May 13 and 14
Meetings in London
I managed two 2-hour naps during the night, with about an hour break in the middle of the night, as my sleep schedule was a bit off. I woke up early and went for a quick run, showered, and then took the tube to Canary Wharf for a breakfast meeting at Carluccio's with a customer. Breakfast was nice, especially for a local chain restaurant, and after some discussions, I made my way back to my hotel to work for a couple of hours.
I then had a lunch meeting in the Shoreditch area, so I took the tube again, met, ate, walked around a bit, and then returned to the hotel again to take a few WebEx and Skype meetings with people in the US.
Then off on the tube again for dinner meeting at 7:30 at
Polpetto, which is an excellent Ventian-style tapas restaurant in the soho area. After dinner I took another walk, and then found the tube back from Green Park to the hotel. Another quick FaceTime chat, a bit of work and fitness, and sleep.
Days like this can be as grueling as days with 10 hour flights, as I find myself spending half my time just getting around the city, or figuring out where to go next. It also probably doesn't help that I cram so many things into each day!
The next day, I woke up early (around 4:45am) as I wanted to get a proper workout. I took a bus 10 minutes north to Kilburn to enjoy a crossfit class, and despite only having about 3-4 hours of sleep again, I had plenty of energy for a great workout. There was a nice sunset to start the day.
I returned to the hotel by bus, and had a quick breakfast at Patisserie Valerie, then showered, worked for a bit, and checked out of the hotel. Because I had some items that I would not need until early the next week, I left a bag at the Left Luggage facility at Paddington Station. This service is really efficient for multi-phase trips, or in my case, when you bring along a large yoga mat to make the longhaul seat more comfortable.
After grabbing a quick snack from M&S, I took the Heathrow Express back to Heathrow, and arrived at the Sofitel. During check-in, I explained that my wifi experience was very poor on my previous stay, and asked to be in a different part of the hotel. I was told that they had since upgraded their internet access, but that she would make sure I was in a better part of the hotel. This time the paid wifi was excellent and reliable.
I worked for a few hours, and then made my way to South Kensington for a dinner meeting at
Franco Manca. It is decent, though does not compare to the legendary and award winning
Pizzeria Bianco located in Phoenix (difficult to believe, but it's seriously one of the best pizza places in the world, based on my extensive taste tests!).
We then walked for a bit and continued our meeting at a pub near Glouster Road station, before calling it a night. A tube ride back to the airport, and by the end I had the tube car to myself.
I finished my night with a FaceTime chat and some more work, and then to sleep by midnight.