First day in London this year

At the St. Louis Airport we exchanged $51.95 for 30 pounds. We boarded our flight 720 at 6:45, and it took off at 7:40 - close enough! We got to board right after 1st class because Randy had a gold card, from his frequent trips for Boeing. This flight was worth 4,199 frequent flier miles, but as a gold card member, Randy got double. These frequent flier miles work for us - we usually pay for our trip to London with them. It was an OK flight - these trans-Atlantic flights are always so long. The nice Philippine lady named Belle sitting next to me thought Randy looked just like Bill Gates. For a moment she thought she was traveling with a celebrity!

We arrived in London around 9:45, went through customs, got our luggage, took the Underground to Clapham North, and walked to Kathleen's place. 

The living room, dining room, kitchen and children's playroom are on the first floor, and a den is on the 1st landing. On the second floor are 2 or 3 bedrooms and the family's bathroom. The guest bathroom is on the 2nd landing, and there are 2 guest bedrooms on the 3rd floor. Our room was welcoming, and Pearl the cat was there to make us feel at home. 

We unpacked and took a hot bath. The tub has separate hot and cold faucets, which were a challenge for us.

Next we took the Underground to Piccadilly Circus, where we decided to exchange another $200 for 115.50 pounds. Now it was time to walk around! We had lunch at Duke's Bar, a sandwich shop on Old Compton Road in the Soho area. 

I had a chicken, bacon and avocado sandwich, while Randy got a prawn sandwich, with bottled water. We walked around the Soho area and went to see Harrods. Harrods is such a British store - a little formal but welcoming and so interesting. 

Then we took the Underground back to Clapham North, and, to round out the day, walked around to see that area. For dinner we got some fish and chips, which were pretty good. It was a long day, and we went to bed around 8:00.