After arriving at Kings Cross station, we walked next door to St Pancras Station. From there we travelled to the town of St Alban's for our overnight stop, and then returned the next morning for our 8:34am departure to Brussels. The impressively ornate exterior dates from its construction in 1868.
The station has recently been redeveloped at a cost of £800m (twice the cost of the Scottish Parliament building) as the terminal for the International Eurostar trains to the the Continent. I like the bright colour scheme they have used for the equally ornate interior. You can read all about the redevelopment here.
I was very impressed by the departure lounge with its wooden floor and the vertical metal supports holding up the ceiling. The supports need to be strong because up above stand several of the Eurostar trains, each with their 18 coaches and twin power cars. The 400m trains are so long that the station had to be extended from its original 689-foot length. You can read more about the train technology here.
As we departed on our high-speed Eurostar I managed to snap a quick photo of the iconic Post Office tower before we entered the long tunnel heading Eastwards across the North London. It was further proof that we really had passed through London at the start of our European journey.
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