London to LAX ~ The End! (Day 19)

 

I have finally come to the end of our trip.  This is my 53rd post!!  That is a little under three posts per day that we were gone.  We've been home for seven weeks.  I've enjoyed reliving our trip and learning the answers to so many of the questions I had along the way.  (If you have not read all the posts and want to start at the beginning, just go HERE.)

 

We took a total of ONE picture on the final day of our trip and it will be the last one in this post.  All others are just some of my favorites.  (Picking a favorite picture is a lot like picking a favorite kind of chocolate - impossible!)   We had breakfast from the buffet at the hotel, then it was a short taxi ride to the airport.

 

We arrived at London Heathrow Airport with plenty of time to get through luggage and security.  Again, Heathrow seemed very easy to navigate.  One word of caution if you are thinking about taking a trip to Europe - there are a number of strikes going on in airports and railways this summer, none of them were happening when we were there.  It is wise to check ahead and check again.

 

Our United Airlines flight left about 10 minutes late, but other than that it was a very smooth trip.  We traveled with the sun, leaving London at 11:15 a.m. and arriving in Los Angeles at 2:10 p.m.  I don't think either of us slept much, but I really don't remember!

 

It took a while to get through US Customs.  I had downloaded the Mobile Passport Control app and filled out all the necessary information.  I was ready to speed through until the customs agent said they don't have equipment needed to connect to the app.  Typical government bureaucracy!  We laughed with the agent, then were on our way to baggage claim.

Our luggage was delayed about 20 minutes.  From the time we landed until we were outside it was a little over an hour.  We stepped outside and took a picture of an LA landmark, then our driver, Hilda, picked us up and we were headed for home.

Thanks for reading along!  I have some fun Friday Foodie posts coming soon.

Paris to London (Day 18, Part 3 of 3)

Getting from City Locker to the train station was suppose to be easy... the walk wasn't too bad until we actually got to Gare du Nord station.  We came in one entrance and were directed to the Eurostar part of the station - up one flight of stairs, across another part of the station, then back down another flight of stairs - dragging our luggage with us.  Traveling is always an adventure!

We went through customs and security before finding our correct boarding platform.  We boarded on time and easily found our seats.  This part of our day is a bit of a blur - we were both so tired!  This was a really great way to travel back to London.  I know I have said it several times, but we really love the trains in Europe.  This was about a 2 1/2 hour train ride, we got an hour back on the clock because Paris is one hour ahead of London.

The Eurostar traveled through the French countryside then entered the Channel Tunnel (often called the "Chunnel.")  This is an undersea tunnel linking southern England and northern France.  There wasn't anything to see, just the reflection of the glass.  The Channel Tunnel runs between Calais in northern France and Folkestone in south Kent.

 

Once we arrived in London, we joined the queue for a taxi.  This seemed to take longer than it should have.  We finally arrived at the Leonardo Hotel and got checked in for our last night.  The hotel is definitely set up for travelers who are there for just a night.  It is very close to Heathrow airport and offers the option of a shuttle or they can reserve a taxi.  We opted for a taxi then headed to our room.  It was a normal size hotel room and we were ready for bed!