For Christmas this year, my fiance and his family decided we should try a trip to England in order for them to meet me. All in all, and given recent events in the headlines, I'll admit the trip here was far less stressful than our return is likely to be. I will make certain to blog on that once we're back stateside, along with some helpful tips for surviving the security lines.
We left out of Tulsa, Oklahoma and flew straight into Detroit. This trip was rather uneventful save for a tad bit of turbulence at the end to make life fun. My fiance seems to find it amusing that turbulence unsettles me, he seems to enjoy it way too much. Once in Detroit, we discovered that our plane was going to be leaving early so it could make it into Amsterdam on time due to a serious headwind issue.
If you have never flown overseas, there are a few helpful things to remember. Wear something comfortable. Not only do the slip on and off shoes help you with security, they're comfortable during the flight over the Atlantic. If you want a guaranteed great meal, request kosher. You are more likely to be served first, and the meals are wonderful. Try to have your flight set up to where you are leaving the US in the evening and arriving in Europe in the morning. If you are over 21 (or younger in some countries), have the glass of wine with dinner. At thirty thousand feet or so, it will hit faster and you'll fall asleep quickly. Sleep for as long as you can, it will keep the horrible jet lag from hitting. And always remember to have your headache meds in your carry on luggage.
Once we arrived in Amsterdam, we had a second security screening to get onto the flight to England. This included a lovely trip into the whirling metal detector and the charming pat down by security. We boarded and were on our way to Birmingham. Huge difference between flights in the US and in Europe, the inflight snacks are better. If you are ever capable of flying with KLM, do so. The sweet bread with cheese is amazing. It also helps to offset what may happen when you land.
Upon landing in Birmingham, we went through security/immigrations. Be polite, smile, and understand this is probably the least fascinating immigration post anyone could ever have. They are usually dealing with cranky tourists who don't have any clue what they are doing. Have your passport and arrival card out and ready to go. This makes them happy.
Then understand that your luggage may or may not be there for you. As someone put it, Amsterdam has really been pants of late with luggage. (I discovered this is a British colloquialism for screwing up.) So, after filling out paperwork to have it delivered to us, which will eventually happen it just seems like it won't, we go through declarations and out to where his parents are. Birmingham is a fascinating airport with lots of food choices. Sample them. I recommend highly the hot chocolate.
From Birmingham, it was a short drive into a lovely area of the midlands known as Warwickshire. We've been staying in a lovely little village just outside of Stratford-upon-Avon known as Ettington. A huge thing to remember is that villages are often quiet and peaceful. They may or may not have a tavern. They should have a little post office that has a general store. They more often than not will be on a route for the highly reliable bus system, perfect when you don't drive in foreign countries.
Much like in the United States, the United Kingdom has had an odd and cold winter. In fact, it's been snowing. It's rain twice since we have been here as well. Otherwise, despite the fiance's protestations this is not 'normal', it has been bright and sunny.
Over the next couple of days, I am going to blog about attractions and hidden things in the local area. A theme that this blog will follow in the future with other trips.
We left out of Tulsa, Oklahoma and flew straight into Detroit. This trip was rather uneventful save for a tad bit of turbulence at the end to make life fun. My fiance seems to find it amusing that turbulence unsettles me, he seems to enjoy it way too much. Once in Detroit, we discovered that our plane was going to be leaving early so it could make it into Amsterdam on time due to a serious headwind issue.
If you have never flown overseas, there are a few helpful things to remember. Wear something comfortable. Not only do the slip on and off shoes help you with security, they're comfortable during the flight over the Atlantic. If you want a guaranteed great meal, request kosher. You are more likely to be served first, and the meals are wonderful. Try to have your flight set up to where you are leaving the US in the evening and arriving in Europe in the morning. If you are over 21 (or younger in some countries), have the glass of wine with dinner. At thirty thousand feet or so, it will hit faster and you'll fall asleep quickly. Sleep for as long as you can, it will keep the horrible jet lag from hitting. And always remember to have your headache meds in your carry on luggage.
Once we arrived in Amsterdam, we had a second security screening to get onto the flight to England. This included a lovely trip into the whirling metal detector and the charming pat down by security. We boarded and were on our way to Birmingham. Huge difference between flights in the US and in Europe, the inflight snacks are better. If you are ever capable of flying with KLM, do so. The sweet bread with cheese is amazing. It also helps to offset what may happen when you land.
Upon landing in Birmingham, we went through security/immigrations. Be polite, smile, and understand this is probably the least fascinating immigration post anyone could ever have. They are usually dealing with cranky tourists who don't have any clue what they are doing. Have your passport and arrival card out and ready to go. This makes them happy.
Then understand that your luggage may or may not be there for you. As someone put it, Amsterdam has really been pants of late with luggage. (I discovered this is a British colloquialism for screwing up.) So, after filling out paperwork to have it delivered to us, which will eventually happen it just seems like it won't, we go through declarations and out to where his parents are. Birmingham is a fascinating airport with lots of food choices. Sample them. I recommend highly the hot chocolate.
From Birmingham, it was a short drive into a lovely area of the midlands known as Warwickshire. We've been staying in a lovely little village just outside of Stratford-upon-Avon known as Ettington. A huge thing to remember is that villages are often quiet and peaceful. They may or may not have a tavern. They should have a little post office that has a general store. They more often than not will be on a route for the highly reliable bus system, perfect when you don't drive in foreign countries.
Much like in the United States, the United Kingdom has had an odd and cold winter. In fact, it's been snowing. It's rain twice since we have been here as well. Otherwise, despite the fiance's protestations this is not 'normal', it has been bright and sunny.
Over the next couple of days, I am going to blog about attractions and hidden things in the local area. A theme that this blog will follow in the future with other trips.
