The London Underground
July 8th, 2008
The most interesting thing about London for me was that it really is an “underground city.” You wont see many sky scrapers in London, at least not on the scale of New York or Chicago. But the extensive train system they refer to as the underground, totally changes everything about day-to-day life.
We arrived in London at the new Terminal 5 in Heathrow and from there went through customs and passport control. We then took the Heathrow Express to Paddington station to connect with the Circle/District lines to Victoria Station. I must admit that I was not mentally prepared for the experience. Thankfully our luggage was light by most standards but figuring out everything made for an interesting trip.
Once we got to our hotel we moved around London mainly using the underground. What struck me as odd was that adjacent to these major train stations were complete urban shopping with everything from groceries to major electronics. People were buying laptops right outside the station and walking them home. Many people were also carrying their groceries home in one or two bags right from the station. It was all very efficient. Makes me wonder if I will ever be able to give up my car for a quick train ride and a short walk… In Phoenix probably not even with the light rail.
