Meet Me At St Pancras
Yesterday, I made a late decision to travel with my mum and sister to London. They were spending the night at a hotel in the capital, and then traveling via Eurostar to Brussels and then onwards to Brugge the next day. Being the helpful chap that I am, I wanted to make sure they got there alright and that the hotel was suitable for them. Well, that’s what I told them. In actual fact, I hadn’t any plans and I like nothing better than hopping on a train regardless of the direction it’s going in. It also gave me the opportunity to see London’s Christmas lights (which were nice in places, but generally rather bland) and to see the newly refurbished, newly reopened St Pancras railway station (now called St Pancras International).
Was it worth the visit? Certainly was! Opened in 1868, St Pancras was quickly dubbed the “cathedral of the railways.” It’s easy to see why. The lovingly restored train shed, designed by engineer William Henry Barlow, was the largest single-span structure at the time. Today, in it’s new coat of light blue paint and with the curved window panes having been cleaned so the sun light floods in, it looks incredible. It’s great to think it will be the first thing foreign visitors will see of London once they step off of Eurostar.
Now, to book myself a seat to somewhere nice. Since the Eurostar terminal has moved from Waterloo in South London to St Pancras in North London, I can buy a ticket from my local station direct to the continent. I’m literally one platform change away from Paris. This morning, my mum and sister were whisked off at 186mph to Brussels. Their train left London at 08h10 and at 08h50, I received a text message from my sister telling me that they were in France. What crazy and exciting times we live in.
Related Content: There’s actually a rather nice website about events at St Pancras International in the run-up to Christmas, including information on the world’s largest advent calendar which is currently adorning one of the walls at the end of the Barlow Shed. You can also find a few additional photos of the station on my Flickr site.
