Saturday Night – We’re in the UK

Flight Day

Friday dawned sunny, hot, and bright. Our flight isn’t until 4:40 PM so we like to turn the car in at around 2:00 to check in early. That means we have the morning and early afternoon to kill. We checked out of the Marriott at 9:00 AM and drove to our go-to off strip casino and race book – the South Point Hotel and Casino. There we spend a pleasant (?) few hours in the race book betting horse races from back east – mainly Saratoga and Monmouth.

Two years we did very well at the races. Last year not so well at all. I’ve been a real slump lately at the track, so I had low expectations and planned to at least minimize my losses. The slump continues. I hit the first at Monmouth – a favorite – and then NADA.

At 12:30 we left the casino and drove to the McCarron Airport’s offsite car rental return facility. After the bus to the terminal, we checked in without incident and settled in for some reading and relaxing prior to boarding and take off. We also had a light lunch. Virgin Atlantic boards premium economy passengers first and then serves (cheap) champagne. A nice touch. We left about 30 minutes late. Dinner was pretty good for airline food – it usually is on Virgin Atlantic. Then we settled in for the long (9+ hour) overnight flight. (I slept a bit, unusual for me. Elaine watched some TV series on the entertainment system.) We arrived at Gatwick Airport right on time..

Our purchased Renault automobile unfortunately has to be picked up at Heathrow Terminal 1. Last year we took the National Express bus from Gatwick to Heathrow. While it’s only a 50 minute ride, the bus stops at Terminal 5, then Terminal 4, then Terminal 3 before arriving at Terminal 1&2. That adds another 25 minutes since Heathrow is so huge.

So this year we reserved a car and driver to take us from Gatwick to Heathrow, using Heathrow Gatwick Transfers. The cost is £55 (roughly $90). That sounds expensive, but the National Express fare is £25 per person, so it really isn’t and you eliminate waiting for the bus and touring all the terminals at Heathrow. The driver was waiting for us and the transfer was uneventful.

At Heathrow Terminal One I picked up our TEP wireless device that we hopefully will use for wireless connections wherever we are in the UK and Ireland. Then we got our car, adjusted the navigation system on the French car to speak English, and set the home position so we can easily find the drop off spot a month ahead. And then we were off on the short drive to Windsor, stopping to fill it up with diesel fuel.

In Windsor we are staying at 76 Duke Street where we stayed for one night last year. This year we are staying for two nights. Julia, the owner, met us and got us settled. She only takes one guest per night. There are two rooms (if you need both), and the marvelously modern bathroom is not en-suite. Basically you have the whole second floor to yourself. More tomorrow with hopefully some pictures.