 days is the record for lost luggage that was actually returned -- that I know of, at any rate. Belongs to my friend from when we went to Mexico City for study abroad. I hope yours beats this record.
5. Hugs to you both and #3 again!!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 02:24 am (UTC)roundabouts would kinda scare me, too, i don't think i could try driving over there! you're a brave woman!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 03:42 am (UTC)I'm glad you had fun and mostly experienced success in London, and that you've made your way to Wales. Have a great time! Here's hoping your luggage finally catches up with you, like, yesterday!
P.S. I suspect I'd like laverbread, but then, I think seaweed is tasty. Mmmm, cockles... ;)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 07:24 am (UTC)HA HA
lol
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 06:11 am (UTC)And I have my fingers crossed that you will finally be reunited with your luggage. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 06:54 am (UTC)I do reccomend a Primark, if you can find one, for cheap clothes and things in the interim. I hope you get your luggage soon!
Accents are...interesting accross the UK, which is generally why most people don't have problems repeating themselves if people have trouble understanding them- because of the way language developed the local accents and dialects change markedly from place to place. Also, London is a kind of cultural melting pot for people from all over the world, which adds to the diversity of accents and speech. I'm glad you had fun at the show :)
Hope you enjoy Swansea and places :)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 09:14 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-06 05:49 pm (UTC)Glad that despite the luggage trauma you guys are having a good time! Yay!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-07 12:57 pm (UTC)Re mini-roundabouts. They are a bit silly, but I suppose a pot of white paint is considerably cheaper then traffic lights. :)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-07 01:28 pm (UTC)You will be glad I am not a menace on the roads. With Nick's navigation skills (which are considerable) we do fine. The biggest frustration though is of course lack of street signs. Oh my!
We are headed out shortly for another driving adventure, this one much shorter than yesterday. Our feet are a little tired as we choose to walk as much as possible.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-07 05:22 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-07 09:41 pm (UTC)Snort, I actually likes them now! I must've done about 20 of them today, I likes them so much!
*thunk*
(actually? the driving here is going really great--no longer afraid. much. Am super chuffed with self--but could never do it without N's navigation. Seriously)
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-07 10:11 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-08 06:05 am (UTC)Today! Brecon Beacons fun! WHEE!
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-08 11:24 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-10 12:11 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-10 12:19 am (UTC)This trip is for me and Nick to have solo time together--we only get 2 weeks together this year, living far apart like we do, and I am very protective of what little time we do have.
I am rather rabid about that.
Thanks though for wanting to meet with us.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-10 12:37 am (UTC)What, I'm Welsh, proper tea is always a good gift for the kitchen...
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-13 12:36 am (UTC)I love all of your descriptions and I'm jealous of all of your adventures. I'm very glad you get to go on them.
(no subject)
Date: 2009-07-13 09:49 am (UTC)thanks babe--there will be more. This is what I do--save save save all year so I can spend my two weeks with Nick. It sure isn't enough, not at all. :*(