Day 8

Today was the first day we attempted anything a tourist would do. We left our hotel and caught a 189 towards Oxford Circus. The bus ride took about 45 minutes. Next we entered Baker Street tube station and boarded a southbound Bakerloo train towards Elephant and Castle. We left the train at Piccadilly Circus to go souvenir shopping. Next we grabbed some lunch and got back on the same train. We got off the Bakerloo train at The Embankment. After walking across the River Thames on the Golden Jubilee bridge, we queued for a river cruise. The first leg of the journey we spent on the lower deck, as the upper was full. When the vessel docked at The Tower of London, we went upstairs for better pictures. In the process we were able to witness a rarity; the tower bridge opening for a tall ship. The tower bridge used to open hundreds of times a week, since the downturn of the shipping industry and the London Harbour now being located between the bridge and the sea, the bridge only needs to lift ten times a week. Our vessel was short enough to go under the closed bridge. We continued on down the river, following tide. Our crew was very informative in describing local landmarks. The end of the line was Greenwich Pier. We got off here, grabbed a drink and headed over to the National Maritime Museum. It was a well laid out, free museum. After completing the museum we boarded our cruise again back to the city centre. Once we docked were we started, Millenium Pier, we made our way over to the free London Eye 4D Cinema. The cinema was home to a four minute film including bubbles, fog, snow and mist. Feeling quite tired after our journey thus far, we decided to head back. This time we took a slightly different route back to our hotel in North West London. We boarded the Bakerloo train northbound and got off at Baker Street. Next we transferred to the Jubilee Line and took it a number of stations to Kilburn. To end the journey we took a 189 towards Brent Cross to the hotel. Today we plan on visiting the Tower of London, HMS Belfast and maybe St. Paul's Cathedral.

Where we plan to visit today. As shot from our cruise yesterday.

Day 7

It's been a while since I've posted, don't worry I have an excuse. When I started this blog, I planned on posting a blog every day of my trip. Once I arrived at Glastonbury, I quickly realized that it would be next to impossible. Due to the fact that Glastonbury was located in the middle of the country and there was a medium sized city on site, the local cell towers were overwhelmed. When I did get on the internet, it was only for a few minutes at a time. By the end of Thursday, the battery in both my MiFi device and back-up battery device had died. Nevertheless, the festival was an amazing experience. The pure awesomeness of getting to see legends like Sinead O'Connor, Kenny Rogers and The Rolling Stones all in one area, all in three days was amazing.  Instead of any pictures today, I have decided to share a video. Here are some of my highlights from Glastonbury Festival:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcMQXuzlzcs

I'll try and be back tomorrow with another update...

No blogs from glasto

I will only be blogging when the internet works. It has been really spotty. That makes sense when 170,000 try to use 3g at the festival. If there is a blog, I will also try to post it to facebook, no promises though.

Day 1 - Arrived in London

Day one of the trip kind of included last night in Toronto. We left Pearson enroute to London Gatwick at 9:55pm Toronto time. Here are a couple of shots from the on-board map system:

In the middle of the North Atlantic

Wow it was cold outside! The plane's ground speed got as high as 1029 km/h.

We arrived in London very tired at 9:55am London time, or 4:55am Toronto time. We discovered that the walk to customs was a long one. Gatwick is under renovation, making the journey from the gate long. Here is the the landing card you're supposed to fill out on the plane: 

The landing card required to enter the UK.


We made our way on the Southern Railway to London Victoria Station. We had time to kill, so we grabbed a drink from a cafe in the station. It was the first time I got to use my pounds and the first time I ever had someone say to me: "What can I get you love?" Here is a picture from inside the beautiful Victoria Station:

London's Victoria station during lunch.

Our next mode of transportation was the London Underground. I was completely surprised with how busy it was. We took the Circle Line from Victoria to Paddington Station. We still had an hour till check in at the hotel, so we went to McDonald's to sit and kill time. We later checked into our hotel and had a nap, being completely tired. It didn't really bother us that there was no power in the room, we just needed sleep. Flash forward to 7pm, still without power in the room we decided to go exploring in the neighbourhood and find somewhere to eat. Here is a shot of the phone booth outside the hotel.

Phone booth on Sussex Garden in Hyde Park.

We found a place called Garfunkels near the hotel which had reasonable prices. The food ended up being great. I had the Grilled Chicken Burger and Sonia had the Fish and Chips.

My delicious chicken burger!

Sonia's Fish & Chips.

When we got back to the hotel, I decided to inquire about the electricity in the room. Apparently in order for the room to have power, you have to insert your room key into a slot in the wall. Sure enough, on came the lights when I did as I was instructed. That was our crazy day one. It's midnight here now, so I better get some sleep so I can catch the train tomorrow at 7:06am to GLASTONBURY!!!!!! I'll be back tomorrow with another update!

10 Days

Today marks 10 days until Sonia and I leave home for Toronto. Our Flight leaves Pearson on the evening of June 24th. As you can see below; our Glastonbury Festival tickets arrived recently, our London Passes and Travel cards arrived about a week later. Today I received a device and sim card that I rented that will allow us to be connected to the internet anywhere in the UK. This is the device that will allow me to post photos and updates to this blog, facebook and twitter. I cannot begin to explain how excited I am for this trip. A ton more is to come on this blog, so stay tuned!

Glasto Tickets Dispatched!

Today we received a tracking number from seetickets (the company responsible for distributing tickets for the event). As you can see, the tickets are about to leave England! Also worth noting is that everything for the trip has now been paid for, with the exception of food and train from the airport in England.

Flight and Hotel Purchased!

Last night I was successful, after many attempts, at booking airline tickets and the hotel on Expedia. I opted for a cheaper hotel in the north-west end of London, the Crown Moran in Cricklewood. I liked the many amenities it offered and the fact that it was four stars. The hotel is a bit out of the way (30 minutes to city center via the tube), but you couldn't beat the price. The package was $3200 including round-trip airfare and the accommodations for my sister and I. Airfare alone was $2100 after taxes. What I booked last night was only for getting there, hotel for the last seven nights (of a 13 night trip), and getting back. Five of the nights we'd be camping at the Glastonbury Festival of Performing Arts. That leaves us one night without accommodation, the first night we get there (June 25th). When I was looking for a room for that night, I was interested in somewhere close to Paddington Station in London. The fact that we were close to Paddington was very important because, our train/bus for Glastonbury will be leaving the next morning at around 5am.  I found the Days Inn London Hyde Park. I booked it after looking over the reviews and its location. It's less than one kilometer from the station and was only $140. It also features a complimentary breakfast and free wifi. It couldn't be beat. As I look down my checklist, I've accomplished many necessities required for an amazing vacation. I also found some things I still need to do.

CHECKLIST

• Register to purchase tickets for Glasto (Free)
• Place deposit on Glasto tickets on Oct. 7, 2012 (£50 each)
• Pay balance on Glasto tickets on Reading Week (£165 each)
• Book flights (about $2100)
• Book 7 Night Hotel - July 1st -> July 8th (about $1100)
• Book 1st night Hotel - June 25 (about $140)
• Order optionsPlus for Air Transat flights ($130 each)
• Purchase 6 day London Pass with Travel Card (£145.80 each)
• Purchase Via Rail tickets to Toronto and back ($75.00 each)
• Purchase train fare from Gatwick Airport to City Center and back (£62.10)
• Train or bus from Paddington to Glasto site (about £30 each)
• Rent TripBuddy personal wifi device ($110)
• Order British Currency from TD
• PACK

As you can see, this is one monumental trip and I am very excited. With the Glasto lineup just being announced this week it's kind of fitting that I was also finally able to purchase the flight and hotel this week. I want to continue on with a tradition on this blog. That is that every blog post contains at least one image. I decided to do this to keep the blog from becoming stale and boring. Here is this confirmation email I received from Expedia this morning...

Game 1

Not really travel related, but I thought I'd post that tonight is game 1 of my eighth playoffs on audio for Rogers TV. GO KNIGHTS GO!!! Below is a picture of the truck twenty minutes prior to the broadcast.

Things to come

I decided to publish this travel blog as a way to keep my friends and family informed on my trip to England. In the week's to come, I'll be posting various preparations and things that I am undertaking to ready myself for the trip in June. When this trip begins, you'll be able to see photos as I take them and read updates day by day. If you have any comments, just post them here on my blog. I'll readily have access to WiFi and will respond eventually. I leave you now with a picture of the trip planning wall in my bedroom.