Posting from Heathrow T5 :)

Well, when my Nokia flashed up 8.30pm last night the realisation of what I'd done hit me in the stomach like Uwe Boll dealing with a spot of negative PR. Shit. Big adrenaline, had to quash a incipient panic attack quick sharp. Picked up the painstakingly packed rucksack and headed downstairs. Said 'goodbye' to my little sister Carol (nearly cried) and set off for East Ham Tube. As my flight was at 9am I had decided to stay at the Thistle Hotel near the airport for one night. This turned out to be a waste of time and money.

The 'new' District Line train rattled and bounced around emitting a cacophonous sonata of shrieking metal. Eventually it completed it's tedious crawl to Earls Court and I changed to a surprisingly full Piccadilly Line train. I was already regretting every little luxury I'd decided to allow myself to pack. The rucksack was/is terrifying me. I'm only committed to it for another four months (gulp).

The hotel claimed online to have 4 stars, but all I can say is I've never stayed in a three star that was that disappointing. They were rude, there was no lift, no smoking rooms and the facilities were bloody basic. Additionally, they wanted £10 for the use of their internet for 24 hours, when not a single hostel I've looked at in Costa Rica doesn't have free WiFi access. When I got up the injury was compounded by sitting down at the (remember, allegedly 4 stars) breakfast table only to discover they wanted £16 for the buffet-style continental. Fuming!

Still, at least the transport is pretty sorted for hotel goers at Heathrow - there are several bus routes covering all the hotels and £4 got me there in no time at all.

Now, I'm sure you've all heard the horror stories about Terminal 5. Bags lost, massive delays etc. Now, although it's true that I haven't actually got my bag back at the other end yet, it's been very quiet, efficient and clean so far. the building, whilst not exactly fantastic is still very impressive architecturally. I'll post some pics when I can, time is starting to get a little pressed here in T5! In fact got to go!