June 24, 2022 - London, England

Today is my last day in England.  I will be taking the new Eurostar train to Paris later this evening (more about that later).

Yesterday, I had a whole bunch of highlights and was so tired when I returned to my accommodations that I fell asleep.  Alas, no blog yesterday.  At 10:00am I met a group of 10 from various parts of the US who joined our host, Chris for a walk in the Kensington Palace Gardens and to have High Tea at the Palace.  The original gardens of, what is now, Kensington Palace were grounds of about 600 acres and was owned by the Catholic Church.  When King Henry VIII broke with the Pope regarding an annulment he wished from his first wife, Catherine of Aragon, (even though she had already given him daughters and only daughters) he seized much of the Church’s property and set up the Church of England, in which the monarch is the supreme head.  He made this land into his own personal hunting grounds.  Later Nottingham Manor (the original name of Kensington Palace) owned by the Earl of Nottingham was purchased in 1648 by William III who renovated the Manor to make it larger.  It has had a special place in history for all the royal monarchs and their families.  It is where Queen Victoria was born, where King Edward II reigned, as he could not withstand the air quality in London proper due to his asthma, where Princess Diana lived for a majority of her adult life, and where many of the current royal family live.  Prince William and Kate have lived here since their marriage, but will soon move to Windsor Castle.  Here are pictures of the gardens and the Palace.  Honestly, it’s not terribly impressive as a Palace.

We then went and saw Princess Diana’s Memorial Garden.  These gardens were already here and a place where she spent a good deal of her time, but now they are open to the public and renamed in her memory.

After a stroll about the garden, we entered the Garden House for High Tea.  The tradition of High Tea is attributed to Anna Maria Russell, Duchess of Bedford who wanted some kind of small meal between lunch and dinner.  High Tea doesn’t refer to the time of day, nor to its formality.  Instead, it refers to the entire setting of tea and three-tiered platters of food presented on a high top table, not on a cart or on the low table by a sofa.  Anna Maria began inviting others to join her for this afternoon tea time and discussion or a game of cards and soon the practice became widespread among the upper classes.

Here are pictures of our High Tea:

I only took pictures of the desserts because of the fancy chocolate toppers, but on the bottom tier are finger/tea sandwiches (with the crusts cut off, of course); Smoked Salmon with Caviar, Cucumber and Dill, Egg Salad, and a light Curried Chicken Salad.  In the middle tier are miniature scones with clotted cream and strawberry jam.  And the top tier are the sweeter desserts of a chocolate sponge and ganache topped with the British flag, the Jubilee Cake made especially for Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee, and a sponge cake with a layer of raspberry preserves created by Queen Victoria.

My tea companions were a couple from Arizona with their daughter/step daughter.  He is a surgeon and served as a medical missionary.  There’s a story he told about being in the Philippines on a medical missionary trip and mangoes that I can’t wait to tell someday.  (I may have new category in my research due to it - Food in Gratitude!)

I had wanted to see the Globe Theater, after having been to Shakespeare’s birthplace.  The pictures you see of the original or of the reconstructed theater look NOTHING like what is there today.  It is a modern brick and glass building.  Here’s a picture.

I spent the late afternoon trying to deal with my Eurail pass at the train station.  The ticket officer was not able to help me with my pass, but he managed to give me a reservation ticket anyway.  It’s a good thing I went, too.  Because of the strike, the new Eurostar trains are being operated at limited capacity.  My original train that I had planned to take at 1pm was now either full or cancelled and the only other train available was an 8pm train out tonight.  I got the last of three seats.

Not sure what to do with the rest of my evening, I went to Piccadilly Circus - a new favorite spot.  I was thinking of seeing Amy Adams in The Glass Managerie or something else, when I got a text, “Where are you?”  It was my dear friend Nadia who was also in Piccadilly Circus.  We were just streets away from each other.  She and her family were here for the weekend.  They live in Switzerland, but I got to know Nadia as one of my students.  I was so excited to see her!  We got to hang out and enjoy each other’s company at a local pub.  Her daughter, Liza, was only 13 the last time I saw her.  And it was good to spend some time with Monalito, her husband, who I don’t know as well.

Time to pack and off I go, again!