Travel

The Tube System

The underground Tube system is an excellent, efficient, clean, and organized way to travel.  It consists of various lines with routes that travel throughout the entire city, underground.  There are stations around every major section of the city, and the Tube is very easy to access from almost anywhere in London.  To enter the station, we use Oyster passes (cards) that we present to one of many scanners which allow us access after the card is accepted.  It is a very quick and efficient process that we repeat when exiting the stations. 

Since the trains are underground, we have to take a series of elevators down to the platforms.  Some of the lines are built on top of one another so some lines have numerous elevators that go very far down, and others only have one or two.  We quickly learned that you stand on the right side of the elevator when you are standing, and the left side is open for people to walk up or down the elevator if they are in a rush.

The trains come every 5 minutes or less, so there is little or no wait at all.  There are different lines with different routes, however all of the routes are displayed on numerous maps on every train cart, in every station, and on brochures and maps.  The lines are also colour coordinated, so it is nearly impossible to get lost.  The Tube allows people to travel from one side of town to the other in under 15 minutes.  After being here, it is hard for us to imagine how other city residents cope without this fantastic means of travel.

Buses and Taxis

We have all traveled on the red double decker buses that London is famous for. Our first bus tour was in Bath, England. Since the weather was fair, we sat on the upper level. The buses allow us to get a different view of England, and is a relaxing change from our usual walking. They are also educational, since there are optional headsets available that passengers can plug in and hear information about passing sites. I do not believe anyone has taken a taxi yet, but they are another travel option.

We have also traveled by boat, on the day that we traveled from London to Greenwich. We received a guided tour as the boat traveled downstream the river Thames, although, our guide made it clear that the crew was not obligated to give a guided tour, and they merely do so for our entertainment and pleasure. Luckily, no one in the group gets seasick!