I know you love Disney but...really? ~a dis meet in London 5/15

[winkers]

Oddly, it's "queue".

Why do they put so few customs officers on duty at one time - it's dumb!







again!



I love some of the wacky name in the UK, they're awesome!



Great idea to go through a site like that! European house/room sizes are so different - my best friend lives just SW of London and she always bugs me about how much bigger the rooms in our home are compared to hers when I whine about storage space here



and



LOL

Spelling has never been one of my talents!

Part of the reason I went through the site was I wanted to feel more like a local not just a tourist.

A lady in line with us said that normaly all the booths have someone at them...maybe it was lunch time?

 

[Underdog369]

OMG!!! We got the exact same breakfast coming back from Orlando less than 2 weeks ago! I can vouch that the little deconstipator thing is indeed very puzzling and scary!

Wouldn't that be rather stale, considering the time difference between our flight and yours?

My first ride on "the tube" and we're heading to a questionable destination

I remember when we left the tube station, we couldn't help but keep saying "This is the Picadilly line to ... Canada Water." After all, that was repeated after every time the railcar stopped to drop off or pick up passengers.

Adam, our host, gave us suggestions on some nearby things to do and we decided to take the bus to Greenwich.

One of the things our host had to verify is that we were sharing the flat with him and his wife. For some reason, previous visitors had decided that the price they paid for the room was for the WHOLE flat including services. I felt bad for him, but we assured him we knew what we were paying for. I don't think I even set foot in the kitchen at all except to maybe get a drink of water for Cherie.

I nearly pee’d myself when I got on my first real London , red, double decker bus…and got even more excited when the front rows up top were open! I’ll leave you here, with a few pictures from our ride to Greenwich..

Me TOO! Imagine that. I was completely stunned to see the beauty of England from the double decker bus. It was a great self tour, but also a bit scary at the same time. Cherie will probably elaborate more on that one. All I have to say is bicycles.

 

[cp'ersmom]

Wish I would have thought to give you that little tidbit. I always run like a TSM fan at Rope Drop when I arrive at Heathrow, not only is the number of immigration agents variable but if several planes arrive at the same time that line can be looooooong!


Was it awkward sharing a flat with another couple? I remember staying in a B&B once and I just felt so uncomfortable. I guess I need the anonymity of a hotel, I don't even like staying with family when I visit them, I always feel like I'm in the way.

Looks like you are off to a great visit! Can't wait to hear the rest!

everything will be alright in the end and if it isn't alright, then it isn't the end.

 

[glennbo123]

That is hilarious that you slid down that slippery slope of questioning and wound up trying to explain the DIS to the customs agent! Hoo-boy!

 

[winkers]

Wish I would have thought to give you that little tidbit. I always run like a TSM fan at Rope Drop when I arrive at Heathrow, not only is the number of immigration agents variable but if several planes arrive at the same time that line can be looooooong!


Was it awkward sharing a flat with another couple? I remember staying in a B&B once and I just felt so uncomfortable. I guess I need the anonymity of a hotel, I don't even like staying with family when I visit them, I always feel like I'm in the way.

Looks like you are off to a great visit! Can't wait to hear the rest!

everything will be alright in the end and if it isn't alright, then it isn't the end.

there were a few times it was awkward being in strangers home...but I'll get to that later. But for the most part we enjoyed it. I only enjoy staying at my close families homes otherwise I prefer a hotel.

You never know when you'll need a little sleep, get a headache, or just need a break from the family.

That is hilarious that you slid down that slippery slope of questioning and wound up trying to explain the DIS to the customs agent! Hoo-boy!

I bet I was the first person who talked to her about the joys of Disney.

 

[eandesmom]

Aren't you two adventuresome! I've rented flats/apartments but never in a shared kitchen or bath situation. Seems to me you've done quite well so far!

I am dying over the DIS comment at customs!!!!!

 

[winkers]

Aren't you two adventuresome! I've rented flats/apartments but never in a shared kitchen or bath situation. Seems to me you've done quite well so far!

I am dying over the DIS comment at customs!!!!!

Adventuresome or stupid! Lol

I by the time I finished the whole dis thing I felt like I needed to convince her that I'm not crazy. Instead I listened to the voice in my head yelling.. Shut up!

 

[Heluvsme]

Oh my gosh, I am laughing so hard!! Great update! LOVE how you explained the DIS relationship, too good!!

And I second the sentiment...you all are very brave and adventurous!! Sharing a flat, bathroom, kitchen... WOW!

Can't wait to read more!

Dawn

 

[nebo]

I don't think I could share a flat with strangers. my sister, on the other hand,traversed australia and new zealand, she and her BF at the time stayed in strangers homes that knew people they knew, and youth hostels. I give you all credit! It's all nebo and I can do to share a room with each other!

I LOVE your description of trying to explain the DIS. no one ever gets it.

I try to say hubby has written a bunch of trip reports. I finally just say BLOG. that, they get.

It's amazing that you ventured over to epcot to take pictures of those phone booths!!!

 

[smidgy]

nebo gets NO credit (or blame, whichever the case may be) for the previous post. I wrote it!! I access the DIS through my email notifications, so didn't bother to see if he logged out or not. sheesh

 

[MAGICFOR2]

Adventuresome or stupid! Lol

I by the time I finished the whole dis thing I felt like I needed to convince her that I'm not crazy. Instead I listened to the voice in my head yelling.. Shut up!

At least you didn't start arguing with yourself out loud and slapping yourself like some Jim Carey scene

I don't think I could share a flat with strangers. my sister, on the other hand,traversed australia and new zealand, she and her BF at the time stayed in strangers homes that knew people they knew, and youth hostels. I give you all credit! It's all nebo and I can do to share a room with each other!

I LOVE your description of trying to explain the DIS. no one ever gets it.

I try to say hubby has written a bunch of trip reports. I finally just say BLOG. that, they get.

It's amazing that you ventured over to epcot to take pictures of those phone booths!!!

nebo gets NO credit (or blame, whichever the case may be) for the previous post. I wrote it!! I access the DIS through my email notifications, so didn't bother to see if he logged out or not. sheesh

 

[MAGICFOR2]

I'm excited to see you riding the big red buses! You really are brave - we still haven't taken a city bus anywhere in the world, including the US. We have no idea how to know where you'll end up!

 

[DisneyJo]

Thought it was about time I came and read your TR

Oh wait, we’re in London so it’s not a line it’s a que…or is it spelled cue?

I know someone else replied but it's queue goodness nows why but us Brits do spell stuff funny

only problem there are only 2, count them….eins, zwei…..uno, dos…..un, duex…. . So, that’s 300 tired travelers and 2 officials.

It's similar when we go to the US I can never understand why they don't open more up, they know the flight schedule!!!

All that changed after I answered the simple question of “do you know anyone who lives in the U.K.”?

“Yes, I have a couple of friends”

“Will you be visiting any of them?”

“yes, I’m going to see one of them”

“What is this persons name and how do you know them?”

“Well…her name is Jo and she’s a friend”

“Is this “JO” American also?”

“Nope…English”

“Did she used to live in the states?”

“no”

“So how do you know this JO?”

“the internet”

As soon as the word internet left my mouth a warning bell went off in my head and the official must have heard the same ringing because she started to jot down notes on my immigration card.

“So, what sort of internet site did you meet on?”

“It’s called the DIS….um…it’s for a….um….people who are like fans of Disney”

“Fans of Disney?”

“Well, we talk about disney world and our trips and stuff”

OMG You should have just said no

Once we were settled into our room we were both exhausted but it was only 6 p.m. and every thing I read said no matter what…don’t go to sleep until normal bedtime to help adjust to the time change. Plus…I’m in London!! I can’t just go to bed!

It's hard to do though

I didn't realise you were sharing their flat? Did you just have a bedroom?!?!?

 

[laura74]

Oh wait, we’re in London so it’s not a line it’s a que…or is it spelled cue?

Queue. A good word when you have a lot of vowels playing Words with Friends.

When it’s finally our turn we march up to the podium and I hand over our passports, just slightly giddy that I’m about to get my first stamp! It had never occurred to me that I might be nervous when answering the officials questions. Sine I wasn’t visiting for any nefarious reasons, just an enjoyable vacation, I wasn’t worried at all about what my answers to questions would be……….All that changed after I answered the simple question of “do you know anyone who lives in the U.K.”?

Uh oh.

“Yes, I have a couple of friends”

“Will you be visiting any of them?”

“yes, I’m going to see one of them”

“What is this persons name and how do you know them?”

“Well…her name is Jo and she’s a friend”

“Is this “JO” American also?”

“Nope…English”

“Did she used to live in the states?”

“no”

“So how do you know this JO?”

“the internet”

Love it. It's always fun to explain unmet friends, isn't it?

“So, what sort of internet site did you meet on?”

“It’s called the DIS….um…it’s for a….um….people who are like fans of Disney”

“Fans of Disney?”

“Well, we talk about disney world and our trips and stuff”

I would have loved to have seen the looks on their faces.

By this time I was sure I was going to be escorted back to whence I came.
I guess she surmised from my ramblings that I wasn’t a terrorist and stamped our passports and welcomed us to England.

Years ago, my mother-in-law and her boyfriend were detained in London on suspicion of terrorism. Here they were, two senior citizens, traveling in a tour group being questioned about terrorist activities. I'm not sure what kind of tip interpol received that would lead them to think these two were capable of any nefarious activities. Finally after much questioning they let them go.

My vast experience with public transportation comes from my many visits to DisneyWorld…..needless to say, I was scared to death of mastering London transport.

If it's anything like New York's I'd be nervous too.

When I booked our trip I found a site called housetrip where you can rent out entire flats, homes or just a room like a bed and breakfast. It was so much cheaper than a traditional b&b or hotel so, we decided to give it a try.
We stayed in a tiny flat with a nice young couple.

That must have been strange. Did you get your own bathrooms?

Adam, our host, gave us suggestions on some nearby things to do and we decided to take the bus to Greenwich. I nearly pee’d myself when I got on my first real London , red, double decker bus…and got even more excited when the front rows up top were open! I’ll leave you here, with a few pictures from our ride to Greenwich.

How exciting!

up next...adventures in European plumbing

Uh oh.

Great update Cherie!

 

[mouseketeer70]

Attempting to explain the DIS to "outsiders" is funny enough but your questioning at the airport is downright hilarious proof that sometimes it's way easier to just say no
Excited to hear about the rest of your adventure

 

[winkers]

Oh my gosh, I am laughing so hard!! Great update! LOVE how you explained the DIS relationship, too good!!

And I second the sentiment...you all are very brave and adventurous!! Sharing a flat, bathroom, kitchen... WOW!

Can't wait to read more!

Dawn

I'm not sure if I actually explained the dis..
brave...adventurous...or off my rocker?

I don't think I could share a flat with strangers. my sister, on the other hand,traversed australia and new zealand, she and her BF at the time stayed in strangers homes that knew people they knew, and youth hostels. I give you all credit! It's all nebo and I can do to share a room with each other!

I LOVE your description of trying to explain the DIS. no one ever gets it.

I try to say hubby has written a bunch of trip reports. I finally just say BLOG. that, they get.

It's amazing that you ventured over to epcot to take pictures of those phone booths!!!

just wait till I describe our encounter with one of those phone booths....
"we're not in Kansas anymore" is a good way of comparing it to the ones in disney..

nebo gets NO credit (or blame, whichever the case may be) for the previous post. I wrote it!! I access the DIS through my email notifications, so didn't bother to see if he logged out or not. sheesh

When you wrote Nebo & I , I realized it was either you posting or Nebo has multiple personalities.

At least you didn't start arguing with yourself out loud and slapping yourself like some Jim Carey scene

I don't think I would have looked any stupider if I had!

I'm excited to see you riding the big red buses! You really are brave - we still haven't taken a city bus anywhere in the world, including the US. We have no idea how to know where you'll end up!

maps...they are your friend! It is confusing at first...and second, third and fourth times..

Thought it was about time I came and read your TR

I know someone else replied but it's queue goodness nows why but us Brits do spell stuff funny

It's similar when we go to the US I can never understand why they don't open more up, they know the flight schedule!!!

OMG You should have just said no

It's hard to do though

I didn't realise you were sharing their flat? Did you just have a bedroom?!?!?

yep...just a bedroom...since I made it home it turns out they weren't axe murderers.

yes, you Brits do like to add extra letters like "u" into things

Queue. A good word when you have a lot of vowels playing Words with Friends.



Uh oh.



Love it. It's always fun to explain unmet friends, isn't it?



I would have loved to have seen the looks on their faces.



Years ago, my mother-in-law and her boyfriend were detained in London on suspicion of terrorism. Here they were, two senior citizens, traveling in a tour group being questioned about terrorist activities. I'm not sure what kind of tip interpol received that would lead them to think these two were capable of any nefarious activities. Finally after much questioning they let them go.



If it's anything like New York's I'd be nervous too.



That must have been strange. Did you get your own bathrooms?



How exciting!




Uh oh.

Great update Cherie!

did they ever find out why they were suspected of terrorism? I can't imagine how scary that would be!!

Attempting to explain the DIS to "outsiders" is funny enough but your questioning at the airport is downright hilarious proof that sometimes it's way easier to just say no
Excited to hear about the rest of your adventure

yes...I should have listened to Nancy Reagan and just said no!!

 

[laura74]

did they ever find out why they were suspected of terrorism? I can't imagine how scary that would be!!

They had a tip from someone, obviously false. Yes, it was scary for them at the time but made for excellent storytelling later.

 

[winkers]

They had a tip from someone, obviously false. Yes, it was scary for them at the time but made for excellent storytelling later.

wow...I can't even imagine what I would do!

 

[cp'ersmom]

wow...I can't even imagine what I would do!

That's crazy, guess they have to show they are not profiling and chose the most unprofile fitting couple.
Many years ago I was flying home from The Bahamas. We had flown down the night before in a horrendous storm, the weather was going to be terrible so we decided to just go home ( I worked for British Airways at the time so we just flew standby) anyway, I got pulled out of the line and sent for a strip search!!! They were suspicious because we were there less than 24 hours and I looked nervous. I told the guy if he has just been on the flight I came down on he'd be nervous too!! Didn't help! Not a plesant experience!

 

[scottny]

Great update and too funny. Brave staying in a flat there being how tiny they are. We stayed in Kensington. My biggest thing to remember there was looking the opposite direction to cross the street,

I hope you mastered the system over there.