Prelude to a Holiday

This year's foreign holiday came about largely because we decided that we had left it rather too late to organise a trip to our first choice destination (Canada), so we consulted our holiday bucket list and bumped one of the lower choices up a notch.  Homework:

This would be our second trip to Vienna; as evidenced by the older copy of Fodor's, we first visited on our honeymoon in 1991, and spent just 3 nights there after a slightly longer stay in Salzburg.  Back then we made the journey from the UK by ferry and train, viewing the outward and return journeys as part of the holiday and adventure; on this occasion we would shave about 21 hours off the travel time by flying.

Amanda's case was packed and ready to close early the day before we were due to leave home.  I adopted a slightly more laid-back approach, leading to these late-night scenes:

Fortunately we were not due to leave the house until around 13.00, so I had plenty (!) of time the next morning to pack.  As part of the pre-holiday 'mind clearing' exercise that I find necessary to truly relax when going away I also used that time to clear my desk of outstanding paperwork, tidy the study, put away all the clothes that had been taken out of cupboards and then rejected, set the DVD recorder to capture everything that we would miss, check in on-line, print off our boarding passes and enjoy a spot of brunch (croissants and orange juice).

At last the clutter of the last few days was finally distilled and stowed away, and we were ready for the off:

By car down to a Premier Inn located just minutes from Heathrow Terminal Three.  Not long after we hit the M25 we saw evidence of a nasty accident that had blocked all lanes of the opposite carriage, with multiple fire engines and ambulances in attendance.   Traffic was at a complete standstill for miles, with drivers out of their cars and standing chatting.

On arrival we drove past the hotel and on to Terminal Three, familiarising ourselves with the road layout and making sure that I had programmed the location of the car park correctly in the sat-nav.  

Our reconnaissance complete, we drove back to the hotel, checked in and then dropped in to the branch of Costa in the main hotel atrium.  Conscious of our planned early start the next morning, Amanda asked the barista what time the outlet opened.  "We never close", came the reply.

The hotel is very popular with aircrew.  I was impressed by how incredibly smart and lively this group of Jet Airways flight attendants looked after their long-haul flight, when a two-hour trip from home had left me looking like a damp rag:

A quick rest and then down for our evening meal, where we were sustained by a Jamaican Jerk Chicken Burger and orange cheesecake (yours truly) and fish & chips and strawberry frozen yoghurt (Amanda).  

Back to our room and an early night, in preparation for tomorrow's departure.