I Made It!

I am sitting in my flat in London, rain is pouring outside, a tabby cat is wandering around in my back garden...I know, you're jealous, right? Well, I earned it, because this was a trip full of near disasters and problem solving after only 3 hours of sleep. Yesterday as I was completing my final packing, I received a call from British Airways informing me that my flight would be an hour and a half later than scheduled, making the timing very tight for me to get to my shuttle, from Heathrow to the flats, on time. This caused me not a little stress while still in Denver, but I reasoned that an hour between landing and the shuttle leaving would be time enough. At the airport, I sat watching British parents trying to tire out their adorable British children before the 9 hour flight, but this heartwarming scene was soon destroyed by a series of horrible announcements. Our already delayed plane was still not boarding 2 hours after the original departure time, and the British Airways staff continued to make vague announcements about "electrical problems" that needed to be solved. Finally, a harried woman came out to announce that whatever the problem was, they had exhausted all means to fix it except for "rebooting the plane..sort of like a computer." A very reassuring statement to make before a transatlantic flight. Finally on the plane, all was well, but of course we landed 5 minutes after the shuttle was to leave Heathrow. Customs and Immigration, baggage claim etc. all went smoothly, but after that I found myself in London with two heavy suitcases and no concept of where I was going or how far it was. I followed instructions provided by the school, found the Heathrow Express train, took it to Paddington station, and caught a black cab. Our instructions were to pick up our keys at a hotel and then go on to the flats, which I did, and when I asked the cabby to wait for me outside the hotel he looked at me suspiciously as asked if I was a spy. "Seems like spy behavior, that" he said. Happily all worked out fine, and I am now getting settled for the next 4 months of living in London! Stay tuned for further adventures...