UK rail trip – 2022
Day 24 – 26th April, 2022
It was time to check out and get on the move again. I took the 25 minute walk to Northern Moor Metrolink station. After a 20-25 minute trip to Manchester Piccadilly, I boarded the 10:55 Avanti West Coast service to London Euston (after I picked up a litre of orange juice, of course). This class 390 was named Crewe All Change. Appropriately enough, this train would be going via Crewe – but I would not be changing.
Unlike the other day, on a train in the opposite direction, I was no longer fatigued and was looking forward to travelling again. I settled down in my preferred table seat and watched the world go by. It was an uneventful trip and the train arrived one minute early at London Euston.
My onward train to Brighton would be deparating from London St. Pancras International. As it wasn’t too far way (less than one kilometre), I decided to walk it. Besides, the walk would do be good. After all, I had isolated myself in a hotel for much of the previous five days. The Thameslink service to Brighton would be leaving from underground platforms, rather than the surface platforms. My train was one of the recently introduced class 700s. These are dual-voltage trains which changeover from 25 kV AC to 750 V DC at the next station.
I was rather disappointed with the class 700s. Being used on a fairly lengthy service from Bedford to Brighton, I expected there to be a certain level of comfort. However, they were rather basic with no tables – at least, not in standard class. So, I chose not to sit in facing seats.
My hostel was about a 25 minute walk from the station. And, after consulting Google Maps, it was pretty straight forward in getting to. I checked in and found my dorm room. It was nice and roomy, with plenty of floor space. There were also a couple of very large windows, so it was very bright. After settling in, I went out for a walk.
After grabbing dinner at a nearby pub, I returned to the beach front for a couple of hours. It’s nice to just watch the world go by.
My friend Gary told me that Brighton is rather overrated. And, to be honest, he was right. I still enjoyed visiting here. But it’s not what it’s cracked up to be. Tomorrow, I’m off to Canterbury.