~ Hong Kong Airport to Heathrow Airport to London
I didn’t mention the flight from Hong Kong was a loooooong 11hours!!! All up it was about a 21-24hour flight!
Also, within the first few hours of the flight I managed to cut my thumb while pulling out a magazine from the pocket in the chair in front of me. It was a nasty cut and I had nothing to stop the bleeding except the plastic bag from my complimentary blanket… so I dealt with it…Normally I have disinfecting gel and bandaids with me everywhere I go (thanks to my job!), but because of the foiled Heathrow terrorist attack 3 weeks earlier… I kept them in my suitcase and not on me!
We arrived at Heathrow ok. I followed Celine and her daughter through the tube. Her daughter even paid for all our tickets! They got off a few stations earlier than me, but made sure I knew what to do etc. They were very nice people. Celine was visiting her daughter who is living and working in London, and getting married. She had a suitcase of wedding gifts with her from people back home. Before they left me, they gave me their phone number in case I needed help. Then I was on my own!
I followed the accommodation directions and caught a taxi from Kings Cross station. I had a very nice, chatty driver, but craaazy traffic! Made Melbourne look easy! The taxi driver said there was more traffic then usual because there was an Arsenal match (soccer I think) on their home ground. Apparently it was unusual and people were extremely excited.
I arrived at the Highbury Centre (formerly the Foreign Missions Club) www.thehighburycentre.org
Michelle was the receptionist when I arrived. She is the most beautiful person - like an angel greeting weary travellers at their point of rest. She was happy to help in any way, and answer numerous questions about travel and sightseeing etc. The rest of the staff were also wonderful! Michelle was the one who had the most impact on my stay.
The first thing I did after checking in was find out where the showers were! I was feeling so hot and sticky and yuck from the flight… then I went for a walk looking for dinner. The crowds of people were crazy. There was a “home soccer match” with Arsenal and some other country…I think I caught the crowds after the match had ended…at times I wanted to walk the opposite direction to the crowd…it was like going against the current! I was like a moving sardine in a tin… after walking around in circles for about 1.5hours, I decided to settle for Asian noodles, and sat in a park near my accommodation…but I couldn’t eat them coz my tummy wasn’t too happy. I got lost returning to my accommodation…I walked past it and didn’t realise…as I was walking, trying to find my way back a black bus driver called out, (in an English accent of course!) “Cheer up. You’re already…” didn’t’ catch the end, but he really made my day! He caught me off guard and I couldn’t help smiling!
Each person I asked about a phone card to call home, the people didn’t make me feel confident in their product, so in the end I just used my mobile (cell) phone to call home. I spoke to my dad for about 5-10minutes, just to touch base and let them know I was ok and arrived at my accommodation. I didn’t realise mum was at work when I called, but I knew she would be happy I called anyway. Before I left home, I thought of leaving my phone behind, but when I found out it cost nothing to activate “International Roaming” I took it for peace of mind. On this particular day I was so glad I had it with me! Otherwise I would have been more stressed about trying to call home. I was happier knowing I could contact family and friends via text messages now and then. It only cost about 50cents per text. Plus I loved hearing back from them!
One thing that caught me by surprise (and every other Aussie I met said the same thing!) was the HEAT! I didn't bring enough tshirts! Lucky I had a few and I wore them everywhere! We were all told that London is often wet and cold… looks like we experienced a different London ;) The Highbury Centre didn’t have air conditioning, so the nights were a little warm, but I could open the window which helped. I managed to sleep pretty well after settling.
When I finally returned from my dinner adventure, I met some really nice people in the lounge area before crashing into bed. I managed to stay up until 9pm :) Carla said I should stay up til at least 8pm, so I did well :)
The people in the lounge were missionaries from European countries…can’t remember where…maybe Switzerland and Netherlands… I got talking to a man, who was very friendly, and then I went to bed. I just felt so peaceful and protected at the Highbury Centre. Like I was covered not only by God, but also His people. Being alone was a challenge, but I never felt alone :)
I didn’t mention the flight from Hong Kong was a loooooong 11hours!!! All up it was about a 21-24hour flight!
Also, within the first few hours of the flight I managed to cut my thumb while pulling out a magazine from the pocket in the chair in front of me. It was a nasty cut and I had nothing to stop the bleeding except the plastic bag from my complimentary blanket… so I dealt with it…Normally I have disinfecting gel and bandaids with me everywhere I go (thanks to my job!), but because of the foiled Heathrow terrorist attack 3 weeks earlier… I kept them in my suitcase and not on me!
We arrived at Heathrow ok. I followed Celine and her daughter through the tube. Her daughter even paid for all our tickets! They got off a few stations earlier than me, but made sure I knew what to do etc. They were very nice people. Celine was visiting her daughter who is living and working in London, and getting married. She had a suitcase of wedding gifts with her from people back home. Before they left me, they gave me their phone number in case I needed help. Then I was on my own!
I followed the accommodation directions and caught a taxi from Kings Cross station. I had a very nice, chatty driver, but craaazy traffic! Made Melbourne look easy! The taxi driver said there was more traffic then usual because there was an Arsenal match (soccer I think) on their home ground. Apparently it was unusual and people were extremely excited.
I arrived at the Highbury Centre (formerly the Foreign Missions Club) www.thehighburycentre.org
Michelle was the receptionist when I arrived. She is the most beautiful person - like an angel greeting weary travellers at their point of rest. She was happy to help in any way, and answer numerous questions about travel and sightseeing etc. The rest of the staff were also wonderful! Michelle was the one who had the most impact on my stay.
The first thing I did after checking in was find out where the showers were! I was feeling so hot and sticky and yuck from the flight… then I went for a walk looking for dinner. The crowds of people were crazy. There was a “home soccer match” with Arsenal and some other country…I think I caught the crowds after the match had ended…at times I wanted to walk the opposite direction to the crowd…it was like going against the current! I was like a moving sardine in a tin… after walking around in circles for about 1.5hours, I decided to settle for Asian noodles, and sat in a park near my accommodation…but I couldn’t eat them coz my tummy wasn’t too happy. I got lost returning to my accommodation…I walked past it and didn’t realise…as I was walking, trying to find my way back a black bus driver called out, (in an English accent of course!) “Cheer up. You’re already…” didn’t’ catch the end, but he really made my day! He caught me off guard and I couldn’t help smiling!
Each person I asked about a phone card to call home, the people didn’t make me feel confident in their product, so in the end I just used my mobile (cell) phone to call home. I spoke to my dad for about 5-10minutes, just to touch base and let them know I was ok and arrived at my accommodation. I didn’t realise mum was at work when I called, but I knew she would be happy I called anyway. Before I left home, I thought of leaving my phone behind, but when I found out it cost nothing to activate “International Roaming” I took it for peace of mind. On this particular day I was so glad I had it with me! Otherwise I would have been more stressed about trying to call home. I was happier knowing I could contact family and friends via text messages now and then. It only cost about 50cents per text. Plus I loved hearing back from them!
One thing that caught me by surprise (and every other Aussie I met said the same thing!) was the HEAT! I didn't bring enough tshirts! Lucky I had a few and I wore them everywhere! We were all told that London is often wet and cold… looks like we experienced a different London ;) The Highbury Centre didn’t have air conditioning, so the nights were a little warm, but I could open the window which helped. I managed to sleep pretty well after settling.
When I finally returned from my dinner adventure, I met some really nice people in the lounge area before crashing into bed. I managed to stay up until 9pm :) Carla said I should stay up til at least 8pm, so I did well :)
The people in the lounge were missionaries from European countries…can’t remember where…maybe Switzerland and Netherlands… I got talking to a man, who was very friendly, and then I went to bed. I just felt so peaceful and protected at the Highbury Centre. Like I was covered not only by God, but also His people. Being alone was a challenge, but I never felt alone :)
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