The Underground

If you find yourself in London and think how nice it would be to take a drive around town, DON'T!!! I have seen hell and it is the city of London or, more specifically, the streets of London.

London is well known for its sites. Big Ben, Tower Bridge, Westminster Abbey, these are all well known tourist destinations. Equally well known is the London Underground which is the Subway system in London. There is a reason why. No one in their right mind would want to drive in this city.

London is big, real big! Greater London has a population exceeding seven million people and the city sprawls over 609 square miles. That information in itself is not enough to portray the daunting task of navigating the city by car. New York, Rome and Paris are also big cities but are much , much easier to get around for three simple reasons. Their roads are, for the most part, straight, they have street signs, and pedestrians don't control the traffic.

The first thing you will notice when driving in London is that there is a shortage of street signs. It is not that there are none because that would be better than the fact that you are teased by marked streets only to have them suddenly unmarked. I spent two and a half hours exiting London by car only because I never knew what street I was on. And, because, they have no grid system, the streets meander and curve and seem to go in no direction and all directions at the same time. Adding to the frustration is the fact that pedestrian crossings appear every few feet and they have lights that are controlled by the pedestrians. Any one person can stop traffic at the push of a button.

In the center of London there is a congestion toll levied on cars driven into the city. When coupled with the lack of signs, it begins to appear to be a conspiracy against drivers. There may be some truth to that because the taxi industry in London is a very powerful lobby. Taxi companies want you to need them.

The obvious conclusion is to "ride the tube". This is not the title of an adult film but rather a term that means take the subway. The London Underground is extremely efficient. There are few stoppages, the trains cover the entire Greater London area, and they are prompt. If nothing else, the Brits pride themselves on keeping to time tables.

So, if you ever find yourself in London, forget the car and ride the tube. You will thank me.

Cheers!

Driving in Ireland (Why to get back on the plane)

Imagine, you have been on a transatlantic flight for six and a half hours. You left Philadelphia at 8:50 PM on a Thursday and you landed in Shannon Ireland at 8:30 AM Friday morning. You're tired. You're hungry. It's raining. Then the reality hits you. "I'm not in Kansas anymore!" You look for the Hertz car rental desk and they advise you that the actual pickup location is a bus ride away. You begin to feel the pangs. Your breathing gets heavier. Your heart begins to pound. You arrive at the pickup location and you face your fate...... You have to drive on the left side of the road.

I experienced this very chain of events last August when I arrived in Ireland with my wife and two children. Upon landing, I left my wife and two year old son at the airport with our 12 metric tons of luggage, and my daughter and I were off to retrieve the car.

Now, I can tell you that the actual driving on the left side of the road thing would not be so bad except that I had to do it from the right side of the car. And, to make matters worse, I was driving stick for the first time in three years and had to learn how to shift with my left hand.

Ahhhh, the memories. I was not out of the airport before I completely forgot everything. I was like a newborn fowl on wobbly legs. Even the turn signals were reversed! Swerving to and fro, and constantly drifting off the road, I made my way for the Irish version of a freeway. But, alas, this was not so bad. Sure, I missed an exit or two, and I was still drifting left, but I was beginning to get the hang of it. Or so I thought.

When you leave the airport at Shannon, there are giant signs saying "Drive on The Left". As you drive on you begin to see the even larger signs professing the number of tourists killed on the local roads in the past 12 months. These are not so much intended for the highway driver as they are preparation for leaving the highway.

Ireland is known for its lush beauty, rolling green hills, and magnificent cliffs. What you don't hear about is that their roads are barely a single lane wide, often lined with hedgerows, and curve and turn constantly. Most of the time you are amazed that the speed limit is set so high because no one in their right mind would dare drive that fast on these roads. As if that is not enough, The Irish must have a "Park at Will" clause because they can and will stop their cars in the middle of the lane, get out, and walk away. More than once, I was forced off road just to pass a parked car.

I hope I don't sound as if I am complaining. After all, there are like a gazillion acres of wide open space everywhere and still the roads are nine feet wide. But I will admit that once I got the hang of driving on the left, from the right, whilst shifting with the left, I became quite relaxed. You see, there is no road rage. There is no hurry to get from one point to another. The Irish are much more relaxed than we Yanks and it certainly translates on the road. If someone stops in front of you and gets out to take a stroll, you simply drive onto the sidewalk and around, and continue on your merry way. I miss driving in Ireland.

One last note. Be sure to be completely comfortable on the Irish roads before attempting a drive out to the Dingle Peninsula. The cliffs drop straight down to the ocean below and the road at points cannot accommodate two cars passing each other. It was nerve racking to say the least. However, the views were well worth it.

See ya at the pub!!!

Beer and The Eiffel Tower

It is my opinion that the best place in the world to drink a beer (or several) is under the Eiffel Tower in Paris. I spent an afternoon this past September doing just that.

Having arrived by train, my wife, our kids, and I began meandering the streets of Paris. We strolled along the Seine. We walked to Notre Dame and gazed at its ornate architecture. All the while, aware of the great pinnacle. The most recognizable feature of this world class city.

Eiffel's tower is truly a wonder to behold. Photographs can never do it justice and its mere presence embodies the pride of a nation. But the best part of the tower is its magnetism. People from all walks of life, and from every nation, gather at the tower as if on a pilgrimage.

We decided to take a water taxi from Notre Dame to the tower. This in itself was worth the visit to Paris. Sailing the Seine should be on everyone's to do list if for no other reason than to "see" the sites of Paris. We eventually made our way to the tower and she did not disappoint.

If you have ever waited in line to ride a roller coaster then you know what we soon realized. Getting to the top of the tower would take hours. There are three elevators but only two run at any given time. Fortunately there are stairs but they only go as far as the second level. Well at this point the two year old had fallen asleep so I volunteered to stay behind with him while my wife and daughter began climbing stairs.

As I watched them begin to slowly climb the 700+ stairs, I decided to buy a beer. If you have never been to Europe I am glad to inform you that beer can be purchased, and consumed, everywhere! For me, beer is a magical drink that allows the extrovert in me to come screaming out. I soon began to introduce myself to anyone and everyone. I felt like a new ambassador to the UN. I met people from Australia, Germany, Switzerland, England, Ireland, Spain, Zimbabwe, Kenya, oh, and France. And this was in the first twenty minutes. After a few more beers, I began to delve into politics and economics, in broken French (and slurred English), with anybody willing to listen. It was my fondest memory of Paris because I was able to relax beneath this world wonder and meet people from places I had only dreamed of.

Well, eventually my wife and daughter completed their trek and we were off to explore the other splendors of Paris. Should you decide to have a beer beneath the tower think of my experience and cherish your own. For more information visit http://www.tour-eiffel.fr/teiffel/uk/ .

Rosslare to Fishguard on the Stena Line

Ok. So how many of you have thought: "Wow. I'd love to take a ferry from Rosslare, Ireland to Fishguard, Wales."? Well, if you have, here is some useful information you will want to consider when making your plans:

1) Book Early! It may seem hard to believe but there are actually a lot of people who want to make this crossing for one reason or another. I, for one, had to so my choices were limited. None the less, if you do not book at least 24 hours in advance you may find yourself bidding bon voyage from the dock. (If by chance that does occur, you will be happy to note that the ferry port is placed in the perfect location to make access to anything else difficult at best). Don't miss the boat!

2) Arrive Early! Having a spot reserved does not guarantee you will get on the boat. There can be high demand for seats and the ferry lines will bump you if you are late. See item 1 for your possible fate. (ie Don't miss the boat!)

3) Confirm your departure! I had the unhappy experience of arriving at the port on time just to find out that my ferry had been canceled due to weather. Next ride, seven hours. I was now faced with the prospect of being stuck in the ferry port with an eight year old, a two year old, and an unhappy spouse. We would not arrive in Fishguard until 1:00 AM, and with no transportation because the car rental pick up ends six hours earlier. Instead, we re-booked for the next day and had to adjust our entire schedule.

4) Beware car rental dropoff and pickup! For logistical purposes, I rented my car from Hertz. They offered easy pickup (Ha,ha,ha...future blog) at the airport in Shannon, and easy dropoff at the Rosslare ferry port. First of all, there are no signs, directions, indications, etc where to drop your car. I had to run inside and ask around for the drop location. The Hertz desk is open only for incoming ferries so they could not help either. However, they do have a dropbox for the keys. Just be sure your ferry is not canceled prior to dropping the keys. See item 3.

4a) Assuming you make it to Fishguard, there is no car rental desk at the port. The rental companies will leave a car for you in the lot if you are wise enough to arrange this. Otherwise you are doing some walking into town. However, if you arrive on a Sunday all bets are off. The car rental offices are closed on Sunday. Fortunately the trains run to the port and they are prompt.

5) Enjoy the ride. If you are the type of person who gets seasick you probably will want to make some preparations. We took a slow ferry which meant we had three and a half hours to ride but it was a much smoother ride than the high speed boat. Even so, many people spent the trip in the restrooms.

6) Bring Food!!! If you don't tend to get seasick you will likely get hungry. Do not expect reasonable prices. Everything is overpriced by at least two to three times what you would expect to pay. Save money and pack a lunch!

Watch for my future blogs on ferries to France, and why not to believe the published schedules!!