England/Scotland 2024 Pilgrimage – Day 16: London

Monday, September 16, 2024

Goodbyes

After breakfast, we said our goodbyes to Jennie and Steve and headed to London’s Heathrow Airport to say goodbye to our trusty Volvo. It served us well. Thanks be to God, it was returned in the same condition we rented it.

Since we turned it in 4 days earlier than we had rented it, the difference in price more than covered the upcharge for an automatic. Nevertheless, the upcharge was worth EVERY PENCE to not have to deal with a stick shift.

London

We had a few “hours before we could check into the “hotel” – converted dorm rooms in Imperial College – so we hung out at the airport so I could catch up on the blog a bit. (Obviously, I’m still behind. Conversation and time with Jennie and Steve was much higher priority than blogging in Oxford.)

Then we found our way around the Underground system and took the Tube into the city. Our accomodations are in a great location, in the South Kensington area not far from Kensington Palace, where Queen Victoria was born and raised. An Underground station is also near by. The advantage of having a former dorm room is that we both get a desk. 😁

Exploring London

We were both famished so we found an old pub for supper. I had steak and ale pie with mash (mashed potatoes) and mushy peas. Gregg had fish and chips. It hit the spot.

Next, we were off to visit the British Library. It was a fair distance away, so we headed to the Tube. But wait, it is rush hour. From the top of the stairs, we could see that the ticket area was packed with people. Hum…fight a horrible crowd or walk four miles. We opted for walking. Which gave us a much better tour of the area, as well.

The British Library

The British Library was on our list of places to visit. It holds a copy of the Magna Carta as well as other very old and significant documents and books. It was interesting. After seeing what we wanted to see, we got on the Tube, which was no longer packed, and returned to our room, exhausted. Tomorrow is another day.