Touchdown !!

ahhh...

Finally, I reached London. After a gruelling 15 hrs of flight, I now breathe and smell London air. heh

Anyways, I'm very lucky to have a great bunch of friends going to Changi Airport at the witching hours to send me off... really really appreciate it cos I didn't expect so many pple =) Thanks to my neighbours, Rockers, OAC, min/zl/eileen gang.... and also thanks for the gifts ! Got an multi-adaptor (in exchange for a guitar n amp not bad la), Lalabelle the dog so I can put my thing in, tasty mooncakes and a weird looking pencil case and a skicap!

some pics!


The last time I took such a long flight was to LA via Taipei, I think this one is even longer. At least it felt longer. Me and jp's plan to wear smartly and pray for upgrade came to nought in the end, as we were given Economy class still. haha wishful thinking.... but I think we were treated rather nicely on the plane haha. Dubai was 7 hours away and I've had real problems sleeping. Dunno why also, maybe its the hum of the plane + the adrenaline built up over time.

thankfully, emirates planes have this monitor in front of every seat, incl. the economy class ones ... there were abt 30 radio channels, 12 movie channels and 50 games to play! Really in-flight entertainment man ..... tried watching Thank You for Smoking but it kinda bored me ... so I ended up playing Reversi and Yahtze (dice game) against jp! He's quite good at reversi leh but totally no luck on the dice game heh. Oh, and emirates have this 2 video channels which show the view from the below and the front of the plane. So when we flew over Germany, we could see all the farmlands, the forested areas, the small towns, the roads lined with trees ... when flying over uk we saw many buildings, vehicles moving, soccer academies, tennis courts etc etc. its like google earth like that!

Anyways, when they served one of the meals on board, I specifically asked the attendant if it contained any cheese, and she said no! so I took one big bite and I almost immediatedly felt the puke come up .... sian diao. It was some cheesecake thingy ... and I should have checked the menu instead of being so trusting of the attendant. sigh. It was otherwise a pleasant flight. In fact, when we were transiting at Dubai, me and jp managed to walk into the Emirates Business Class Lounge, sat down, enjoyed the internet, TV, free flow buffet meal and drinks. Damn shiok la heh. They didn't check us, probably cos we were in smart attire, so I guess it paid off in that sense ha.



The service at the DFS was great too. I bought a pair of shades for abt 8 pounds, but the cashier could only give me back in AED (arab currency) ... So I tried my luck at the money changer, expecting a "WTH you wanna change 2 pounds" face. But noooo. I got my 2 pounds changed! Quite impressed.

Flight to London was another 6.5 hrs... this time managed to get some sleep with the help of a full stomach, red wine and some budweiser. emirates was rather generous with the red wine, I was given an 200ml bottle of red wine! Although it didn't taste very nice la, but still I only expected maybe 50ml or a small serving, but she gave the whole bottle. The man beside me, some Indian, had at least 5 bottles of brandy on the flight loh. And he didn't look the least bit high. Well trained sia.

Arriving into Heathrow and had my 1st taste of British efficiency. heh. Queues was massive for international passports and super quick for the EU nations one. They really treat the EU citizens damn well, and the rest of the world like aliens. After clearance had to queue somemore for some health checkup .... jp couldnt wait anymore he just left the airport to Bath. So there I was in Heathrow with 2 huge trolleys, 1 backpack and a laptop bag, struggling to keep it all balanced on the small luggage cart and no idea where to go next. Well, actually I had.

I went to the DFS for liqour.

Not that cheap actually (now that I'm in London and compared prices), in the end I bought a Green Label for 20+ pounds. Still cheaper than sg of cos.

So I went to find the Hotelink counter to get a ride for 17 quid to a hotel near my friend's place ..... but Hotelink was fully booked for the day! wa lao. I super sian. Cos that meant either I had to lug all my luggage with me onto the Tube, hand carrying them cos there aint any elevators, find my way to Gloucester with the risk of getting lost and arriving in central London in darkness... or I could take a cab, which would cost more. much more. sigh ... in the end I took a cab. and it cost me a whopping 47 pounds!! that for a 1 hour ride. So, sg cabs are really underpriced loh.

Anyways on the ride, I noticed that many pple in London are walking around wearing suits. yeah... in pubs, when driving, walking the dog etc. Its a very very common sight here. Even my cab driver had a suit blazer hung up beside him.... Well, as they say, when in Rome act like a Roman. Temp is about 20 deg so its not really cold yet, tho it will get colder in the coming months

Finally reached Edwin's apartment. It was far less equipped than I thought, but that's because the room has been empty for 3 months ... Only a family from sg were living there and they just moved in the same day as me! no internet, no land phone line, crampy place with beds placed all round... haha. Gotta get used to this man, even though its just for a few days before I move into my hall. Met Alvin and Eunice, 2 3rd years who just flew in too and are doing house hunting in London meanwhile. Walked around kensington park, hyde park into Bayswater area... ate at an Italian restaurant. Yummy! should have brought my cam out, but I forgot! Got my phone and Oyster (EZlink) card setup too

view from the morning
london street

So I went to college for registration and bank to open account. Another dose of british efficiency ahem. Im getting used to it already. everything took an entire day, and my legs are shagged out walking from the bank to the sch and back again a few times. but no sweat here in london la, thats the good thing.

Next post coming >>>> Oktoberfest!! All beer lovers or those who enjoy a party should really attend this fest at least once =)

Meanwhile ... here's my UK details

phone: 07928397435
address: Holbein & Willis Jackson Houses 61-69 Evelyn Gardens London SW73BQ

Care packages are highly welcome, and recommended too =)