London Baby!

The end of April saw us take a weekend trip down to London, a chance to meet up with friends old and new, enjoy the vibe of the city and attend a very special event that we had been building towards for a fair few weeks!

The Friday was our travel day making the best use of Uber and a direct train into London St Pancras which only takes about an hour and a half from where we live. Although when we boarded the train it was very packed and at one point it looked like we would be standing all the way. Thankfully after a couple of stops we were able to grab a couple of seats, and because a fellow passenger saw our predicament of trying to find seats near each other, they moved so that we could sit together!

The next stage of our journey gave us chance to get our steps in for the day as we walked from St Pancras to our hotel in Shoreditch; a 50 minute walk...with 2 cases...in unseasonably warm April weather. So before we set off we needed coffee and a sweet treat, and EL&N was the perfect choice with a gorgeous piece of Dubai cheesecake to share!

Making our way across London

We found our hotel with ease, grabbed our room keys and found our 'home' for the next three nights.

Our home for a few nights

Once we had sorted our stuff it was time to find some food, and after a quick scan on Google maps we found an Honest Burger close by which, from previous experience, we knew would suit us perfectly. Halloumi fries, burgers and onion rings for the win! 

Back at the hotel and I had nails to paint ahead of the event we were attending the following evening.

Our Saturday started slowly followed by the very important task of finding breakfast! Google maps is our go-to when looking for good restaurants and today did not disappoint. We found a place called Lantana offering food with an Australian vibe and we enjoyed their take on a full English breakfast and an amazing avocado on toast. 

Full English Aussie style

Avocado on toast!

We then took a walk around the local area and realised that we were in the 'City of London' area which meant it was very quiet with hardly anywhere open, thankfully we did manage to find somewhere for a coffee before returning to the hotel and formulating a plan for the day. We needed to work out where we were going for the event, what time we needed to be there as well as factoring in time to get ready and making sure we had something to eat as we knew once we were at the event food would not be an option!

With a plan in mind we headed out to a restaurant called Meat Up in Hoxton Square where we had the most amazing burgers and steak frites! And it definitely set us up for the evening ahead. 

Back at the hotel it was time to get glammed up and then take a walk over to the event located at Simon Drakes House of Magic. It was a lovely evening and although we had a case of 'stuff' to take with us we opted to walk the three miles and avoid just sitting in traffic and paying for  the privilege! 

Getting our steps in!

The event was hosted by our very good friend, the always delightful Miss Kim. It had been her idea to use the event for the official launch of Simon's art book. Over the past six years he has been quietly producing artwork under a pseudonym which has generated over 60 pieces (and counting) of art along with a healthy social media following. 

All the artwork is produced digitally, is highly detailed, is strictly 'adults only content' and can take many, many hours to complete. But the benefit of creating digitally has meant that wherever we go Simon can take his 'easel and paint' with him from train journeys to vacation time to sleepy coffee shops. As his portfolio began to grow we realised that we needed a medium in which to display the artwork rather than relying on our phones and social media accounts and so the idea of producing a physical art book was created. Drawing inspiration from the 'Taschen' art books in his collection Simon set about creating the book taking care to encapsulate the art and their meaning, resulting in a book of 43 images and more. We were then able to print a short limited edition run of 20 hardcover editions.

Books prepped and ready to launch

We spent the evening chatting with some lovely people, introducing them to Simon's art and by the end of the evening we had sold 3 books. Not knowing what to expect when we decided to put the book together and take the plunge into self publishing, we were both pleased, and surprised, with the reception it garnered. 

At around midnight we began the walk back to the hotel; time to reflect on the evening and enjoy the relative calm of the city in the early hours of the morning. 

Looks like we picked a busy weekend to be in London!

Once back at the hotel and still feeling awake despite the hour we decided to push the button to launch the book online and ensure that social media posts were all set for the morning.

We awoke to messages from both Australia and New Zealand asking if we could ship there...when setting up the online store we had focused on the UK, the US and Europe not expecting to get interest from further afield. We quickly jumped online and created shipping options for down under and by the end of the day we had orders placed for both Australia and New Zealand and a third for the US!

With the admin tasks of the day completed we headed out to enjoy a very bright and sunny day in London exploring the sights and sounds of Shoreditch and Spitalfields. At lunchtime we met Miss Kim and our new friend 'The Barnoness' (who was wearing the most amazing latex skirt!) for lunch at a pub called The Gun just across from Spitalfields Market where we enjoyed a traditional Sunday roast beef. 

After a couple of hours we said our goodbyes and explored the local area before finding a spot for a coffee. After such a wonderful and filling lunch we decided to stop by a Marks & Spencer food hall and pick up some nibbles to have back at the hotel that evening.

Monday was our day of travelling home and we decided that there was no rush and to just take a steady approach to the day. One thing we have discovered being retired is the benefit of making the time our own with no longer a need to be running to a schedule unless it's one we create for ourselves. So once we were ready to check-out of the hotel we grabbed our bags and made our way back to Lantana for another amazing breakfast.

We walked to St Pancras and remarked on how busy it seemed and then we spotted lots of people wearing medals and walking rather delicately which was when we made the realisation that the previous day had been the London Marathon so consequently today was travel day for a lot of those who had taken part. 

We checked the train time home and decided that we had time for another visit to EL&N for coffee and cake before heading to our platform with time to spare. 

As our tickets had no seat assignments we made sure to be at the platform, and the front of the queue, to give ourselves the best chance of finding seats. Sure enough once the gates to the platform opened it was a mad dash to get those precious seats but thankfully by walking a little further towards the front of the train we walked onto a fairly empty carriage and snagged a couple of seats together. It became apparent very quickly that the train was very, very busy and we guessed that was a direct impact of the marathon weekend and likely the reason why no seats had been allocated. The journey home was uneventful with the exception of the train travelling slower than normal so we did end up getting to our home station 22 minutes late (claim for the delay made and compensation a few days later received).

A fun and productive weekend!

And home!

Home We Go...

After a wonderful few days of exploring a city we have come to love, it was time to pack our bags and head home. Our Eurostar home was scheduled for 2.40pm which meant we needed to be at Centraal Station around 1.25pm for when check-in opened. But this did mean we could take our time checking out of the hotel and taking the walk over to the station.

The day was bright and sunny and probably the warmest day of our visit; in fact on the walk over to the station we needed to stop to remove gloves, hats and scarf and stow them away in our backpacks.

Beautifully sunny day

We arrived at the station a little after noon which meant we had plenty of time to shop for snacks for the journey home as well as enjoy a Starbucks looking out across the water. There was a group of people making some sort of video which involved a phone attached to an advertising board that was obviously ringing and waiting for innocent passersby to stop and pick it up…no idea what it was all about but it was intriguing to watch from afar!

The time came to move and we found our way to the UK Eurostar Terminal and we began the check-in process. Tickets checked - easy. Queue for security - slow, shuffle, stop, shuffle until we could finally get our bags through screening only to then join another queue but this time for border control. It appeared that getting through Dutch border control was rather slow and steady which impacted the speed at which the security screening could work. The Dutch officials wanted to know how long we’d been in the country, then we had to do a finger scan and I had to remove my glasses so they could check I was in fact me! The next border control was UK operated and that was super quick and fuss free!

Thankfully once through to the departure lounge we were able to grab a couple of seats and a couple of coffees while we waited to be called to our train. In fact by 2.29pm we were on the train and all ready for our 2.40pm departure and all was looking well.

All ready for the journey home...or so we thought!

At 3.58pm as we headed towards Antwerp we received a text and email to advise that the train would be delayed ‘due to an accident involving a person on the tracks’!! We stopped at Antwerp station and we waited, and we waited. 

Waiting for information...

There were no more emails or texts and we had no idea of what was happening. Eventually there was an announcement to say that the train would have to go back to Amsterdam Centraal with a plan that we would be able to board a new train which would be able to make the journey. We arrived back at Amsterdam at 5.30pm with instructions to leave the train but to stay on the platform and wait for our new train. Even the display boards on the platform clearly stated that an extra train was due at 6.30pm +30 minutes, which then got updated to +40 minutes…but at least we would get a train home…right?

And that was when the ‘fun and games’ started! We stood on the platform for about 10 or 15 minutes before what appeared to be some random security guys who came along and told us that we needed to leave the platform and head to the UK Eurostar Terminal as there was no train coming! So dutifully we all did as we were told and made our way to the terminal. I think the assumption was that we would have to wait for a much later train but no…over a very crowded space on the concourse outside the terminal entry a Eurostar employee attempted to tell a train full of very confused people that there was no train taking us home and that we would get an email within the hour to let us know what would be happening.

Trying to work out what was happening!

Now, we hadn’t been able to hear what she had said so we had to wait for those at the front of the crowd to move so we could shuffle forward and try and figure out what was happening. In the end most of the information fed to us was from other passengers who’d been able to hear what had been said or who’d actually managed to talk to someone. To say there was some confusion would have been an understatement. We, at this point, had no idea of when our train home would be or whether Eurostar were going to provide any assistance overnight. As we were trying to figure out what best to do we started to hear other passengers talk about getting their passports 'unstamped'...realisation then hit that because we'd passed through UK border control on departing we were technically in the Netherlands illegally! We were so glad that we had hung around trying to figure out what was happening as we were then able to join a queue to get our passports 'unstamped' - basically a cross put through the appropriate stamp (ours was actually done by the same Dutch border control officer we'd seen earlier in the day and she remembered us!!). But goodness knows how many other passengers failed to realise this and went off into the night with incorrectly stamped passports and all the potential confusion that may have followed!

As we started to leave the terminal we could see some passengers queuing at a desk waiting to see Eurostar staff, others were just leaving, some had their passports 'unstamped', others didn't and it was all rather overwhelming and confusing. I managed to ask a member of staff about getting a train home and whether I had to book a new train myself and he said 'yes', but then another passenger told me that we would get an email in the next hour and there would be a link to do that. We got the distinct impression that no-one really knew what exactly was happening.

We made our way to the main concourse area and found a place to sit down and gather our thoughts with my focus being what are we going to do overnight?...we need a hotel room...we need it close to the station as we had no idea what time our train home would be. I was pretty sure that there was a hotel next door to the station and quickly fired up Google Maps and sure enough I was right. I quickly jumped onto Ibis hotels website and booked a room - boom we were sorted for the night. 

Quickly booking a hotel for the night!

While doing that we had a conversation with an older couple who were trying to get home to Australia; they'd already had their flight home changed because of the conflict in Iran that had just started so they needed to be in London that night. They were looking at getting a flight to Brussels and then onto London! So for all the hassle the events were causing us we recognised that an extra night in Amsterdam and the stress of getting home a day late was nothing in comparison to what other people were experiencing.  

We then had a quick walk next door to the hotel to get checked in and find our room; it was a tad on the small side and quite basic for the price we'd paid; suffice to say we won't be booking an Ibis hotel anytime soon. 

Room for the night!

But we now had the dilemma of finding food for the evening, so we decided to go where we knew we would get something enjoyable and tasty; Burgermeester. 

Mmmmm burgers and fries

With a good burger inside us we nipped into the Albert Heijn opposite the restaurant and bought some treats and bottled water for back at the hotel. By the time we walked back to the hotel it was getting close to 10pm and we'd still not received any communication from Eurostar so we thought we would stop by the train station and the Eurostar departures area just in case there were any staff still on duty who could help us...but no! Back at the hotel we made the decision to book ourselves tickets home for the following day; we figured this way we would know exactly what we were doing, we would have our pick of train times and if by some miracle we woke up to a communication from Eurostar we could cancel the tickets. So £231 spent to secure two tickets on the 10.40am train home.

On the plus side we did manage 13205 steps!

The following morning we were up and checked out of the room by 8am. 

Stunning view from our room!

We made our way to the Eurostar terminal on the off chance that there would be staff that we could talk to...but once again, no! Oh well, Starbucks for breakfast it was. 

Glamorous Starbucks brekkie

We also made use of the Albert Heijn To Go store within the station and bought sandwiches and snacks for the train home (making sure we had more than we had the previous day...just in case!!). It was then a case of deja vu as we made our way through security and border control and once again found a spot with charging, acquired some coffee and waited for our train home. 

While we waited I made best use of the time to plan the next stage of our journey. We had rail tickets from London to our home station that had been issued for a specific train yesterday! But I'd discovered there's a reciprocal arrangement between rail providers in the event of missed trains due to delays beyond the control of the passenger. I was able to WhatsApp with East Midlands Trains who confirmed that our tickets would be honoured and told me exactly what to do upon arrival at St Pancras. 

We boarded the train with ease and despite having seats opposite each other we were able to swap with another passenger and actually sit next to each other. 

Here we go again....all crossed.

The train left just a few minutes late at 10.45am and arrived in London just after 2pm. We then found Eurostar customer services and explained the situation regarding our delay and our onward train home. They then printed out our Eurostar tickets and stamped them as evidence of the delay and confirmed that we would be able to use any East Midlands Train home. Looking at the departures board we could see a train home at 3.31pm which gave us plenty of time to grab a Starbucks before heading to the departure platform ahead of time. Once the platform opened we were at the front of the queue which gave us plenty of time to explain the situation and get let through onto the platform and board the train. We managed to find a couple of unreserved seats together and we settled in for our journey home. 

London, St Pancras at last.

And after a quick Uber ride from the station we were home! A day later than planned but we were home! And very quickly back to reality as we were faced with needing a grocery shop and sorting laundry!!

Oh and only 6355 steps today.

Next time we will chat all things Eurostar and money!!