I’ll be off to London in early January, my first trip since The Big Surgery.
I’ve done a lot of things to keep comfortable — TSA pre-check, easy airport transport, and my favorite tons-of-room airplane seat right inside the door.
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My favorite seat, for several years now!
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And … I chose a new neighborhood! Southwark/Bankside. Home of Shakespeare’s Globe, Southwark Cathedral, and Borough Market. All a two minute walk from my front door!
Honestly, I could spend all week in my own neighborhood and I’d be perfectly charmed, fed, and entertained. The area is completely pedestrianized.
In the below c. 1630 Nicolaes Visscher painting, my hotel is just to the left of the cathedral in the foreground.
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Old London Bridge with all the buildings on it!
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In the below photo, I’ll be at the end of The Anchor building, facing the Wagamama. The Globe is a one minute walk behind the photographer. The fenced area on the left is the pub’s outdoor seating on the river.
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The Shard, London’s tallest building, in the background.
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The immediate neighborhood is also home to Winchester Palace, once home of the Bishop. Just a few walls of the Great Hall remain, now transformed into a public garden.
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Winchester Palace
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The Clink (the Bishop’s gaol and originator of the modern slang term) is a few yards away and underground. These days, it’s an extremely corny, gory, mannequin-filled tourist attraction that I completely intend to visit again. The name of the cobbled lane is still Clink Street (which has an awesome tunnel).
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That’s my hotel, at the end of the Clink Street tunnel.
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I’ll save the amazing history and stories for when I’m actually there.
I can’t positively say whether I dislike all big city airports; but I can positively say that I absolutely loathe both JFK (New York City) and Heathrow (London).
We accrue a lot of JetBlue points, and that’s where they from and to, so it is what it is. As you’ve probably gathered, I’m planning my first post-recovery trip to London for January. I’ll still be recovering, but I’ll certainly be well enough to take a familiar trip — I know London backwards and forwards.
I signed-up for TSA PreCheck — No more absurd security lines. No more taking off your belt, shoes, and jacket. No more carry-on screening. Leave your iPad, laptop, and that quart-sized bag of liquids and gels in your tote. This solves a lot of my problems with JFK.
For Heathrow, I did my usual — adding a day at the end of the trip and checking into a hotel directly inside the airport the day before my flight home. No need to get up early, worry over time, stress, or get on a plane exhausted. Just walk out of the hotel door and I’m already there.
I’ll still have to get off the train from the airport at Liverpool Street Station, which is way down deep in the center of the earth near where the devil lives. 36 meters/120 feet, or about 12 stories underground. Platforms and hallways are incredibly long, and then you meet the most extreme escalator you’ve ever seen in your life.
Yes, that’s really the actual escalator I’m talking about.
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I like to be in a neighborhood, so I’m staying at a hotel in a buzzy pedestrianized area with an incredible location — Bankside, right on the River Thames, leaning against an ancient pub, across-ish from Shakespeare’s Globe.
The hotel entrance is at the end of the red-doors building, right across from Wagamama. On the left, that’s the terrace on the river.The Globe is right behind you.
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I’ll be doing my usual history thing. There are a few medieval churches on the list, the Docklands Museum, the effigies at Westminster Abbey, the renovation of the National Portrait Gallery, a few locations from BleakHouse that I’d like to see in person.
I have a contact that could get me in to play a historic pipe organ, but I haven’t decided yet. I’ll likely play the little pipe organ in the train station for sure. The Globe is doing Cymbeline while I’m there. Sadly, not a play I really want to see. I might go see the revival of Oliver though.
Shakespeare’s Globe
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Welp, I’ll finally be able to spend that £2 coin I brought back last year.
What is that? I think it’s a Lionel Richie song. Anyway —
They moved it up, and we have a surgery date. July 2! Truth is, I’m getting much worse, sick (to some degree) all day every day.
I am absolutely thrilled. This will end a year and a half of pain and nausea, and other things best not mentioned in mixed company. I haven’t eaten solid food in a year, or been to a movie, or gone anywhere much at all.
They’re re-routing my lower guts, and also taking out a small tumor. This stomach/GI syndrome forces you to live minute by minute. Yesterday, I felt kind of okay, and then threw up in a cup while driving on a winding mountain road. Thank God I had an empty cup in the car!
Although I have to say, the pre-surgery rigmarole, pre-visits, paperwork, phone calls, and prodding is unbelievable. If someone were elderly or just not-that-with-it, I don’t know how they would get it done.
I really am thinking positively though. I have already made a list of all my favorite restaurants and foods. You can’t imagine how happy it will make me when I can have a Pizza Hut pan pizza or Pad Thai!
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I also just started the germination of a London trip. October is my usual month. It’ll be a good project for the next few months. I want to visit and photograph every ancient church within The City of London. (Not “Greater London.” That’s gigantic.) The actual City is very small, inside the ancient Roman & medieval city walls. I think there are about fifty churches.
The London Wall (in red)
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In passing — you know how much of a Dickens fan I am. My addendum to that would be except Martin Chuzzlewit. Just started trying to get into it. Jeez. I really dislike it.
So, that’s what’s going on here. Hope you’re all well!
First of all — Curse you, Netflix and Amazon Prime for fixing it so your films cannot be played via a projector. Good. I got that out of my system.
I just had the best day yesterday. No pain all day, no issues other than fatigue.
I’m working hard on my silent film scores. I’ve finished the Chaplin two-reeler and started the Harold Lloyd short! Then … Nosferatu!
(Gratuitous dogs photo.)
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We now know surgery will be early July and eight weeks recuperationafter that. Then I want a vacation after recuperation. I have something specific in mind.
It’s funny how I arrived at this.
In the first Pirates of the Caribbean film, there was a short scene shot on a sandbar well out into the ocean somewhere, about ankle deep. I remember seeing the film at an invited premiere because Jonathan worked for Disney at the time. I saw that sandbar 15 years ago, and thought, “I want to go there.”
And I’ve been thinking about it ever since.
I found a specific bay on Bermuda that I really like. I’ll think about it.
I spent another few days considering November vacation options, and the winner is … Universal Studios Orlando.
Maybe. I’m still deciding. One less vacation would pay for a lot of kitchen renovation. However —
Time to break with Walt Disney World. I’ve been going there for fifty years. I couldn’t count, but I have certainly been there well over 100 times, perhaps toward 200. Some may remember that I really enjoyed last year’s visit, but it would probably be my last.
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Strangely, I’ve never been to Universal Orlando. With a large Harry Potter section of the park and many other film-themed immersive lands, you’d think I would’ve visited several times by now. My last visit to Disney World finally pushed me there — right across Interstate 4.
Walt Disney World has become increasingly annoying. New petty policies put in place, perks removed, now requiring specific park reservations on specific days (which can run out), et al. I’m sure there are others who find it much less oppressive. For me, I’m not looking for exhausting-and-incredibly-complicated.
If you’d really rather not know about it, skip the following section. =)
To see what you’d like to see, you now must now even schedule your ridesmonths in advance on the Disney app — up to three per day, scheduling more as you go, with your face in your phone all day. This means your phone will need charged at a theme park in the middle of things. You may arrange to skip long lines (for around $15 per line, per person), but you’ll need to get up early so you’re online and waiting when the system opens at seven that morning.
All of this is still not going to get you on the super-premium newer stuff (Star Wars, Pandora, Tron), which on top of everything, have their own complicated reservation, queuing, and boarding system per attraction. This all comes with price increase. The “value” hotels (along the lines of a Holiday Inn Suites) can be $200+ per night, and a basic park ticket up to $189 per day per person.
Famously, everything at the DW is connected by shuttle buses, boats, cable cars, monorails, etc. But even with all that transportation available, Disney World is gigantic, and 5 miles away from the next thing is still 5 miles away from the next thing.
So, across to Universal I defect.
Diagon Alley, Universal Orlando
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Universal is by nature, more of a teen-to-adult thing than a little-kid thing. (Many attractions with height requirements add to that fact.) So, that changes the dynamic right away. I’m making an assumption here, but with a 42-inch height requirement on many rides, you’re not going to see a lot of toddlers and younger elementary-age kids.
It also seems that in many cases, Universal has purposely done the opposite of what people complain about at Disney World.
The Simpsons’ Springfield, Universal
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Universal’s “lands” (Harry Potter, The Simpsons’ Springfield, Minions, Jurassic World, Super Nintendo, etc.) are just as heavily themed and complete, but they’re near to each other — not a lot of distance between them. All hotels are close, just walking distance rather than miles. Rental scooters are reserved, rather than take-your-chances. Purchasing the Express Pass (skip the line) option does exactly what it says on the box, and isn’t limited to only 3 per day.
Jurassic Park, Universal
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So. I haven’t clicked the checkout button yet, but I have my hotel, tickets, and airfare in my cart.
Sit Still Phill 