Day 4 – Checking Out a Little Corner of London
St. Pancras station is directly across the street from my hotel here in London. Because my train for Brussels will be leaving at 6:45 a.m. tomorrow, I wandered over there this morning for a leisurely look at the magnificent Victorian building.
The original station dates back to 1868 and – astonishingly – came close to being torn down back in the 1960s. Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed and after repairs and renovations amounting to some 800 million pounds, the result is a Big Wow!
In addition to the sleek Eurostar trains that depart from here for the continent multiple times a day, this is the main terminus for trains connecting London with other towns and cities in this part of the country. But there are also shops and restaurants and St. Pancras has clearly become a favorite stopping-off place for non-traveling Londoners who lkive and work in this part of the city … very much like the way Union Station in Washington, DC has become a focal point in the city.
Then, tin the afternoon, I spent some time strolling around this general area, which includes rows of tidy apartment buildings, some surrounding a small park with huge old trees providing a leafy canopy for people enjoying this hazy, but bright and sunny day.
Ah well, almost time to move on. Tomorrow I’ll be on three different trains: London to Brussels, Brussels to Cologne, and Cologne to Berlin. Full report to follow.
