Franfurt Skyline

I have returned to Florida and still have a bit to report about our trip to Europe.   However, it seems that the health Gods have given up on me and since they allowed me to take my whole trip without a sniffle, I am now at their mercy.

Frankfurt Train Station

I left Frankfurt on the 21st.  I decided (with the aid of my son) to take the Underground to the airport.  Price wise you can't beat Euros. 3.70 for the train against a cab that would have cost more then Euros. 36.00!  Of course I had to be at the station by 5 a.m. so I had an early wake up call.  We only had a block to walk to the station but,  as is my nature, I anticipated something going wrong.  

The Underground in Germany is one of the cleanest I've seen (although, I must admit, I haven't seen many) and even at this hour there were people awaiting for their trais.  With the aid of my son, we deduced that I had to disembark at the 6th stop of the train.  We spoke with an English-speaking German who reconfirmed our thoughts and he reassured me that I would not have to change trains.  The train was there all of a sudden and I barely had time to hug and kiss my son goodbye.  So, I will take this opportunity to thank him for making the trip with me.

Well, I made it to the Frankfurt airport, found the right terminal, caught my plane and flew to Heathrow where I had to collect my luggage, find a bus office to buy a ticket and board the bus for a 45 minute ride to Gatwick.   It was a pleasant ride and the weather was not too bad for England; chilly but partly cloudy and no rain!

Again, upon reaching the terminal, I had to figure out what gate my plane would be leaving from, find my way there and await the departure.  Once on board, it was a 9 1/2 hour flight and I would arrive approximately 4 hours after I left England due to the time change.

The plane was met with thunderstorms and lightning in Tampa  which delayed our arrival at the gate and further delayed the transfer of our luggage from the plane to the terminal.  Most of the computers were down at Immigration and processing over 300 people took time.  But, it took less time than getting the baggage which was delayed due to the lightning, and that was an hour wait.

Met my daughter in the main terminal and we were off, albeit in rush hour traffic.

So, now, after 3 days, I have a cold, sore throat and body aches.  I'm hoping that it will pass quickly as I am going on to Orlando to visit friends and family.  I hate that I have this now as I certainly don't want to pass it on to my daughter, her husband and her children.  But, as she said, its better I have it now rather than in Europe and spoil the vacation.

So, I have a couple more days of rest before I go to Orlando for 5 days.  I should be blogging but just don't have the energy and, quite possibly, people may be tired of reading about my experiences!

Either way, I want to thank all that have followed my trip through my blog and made comments either on the blog site or to me personally in an e-mail.  It has been an experience and one I hope to repeat next year by attending the wedding of the young German couple that chauffeured us around in their home town.

Oh, and now I have Euros to get rid of!  Any buyers?