Day trips to Milton Keynes New Town and Winchester - England's ancient Capital City

My father was born in Bristol UK along with three brothers. Meyer, George, and David. Meyer was the oldest and a mysterious character who was rumoured to be a spy. At the age of 65 he started to study Mandarin. He never married and didn't have children. His brother George, had a career with a shelving company called Dexion. He had two children Lynne and Jackie with whom my sister and I maintained regular contact. His third brother David also had two children, Norman and Marylou. While I was quite close to my cousin Norman when I lived in England for a year in 1968/9, over the years we have had only limited contact. However, on this trip I was determined to meet up with all of my cousins and fortunately this worked out. 

Norman and Marylou live in North London, Marylou is in Stanmore and since like many Londoners, she no longer enjoys going into the city and having to deal with protesters, she invited Norman and me for a Friday night dinner of fish and chips. We had a delightful evening getting caught up on the family news, including the Shirley's 90th birthday celebration. 

For many years uncle Dave and Norman ran Geller Business Equipment in London's West End where they sold cash registers and other business equipment. When England decided to switch from shillings to pence, they had many good years!

YouTube: Why everyone hates Milton Keynes and why they might be wrong.

New terraced housing in Milton Keynes

My cousin Lynne, who at one time was told she looked like me!

England has come a long way from the days when your choice was a pint of bitter or mild.

The train station in Milton Keynes is quite different from most other UK train stations. 

Lynne lives in Milton Keynes and she invited me to join her for lunch and a tour around the town. Milton Keynes is famous as a place the English love to hate. A planned new town, it was built after the war and is very different from most traditional English towns and cities that have developed over time. I didn't think it was as bad as my wife and others warned me about. I came across this video which tells the story of Milton Keynes very well. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Se1VnZxWv8M

Jackie lives in the New Forest and she suggested that we meet up in Winchester, in between where she lives and London. She made a reservation for lunch at the Wykeham Arms since she thought I would be interested in seeing the original flush toilet designed by Thomas Crapper, and she was right.

While I was familiar with Winchester Cathedral thanks to the 1960s song, I wasn't aware of the city's significance as the ancient capital of England. We spent a delightful day having a very long lunch and walking around the historic city. 

Winchester's main commercial street is a lovely pedestrian street.

I went inside since it claimed to be the oldest pub in England. However I subsequently learned many places claimed to be the oldest pub in England. Since this one only dated back to 1002 it was relatively new, compared to a few others!

Yes, this is the cathedral

The worlds first speed bumps?

The Wykeham Arms - exactly what one expects in a charming old English pub.

Of course I had the Wyke pie!

City Hall

While it may sound silly or trite, Winchester reminded me of what England used to be. A lovely, clean place with beautiful historic buildings, very little graffiti or garbage - a place where it was delightful to walk. In many respects, the exact opposite of Milton Keynes which is a very nice, but car-oriented place. But I still enjoyed visiting both, and especially spending time with my cousins.

London by Night Sightseeing Tour

Ten years ago when I was commuting to Russia via London I took this bus tour and enjoyed it very much. Since it started at Green Park station, just around the corner from my hotel, I decided to book it again. Although it was a cold night, it wasn't raining and I sat on the upper level with an Australian lady who was touring the world while her husband stayed home in Brisbane looking after their kids. She was good company, and the sights around town were often quite remarkable. Here are a few photos. I highly recommend this 90 minute outing.

While my hotel looked good in the daytime, it looked great in the evening.

While many of the English pubs have lost their 'old world character' on the inside, they often look terrific on the outside.

You have to take this photo!

One of the remarkable things about London is that there are not a lot of illuminated billboards or advertising, but Picadilly Circus is an exception.

Christmas decorations were just starting to be installed, and it was only late October. 

St. James Hotel & Club, Mayfair London

It is a lovely building with a lot of character, on a small cul-de-sac off St. James Street, near Picadilly.

Mayfair has a rich variety of lovely older buildings

The Ritz Hotel was nearby. While I didn't eat there, I should have.

I did have an afternoon Happy Hour drink and hors d'eovres at this pub, which is now part of a large chain. I had been here before ten years ago when I was en route to Moscow.

It turned out that this young lady was from White Rock!

I booked this hotel for my final four nights in London since it had a reciprocal relationship with the Arbutus Club in Vancouver where I am a member. While I did not expect the full array of facilities offered by the Arbutus Club, I did assume there would be some 'club-like amenities' such as a whirlpool, spa, business centre and maybe a pool. After all, it is a club. I was wrong. While it is called a club, the only 'club features' are that members get a discount on room rates and meals in the restaurants.

That said, it was a good choice in terms of location and character. Staying there was a very 'British Experience' in the heart of Mayfair, around the corner from the Ritz Hotel, one of the best urban hotels in the world. There was easy access to Green Park underground station which offers several lines which turned out to be most convenient.

While the room was very nice and well fitted out, there was no separate shower - only a deep bathtub with no wall-mounted support bar to help get in and out. Other rooms did have walk-in showers and I would highly recommend such a room. The staff were most accommodating and helpful, although I did have an odd experience when I was checking out. As I was leaving I suddenly realized that although the luggage they gave me looked like my luggage, it was not my luggage!

Fortunately my luggage was still there. 

The reciprocal club rate for a Deluxe Room (25 sq. m, King-size bed) was £360.00 per night, ($675 CCN) including VAT, on a room-only basis. Since they did not include breakfast, I decided to eat elsewhere each morning, which worked out just fine. 

While the menu prices were quite reasonable by London standards, (a pound was $1.87 CDN) I didn't eat on the property since I was invited out for lunches and dinners. However, for a late night snack, rather than order room service, I went across the street and bought cold cuts, cheeses, a bottle of good wine, and other treats at Marks & Spencers Food Hall, which is a most remarkable place to shop. If only we had something like that in Vancouver. It felt almost illicit eating this in my room, but it was still delightful.

Here is a more complete description of the hotel, from TripAdvisor.

"St. James’s Hotel and Club is a five star townhouse hotel tucked away in a quiet cul-de-sac in St James’s, near Mayfair and Piccadilly. It is ideally located within central London and it is the perfect base for shopping, culture as well as business meetings or events. A multi-million pound restoration has created a harmony between contemporary chic and Victorian elegance. With fabulous Penthouse suites and some of the best guest room terraces in London, the hotel boasts stylish, sleek, contemporary yet elegant interiors finished with handmade silk wallpaper, black lacquered furniture, handcrafted Murano glass chandeliers and polished natural stone in the bathroom. A magnificent art collection also features throughout the hotel. Experience the richness of British cuisine at Francatelli, led by award-winning Executive Chef William Drabble. Partnering with local suppliers, Chef Drabble honours the culinary legacy of Charles Elmé Francatelli. Drawing inspiration from Francatelli’s iconic"

As is now customary, I was asked to fill out a survey to describe my experiences staying at the hotel and received the following note from the manager.

Dear Mr. Geller,

Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback following your recent stay with us at the Althoff St. James’s Hotel & Club. We genuinely value your insights and appreciate your candour in highlighting the areas where we did not meet your expectations.

I am very sorry to learn that your experience was impacted by the lack of accessible bathroom facilities in your room. We understand how important comfort and safety are, particularly in the bathroom, and regret that the deep bathtub did not meet your needs. Your comments have been shared with our team, and we will certainly explore options to better accommodate guests with specific accessibility requirements in the future.

Regarding the Wi-Fi experience, we apologise for the inconvenience caused by the issue with the password and the difficulty in accessing the service. We have raised this with our technical team to ensure clearer communication and more reliable connectivity for all future guests.

I also sincerely regret that you felt misled by the absence of the expected club facilities during your stay. We strive to provide accurate information about the services available, and I am sorry that this led to disappointment. Your feedback is invaluable in helping us ensure our marketing and communications are as clear and transparent as possible going forward.

Furthermore, I am truly sorry for the confusion regarding your luggage upon check-out. This is certainly not the standard of service we aim to deliver, and I understand how distressing this situation must have been. I will personally address this with our concierge team to ensure such errors are avoided in the future.

We deeply regret that your stay did not live up to the experience you anticipated, and I appreciate your constructive feedback. If you choose to stay with us again, we would be more than happy to assist with any special requirements to ensure your comfort and satisfaction. Please do not hesitate to reach out directly if I can be of further assistance.

Yours sincerely,

Nicolas E. Monaglio
General Manager

While I won't stay at this property again, I recommend it for a truly British Experience in a very good location with accommodating staff. Like many other reviewers, I wouldn't say it was great value for money, but depending on when you stay, you might get a good rate.  

Why I will never fly British Airways ever again within Europe, and you may not want to too.

I am writing this post to give others who might be flying London- Venice or other destinations in Europe on British Airways a head's up. Although I have never had problems booking exit row seats or baggage in North America, it sure was a problem with British Airways. And since they have been so bloody polite, but so totally lacking in understanding, I am writing this post.

Over the years, my wife and I have often flied British Airways to UK. This year, my wife and daughter did fly on BA, and my wife was pleased that you could upgrade from Premium Economy to Business Class for relatively little money, compared to booking Business from the start. However, for trip, since I wanted to visit Iceland, I booked on Icelandic Air rather than BA or Air Canada.

But we needed to fly from London to Venice. My friend Gary had a travel agent in the US book his flight in economy. So although the business class fare was not that much more, I too decided to book economy. But I paid for exit row seats with extra legroom. 

Since I didn't know if he would carry on his luggage, I decided to wait before booking for my baggage knowing I could do it at the airport. What a mistake that turned out to be. 

As it happened, according to my ticket I could book luggage at the airport for $115 CDN. I know, it seems excessive but that was the declared cost. But what has upset me is that when I did book it, I was charged 75 pounds or $141 CDN. ($144.86 with fee) When I pointed this out to BA, while the amount was not significant, they would not reimburse me for the difference.

Moreover, I paid $131 for an exit row. This is the exit row I got. Again, no consideration from BA other than a 25 pound E-coupon that expires in six months. It's of no use whatsoever.

Does this look like an exit row to you?

Since I ended up getting no satisfaction from BA, I am writing this post and hoping that it will eventually be seen by others at BA and those who refused to be fair and accommodating will get, as my late mother would say, a good smacking! :-)

While BA may not care that I will never fly with them again, hopefully some of you will decide to use another airline as well.