London to Lyon: Taking the Plunge

Well I want to give you an idea of what my first days in Europe were like since I started this blog after being here for awhile. My second day of traveling found me touching down in London after a long flight over the Atlantic. In Heathrow Airport I checked my guitar in at a baggage storage facility, exchanged some U.S. Dollars for English pounds and headed out to explore the city.



I started this initial adventure in downtown London at Picadilly Circus. Getting there required me to take the famed "Tube" from which I emerged above ground and into the bright daylight. In my current state of fatigue I decided the best way to see London was to take a guided tour of the city on a double-decker bus. As we went around the city seeing the important and historical statues (I probably saw more statues in this day in London than I would see in a year in any United States city), buildings, and sites, I couldn't help but feel blown away that I was on the other side of the Atlantic experiencing these things...it wasn't real yet and being so far away from home had not truly dawned on me. I got off the bus at Westminster Abbey (left) to walk around and take some pictures. From there I headed to London's National Gallery which is home to many world-famous works of Art by artists such as Raphael, Michelangelo, Rembrandt, Peter Paul Rubens, Picasso and Van Gogh.

From the National Gallery I hopped back on a tour bus and finished seeing the sights of London: the London Eye (right), The Globe Theater, Big Ben, countless monuments, memorials, and statues, the Parliament buildings, etc. By the end I was just ready to sleep I was so exhausted. I finished the tour and said goodbye to London, taking the Tube back to Heathrow.

My flight left for Lyon at 8:35 pm and I got into Lyon at 11:15 pm local time. This is where it gets interesting. I fell asleep within minutes once I sat down on the plane and within two hours we were landing in Lyon. Fully expecting to meet my friend Patrick at the airport and get some help back to his dormitory I made my way through customs and the baggage claim and began to wait. After an hour of waiting and no Patrick I bought some internet time and called him with Skype. Unfortunately since we had no means to contact one another he had not been able to tell me that the all the bus lines closed at 11 and that he could not meet me. So head spinning with fatigue and exhaustion I decided to wait at the airport until morning when he could come on the bus and get me. Right at that moment two French guys came up to me and asked me if I would split the cost of a taxi fare with them. I told them where I needed to go and remarkably one of them had to get to the same location! What a blessing! I was able to split the ridiculously high fare with them (over 60 euro for something like 20 min of driving). Finally at nearly two in the morning I met up with Patrick in his dorm and got to sleep. I was so tired that I was literally shaking and my head was spinning (no exaggeration).

At last I was in France and the first leg of my semester-long journey had come to an end...although it still didn't feel real yet.