5 months ago less a day today, I landed in London and made my way up to Edinburgh for what was to be the first leg of my UK trip. The nice thing about making friends on the flight over is that chances are, they'll know how to get from the airport to the city. Landing in Gatwick is not quite as efficient as Heathrow where you just hop on the Piccadilly Line (tube). The option we took was the train from Gatwick to Victoria Station. Quite a smooth ride and you really don't notice time passing.
Onwards in London, wow, had quite a different feeling from the last time I was there, arriving in Victoria rather than King's Cross. With lots of construction and people traffic, it was a bit overwhelming. Upon calling a friend from a payphone and realizing how $$$ it was, the cell phone store was my next stop. Sadly to my dismay (or rather ignorance) I needed to go get my phone unlocked first. An hour or so later, the other company said they can't unlock my phone, it's not on the list. Back to the cell phone company, bought a pay as you go phone and card - actually not that expensive, but the phone itself...primitive. I missed my qwerty keyboard. And while cheaper than the payphone, it eventually would prove too, expensive. However, great for texting though I must admit.
Two lessons learned and the day's not done yet. After all, I still had to get to Edinburgh. Onto the tube to King's Cross, an easy feat having used the tube before. Getting on the train was a whole other story, being the first time and all with a rail pass in hand. Getting it stamped and such, easy. Getting on the train, hmm...
What? You ask, "How can getting on the train be complicated?" Last time I took a train we had reserved seats on the Eurostar. This time, no reservation, and to boot, it was a holiday weekend so all the seats were marked reserved. Needless to say confusion ensued, and after asking 5 different crewmembers, one guy put it simply, "Just get on the train". But... "Just get on the train" So I got on the train and all turned out fine. After a couple hours of sitting on the floor and then propping myself on my suitcase and against the window in order to see the countryside, I finally wised up and grabbed a previously reserved seat at the Oxford station, figuring no one else would sit there. Bingo. Comfort for the last part of the journey.
So lastly, the last part of the day, my hostel. For anyone thinking of travelling Europe alone, I'd suggest a hostel. Compared to the ones in North America, hostels in Europe are quite nice and while saving you a bundle on accommodations, lends the opportunity to make new friends. Each one is different though so if you have certain amenity preferences, do your research. Especially do your research to sort out location. Location is a great deal. While my hostel was really contemporary and new-ish, it was 15 minutes walk from the centre of Edinburgh's Old Town and New Town.
Making 3 trips to Edinburgh during my whole trip, I stayed first at Edinburgh Central, 4 bed (and then 8 bed). Lucked out my first weekend, only had 1 other roommate. We had our own in-room shower and toilet behind separate lockable doors. The sink was open. In room internet. All in all, pretty good. A good night's rest and off we go in the morning.
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