2024 - Europe Trip - Part 3 - London

After landing at London's Heathrow airport, old memories were awakened. I landed at Heathrow Airport for the first time in 2000 on a foreign tour. As it was evening at that time, the airport was crowded. But now, as it was night time, we did not feel that we were at one of the busiest airports in the world. Considering the interest of the environment, this airport is closed for five-six hours at night like some other airports in Europe. When it comes to our country, our airports are the busiest at night. Of course, this may be a convenient time to go from Europe to America.  

 

As for immigration, there was not a huge queue. It was an overall case of Atul ahead and Veena World passengers behind. There were a total of 43 people on our trip. 13 of them were to join us at a hotel in London. So there should be 30 people in this queue. There were several officials to control the immigration queue. As Atul got his number, he told the officials that all the following men had come for a twelve-day tour of Europe by Veena World. Probably I was the last person in the queue from Veena World's group. At Atul's suggestion, three immigration officers were assigned to our group. Overall our immigration experience went smoothly. We were asked some friendly questions as a treat. Our immigration process is done. The first experience we got in this visit is the impact of purchasing power of Indian customers!

Our march then turned to the possession of our bags. Currently, the news of some celebrities getting their bags late at Heathrow airport has been published on social media. But since we are probably not celebrities, our bags were well taken care of. It is regrettable now that the opportunity to be famous on social media was lost. We started walking towards our bus. On our way out with our bags, we passed the customs officers. Probably because their duty time was over or because they thought by looking at our faces that these people were going to bring something suspicious, they let us go without any trouble.  

As soon as we stepped out, we were immediately greeted by a gust of cool air. The month of June is actually the month of summer. But in England, France we had to experience quite cold weather and blowing winds. The climate in Europe is very unpredictable. Atul repeatedly warned us that if it rains there, the temperature can suddenly drop by 10 degrees Celsius. Rain can come anytime. So it is always better to carry things like a small umbrella, sweater or jacket with you. If you are very worried about the cold, you should also keep things like ear caps, gloves with you. Asking other family members or fellow travelers to take pictures in such costumes and posting them on social media can get a good response. In such a case, the possibility of a mischievous fellow traveler with you making fun of you on social media cannot be ruled out. Another important point in this. You adapt to this climate within a day or two. So if there is no wind then you can easily tolerate 15 degree Celsius etc. 

Soham and Prajakta liked the first-look England. In no time we arrived at our hotel Park Grand London Heathrow. It was said to be in the Terminal 5 area of ​​London Airport. The extent of this airport should be understood from the fact that it took so much time to go from one terminal to the other terminal of the airport. Veena World had brought food in a parcel. But we only took the water bottles from this box as we had already eaten some time before landing in London. Every hotel usually has different arrangements for shower, hot/cold water to confuse the visiting guests. Therefore, I have heard cases where guests who enter the bathhouse to fulfill the need of only warm water from the shower to wash their hands and feet as per the Indian habit, are surprised by the cold water spray and scream loudly. But I cannot announce their names as they have given this confession in private. The exhausted soul fell asleep within moments of laying down on the bed. Before going to bed at night, Atul announced the next day's schedule on the WhatsApp group. A brief schedule for the second day was a wake-up call at six in the morning, breakfast from seven to eight-fifteen, and departure for London sightseeing at eight. 

Woke up around five in the morning. It was bright outside. All three woke up and turned on the TV. Euro 2024 was supposed to start today. There was a discussion in the news about whether this tournament would boost the economy of Europe or not. In 2000, when he was at Brighton, there was a match between England and Germany in the Euro tournament. Guy Bamford, my worried colleague at the time, told me, "Aditya, if there are signs that Germany will win, don't leave the hotel at all". I sent him a message that I am now coming to London. But due to his busy schedule, it was not possible to meet him in London. 

Breakfast at the hotel was colorful. Picture taken from the internet of breakfast in this hotel. 

In fact, it was the same breakfast. Back in 2000, the Baked Beans from Jacket Potato with Baked Beans, which was often used for lunch in the office during my stay in Brighton in 2000, appeared here. Breakfast in Europe includes different types of bread, fresh fruits, fruit juices, scrambled eggs, coffee, tea, non-meat options. If you want to fully enjoy this breakfast, you should have the following qualities. 

1. Being able to drink coffee in cups/glasses with confidence by choosing the right option from the coffee machine. Make a second attempt with the impression that it is not your fault if you mess up on the first attempt and spill coffee on the table. 

2. Not having to worry about whether there will be any leftovers for the people behind you while taking the bread and fruit you want. 

3. Knowing how to apply butter, cheese, jam and the like in sealed containers. Or if you don't have this information, doing what you want with overconfidence, completely ignoring the expressions on the faces of the people behind you. 

4. Cut all the food into a neat shape so that it can be eaten with minimum opening of the mouth, using the proper use of a knife and a fork. 

Anyway, after a hearty breakfast, we boarded the bus. It was predicted that the girth of the stomach would have increased by one and a half cm.  I didn't want to take the trouble of bringing the bags to the bus as I wanted to come back to the same hotel tonight. 

We were allotted seats in advance (as per registration order) in the bus. We carried umbrellas, jackets and other weapons to cope with the fluctuating weather of London and some had taken goggles etc. to show off their personality while taking pictures. Goggles as protection from the sun is unlikely to convince me! 

London on a Friday morning by bus was quite pleasant. The bus driver was David. 

Clara, our guide, was to meet us in town shortly. Atul said that in the city of London, use the words Please, Excuse me, Sorry and Thank You with open hands (or open mouth). Of course, if you don't know which of these words to use in which occasion, it can lead to confusion. 

It can be said that the city of London was built by the Romans two thousand years ago. The city of London has successfully battled plagues, wildfires, civil wars, air raids, riots, some terrorist attacks in the recent past. In 1666, the fire of London, which lasted for five days, completely destroyed the city of London. The fire started after midnight in a small bakery and quickly spread across the city. It has been read that the delay in decision-making by the then mayor and officials was the main reason for the spread of the fire.  After this fire, proposals were made to rebuild the city of London. Sir Christopher Wren was instrumental in rebuilding the City of London.  

In this bus journey Pavlopavali (Tiratyri as it is going by bus) was coming across historical important buildings of London city. First Atul then Clara was telling us their importance in detail.  Cleopatra Needles - Two sculptures of historical importance from Egypt were restored in London and New York in 1878 and 1881 respectively. You can get the full picture of this sculpture from the website. 

 

Here are pictures of various buildings/monuments in London of historical importance seen from the bus as seen from the bus! Some of these pictures have been captured by the camera of Veena World fellow travelers and Atul. It includes Big Ben Miniature, Westminster Abbey Church of Royal Family, Dragon Statue entry point Westminster Abbey, Tower Bridge, London Bridge Railway Station (world's oldest railway station), Fire Monument, St. Paul Catheral London, Piccadilly Circus, BBC Radio Station, 10 Downing Street, Monument of Victoria, Hercules Statue, Chelsea Monument etc. I felt proud to see our India House there. Each of the above mentioned places has historical importance. Atul, Clara were giving us information about each and every place very fast. Apart from the places mentioned above, London has numerous other monuments of historical importance. There are around two hundred museums in the city of London. The British Museum is one of the most famous museums! If you are a true history buff, it would take several days to see all these structures in detail. We managed all this in half an hour's journey! Rishi Sunak was the Prime Minister of England when we passed by bus from 10 Downing Street. As of writing this post today, he has lost this position. Kalai Tasmai Namah! 

Pictures taken on Tower Bridge! Of course the bus cannot stop here. Many vintage fans like me are happy to see that the double-deckers that have passed away in Mumbai are still plying the streets in London. 

The Parliament of England has two houses, the House of Commons and the House of Lords. This structure is similar to our Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. I vaguely remembered Clara saying that some Umrao get lifetime membership in the House of Lords. But I couldn't find any corroborating information on the internet. Clara was somewhat difficult. She made occasional references to the Gadganj property of the British royal family. While telling them which is their bank, from which shop they buy groceries, she would slowly mention how expensive the membership fee is to become a member of this establishment. Once a year, the royal family organizes a party for some citizens. Clara's husband was once invited to such a party. But instead of taking Clara with him, he took his business associate. When he came back, there was not much hospitality in that party, only dumplings and so on, when he told her that there was a good deal on her face. 

Now we arrived at Trafalgar Square. There are only two spaces for bus parking near this intersection. Clara was ecstatic that we got one of them.  Trafalgar  Square is a well-known square in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early nineteenth century. This square is named after the victory of the British Navy over the forces of France and Spain  in the Battle of Trafalgar  on October 21, 1805 during the Napoleonic Wars .  This area was earlier also known as Ring Cross. As this square is very spacious, it is used for various public meetings and political exhibitions. It is the main center for New Year celebrations and fireworks. Atul warned us to take care of our valuables after coming here. He said don't leave your bags with your valuables for a long time in the name of taking pictures. Coming early in the morning, the square was quite empty.  

This   gave us a great opportunity for photography. Clara said we were lucky. It had rained a lot the previous day, and the observatory predicted that it would rain the next day as well. After completing the photography session here, we got back in the bus. 

There are numerous bridges over the River Thames. Each bridge has certain characteristics. For example, the construction of Waterloo Bridge was largely led by women. As men got involved in the Second World War, they showed that they are not hum kise cum nahin.  The bus was heading towards Tower Bridge.  Tower Bridge is one of the most important bridges on the River Thames. Taking a Tower Bridge Tour is a great option to get a closer look at Tower Bridge, to learn its in-depth history. Of course we didn't have time for this. I took this tour in 2000. At that time the guide there had given a lot of information. Of course, there is no chance of remembering it now. The bridge is opened in the middle to facilitate the passage of large ships passing under the bridge. Of course, as the number of such ships and traffic has decreased recently, the opening of the bridge is less. There are many posts and videos about this on the Internet. We shot Tower Bridge on camera from a distance. We took enough pictures of ourselves to think Tower Bridge was just an excuse. 

We asked Clara to join us in a  photo  . She happily agreed. While walking towards the bus after finishing this photography session, we saw a flower garden. Of course, photography is essential here. Atul hurried a bit so that we could get back to the bus early. The next point was Buckingham Palace, the palace of the English royal family in London! When the King resides in this palace, the "Royal Flag", which symbolizes the sovereignty of the British Empire, flies over the palace. Other times the "Union Jack" gets this honor. 

The "Changing the Guard" or "Guard Mounting" (which is the official term) ceremony  takes place outside Buckingham  Palace every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday at eleven o'clock. In this ceremony, which usually lasts for 45 minutes, the old guards on the guard of the palace hand over the sutras to the new guards. Fortunately, we got there in time, so we got strategic seats on the road. This place was a little far from the palace. Around eleven o'clock, the sounds of bugles and drums began to sound around the palace. Probably the old guardians  may have handed over the sutras  to the new guardians. A large body of guards on horseback was now coming towards us. It was certainly an unforgettable experience to see a troop of horse-mounted soldiers,  dressed in red uniforms and black caps,  with very attractive personalities  .

A large crowd of people had gathered on the lawn surrounding the palace. Atul advised us not to spend time taking pictures here. Our march now turned for lunch. 

We arrived for lunch at the Mumtaz Hotel in London City. Atul said that I have been coming to this hotel for many years. Veena World, Kesari's traveling groups in major European cities tend to go for lunch and dinner at certain restaurants. Therefore, approximately 45 minutes is allotted for each group. During this period everyone eagerly expects an early meal. Due to the punctuality of our group or Atul's seniority, we would be the first to reach most of the places. A washroom break was also a motive when visiting a travel canteen. Somewhat regrettably, this washroom was not completely clean. This washroom used to be in the basement. With such a large number of travelers arriving in a short period of time, it was inevitable that there would be some problem with their cleanliness.  

Everyone was obviously hungry after traveling for so long. The food was delicious, but for some reason, it felt mechanically prepared. Our meals in Indian restaurants in Europe used to follow a certain pattern. Initially, there were dishes such as naan, salad, two or three vegetarian options, varan, rice arranged in a row. Chicken was often available in a corner as an option for non-vegetarians. In restaurants where Veena World used to have guests, non-vegetarian options were insisted on in a corner. But in the canteens which had their own system, non-vegetarian dishes were served alongside vegetarian dishes. He had recovered to sit in the bus once again with a full meal.   It was predicted that the girth of the stomach would have increased by another two cm. . Fortunately, shortly after we arrived at the entrance to the Madame  Tussauds  wax museum. 

As we were given a specific time for our group booking, we had to wait for some time. The weather was very cold. The wind was blowing. There were many shops selling souvenirs. The fellow travelers made full use of this opportunity. Soon we entered the museum. Madame Tussauds was born in 1761 in France. Her mother  worked for a Swiss craftsman named Philip Curtis  . He gave madam basic education in making statues out of wax. Initially started on an experimental basis, Madame Tussauds expanded this art on a large scale. He was summoned to London. Because of the Napoleonic war, he had to stay in London. Beginning in 1831, he began exhibiting his works on the upper floors of Baker's State Market on short-term leases. Later this building was converted into Madame Tussauds museum. I also went to this museum during my visit to London in 2000. Here there are statues of various politicians, sportspersons, actors in the film industry, various writers, scientists that seem to be very accurate. 

We Indians are always looking for statues of our dignitaries. This time we learned something new. There are now many Madame Tussauds museums in Europe and around the world. Statues of dignitaries are shifted to various museums after a short period of time. People in our group wanted to see statues of PM Modi, Madhuri Dixit etc. But at present these statues are not seen in this museum in London. For our family, however, there was no such particular interest. So as Hollywood actors, football players, our Sachin Tendulkar, the world famous personalities like the Beatles appeared, we took our pictures with them. 

 

I warned myself that insisting on taking pictures with statues of Angelina Jolie, Taylor Swift, on such occasions, would not be spacious. After a conversation with Shakespeare, our Sachin, we moved on. 

Shah Rukh Khan's statue, however, was a huge disappointment. In the parlance of Prajakta, he did not look like Shah Rukh Khan from any angle. This museum has many chambers. Chamber of horrors etc. are placed there without any need. Another type of scare is that you have to go through sections like Chamber of Horrors as you move forward. The way to escape from there can be easily found only by the knowledgeable. A hard-fought loophole led us to another ride. Both of us sat in that ride. A taxi ride is a great experience that takes you through the history of the city of London.    The ride gives you an opportunity to witness various historical and cultural events in the history of the city of London that shaped the city of London . In this short period of time, we get to see all the history of the London city affected by the plague, the London city destroyed by a terrible fire, the city rebuilt from the ashes like the Phoenix Party with the efforts of Sir Christopher, the London city, the capital of England, which fought bitterly against Germany under the leadership of Prime Minister Winston Churchill in the Second World War. After an interesting ride, we exited the museum.   Who knows why but Madame Tussauds was not as enjoyable as it should have been. A similar museum was also seen in Singapore. Recently, such museums have started standing in India as well. 

Hot masala tea was arranged for us at a stall outside the museum  . It was a very pleasant experience to have hot masala tea in such cold weather. Atul did not forget to say this next masala tea at his home on the twenty-fifth with a smile. 

After this our steps or the tires of the bus headed towards the London Eye. 

British Airways, the national airline of England,   mainly financed the construction of the London Eye . The giant wheel, which was erected on the River Thames in 1999, was inaugurated by the then Prime Minister Tony Blair on 31st December 1999, but due to some technical difficulties, it was opened to the general public in March 2000. When we visited London in the month of June 2000, London Eye tickets were not available. So at that time I could not sit in it. 

 

The London Eye consists of a total of 32 sealed and air-conditioned capsules (cupicas). These vials are numbered from 1 to 33. No prize will be awarded for correctly guessing which number was not used!! A capsule accommodates approximately 25 people. A full round is usually completed in 35 minutes. The wheel is not completely stopped for passengers to climb. The speed of this wheel is moderate enough to allow passengers to board and disembark. After going up there was a very panoramic view of the city of London. Having a mobile phone with them, rather than taking in all these scenes, everyone's attention was focused on taking pictures of them through the mobile phone. In our capsule we were all probably fellow passengers of Veena World itself. Some of our fellow passengers were in side capsules. So we also took pictures of each other. Some of our fellow-travellers were of observant intellect. Even after the age of 65, he kept this attentive intellect intact. So he asked me questions about the direction of the airport, the type of roof of this building. I answered them as best I could, taking due care not to dampen their enthusiasm. Looking at my face, giving the feeling that this man is not as simple as he looks, he turned his march to other people to get answers to his questions. At about six o'clock we got down from this wheel. 

Now our journey started back to the hotel. We got a little taste of Friday evening London traffic jams. Atul continued to give information about various buildings on the way. Chelsea club is not only famous for football matches but also for various social activities. Atul gave information about some of the complexes set up for his social activities. As the main city receded a bit, the number of trees on the road increased somewhat. Flowers and fruits appeared on the trees. One of the disadvantages of photographing from the bus is that the reflection of you and your fellow passengers in the glass of the bus is also included in the photographs. Still, our enthusiasm did not diminish. We reached the hotel at seven o'clock. Dinner was to start at half past seven. The next morning we were to start our march towards Paris. We were going to catch the very fast Euro Star train. That station was an hour's journey away. We had to do immigration at this railway station to go to another country. Even though the train is at 7:30 in the morning, Atul decided that he would have to leave the hotel early in the morning to have time to fill the bags in the bus, remove the  bags after going to the railway station  , check the immigration, and fill all these bags in the train after the arrival of the train. For our comfort, he said in his difficult tone that it would be 7:30 in the morning Indian time here at three o'clock, so you will not have any trouble getting up. 

 

Both children of our Kirtimama, Preshit and Shweta are living in London. We had informed them that we were going to pay a quick visit to London. He  had strongly warned us that you could not pass through London without meeting us  . Actually the initial plan was to meet them on Thursday. But we could not meet on Thursday as we reached very late. But on Friday, both of them came with their children. Abhijna, the Preshit's wife, also came. They came to meet us after traveling such a long distance. There is no better occasion than meeting your close relatives in Vasai abroad. Our chat was very lively. But the two of them insisted that we sleep early as Atul's alarm was at three o'clock the next morning. They all returned with a resolution to plan their journey better next time and definitely come home. This event will surely be remembered for life.  

The day started at five in the morning and ended after ten at night. It is worth mentioning that both times daylight was with us. 

I haven't moved around much. But two cities, New York and London, bring a feel of global cities. There is a huge amount of financial turnover in this city. Major financial companies of the world have their offices in these two cities. In terms of climate, severe winters are similar in these two cities. As attractive men and women dressed in business formals walk to their offices in the downtowns of these cities in the morning, it seems as if the world's financial wisdom is concentrated here.  You can walk for a long time in both these cities. Both the cities have a good metro network. Taxis are easily available. So depending on own car is not much. In fact bringing a car into the main parts of the city is not much encouraged in both these cities. Parks in the City of London are also considered tourist attractions. Many come here to spend hours with their families. This is a great example of how to cultivate nature even in cities! 

As mentioned earlier in the article, this was a quick visit to the city of London! Wish to visit this city as an expert in the future!

Debt 

Mr. Sandeep Patil - Travel Log 

Shri Manohar Rai - Travelogue 

Wikipedia 

Mrs. Prajakta Patil - Proof reading, Marathi word suggestions. 

Links to previous episodes