Adjusting to the Time Zone Change...
Adjusting to the Time Zone Change...
When we were in England in 2001 for the 'Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education' conference in Canterbury, we stayed at the University of Kent campus there... The accommadations were 'rustic', to be nice... Finally, we escaped to the Marriott Hotel at the Slough/Windsor area outside of London, near Heathrow airport for a night or two of comfort...
Our remembrances of this stay were quite positive, with soft, comfortable beds and a nice swimming pool... We were there at the end of June and there were a few families there visiting the nearby LegoLand theme park... But it was a very nice hotel and we reveled in its conforts...
Therefore, when we decided to schedule a few days in the London area before going to Kassel for the wedding madness, we immediately thought of the Marriott Hotel at the Slough/Windsor... What a mistake!
First of all, the taxi fare to get from Heathrow to the hotel was 50 pounds (about $100), but we were just tired from our 12 hours of travel across the pond... So we paid it... (The cost was so high since we took the regular "Black Cab" and the hotel was outside the London Metropolitan Area, as defined by the cab monopoly! Highway robbery, if you ask me!)
Secondly, after checking in and getting into our room, which was just as nice as remembered, we were told that the pool could only be used on a reservation basis; we needed to make a reservation for an hour only since so many children were there with their families and that exceeded the safe capacity of the pool area... THIS SHOULD HAVE SOUNDED THE WARNING BELL! As it turned out, about 65% of the 'guests' at the hotel were children...
Thirdly, when we went to dinner that evening, we had a difficult time getting a table, especially one accessible to me with my walker... We finally were seated at a table far enough away from the tables with 5-6 children... But that did not end the disaster; the waiters were so tuned into everyone ordering the buffet that it took about 20 minutes to get the attention of a waiter... And then they seemed almost ignorant of how to take a special order and serve something besides beverages... The food was tolerable, but we ate most of the rest of our meals in the bar after 8 pm to avoid most of the kids...
More on this subject next time...
When we were in England in 2001 for the 'Innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education' conference in Canterbury, we stayed at the University of Kent campus there... The accommadations were 'rustic', to be nice... Finally, we escaped to the Marriott Hotel at the Slough/Windsor area outside of London, near Heathrow airport for a night or two of comfort...
Our remembrances of this stay were quite positive, with soft, comfortable beds and a nice swimming pool... We were there at the end of June and there were a few families there visiting the nearby LegoLand theme park... But it was a very nice hotel and we reveled in its conforts...
Therefore, when we decided to schedule a few days in the London area before going to Kassel for the wedding madness, we immediately thought of the Marriott Hotel at the Slough/Windsor... What a mistake!
First of all, the taxi fare to get from Heathrow to the hotel was 50 pounds (about $100), but we were just tired from our 12 hours of travel across the pond... So we paid it... (The cost was so high since we took the regular "Black Cab" and the hotel was outside the London Metropolitan Area, as defined by the cab monopoly! Highway robbery, if you ask me!)
Secondly, after checking in and getting into our room, which was just as nice as remembered, we were told that the pool could only be used on a reservation basis; we needed to make a reservation for an hour only since so many children were there with their families and that exceeded the safe capacity of the pool area... THIS SHOULD HAVE SOUNDED THE WARNING BELL! As it turned out, about 65% of the 'guests' at the hotel were children...Thirdly, when we went to dinner that evening, we had a difficult time getting a table, especially one accessible to me with my walker... We finally were seated at a table far enough away from the tables with 5-6 children... But that did not end the disaster; the waiters were so tuned into everyone ordering the buffet that it took about 20 minutes to get the attention of a waiter... And then they seemed almost ignorant of how to take a special order and serve something besides beverages... The food was tolerable, but we ate most of the rest of our meals in the bar after 8 pm to avoid most of the kids...More on this subject next time...
posted by Gerald Boerner's Blog at 10:46 PM
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