I arrived in London on a direct Norwegian flight from Singapore in the afternoon. As it is the winter, the sky has turned dark by the time I made it into London city.
Previously, I travelled from London Gatwick airport into town by train. This time round, I took the National Express bus into town. The bus is frequent and comfortable. The ticket, in the form of a boarding pass, is cheaper than the train, though the duration is longer. It can be bought at the airport manned counter. It is even cheaper if bought online in advance, but the timing is fixed so I'd rather buy it over the counter for a bit more. This is fine with me since I'm not really in a hurry.
From Victoria coach station, I walked by the Buckingham palace in the dark.
Previously, I travelled from London Gatwick airport into town by train. This time round, I took the National Express bus into town. The bus is frequent and comfortable. The ticket, in the form of a boarding pass, is cheaper than the train, though the duration is longer. It can be bought at the airport manned counter. It is even cheaper if bought online in advance, but the timing is fixed so I'd rather buy it over the counter for a bit more. This is fine with me since I'm not really in a hurry.
From Victoria coach station, I walked by the Buckingham palace in the dark.
My original plan was to get to Leicester Square to buy a ticket for a London West End show. Once there, however, I decided against it and instead just have a walk in the area. Saving this for my next London trip haha!
I have been to London a few times previously but this is my first time in the Leicester Square area. Turns out, the night scene is very lively and packed full of people. There are plenty of entertainment options and stores.
I wandered into the Lego store and on display was a London underground train built from lego bricks.
I followed my original plan and went in search of the one and only London Old Chang Kee store, located along a narrow, less crowded street, complete with Singapore flags.
There are limited seating in the eatery but fortunately there aren't many patrons so I get to sit down and have a puff. For the novelty !
With that, it's time to head back to Victoria coach station. Over there, the bus ticket can be bought at the ticket kiosk. The bus arrival time and platform number are displayed on the tv screen. My bus ride to London Gatwick airport is equally uneventful.
I spent the night in the airport terminal. There are two terminals at London Gatwick, North and South terminal, connected by the free airport train, both with limited seating options with armrests. It is safe to spend the night at the London Gatwick airport, as there are people around at all hours of the night.
There are paid computers with printer facility to print my Ryanair boarding pass in the airport terminal. Probably the only disadvantage of taking Ryanair flights as I can only print the ticket a few days before the flight. So I cannot print it prior to leaving Singapore. Next time I should just take Easyjet or Wizzair flights instead since they offer mobile boarding pass.
An early morning breakfast of porridge in London Gatwick departure area before my flight to Milan !
In my next post, I shall review my first-time trip to Milan, Italy.
