Well, the British pound and the US dollar on closer to an even exchange than I’ve ever seen. When I first traveled to England in 1995, the exchange was closer to $1.70 for one pound sterling. Now is much closer to $1.20 per pound.
I have my phone set to only use wi-fi unless I turn on data roaming. But my phone did tell me last evening, in the $100 taxi ride from Heathrow since the Heathrow Express was closed by a planned industrial action (read, strike), that I was 4,199 miles from home. There’s a song in there somewhere.
The Crowne Plaza King’s Cross hotel room is comfortable, more spacious than some I’ve seen in London. I can control the temperature. The room really doesn’t have a view, except of a construction site across the street, but if I look carefully I can see the ubiquitous chimney pots, which always shout England to me. And Igor at Reception speaks several languages. And I slipped quickly to schoolboy Italian today in giving an elderly Italian woman directions to the breakfast camera.
To maximize space, the hotel-provided hair dryer is hidden the desk drawer! The other desk drawer is where they stash the coffee and tea supplies. And my room, a queen bed facing the main street, does not have a luggage rack, or drawers for clothing, although the closet has shelves. Also, no facecloths. I know in Europe and Asia I need to carry a shower kiss, and I have, but this is still always a surprise when I reach a European hotel.
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