24 Hours of LonDon
DISCLAIMER: This entry written after only 1.5 hours of sleep over the last nineteen hours.
Okay, so since I am writing this, logic would lead you to believe that I arrived safely in London. This is correct, but my arrival was not without incident. I left my house at 7:45 on Sunday morning for SFO airport. After we had boarded the plane from San Francisco to Chicago and were nearing the point where we push off from the gate, the Captain came on the intercom and announced that there was a medical emergency in the coach cabin. Shortly thereafter, paramedics rushed onto the plane, but I couldn't see what was going on. A few minutes later, a woman was carried down the aisle by two paramedics...still didn't know what had happened.
When I arrived in Chicago, I showed up just in time to watch the Broncos come back and make things close in the AFC Championship game, only to come up short in the end. Moving on...
My flight from Chicago to London was supposed to leave at 810PM. I get there in time, boarded the plane, everything (again) is fine, we even taxi out to the runway, only to hear the Captain come on the intercom and announce that we have a flat tire. So we proceed to head back to the gate and wait two hours (on the plane) while they replace the tire, and wait another half hour for us to get pushed back out to the runway. Once we got going, the flight was great, except for the flight attendant who sounded like Pat Summeral reading the FOX show promo cards. But people are dying today in Africa because they have no food, so I really shouldn't be complaining. And...I got to fly business class and get a little sleep.
After arriving in London, I pick up my bags, take the Express to Paddington Station, and then catch the Tube to Trafalgar Square, where my hotel is. The hotel I am in is called The Trafalgar...apparently they didn't hire Kirschenbaum Bond to come up with the name. The place is expensive and kinda reminds me of a W Hotel in the US.
Since I didn't have to meet my client for an hour after checking in, I headed across Trafalgar Square, under Lord Nelson's watchful eye, headed past the National Gallery and around the corner to the Portrait Gallery. I was very excited about this opportunity since I had wanted to see the Portrait Gallery the last time I was in London, but it was closed for a private showing. Since I had less than an hour I took the speed tour, but it was still an amazing experience. If you've never been there, the gallery shows portraits of famous Englishmen (and women), from St. Thomas More to Steven Hawking. A few highlights were the paintings of Elizabeth I (interesting look on her face), Oliver Cromwell (for his fight against the Monarchy), Charles Wesley (seemed to have a very compassionate face, which would match his ministry and theology), and Michael Caine (very unique artistic style).
After this I raced to Paddington to meet up with the client, grab dinner, and then head back to "The Trafalgar". The weather was cold (compared to San Francisco), so I bundled up and headed down the road to House of Commons area. I walked around Westminster Abbey (amazing architecture) and stopped at one of my favorite places, the Sovereign Gate to the House of Commons.
Anyways, off to bed...meetings tomorrow with the client and I am exhausted. Until next time....