LONDON, ENGLAND

LONDON, ENGLAND

We awakened purposely at 3:30 a.m., hoping that the long day would tire us sufficiently to sleep on the plane and cut down on jet lag. This would help us to be more alert in London, on Wednesday morning. The work day, 7:30A.M. - 3:30P.M., seemed interminable. We Packed our clothes in two large and one small Land's End duffels. These are easier to transport. We were also mindful of the limited trunk space available in rental cars. At 6:00 p.m., we shut up the house and left for Toronto. The drive was an uneventful one.

The airport , even at 8 p.m., was a madhouse. We checked our bags in, and strolled through the airport. The Sunquest Charter (Air Canada) was of course late for its scheduled 10 p.m. departure. We sat in hard chairs and wished smallpox on the squalling urchins around us. Fatigue was setting in. Finally at 11:30 p.m. (E.S.T.), we boarded our first trans-atlantic flight together. Our destination was Gatwick Airport, London, England.

The flight itself was tiresome. We were penned up like cattle, in a wide-bodied monster, with 450 other tourists. We sought sleep and didn't find it. The air crew did their best to mollify the herd with food and drink. As usual, my pre-ordered vegetarian meal was no where to be found. I passed on Dinner and read a book.

We arrived at Gatwick Airport at 11:30 a.m., local time, Wednesday (6:30 a.m. E.S.T.), tired but eager to go. The tickets, issued in advance, for the Gatwick Express, were not acceptable for some reason or other. We bought a new three day Brit. Rail Pass for five pounds each. The train was spacious, yet crowded. It was an interesting mix of Brit humor and civility, and sporadic, loud Uglus touristus.

Arriving at Victoria Station, we ambled through the crowd and hailed a taxi to the St. James Hotel on Buckingham Gate Rd. The Fare was two pounds, including tip. We rode in one of those delightfully monstrous English cabs. The St. James proved to be an elegant, recently refurbished old hotel, some 5 blocks from Buckingham Palace. We checked in and were assigned Room 622. The Watsons had already arrived, on an earlier flight from New York city. They were in Room 519. We could afford this great hotel because we had written for the London version of the Entertainment book. It listed the St. James Hotel, at 50% off. So instead of spending approximately 500 pounds for three nights, it cost us only 250 pounds. The hotel had a well- equipped health club available for its guests, at no additional cost.

The temperature was in the 60's, overcast, with rain. It is ideal for a Celt. We walked through the area and had lunch and Smithwicks beer in the "Colonies Pub." It was both quaint and comfortable. It looks as if the Brits take a civilized two hours, and knock back a few pints at lunch. Food was served in all pubs and was good, though plain.

At Victoria Station, we bought tour tickets (5 pounds each) on a double decker bus, with an open top, for a tour of the city. The tour was a scenic ride around the center of the city. It lasted about two hours and highlighted most of the major attractions in central London. I would recommend it to all first time visitors for a good overview. After the tour, we were all a little groggy from lack of sleep, so we walked back to the hotel and took a two hour nap.

A late dinner at the hotel restaurant, "Auberge de Provence", was exquisite. Fresh salmon, gourmet food and good wine made a special occasion. The staff were French, but we made ourselves understood. The bill was a respectable 170 pounds (approximately $300 U.S.) . Again, an entertainment coupon saved us 85 pounds.

Brandon and I took an after dinner stroll to Buckingham Palace. The evening was cool and comfortable . We travelled about without peril. Upon arriving back at the hotel, we discovered much to our luck, that the hotel's bar did not close at 11 p.m. Here, they could serve guests till all hours. We promptly ordered up some Becks and met a delightful Irish/American by the name of Tom Murphy. He worked for T.W.A. and was interviewing for a job in London. We knocked back 3 Becks each, among pleasant conversation, until 1:30 a.m. I did a little reading and crashed. It was a very pleasant and eventful first day in London. More were to come.

Thursday July 28 - St. James Hotel London

The temperature was in the 60's , cool and overcast with rain (again ideal). Mary and Trish had elected to go shopping at Harrod's Department Store. Brandon and I being thus afoot, strolled up Birdcage walk and visited the Cabinet War Museum (1.5 pounds each). Winston Churchill and his cabinet had spent most of WWII, in this underground bunker. It is interesting, but worth a quick look only. We walked along Birdcage Walk to Parliament. The guards advised us that we needed a pass, from our M.P., to tour the place. Tough break. Thus denied, we ambled along the Thames River Park and visited the Tate Art Gallery. It featured a large Picasso and modern art collection that left me unimpressed.The Museum has a great collection of 18th Century British painters, however, (TURNER) that I found to be a perfect setting for London. It is worth the visit (free).

We walked to Vaux Hall Rd. and caught a subway to Picadilly Circus. I should mention, that we had each purchased three day subway passes. They are a great buy. The subway is easy to use, relatively inexpensive and gets you everywhere in London. We had a pint of 1/2 and 1/2, at a tavern near Picadilly, and met up with Mary and Trish in the theater district. We hoped to get tickets for "Les Miserables," at half price of course. No luck. We got half price tickets for "Chess," which was an excellent production. Interestingly enough, there were scores of German, French and European school kids around us, in the "cheap seats." It was interesting to hear polyglot munchkin chatter, in several languages.

Afterward, we walked about three miles along Oxford, Regent and St. James Parkway. At Picadilly Circus, there was virtually a gridlock of pedestrians leaving for home, mingling with tourists. As we walked through St. James Park, past the duck pond and Buckingham Palace, we saw all manner of well dressed ladies, and military types. The Queen was having a "tea." It is an interesting bit of tradition. At the hotel, we had a drink in the room and made plans for dinner. Trish called Paul Sinclair, a NYNEX associate and talked him into meeting us for dinner. Paul arrived with two friends, Denise and Helen. We proceeded in two cars to the "Slug and Lettuce" pub, for a pint. We then drove to the "Chimes" restaurant, where we had a traditional English dinner that was good, though plain. Alcoholic cider and white wine accompanied the dinner and were very good.

Collectively, we returned to the St. James for a few drinks and pleasant conversation in the bar. Our hosts were pleasant, gracious and interesting. Paul Sinclair was descended from a Maharaja in India. Denise's mother was Irish. Yet all were properly British, very much so. We had one drink in the room and crashed, tired. It was a second interesting day.

Friday July 29, London-England)

It was cloudy, windy and cool, in the 60's with rain. Having indulged the evening before, we slept late until 9 a.m.. We ordered coffee from room service and read the papers. Trish and Brandon elected to shop, so Mary and I scheduled some sight-seeing on our own.

At 10:15 a.m., we walked over to Buckingham Palace and strolled around the guards barracks to view the 11 a.m. "Changing of the guard".

The gilded wrought iron gates, at the front of the palace, are impressive. A rotary or "circus", in front, holds a massive gilt and winged statue of Victory, dedicated to Queen Victoria. It is all larger than life, as it was meant to be. It properly framed British history for us.

The marching and cavalry detachments, replete with band and Balaclava fur helmets, were storybook in appearance. They were much like the toy red soldiers, in the dance of the sugar plum fairies. A note of reality gleamed through in the snub automatic rifles that each soldier carried. In all, it was an impressive military performance. All traffic is stopped while the detachments march the 300-400 yards, from the guards barracks, to the palace. A crowd of 5,000 to 10,000 gathers every day, in summer, to watch. A half dozen or so languages speckle the crowd, mostly foreign tourists.

We walked back to the hotel. Nearby, we caught a subway to the British Museum, for a quick walk through (two hours).It is truly an amazing collection of Egyptian artifacts, mummies, sarcophagi and statues. We could easily have spent the day there. We got a quick overview of most of the exhibits . On the next trip we'll spend more time there. The day was windy with rain. We walked back to the subway and rode to the Tower of London. The crowds were huge. We bought our tickets and did our own tour. Traitors' Gate, where prisoners entered the fortress, the tower where Henry murdered his nephews, the chopping block upon which Anne Boleyn lost her head, displayed history all around us. We viewed the crown jewels. They are impressive by anyone's standards. We ogled suits of armor and weaponry, from past ages. It is definitely worth an entire afternoon. The place itself should properly be called a fort, castle or bastion, in that it is not a single tower, but a walled fortress, on the Thames. In the background is the famed "Tower Bridge", with its massive twin turrets. This is a tour of its own. The British take great pleasure in relating the story of the American developers, who bought the London Bridge. The Brits say the Yanks thought they were getting the "Tower Bridge", for Lake Havaseau in Arizona. Instead, they got the more nondescript "London Bridge."

Time was running late. We hopped the subway to Covent Gardens, a quaint shopper's paradise, to meet Trish and Brandon. We were late, but talked them into getting a cab back (5 L) to the Tower. There, we secured a boat ride down the Thames. It was a good choice. London is a city that should be seen from the river. A humorous cockney narrated the tour. Big Ben, Parliament, churches, monuments all looked surreal from the Thames. It is a must on any tour. We exited at Westminster Bridge, near Parliament and walked along Birdcage Walk. We stopped briefly for a pint at the "Red Lion" pub. Afterwards, strolled again through St James Park, to our hotel.

For dinner, we cabbed to "La Finezza", a great gourmet Italian restaurant in London S.W. . It is on Sloane St., near the "Rose and Crown" pub. A humorously cranky owner and attentive waiters served up a memorable Italian dinner. Everything was ala carte and the bill was 120 L, with a discount. We thoroughly enjoyed the dinner. An interesting sidelight amzed us. At the next table, much to our great surprise, was Joe Antonellis, Mary's college roommate's husband. He worked for a British firm, while living in New Jersey. He was there for a board meeting. We exchanged pleasantries and marvelled at what a small world we live in.

We cabbed back to the hotel and had a nightcap at the bar, before retiring. We repacked our clothes for the Irish excursion. Two dress shirts that I put into the laundry appeared to be lost forever. The stay in London was memorable and too short. We plan to come back again for another excursion.
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Joseph Xavier Martin