Planes, Trains, Subways, Buses, Taxis and Oh My Aching Feet!

As fun and exhilarating as it is to go to new lands and see new sights and experience new cultures, I must say that the mere act of “Traveling” is a chore. In the last three weeks, I will have been on 4 transatlantic flights, 2 intra-continental flights, numerous above-ground trains, several buses, taxis and shuttles, and dozens of subways. And my feet, oh my feet, how they have walked and walked.

Some general rules of thumb for making the Traveling easier: Pack light, don't be in a hurry, plan ahead, keep your eyes open, have a really good map with you, and don't be afraid to ask for help. I have found ticket office people and even fellow passengers to be most helpful for the befuddled and confused tourist willing to smile and ask how to proceed.

That said, I am glad that my initiation into international travel involved countries where English is the primary or secondary language. We Americans don't have to try as hard as other people because English is so prevalent all over the world. Still, being in a place like London, and then in the Netherlands, it is much easier to navigate when signs are in English and people all around are speaking English—or can switch to English from Dutch without missing a beat.

Transatlantic plane travel is tedious. There are so many restrictions to luggage weight and type, to carry-on items, to all the security checks, that by the time you actually get on the plane, it's a relief just to sit and watch the bad TV and videos that are streamed to each seat screen. Travel by plane between European airports---in this case London Heathrow to Amsterdam Schiphol---was a piece of cake, being an hour long flight and seemingly fewer security checks. Still, those airports are huge and I regretted the heavy small bags I had to lug through each one. The best advice for the within-airport trek is to have all luggage on wheels.

Europe is far ahead of America in the development of train travel. The trains that I rode on were generally clean, comfortable and readily available with good connections. The express train that runs from Heathrow airport to the center of London deposited me within 15 minutes to a station a mere block from my hotel. I rode several times on aboveground trains to outer parts of London; they were quicker than a taxi through that part of town. The trains running between Amsterdam and Leiden were clean and efficient---except for the one that stopped 5 minutes out from the station, sat on the tracks for 45 minutes, then headed back to the station, citing technical difficulties. All of the hundreds of passengers were off-loaded and sent down and up stairs to a new platform to crowd onto another train. I also failed to understand the signage at the platform at the station in Leiden and took an unplanned detour through the station at Haarlem, changed to a different train, and changed again in order to arrive at the airport ---what should have been a simple on-off 20 minute trip turned into an hour long trip with miles of walking around train stations.

Subways, or the Tube, are by far the most efficient way to travel in Central London. Provided you understand the transfer process and can figure out the closest station to your destination, it is easy and generally quick. Trains run regularly without excessive delays. The hardest work involved with the subway is the endless walking underground during transfers from one line to another. The Underground engineering works do have the annoying habit of closing certain lines on the weekends, so it is crucial to keep a map handy and always have an alternate route in mind.

The iconic Big Red Bus in London is a must-ride at least a couple of times. However, this is not nearly as easy for the unfamiliar tourist to figure out. You have to know streets and intersections to know which bus to get on and then where to get off. Tickets are not sold on the bus, so unless you have the Oyster card, an electronic pass card, you can't ride just any bus. In Amsterdam, we discovered the tram, which allows payment on-board and runs between major parts of the city quickly and efficiently. The Stop-and-Go is a small shuttle which will allow you to get on and off anywhere along the Prinsengracht Canal for one Euro.

I love the British taxi. Drivers can get you anywhere you want to go, but for a pretty sum. They are comfortable and can do a U-turn in the middle of a street without hitting a curb. Riding in a taxi is also a must-do, as it is shocking to see all the cars driving on the wrong side of the street and the drivers steering from the wrong side of the front seat. The best time to take a taxi is when you need to get to a hard-to-find destination and your feet are very tired.

Walking is a given in a huge city like London. You will walk to a station, between stations, to your destination, and back to the station. If you don't know your exact route through habit or familiarity, you must have a good map with you. Even then, you must keep your eyes open, watch street signs, beware of traffic coming at you from the wrong direction, and dress for the weather. One of the difficulties for the tourist is to know which direction you are headed. When you emerge from a subway station, you are not oriented and have no idea on which corner of a given intersection you have been dumped. Then you may find yourself walking your tired body around in circles and back.

For a city the size of London (14 million people) mass transit is the only way it can function. In fact, private cars pay 8 pounds a day to drive within the “congestion” zone of central London. By making this so expensive, traffic is reduced and people are forced to ride buses, subways or take a taxi. Or walk.

My little drive to work each day, originating in my garage mere steps from my house, and depositing me in a school parking lot a few yards from the front door, is laughably easy.