As I said yesterday, I have never been able to sleep on a plane. I don't know why, but it is just me. At any rate, we flew over Ireland, as the sun was coming up. It was very green. Then, we flew into foggy London. I was very glad our pilots knew where the airport was, because we couldn't see it. The clock said 7am, but our bodies said 2am. It was rather fortunate that the tour gave us this day to recover from the flight.
We got our bags and waited for what seemed like an eternity for our bus to take us into London. It finally came and off we went to our hotel--the Mount Royal at Marble Arch. They weren't ready for us to check in, so we just sat around for what seemed like another eternity. Some slept in the lobby, which wasn't very big. The hotel had been built during the war as a place for soldiers. It wasn't quite a deluxe hotel. But, it was across the street from Hyde Park, so it wasn't a total loss. I decided to take a walk around the neighborhood. I found a restaurant, and asked them to make me a grilled cheese sandwich. My stomach was a little queasy from not getting any sleep. They looked at me like I was crazy. How to make a grilled cheese sandwich? I explained that you take two slices of bread; put a piece of cheese in the middle with some mayo; and toast it. They told me they couldn't do that, so they made me a quiche instead. Not quite the same.
After I poked that and ate a little, I went walking again. An American stopped me on the street and asked me where the American embassy was. I had no clue, but I used my British accent that I had developed for a play in college, and told him it was just down the street about three blocks. He asked if I was an American, and I told him I lived there now, but I grew up in Kent in England. He bought the lie and headed off down the street. I found out later that I had sent him in the wrong direction.
I got back to the hotel in time to check in. Got a nap, and then it was time for supper.
Bean soup. Not the best, but certainly not the worst. Although, it was a little spicy, and we asked for something to drink, which came at the end of the meal. I was already missing the cuisine of home. I like England, but I am not crazy about their food. After the supper, the girls and I went exploring out in the area around the hotel and came upon an underground market. It was closed, but the smell of the bread was heavenly. I should mention here that, when I mention "the girls", I am referring to Sandra, Talula, Judy, and Sha. The first three were girls I went to school with at Anderson. Sha was still in high school, but we let her hang with us, since she and Judy were friends. Sandra, Talula, and I were very close, as we had been in plays together, and we great friends. So, as we were in the closed market, we made a pact. We would stay together and have fun together. We would also try to experience the local flavor of the places we were visiting. The idea was that we would do the pre-arranged tour, but we would also talk to the locals, and visit places not on the tour. We wanted the total experience. This would get us into trouble later, but it seemed like a good idea at the time.
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