Monday 6th August 2018

Back on my travels.

Although, with an afternoon flight from Heathrow, it meant laying in until the normal time, half five, so Jools could drop me off at the station on her way to work.

It was already getting warm, if not downright hot. No clouds to spoil the sky, and little wind to stir the air.

I have a coffee and pack my overnight bag, leaving room for a DSLR, as there would be time for snapping. Always make time.

Thing is, Jools dropping me off meant that I had an hour to kill in that London, otherwise I would have had to get a taxi for the later train. It did mean that I could up my daily step rate, as Jools had bought me a smart watch that counts steps, as well as the time. My countrate has gone from 4400 on the first day, 6200, then over 7000, now to push it towards the 10k point.

Once in London, I walk to Kings Cross to check on whether there were any new trains to snap, there wasn’t, but then the Virgin trains have been rebranded to LNER, making the statue of Sir Nigel Gresley in the concourse all the more apt. One for train geeks there.

From there I walk up to the old freight yard, as from the train I saw the canal had been covered in duckweed, and I thought that it might make good shots. Indeed, seeing narrowboats emerging from what looked like a green lawn was very striking, only if it were a lawn, it would be burnt to a crisp this summer of course.

I walk under the railway, and though the park to St Pancras Old Church, the oldest consecrated site in London, although the current church is a Victorian building, still has lots of history. But as it turned out, I had to nip in between morning prayers and mass to rattle off a few shots.

I had been wanting to see inside for many years, but it seemed to fall behind in the priority list. Done now though.

Back to St Pancras station, and into the underground to catch a train west to Paddington, but the first train was for Amersham, but if I caught that, I could change at Baker Street and take some snaps on the old Metropolitan platforms, which is what I did. And the platforms were wonderfully empty, showing off the architecture, and light pouring down through shafts along each platform.

I get the next train to Paddington, watching its headlights approach along the tunnel. I take shots of that too.

At Paddington, I stop to snap the new class 800s running to Wales, out of Paddington on electricity, but west of Slough using diesel engines. They look good gliding out of the station though.

I take the next train to Heathrow, meaning I arrived with just over two hours to spare, time then to check in and go through security and go to have lunch in the Japanese place, so do battle with chopsticks again. Sometimes I do well, other times, just useless. But after finding a spoon, I scoop up the now non sticky rice.

Job done.

I find somewhere to sit down, and snooze a bit. I look in the whisky shop, see nothing I wanted, and go to the camera shop to find my camera is now £600 cheaper than it was last year.

The gate had been called, so I go and wait in the line for group 3 to board, meaning missing out on the scramble to get on, and had I wanted, room in the overhead lockers for my bag. But I put it between my legs and wait for the rest to board.

The woman next to me was in a bad mood the whole flight, tutting each time I moved and was in a silent rage when I used by Avios points to buy a bottle of water as I was feeling parched. No free food or drinks on short haul flights with BA now, except on the run to Billund.

Hamburg is hot. Damn hot. As expected.

I walk to the S Bahn station, get my ticket and go down to board the waiting train. It has no air conditioning. But all the windows are open, but useless as the train isn’t moving. I spend the waiting time wondering why they decided to put such large rubbish bins between the seats under the window, making it impossible to sit straight in the seat.

I could find no reason, just shit design.

The train moved off, and we felt the benefit of the open widows. Though if we could have taken all the windows out that would have been better.

It was a relief to get to the HBF, I emerge onto the street, realise I was thirsty, so see a bar over the road and go in. I have two halb liters of weissbier, and very good both were too. I could have had a third, but I would never have left. I walk back to the station and get a taxi to take me to the hotel, a four minute run, but I give hm a €3 tip, and he is happy.

I check in and go to my room to find it frosty cool. Perfect.

I don’t leave it until it was nearly eight, when I go down to the restaurant to have dinner; schnitzel and fries and weissbier.

Which is just what I felt like having.

9221 steps, and I was done for the day. Tomorrow, I intended to walk to the office, I was sure that would push the 10k step limit.