Transatlantic Crossing Day 2

Start of day: Over the Atlantic
End of day: Moxy Southampton

There’s not much to write about the flight. I was incredibly tired and also couldn’t get into a comfortable enough position to sleep, so I just did the head bob thing for like 6 hours.

When planning the trip I wanted to give myself some buffer time before Sunday’s embarkation, partly to play tourist, partly to hedge against travel problems. I debated spending the time in London and then making my way to Southampton after 2 nights, or going right to Southampton. Given we’d just spent two nights in London as a family about two months prior, I opted to go directly to Southampton and stay there.

I decided to try National Express this time. They offer direct Heathrow to Southampton coach bus service. The duration was comparable to taking the train, while the fare was a little bit cheaper. However, the convenience was higher, as I wouldn’t have to manage my checked bag down to a train platform or find room on the train itself. Nor would I have to transfer.

At Heathrow I had some confusion figuring out where to actually find the bus until I learned (by having to ask a random airport employee) that I was looking for the Heathrow Airport Central Bus Station. Makes sense in hindsight but this information wasn’t readily available on the docs I had.

It was a ~10 minute fast-walk to the bus station. I found a seat in front of the board and watched to see which stall my 13:30 (1:30pm) bus would be in. I had about 30 minutes before the 1:30 bus so I was only glancing at the board every few minutes. At 1:20 the board updated and it showed my bus was now loading at stall 7. I hastily went outside, found the stall, passed my bag to the driver, and then we left… at 1:22. Eight minutes early. Oh and at no point did they look at my ticket. What bus leaves eight minutes early, especially when you’re not tracking the number of people who have pre-purchased tickets and whether everyone’s arrived?

And it was maybe 1/8th full when we left, though we’d pick up some more people at Heathrow Terminal 5.

Selfie in a window seat of a nearly empty National Express coach at Heathrow, wearing a navy henley, with rows of black leather seats with orange piping stretching forward, burnt-orange curtains tied back at the windows, and overhead reading lights. One other passenger is visible a few rows up

It was an easy, ~90 minute ride over to Southampton, with some Windows XP nostalgia along the way:

Rolling green Hampshire farmland seen from the coach window along the motorway near Basingstoke, with a freshly mown field sweeping up to a line of dark trees, a hedgerow and a wooden stile in the foreground beside the road, and a bright blue sky scattered with puffy white cumulus clouds

And then from there it was an easy ~10 minute walk towards the water and my hotel.

With only a few days’ notice there weren’t a lot of hotel choices. I noticed one of the hotels, the Moxy, was well-located and a Bonvoy property.

The glass entrance of the Moxy Southampton hotel, with the large looping magenta 'moxy' script sign mounted above a white canopy and a revolving door to the left. A cycle-lane sign is posted beside the entrance, and the reflective glass shows a figure standing with a roller suitcase on the pavement

A compact Moxy hotel room with a low platform bed made up in white linens, a navy accent wall behind the headboard with two wall-mounted reading lamps, dark charcoal carpet, grey curtains framing a window with afternoon light and city buildings outside, a magenta ottoman, and a wall-mounted television on a dark frame to the left

Overall I was pleased with my two nights at the Moxy. The bar/restaurant area was cozy, the bar food decent, and the staff friendly – if a bit overworked at times.

Once checked in, I wandered around the Westquay Shopping Center across from the hotel…

…and ended up having Thai during a random afternoon rainstorm.

A plate of pad thai with beef, tofu, bean sprouts, sliced red chili, and spring onion served on a banana leaf on a dark oval platter at Thaikhun, with small orange bowls of crushed peanuts and chili flakes and a lime wedge. Beside it, a tall glass of cola with ice, lemon, and a red-and-white striped straw, on a bright orange Thaikhun paper placemat with a drinks menu propped behind

The rest of the day was spent wandering around and trying to stay ahead of jet lag. I made it until 9pm or so.

A carved wooden Paddington Bear statue in a blue duffle coat and red hat, holding a marmalade sandwich, seated at one end of a wooden bench with a green plaque, set on a grassy bank below a tall round medieval stone tower in Southampton's old town walls. Planters with heather flank the bench under a clear blue sky

Selfie in front of the Bargate, the medieval stone gatehouse of Southampton's old town walls, lit golden by late afternoon sun, wearing a navy henley. The gate's battlemented parapet, carved heraldic panels, and a stone lion statue frame the dark arched passage, with a flag flying from the roof and a pedestrian walking past on the left