After a speedy breakfast we went down to Paddington station and caught the train to Bath. The train was very quiet and smooth, and our carriage was quiet as we were travelling in a designated "quiet carriage" - no mobile phones, no babies, just harmonious peace. Within 20 minutes we were in the picturesque countryside. Our train line passed through a tunnel engineered by Isambard Kingdom Brunel and opened in 1841 as part of the Great Western Railway. The tunnel i...

Started the morning by doing a load of washing and setting it out to dry in the bathroom. The tubes were back to normal this morning and we arrived at Victoria Station to find our waiting room for the Orient Express already open, offering refreshments and comfort. Of course the weather is still unseasonally warm - according to the weather records we should've been expecting a temperature around 8 degrees celsius, but instead, we have been having temperatures 10...

Well - what a day!!! The tubes were hit with a strike - some lines closed, some stations closed. We had to skip our Abbey Road visit (have to catch it next time!!). Brekky didn't start till 8.30am, so it was a later start than planned. We managed to travel to the next station, then change lines to get us to Westminster. We found our Thames River Cruise there, but their services were shot to pieces because there was an abnormally high tide, making going under brid...

After a refreshing night's sleep we caught another little trolley car along the enclosed walkways across the road to the airport where we checked in our luggage and bought some brekky before our long flight to London. The plane was barely half full, giving us room to spread out. We caught the Heathrow Express to Paddington, and had a short walk to our hotel to find we have a large apartment this time with a separate kitchen (a longer stay than last time when we...

Jessie drove us in to the airport with Sophie and Char - we were so early we were the first in line at check-in!!! Exciting purchases - the next Sookie Stackhouse to read on the plane, then a nice earrings & necklace set, and some Ralph Lauren "Romance" fragrance from the inflight duty-free. Unfortunately the flight steward wrecked the chip in my credit card - what a way to start the trip!! This was a short flight, staying overnight at the Pan Pacific a...