Jasperites Travel to England, Scotland
Ultimate Destination was the 145th British Open, July 17, in Troon, Scotland as a Christmas, birthday, anniversary gift to my golfer husband, Don. Anyone could buy a package to this tournament of tournaments for plenty of U.S. dollars, but why go the easy route especially for this seasoned traveler.
Where the heck is Troon, Scotland? If you look up the map of Scotland on Google, you really have to look for Troon which is located on the most western border of Scotland, a mere dot. Having a major golf tournament there would be like having one in Monticello. Around 55,000 people were expected to attend. Reports from those who saw the tournament on television said it went off without a hitch. Getting 55,000 people to Troon, especially us, was a true challenge to the body and soul.
Airfare was our first and most expensive concern. Over the years, we have saved our airfare mileage on credit cards through offers, buying through the credit card websites gave us more mileage, using the credit card for daily purchases brought in more miles. In the end we all were able to fly round trip using our accumulated mileage, but still paid about $300 per person for taxes and fees.
Keep in mind when you use mileage, you are doing all the work to get the right connections. Again it all looked good on paper. My husband was flying Delta to London, my friend a golfer, Betty Brooks, and I were flying American to London. We were to arrive 10 minutes apart and meet at a convenience store right outside customs.
Here the logistics boggle the mind. Delta flies into Terminal 5, American flies into Terminal 3. Our plane was late. Don who had never been to Heathrow Airport outside London texted me that he was waiting for us. Little did he know that we were still in the air. Even when we landed the text did not come in. Happily, all’s well that ends well, Betty and I arrived by bus from Terminal 3 and found Don by the convenience store. He had been waiting two hours.
We boarded a commuter train called Heathrow Connect that delivers you, after a few stops, to Paddington Station, a huge transportation center west of London. Our hotel was literally around the corner, St. David’s. Located on a large park, Norfolk Square, St. David’s was built over 200 years ago so an elevator and bathrooms were an after thought. To get into the bathroom you had to make a step up of about a foot. Luckily we all were able to leap tall buildings with a single bound and got into the bathroom without tripping or falling.
Also, the hotel was not air-conditioned, open a window, which actually worked with the low temperatures at night. With our room rate of approximately $125 a night we got a full English breakfast, eggs, a large link sausage, a good sized piece of what they call bacon, sauteed mushrooms, a baked tomato, toast, juice and coffee. You need this kind of breakfast since we were in a third floor walk up room. Our room was about the size of an American bathroom.
Paddington is a multi-national area with so many different people and restaurants. We ate at a Greek restaurant run by a Turkish man who brought us “on the house” a variety of olives and sliced carrots and at the end of the meal an interesting dessert. An Italian trattoria was next door with delicious thin crusted, brick oven pizza. Garfunkels, a London chain, had the standard fare much like our Applebee’s. We also ate at a little mom and pop fish and chips place with large, crusty pieces of fried white fish and a cup of french fries(chips). From Paddington Station normally you can catch the subway, but construction ending sometime in the future, the subway is out. Buses had to be rerouted, so leaving Paddington was not as easy as getting there.
We opted for an Oyster card which is like the Marta cards in Atlanta. You buy a basic card and then add money on. The Oyster card is perfect for visitors since at the end of your trip you can cash it in and get the basic card purchase amount and any leftover funds. Oyster cards are about $7 and rides on subway and bus are $2.30.
The next day after arrival we rode the public double decker red bus to the most famous tourist attraction in London, the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace. The Changing takes places every day at 11:30 a.m. This was my first opportunity to be there in the summer when the guards and the band put on quite a show. Thousands line up to see the precision Red Coats march down the street into the courtyard and with much ballyhoo and shouting, change the guard. The accompanying band stood in the middle of the courtyard, playing a couple of tunes for the Yanks, “Yankee Doodle Dandy” and a modified version of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic.”
When leaving, we were stopped and got to see the whole troupe go by on their way back to the barracks. Afterwards, we strolled down Birdcage Lane to Westminister, stopping for a pint and a pretty good idea in the way of dining, a sharer platter at the Red Lion. The sharer consists of several items such as small pieces of toast, hummus, pickled cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, several pieces of cheese, and thinly sliced pieces of ham, enough for a party of three. The Red Lion is nestled in between 10 Downing Street and Parliament.
Renewed energy we walked on to view Big Ben, always the right time, the Parliament Buildings, Parliament was in session so no tours, the front of Westminister Abbey, and finding the Jewel Tower where obviously the Jewels were kept. It is a small, three-story stone building with a moat built in the 1300’s which was where the jewels of the king were kept. Not much to see inside since the jewels were moved to The Towers of London many centuries ago. We were in London when the former Prime Minister resigned and the new PM moved in the same day. No elections required?? Not sure how you acquire this office, but it was all the news for the entire visit. Besides news of the United Kingdom, the rest of the world did not exist.
Our next stop was to ride the London Eye, a very large ferris wheel, each car holds 24 people and rises above the Thames and any building in sight. Great picture opportunity to get a birds eye view of the whole of London. Price is about $30 per person. It takes approximately one hour to make the whole loop. At 6:30 p.m. we finally reached our final destination for the day after realizing rush hour in London is chaos, meeting the free tour guide in front of St. Botoloph Church of England at High Street Aldgate, construction started in 1111 AD, for the unlikely beginning of the Jack the Ripper tour.
Jessica , our guide, certainly knew her body parts as she detailed each killing that took place in a matter of weeks. We were in the heart of an area that for centuries is where newly planted immigrants came. Today, many Middle Eastern immigrants run small businesses as they take root in their new land. Her tour took us to the doorstep of the victims next to cobble stoned roads, only thing missing was the fog, but since the sun doesn’t set until after 10 p.m. the tour lacked the normal spookiness factor. End of day 2.
Getting off to a slow start, no firm plans for the day, just going to view the Towers of London, walking down below the beautiful Tower Bridge to St. Katherine’s Dock where we lunched at a popular restaurant with a very strange name, The Slug and Lettuce. A large screen in the middle of the courtyard at the Dock had lots of lawn chairs where townees and visitors could relax and watch endless hours of cricket. Next we walked on the Tower of London Bridge and then started to make our way via subway to St. Paul’s Cathedral for their evening song. This journey would prove once again that rush hour is chaos in Londontown.
Somehow we arrived just in time to take our seat and get a program. This church was begun in 604 A.D., Catholic in origin, but Henry the VIII ended that religion in England, forming the Church of England with him as head. His daughter, Elizabeth the First, attended services there. The history of this place is overwhelming. The service begins as the bishop leads out the guest choir for the day, walking down the long aisle with the choir singing in beautiful harmony, no accompanying instruments. You may remember this church as where the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana took place. For hundreds of years, choral evensong has been sung. A majestic church one could easily spend hours visiting it and marveling in the stained glass windows that sent a shimmer of color onto the black and white tiled floors. End of Day 3.
Tomorrow we will ride the train to Edinburgh, some 500 miles away, and at last will be close to Troon, our ultimate destination.
If Editor Kathy Mudd is willing, the rest of the trip can be published next week. Cheerio.
