USA Day 1 part 2: After lessons learned I was glad to be in my Virgin Atlantic seat

USA 2016 part 2: 11th November @ 14:30 GMT

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Mistake No.1

Whilst on the train I wondered if I might have made a mistake in electing to get the Heathrow air-bus from Reading station – a first for me. My natural inclination is to stick to trains, and I know the Heathrow Express from Paddington is fast, regular and efficient. It is also expensive.

I found the coach ride from Reading to Heathrow to be quite good, but I think I’ll give it a miss in future. Every time you stop or slow down your blood pressure rises – are we going to make it; will I miss the plane. Avoidance of this could only be achieved by setting off REALLY early, which in my book is feasible but undesirable.

Next time I’ll be on the Heathrow Express: much more relaxing.

I’ve come through security – usual routine: pants and shoes off, empty pockets, adjust underwear… 

I’ve arrived at a pub/eatery and thinking I may have made another mistake; these places are not exactly known for their cuisine, and prices are as high as all the aircraft overhead. BUT… my macaroni cheese has arrived so I’d better get stuck in…

Mistake No.2

The first mistake was getting the bus rather than the train to Heathrow, although to be fair it was not that bad. Mistake number two was to eat at Bridge in the airport.

It is not very clean – no one bothered wiping the table before I sat down, and the menus were sticky with beer. Or at least I hope it was beer. And the food is pretty ropey and certainly overpriced. The microwave is clearly having a bad day: if my meal was a world map then Siberia was in the east and Florida was in the west – cold one end and hot the other. Call me old fashioned but in my view macaroni cheese should be Florida all over. The mac cheese at Austin’s department store in Newton Abbot is considerably tastier – and half the price!

When eating here drinking beer is strongly advised, if only to take away the taste of the food. The Boston beer is doing a reasonable job of washing away the salt…