As any other Arsenal fan from abroad, visiting London and watching Arsenal play was on the top of my bucket list.

During my teenage and student years, this was all only a dream and something that made me study and focus on work more, so I could afford it when I grew up. I couldn’t imagine asking my parents to pay for a trip like that, so it had to wait until I had a proper job and I could save up for it.

The dream came true in May 2017, 11 years after I started following Arsenal in Croatia.

2Friday, May 5th

New terminal in Zagreb Airport // Us two outside the airport // Inside the airport // Us on the plane // The usual plane wing and clouds photo

From the moment we woke up, it was all about London.

Our flight was leaving the newly remodelled Zagreb airport on Friday evening, so we decided to pack our small carry-on bag that day. My dad agreed to drop us off (the airport is an hour away from where we live) and we left at noon – which turned out to be way too early but I’m a worrier and rather be early than late!

In Zagreb, we met up with Ivan who gave us the tickets for the stadium, which meant we are all set to go. Nerves started kicking in as it was our first ever flight and we had no idea what to expect – from the whole airport procedure to the flight itself.

The new Zagreb airport is simply stunning and it was a great start of our trip. We wish there was more to see and do inside it but it was my fault we came too early! The check-in went great, and we were on the plane ahead of schedule.

Then came the real excitement and nervousness because of the lift off and flight.

We had no idea how it would feel or what to expect, and it was surreal.

I’m sure many of you fly a few times a year so you are more or less used to it but it was something really different for us, and I can’t really describe it. That feeling of being clinched to your seat, your blood leaving your head, and that first thought of “HOLY CRAP there’s really nothing beneath us!”.

Crazy, I know, but it was amazing.

The flight went so well. Both of us were worried about turbulence but we didn’t experience any – at least not more than when you’re driving down a damaged road in any city. Since the flight took off ahead of schedule, we were in London too early and the plane had to circle around and then make the landing when appropriate. That landing was slightly more scary, as the plane had to drop low pretty fast, but hey, that was the scariest part of whole trip!

As I mentioned before, I was a bit worried how we would manage the whole airport thing and big city, but it turns out I was worried for nothing (shocker!). As soon as we landed, everyone was so nice and kind to us and helped whenever we asked anything. It all started with passport control where the lovely man thought I was younger and didn’t believe my age! Bless him.

We kept riding our luck with time and managed to grab the earlier bus from Gatwick to London. I was sitting all the way at the back while Nikola was right next to driver so his experience with bumpy English roads was much better than mine!

Anyway, we got to London an hour early, to West Brompton Station, where we bought our first ever tube tickets and jumped on the District line to Paddington where we grabbed Bakerloo to our station – Baker Street. The Air BnB place was just near by, and, since we came an hour early, our host was still away (working late) so we went to grab some dinner in the nearby Co-Op.

This all reads to me like we’ve been in London for ages but it really wasn’t confusing or hard to manage around such a huge city. The first thing Nikola noticed was that everything was marked on signs and written down. Literally everything. From traffic cones by the road marking where the electricity lines cross the road (way above it, but it was marked anyway!) to LOOK RIGHT and LOOK LEFT words written on the road on every road crossing. It was really fascinating and very helpful. Thanks, London!

When our host arrived, all tired and distraught because some tube line was shut down, we had our fancy Co-Op dinner (ham and cheese and rolls) and our first London beer. We were completely knackered from the long day and fell asleep immediately.