UK Trip Day #3

Saturday 2 June 2012

   We woke up at 6am packed our luggage (we had packed a smaller bag for Cambridge) and went downstairs for breakfast. We had nasi lemak cooked with daun pandan from our own backyard. After breakfast, we took family photo with Malek’s family. The girls were a bit sad but we promise that we will try to meet again in London.

   We finally left Malek’s residence at 10am and continue our journey to Braintree Freeport Outlet. The journey took 1 hour. It appeared that many Londoners left the city for holidays – many RVs and other vehicles travelling on M11 on the opposite direction.

      http://www.freeport-braintree.com/

    We arrived there at 11am. Went to Next store but could not find any good deals. Bought some clothes in Gap (for Mr & Afiq), M&S (for me) & Clarks (raya sandals for the girls). That's basically the shopping we did during the trip.

    We left Braintree at 1.30pm and headed towards Kota London. The journey took 1¾ hours, mainly due to slow traffic as we entered Greater London. Stop by Leytonstone to buy halal meat. As we got closer to central London, traffic just crawled. It seemed that roads had changed in the past 10 years – there are now dedicated bus lanes and congestion charges to enter central London. Luckily it was the start of bank holiday so we didn’t have to pay congestion charge.

After looking at a few apartments we decided to booked an apartment located in the Central London due to the location, easy access to public transport and the best is near to all the must visit places. You can check the apartment here. Initially the rental for 7 nights was above our budget but the owner JWK had agreed to rent it to us exactly 1pound lower than our budget. Kelakar lah this guy. He personally replied our emails, only the payment were made thru an agent. So we paid a deposit of 150 pounds to get the apartment secured somewhere in February.

We reached Haymarket at 3.15pm but could not locate the apartment. Called JWK, and apparently we overshot by a few metres. There was no place to park the car and the fact that we can't stop on the apartment side because its a bus lane! Unloaded our luggage by the roadside. There were too many luggage for me and the kids to carry, while Mr had to go and return the car.

I called JWK who readily helped to carry some luggage and take the kids to cross Haymarket street and into the apartment. Mama dragged 2 big suitcases across the busy road. Meanwhile, Ayah drove to refuel before returning the car to Hertz in Marble Arch.

The crossing road part was hilarious. I was in panic when I realised the amount of luggage and stuffs that I need to bring across the road. Imagine with all the groceries we bought earlier with 3 children in tow. I try to keep calm and told Mr just to drive off before we see any police car. Took a deep breath and asked the children to carry some of the things. When JWK meet us across the road I told him that I need him to help with the kids. As long as they are safe in the apartment, yg barang-barang ni I do what I can. Dengan sekelip mata he said " Let's go kids" and they ran across the street. Hannah siap boleh ketawa riang ria lagi tu while JWK sempat angkut semua plastic bags including the mineral water. Macam tak percaya. I was left with the 2 luggages and managed to cross the road thanks to the 4 wheels luggage. It makes a lot of difference. When I reached the entrance of the apartment building (what a shame we forgot to take a photo) JWK called again and told me to just buzz his apt (he is staying in apt#13 while we were in apt#1) and he will unlock the main door. Alhamdulillah jugak masa tengah terhegeh2 nak angkut 2 beg besar ada orang nak masuk jugak so dia tolong pegangkan pintu.

Groceries. Yg mineral water tu yg panic tak tau mcmana nak angkut to cross the street 

   Alhamdulillah, the apartment is very nice. It was a studio unit, with a partition between the living and the bed. There were moveable panels that can completely separate the 2 areas. The landlord had generously stocked up with chocolates, crisps. There were a collection of DVDs that should keep the kids happy.

View from the apartment. Jubilee Celebration

Photo from google

   We had if not mistaken it was Mee Hoon Tom Yum or Maggi Assam Laksa for lunch and waited for Mr to arrive. He had to take the tube from Marble Arch. Later that day we went out to St James Park. So many people of different nationalities there, which made us really realized that we were finally back in London – after 10 long years. We just strolled along Pall Mall East (can't remember) to Trafalgar Square. After a short rest, we walked along Whitehall until we reached Westminster. We then walked along Embankment, turning into Horse Guard Avenue before joining Whitehall again. From there we headed back towards Trafalgar Square, then to Haymarket.

   Had McD (Fillet-o-Fish) for dinner. Went to bed at 10pm. The children were happy with the sofa bed. There were parties on the street in front of our apartment till early morning. We kept waking up every hour due to music playing from the street. Got up for subuh prayer at 4am and the street was still busy with people walking about and vehicles (mainly taxis) passing by.