Mind the Gap

I struggled with what to pick as my theme from my first day in London. With the whirlwind of arrival after a sleepless night, it was in a stupor that I first saw London.

Then it occured to me - this ubiquitous phrase heard every stop on the subway, sorry, underground. Mind the gap between the pavement and the doors. The phrase so common in London yet foreign to Americans.

I spent much of day 1 figuring out the Underground. From the fare machines not working at the airport, to making sure we were on the right platform to switch trains, to realizing that the train back to the city was not as advertised on the electronic sign above the platform.

Then there was the return trip from Trafalgar Square, where on our second train we were crowded into a car with a bunch of Italian teenagers. They might have been 20-somethings, but my perspective is shifting. I'm guessing they were Italians because the Brits traveling home at rush hour still left you a little personal space. This gang, not so much. They were fun to watch though - down one of the guys appearing to pick the other's nose through the clear plexiglass. (Makes you want to use lots of Purell, huh?) That's why I thought they were teenagers.

The trip was so much fun that my mom opted to walk an extra block or two to avoid riding one more train to our hotel.

Total for today - £15 for an all day transit card, £25 for lunch, and a few more pounds for postcards and a coke. 11,000 steps. And finally a good night's sleep.