European Vacation - Part One

Monday night's flight out of Newark was delayed over an hour due to our fabulous Vice President being in town. Apparently all the planes had to be grounded until security did their thing. We eventually got off without a hitch and landed without incident. Bridget and I picked up our packs from the baggage claim and headed towards central London.

When we arrived at Victoria station via the Gatwick express (very speedy) we headed onto Kings Cross/St. Pancras station (and yes I did find Platform 9 3/4) to check our packs so we could further explore the city a bit until we were due in Kettering to meet Kat. We found a great pub for some lunch down by St. Paul's Cathedral (truly Sir Christopher Wren's masterpiece) - Bangers and Mash for me and a pint, and then walked around St. Pauls a bit. We then headed up towards Covent Garden where I found perhaps the BEST cookie bakery anywhere on the face of the Earth (Ben's Cookies), and Bridget found the best Exchange Bureau in all of London!

Afterwards, we headed back to King's Cross to meet the train to Kettering (pronounced Ket-Ring). I must admit, the train systems in Europe made me nervous. Yes they are reliable and excellent in terms of operations (save maybe the Eurostar but its still new and more about that later), but Europeans are psycho about their trains and very strict about your comings and goings. What would be considered their commuter rails i.e. NJ transit are much more limited and have so many more restrictions. You have to know well in advance of your schedule or else you pay dearly for it... In pounds... :) You can't just buy a ticket and go.

Visiting the countryside was beautiful. Kat picked us up, and took us home to her house in Desborough where her and Alan treated us to a dinner of fish and chips (I even had it with the Malt Vinegar and ketchup! YUM) and we passed out on the couch while Alan watched the Liverpool/Chelsea match. The next day whilst Kat was off at work, Bridget and I amused ourselves with a local town that was about a mile walk from Desborough. Yes, we looked a little funny and stuck out, but we had a great time. There was a lovely tea house called Windmills where we were the only patrons. We sampled a pot of their cream tea (English breakfast tea and milk) as well as some of the snacks. The last time I was in England, I definitely don't remember the food being as good, but this trip has definitely changed my mind about British cuisine. Scones, clotted cream and strawberry preserves may just be the best thing ever!

Thursday we headed to back to London. The day was perfect, nary a cloud in the sky. After we checked our packs at Waterloo station, we had quite a bit of time to kill before our 6PM train to Paris. We decided to visit the Tower of London which in my opinion is one of the best attractions in London. If you get a good tour guide (the cheekier the better) your tour will not only be informative, but entertaining as well.

Once 5PM rolled around, we headed back to Waterloo to check into Eurostar. This was probably the part of the trip I was most looking forward to. Not only going to Paris, but traveling via one of the fastest trains in the world, and via the Chunnel. Check-in was virtually snag free, and we boarded the train and arrived in Paris 2:20 later. Navigating the Metro was fantastically easy (luckily Bridget's co-worker and given her two Metro tickets to get her started), so we popped right on the 4 line and headed to our hotel in Montparnasse.

The neighborhood we stayed in was a bit far out of things, but literally across the street from a good metro line, so that made up for things. Still, the next time I go, I would much rather stay in either the 5th, 6th or 7th arrondissment. These neighborhoods are much more "Parisian" in my opinion, and although Montparnasse is more unexplored and untouristy - that's why I was in Paris... To be a tourist.

More tomorrow... :)