The Bald Eagle Has Landed

Well, here I sit in my double bed in Cartwright Gardens, London, UK. I am watching television.

My day started around 5:30am when I woke up at my friend Brian's house in South Boston. I brushed my teeth, double checked I had everything, and was out the door. I walked down the dark, damp road to get to the Red Line's Andrew Station. I figured no one else would be out that early, so I may have been talking to myself. A girl was outside her door, smoking. She looked at me like I was crazy. Oops.

I arrived at Logan Airport around 6:15, walked through the security check, and sat at my gate for an hour. Finally, around 7:45, they called for boarding.

Boarding at Logan Airport, Boston, MA

Can you guess how pleased I was when everyone was boarded, the doors were locked, and I had all three seats to myself? Very. The plane left on time, at 8:15. I watched movies on the tv in the seatback in front of me. The flight was steady and smooth, we even arrived 15 minutes early.

I also took a pic of my DELICIOUS full English breakfast on the plane, but my camera's SD card is being a bitch and not letting me upload the pics, maybe I'll figure it out tomorrow.

Upon landing, it was 7:15 UK time. It was about 54degrees F and slightly cloudy, pretty comparable to New England's weather lately. I was nervous about how long Customs would take and didn't wanna spend all night trying to get out of the damn airport ... But I walked up to the Border Control officer, he asked me a couple "How long are you here till?" "What is your purpose here?" questions and I was out. He also gave my new passport its first stamp.

The 'Border'

16 Oct 2012 - Heathrow (5)

The actual Customs was just some people who pulled random people over. They didn't pull me. I think I spent about 20 minutes getting out of the airport. The airport, by the way, is like an entire city. I walked for about ten minutes just to get from the gate to the baggage claim. And that includes a short train ride. Beautiful airport though. Very clean, lots of bright lights, lots of white and light blues.

Upon leaving the airport, I found the directions and access to the Underground were very easy to follow. Unlike, some might say, the directions and ease-of-use for the Silver Line from Logan in Boston. I bought my first (extremely expensive, by our standards) ticket, to the tune of five pounds thirty, about 8.50 American to get me to Russell Square on the Piccadilly Line.

Heathrow to Russell

The Underground was clean, well maintained, well signed and just generally 'better' than the T. Sorry Boston, I love ya, but damn. Also, the trains here don't make nails on a chalkboard sounds when they run :-P My favorite parts of the ride were the handsome gentleman sitting across from me and the fact that the terminal station on the Piccadilly Line was "Cockfosters". So after each stop, the automated lady would say "The destination of this train is Cockfosters" and it made me giggle.

Then that brings me to Russell Square station (about 40 minutes by tube from Heathrow). My new 'home' for the next week.

I also love the Undergrounds logo. So slick.

I walked about seven blocks through my new neighborhood, past a couple supermarkets, some shops, a couple bars. I heard tons of British accents and cracked a smile after each one.

Lastly, I arrived at my flat. A little studio no bigger than a decent sized hotel room, but with a nice kitchenette which includes an oven, stove top, sink, cabinets, and pots & pans. I am so cooking here. The best part of the flat though, is whom they chose to adorn my bed ...

Yup, that's right. I got an Audrey room. It was meant to be :-)

Before I sign off for the evening, take a shower, watch some more tv, and head to bed ... I'd like to say I have an odd sense of feeling very "at home" here. It's only been a couple hours, but I really enjoy the vibe I get from this city. I never felt this way in Florida, Seattle, Montreal, Vancouver, New York or any city I've visited besides Boston. Don't get me wrong, I liked Seattle et al, but I didn't feel "at home" in them. This is nice. Mayhaps one day I'll get my own flat :-)

Goodnight!!