Europe Part VI: On to London!

Friday 5/19 (11 miles)

Friday was the final day of the group trip. We started the day with a quick 11 mile bicycle loop through Bruges, then all said our goodbyes. Everyone was going different places - some directly home, others on to other adventures. The trip brochure had said we'd be ready to head out by lunchtime, but I left a margin for error and figured I might not be leaving town until at least 3 PM, which made me one of the last folks to head out. I spent my free hours exploring Bruges. First I went to a bicycle shop which had been recommended by the tour guides, where I bought my only personal souvenir from the trip - a Flanders cycling cap. I also spotted a very cool Danish bike helmet with integrated sun protection. It was too large for me to buy and take with me on my travels, but I noted the brand and model for a potential later online purchase. I was going to climb the bell tower to see the view, but I was put off by the high admission and long line.

Belgian bagels!

In the course of my perambulations I spotted a store selling bagels and - I just couldn't stop myself - I bought the certain train wreck of a Belgian bagel as my lunch. The bagels came as pre-made sandwiches; with the help of Google Translate (which doesn't actually include Flemish, but Dutch had enough cognates for me to use that language instead) I figured out that "Zalm" = salmon, "Geitenkaas" was some sort of cheese, and obviously, "vegitarisch" was vegetarian. I ordered a vegitarisch, which turned out to be some sort of veggie burger-ish patty smeared with some cream cheese-ish cheese, plus veggies, on a "bagel". Unsurprisingly, while the "bagels" looked like bagels, they tasted nothing like the real thing.

The tour guides had arranged taxis for each of us, and when the time came for my taxi I headed back to the hotel. And sat. And sat. About 15 minutes past the scheduled arrival time I went into the hotel and the front desk person called a new taxi. By the time I got to the station I had lost about 1/2 hour. Fortunately I had built slack into my schedule.

My first train was an hour-long commuter train from Bruges to Brussels. Everything went fine on this ride, except that I hadn't counted on the fact that Brussels had multiple stops and that I had no idea which one was my transfer point. It didn't help that Brussels is a bilingual city and that while my ticket used the French name for the station ("Brussels Midi"), the signs on the platform used the Dutch name ("Brussels Zuid"). I wound up going one station too far, but after asking a railroad employee for help I was able to immediately hop a train back one stop to Brussels Midi/Zuid. That error cost me another 15 minutes, and time was getting tight when I finally made it to the Eurostar high speed train which would take me through the "Chunnel" to London.

Getting onto the Eurostar train is a little like boarding a plane. You have to go through a metal detector, where Security actually made me take out my little multi-tool - but they didn't take it away. You also pass through customs at this point, since Brexit the UK is no longer part of the EU.

The train ride itself was quite pleasant. You get served a light meal and a drink, and the seats are roomy and comfortable. I ran Strava on my watch during the ride so I can tell you that the train's top speed was around 180 MPH. 

The Belgians know precisely how much alcohol is in their beer

Checking the Eurostar train's speed

By the time I got to London it was around 7 PM. I grabbed a taxi from St. Pancras station to my friend Brad's flat in Hyde Park. Brad's wife is stationed in London as a government employee, and they are provided with a rather nice townhouse sort of place courtesy of Uncle Sam. There's retail on the first floor, so you go in their front door and ascend a flight of stairs to the first level of their apartment, which holds the kitchen, living room, a small outdoor terrace, and a powder room. Up another level is the master bedroom and a full bath, and up yet another level are two more bedrooms. The building is about 200 years old with high ceilings on each floor (as well as fireplaces - unfortunately not functional - in each room), so there are a lot of steps.

Local pub

Brad's flat

It was great to see Brad, who is a former band-mate of mine and a generally good guy. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see his wife, who was in Scotland on official business. After walking his dog (a very nice and generally well trained wirehaired pointing griffon) in Hyde Park we went out to a local pub for a light dinner (my second dinner of the evening, if you're keeping count) and a pint. After that I was out of steam and turned in for the night.

Saturday 5/20

We got a slow start on Saturday, and after a breakfast of instant porridge (a.k.a. oatmeal) we went to The British Museum, which focuses on human history and culture - in other words, primarily archeology. We had a grand old time looking at the artifacts - including ancient statues, mummies, the Rosetta Stone, and more.

British Museum gallery

Easter Island statue

British Museum cafeteria - Everyone wants to be a New Yorker

Here we are at the museum - I am always very jealous of Brad's hair

Well written description

Amenhotep III and me

Mesopotamian King Gudea - great hairstyle

Mummy!

Another mummy!

One of the Amehoteps

The Rosetta Stone!

Pharoah

While we were out Brad's dog got into my things and ate the trail mix and half Belgian chocolate bar I had in my backpack. Bad dog!

As usual we walked the dog in Hyde Park, this time going all the way to the Italian Gardens. On the way back we picked up "takeaway" dinner from a local Lebanese grocery (Brad's neighborhood has a Lebanese flavor) - hummus, pita, and various other middle eastern treats. After that, we of course went to a (different from the previous night) neighborhood pub for a nightcap.

Quite literally the Rolls Royce of ice cream trucks (at Hyde Park)

The Italian Gardens at Hyde Park

Sunday 5/21

My last full day. After a breakfast of yogurt and granola (it felt good to be getting back to something more like my normal breakfasts after a week of indulgence), Brad and I headed to the Victoria and Albert museum, which focuses on design and decorative arts. There was an exhibit there on design for the theater which I thought looked interesting. Like the day before, we hopped a double-decker bus for a short ride to the museum (which, like The British Museum, is free to visit!). The theater exhibit, which we caught on its last day, was indeed interesting - costumes, set designs, playbill and cast album graphics, etc. We then wandered the museum, going from textiles to industrial design to furniture to watches, to whatever. At lunchtime we headed down to their lovely (if somewhat limited in menu) cafeteria. Brad and I sat in a side room, but suddenly we heard piano music from the main cafeteria room. Then it stopped again - as if someone had just come by, played a tune or two on the piano, then moved on. Once we finished our lunch we poked our heads into the main room and I spotted a grand piano, keyboard lid open, sitting there waiting to be played. So I sat down and played a song. As with the previous player, I received a small round of applause for my performance. Alas, no tips.

At the V&A Museum

Crime scene photo from the dog eating my food

Playing piano at the museum

On one of our walks 

After the museum Brad headed home while I walked through Knightsbridge towards Harrod's, in search of one more souvenir for Valerie. I've been to Harrod's before and it's always been a luxury-level store, but it seems over the top these days - like everything in it is top top high end designer. If you want $500 designer layette outfits for your newborn to spit up on, Harrod's is your store. I looked around in the amazing chocolate hall and almost bought Valerie more chocolate - but I already had two different kinds of chocolate for her from Belgium, so I looked onward and eventually found her a trinket.

I walked the 2 KM (1.2 miles) back from Harrod's to Brad's, window-shopping along the way. I also stopped and got a latte at a Starbucks (don't judge me). When I got back I discovered that the dog had gotten into my things again. This time all the energy bars I had left over from the trip got eaten. Unlike the open food the day before, these were all still sealed in their individual wrappers and were inside a Ziploc bag inside my duffel bag - and they still got eaten. Sheesh.

For dinner we had more takeaway from a local grocer - salmon, along with some of the leftover Middle Eastern food from the previous night. And then I packed for my trip home.

Monday 5/22

Monday was my travel day home. Another smooth flight, not much to report. I walked from Brad's place to Paddington Station. There are two trains from Paddington to Heathrow airport. I was going to try to take the local subway (about $15, 30 minutes) to save money, but I found the Heathrow Express ($28, 15 minutes) first and just said the heck with it and hopped on. At The DC end I took the (new!) Silver Line home from Dulles (a bargain at $6, 30 minutes). So I got all the way from Hyde Park in London to East Falls Church without stepping into a car. Valerie picked me up at the station and so I ruined the car-free nature of the trip in the final 0.75 miles of a 3,500 mile journey. It was worth it not to have to schlep my suitcases home from the Metro. 

Final airline meal: tofu in yellow curry sauce, salad, a dinner roll, and Oreos

A great trip. Great support from the outfitter. Great scenery. Even great weather - I had sunny weather even in London!

Some final thoughts

• The outfitter I used for the bike trip, Backroads, does an excellent job. But their MO definitely seems to be active by day, luxury by night, in terms of both hotel and food. I'm not sure I need their kind of luxury for my adventure travels.
• I got some cash before I left - both Euros and Pounds. I used barely any of it. Europe has gone largely cashless.
• Since I'm used to being more self-sufficient while traveling, I brought along all sort of bike tools and accessories. In fact, I don't think the Backroads team would have let me touch anything on the bike. I could have left that stuff home. I also brought lights and reflectors - but since our bikes were always spirited away well before dark, I could have left those home too. And I brought a big pile of snack bars, since I like to snack and I wasn't sure what food on the trip would be like. It turns out they joke that the company should be named "Snackroads". I could have left the bulk of my snack foods at home, where they would have been safe from the dog.
• Way back in Part I of my description of this trip I mentioned how I had brought my cli-in bike shoes but had forgotten the pedals. Well, on my last night in London, while re-packing, I found the pedals in my suitcase. I guess there's a lesson there to be mindful and focused while packing.