London? London!!
Yes, London! This is one trip I was soo excited about. Well, it was a mix of emotions. I was excited. Then my visa took longer than usual and a trip that was supposed to happen in March was shifted to May. Then I got excited as my travel date got closer. Then I got nervous. And then unexcited. And then….well, you get the point. But then it happened and God knows I can’t wait to go back!
I got to London on the 4th of May, 2019 and I did something so stupid! I’m laughing so hard as I type this. I had checked Google for the weather in London before my trip and I saw figures like 10 degrees Celcius. The normal thing to do will be to dress for the cold, right? My brain must have shut down when I was traveling because I totally forgot about the weather and dressed so light! I damn near froze. LOL. My fingers were numb. I was shivering. In fact, when I got into my taxi from the airport, the driver looked at me and asked if I was coming from a hot country.
In London, I got around by buses and trains (overground and tubes). I rarely used taxis. I got an Oyster card that helped me move around and eliminated the stress of getting tickets everyday. This can be gotten at the airport and can be topped up with your ATM card or coins. My Oyster card was very helpful during my stay in London. I also used Google a lot to know what train or bus to take and Maps to find the bus stops. Be sure of bus numbers and destination. If not sure, ask the driver. That 2 buses have the same number doesn’t mean they’ll pass the same route. I’ll give an example. I’m trying to go to Akowonjo roundabout. I’m supposed to enter Bus 2 going to Egbeda. However, the next bus that comes is also Bus 2 but going to Ikotun. The likelihood of the bus going to Egbeda to pass through Akowonjo roundabout is way higher than that of Ikotun. So if I don’t ask and enter the one going to Ikotun simply because it is bus 2, this bus may take another route and I’ll have to enter another bus to get to Akowonjo roundabout. Get it?
Another mode of transportation I also tried was the rickshaw. They are tricycle taxis common in some parts of London. In my opinion, they are overpriced and the drivers can be unruly. They kinda reminded me of keke napeps in Lagos. The one I entered hardly obeyed traffic lights, kept switching lanes and sometimes disrupted a free flow of traffic. And the driver? Gosh. He talked all through my ride. I couldn’t count the number of times I rolled my eyes. To keep him shut, I told him I was married. The look on his face was priceless. “You’re married. How old are you?” 25, I said. “Oh you look 18. So you married. Nice.” and he kept turning back to look at me.
Oh and London has funny sounding bus stop names. I chuckled at some. Bricklayer’s Arms. Shepherds Bush. Bird in Bush road. But I’m sure ours sounds funny too.
Night life in London is quite interesting. While I didn’t experience it much, I got a glimpse while in bus rides back to my hotel or walking down the streets after long hours of window shopping. A number of people move to their hang out spots straight from work. So it was common to see clusters of young adults in their office wears standing around tables outside pubs with bottles and glasses of beers and other drinks in their hands. Maybe next time I travel, hopefully not alone, I’ll try to experience the London life.
I visited quite a number of attraction sites while in London. Unfortunately, I couldn’t do much because it rained for 2 days during the week and rain kinda dampens my excitement for moving around. However, the places I was able to visit were very interesting: The London Eye, London Eye River Cruise, Tower of London and The London Dungeon. I had a ticket to Madame Tussauds but I kept getting there after they had closed. The London Dungeon was so interesting. Unfortunately, there was a “no picture or recording” rule so I couldn’t take pictures. But I’ll say this: I screamed a number of times and I held on to random people. LOL.
My stay in London came to an end on the 11th. Sad face. My trip to the airport took an hour 30 minutes. Phew! I dozed off in my taxi.
Oh before I forget. Tax refunds! Unlike South Africa where all you have to do is present your receipts from retail stores at the Tax Refund office for a tax refund, you have to fill a form to claim your tax at the store in London. This form is available on request. Because I wasn't aware of this, I got tax refunds from only one store and that’s because the store asked me if I wanted to shop tax free. It also appears not all stores participate in this while some have a threshold. For more information on this, ask at the stores and read more here.
And that’s it!
I had a lovely time in London. Can you tell? 🤪
