After attending 17 sporting events in 15 days in three countries it was time to go home. Here were my stats:
I attended 12 games in England, 3 in Scotland and 2 in Finland.
I attended 10 soccer matches consisting of 4 English Premier League, 2 Champions League, 1 Europa League, 1 Scottish Premier League and 2 Carling Cup.I attended 2 rugby matches – 1 in the Guinness Premiership and 1 in the Magners League.I attended 2 county cricket matches – both Division I and Division II.I attended 2 NHL games …

I extended my trip one day in order to attend the Chicago Bulls pre-season game versus the Utah Jazz at the O2 Arena on Tuesday night. In all practicality I probably should have flown back to Chicago instead, since I did attend the Minnesota Timberwolves and Boston Celtics pre-season game two years ago at the O2 Arena.
The O2 Arena is located in zone 2 for underground purposes but is at the end of the zone. The station to get off at is North Greenwich.
Obtaining TicketsI had looked up …

Since I napped most of Monday afternoon, I spent Tuesday morning touring Birmingham. I walked through the Bull Ring Markets (one of Birmingham’s biggest tourist attractions) and Victoria Square. My train was scheduled to depart Birmingham New Street at 12:10 pm and arrive London Euston at 1:34 pm.
I made it back to Big Chris’ house without incident this time. I walked directly from Waterloo station to his house learning from my mistake last Thursday. Rather than relax at Big Chris’ I took the train over to …

This was a rare event where I had everything booked in advance – my train, my hotel and my game ticket. The Monday night football match in Birmingham was the main event on the schedule, so I always knew I would attend this game and no other event would be prioritized above it.
TrainI booked the train from London about one month ahead of time so it only cost £7 each way. It cost me £4 just to get from Lambeth North tube station to the Euston train station …

My flight from Helsinki was on time and we landed shortly before 9:10 am. In order to meet the Arsenal boys for brunch I hopped on the underground from Heathrow and got off at the Charing Cross tube stop.
Pre Game DiningBreakfast was scheduled for 10:45 am at the National Gallery Restaurant by Trafalgar Square. I arrived on time as more Arsenal boys showed up in the subsequent minutes. Breakfast was a much better experience than lunch two weeks ago.
Doubleheader PossibilityDuring breakfast we discussed the possibility of attending …