I am still working to solve some problems with my blog, such as the flag background looking a bit weird when you make the blog full screen, but I will be working to fix things as soon as I can figure things out.
Anyway, it has been a very tiring past few days, with all my packing and repacking so I don't forget something or take stuff I do not need, misplacing a necessary credit card the night before my flight, and a granddaughter's high school graduation and graduation party. I also had to empty my freezer and refrigerator, toss stuff and give some stuff away, and then I had to get my rig over to the storage lot and make sure everything was prepared for the several weeks I will be away. Whew!
Also, flight was out of SFO and 11 hours long! However, I had upgraded myself to premium economy, which is a category between coach and business class. It meant a bigger seat with some better flight amenities, like two meals where they actually trusted you with real silverware and china plates instead of the paper and plastic stuff you get in coach. One problem is that I brought along a couple of books but ended up with several hours where I could not read them because he airline required you to keep shades drawn so that other people can sleep. I also could not turn on the flight screen because it might disturb people. I wish I could sleep on a plane, but I am just one of those people who cannot, so I sat with nothing to do for several hours.
The British Airways' A-380 is an impressive plane! It holds about 600 passengers on two levels. I had chosen to sit on the upper level, so we had a separate jetway or loading bridge. The upper deck is a little less crowded than the lower deck, especially if you get a window seat because the shape of the aircraft means that you have extra space on that side.
I got early boarding so I was able to take this photo of an empty premium economy cabin area.
I had this window seat. You can see I had a few more inches of leg room and a foot rest. There is also a wider arm rest between seats, so no one has to fight with elbow room.
And in this photo, you can see the open storage compartments I had. The one slightly behind me, however, belonged to the people behind me. I also got a large blanket, head cushion, and an amenity kit with things like a tooth brush, toothpaste, socks, eye covers, and headphones.
I was amazed at how easy customs was at Heathrow. Basically, all I had to do was walk to a machine, stick my passport into it so it could be photographed while I looked directly into a camera that took a photo of me. No questions, as I had been asked in the past, so it was very fast, compared to an hour or more waiting in line in the past.
This slimmed down process, however, only works for those of us who had a passport from about a dozen listed countries. Everyone else went down another corridor, so I have no idea how long it took them.
Bought a ticket for the Heathrow Express train that gets you to Paddington Station in about 15 minutes with no stops. Since my hotel was directly across the street from Paddington, I did not have to deal with several flights of stairs while dragging my two small suitcases, or having to find a taxi--just walked across the street and had a quick check-in.
Paddington is a huge train station, with regular trains coming in at ground level and several Tube stations below, so you can easily switch from a long-distance train to the Paddington, Circle, Elizabeth, District, Bakerloo, and Hammersmith & City Lines.
The closest trains in this photo were regular long-distance trains, but in the distance you can see the Heathrow Express.
Took an escalator to the street level and then crossed the street to my hotel!
My hotel is the building you can see through the windows of Paddington. Very convenient.
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