mrstickball on 28 September 2009
Correction:
We launched and RETURNED in 8 days. It was 4 days from launch to land on the moon, and 4 days from landing on the moon to splashdown in the pacific ocean 
Remember: The chemical rockets we currently use to escape earth's gravity accelerate to >20,000 KM/H. We have to use something that quick to escape, so we've done a great job at building stuff that can go fast. Unfortunately, the costs are close to insanity ($11,000 per kilogram launched into geosynchronous orbit) which is why we're willing to sacrifice some time for a 90-95% reduction in payload cost via elevator.
Back from the dead, I'm afraid.
