We were out the door at 9.15am on the bus heading to The Regent Garden. We missed our stop as we were too busy talking! We got off two stops later! ? it didn’t matter, we got to see more of the garden than we planned, which is gorgeous. We came to see Queen Mary Rose Garden. I could have spent the whole day there, (if the hay fever didn’t get me first!). It is the most beautiful rose garden I have seen, I loved it. My photos don’t do it justice. I sat for a while and just absorbed its beauty.
After, we walked to the Wellcome museum, it is a relatively small space over a few floors, displaying a mixture of medical artefacts and original artworks, exploring the connections between medicine, life and art. It was really interesting and a bit different. There is also a great reading room on the second floor and they currently have an historical exhibition on magic, you would love it Ethan, we did.
We didn’t have much time left, so we chose to go to the British library, instead of the museum. As we approached the library, we noticed a very large, magnificent, old building next door. We walked further to investigate.
It was St Pancras hotel and is described as a gothic treasure, it opened in 1873. As we do, we wandered inside, where it is equally as stunning. A very personable young gentleman, who I presume was a greeter (whatever his title, he was exceptional at his job), greeted us, we told him how amazing the hotel looked so we had wondered inside. He told us about the hotel, he could see we were interested and described the areas we should and were welcome to have a look at, a restaurant and bar, and a gorgeous old staircase. When we were looking at the staircase we met a woman who told us many years ago she stood on the staircase in her wedding dress, you could see by the look in her eyes she was back on that day ?. It was a far cry from the icy reception I received at the Ritz a few days ago.
Then we headed next door to the British Library. It is not an old building, but it does have some very old treasures. Fortunately for us they were mostly in one room, the Sir John Ritblat Gallery. The Magna Carta, Gutenberg’s bible, created around 1455, DaVinci’s notebook, handwritten music from Handel, Beethoven and others, works from Austen and Dickens, was a real treasure trove. Well worth a look.
We caught the bus home and decided to get off a few stops early to buy some groceries. Thought we would try Selfridges this time. But it was expensive and busy, so thought we would go back when we had more time and headed over the road to Marks and Spencer’s where we knew where things were. We were back home a bit before 2pm and had an hour to get ready before heading out again.
For my birthday, some lovely people bought me a voucher for Afternoon Tea at Claridges, such a thoughtful gift. Today is the day. We caught a cab, the few blocks we had to go, well we were all dressed up! ?. We were given a nice table by the piano, a very charming Michael, poured us some champagne and explained, we would have sandwiches first, then tea and scones and pastries. He very kindly gave us two serves of sandwiches and two glasses of bubbles. Towards the end Michael brought out a delicious, little chocolate mousse cake with a candle, that was a nice surprise and Greg quietly sang happy birthday. When we had finished they boxed up the cakes that we could not eat, for us to take home. It was a delightful couple of hours in a beautiful Art Deco room with a pianist and cellist entertaining us. A lovely time was had, a memory that will endure, hopefully a few more decades ?
Greg here, I just had to tell you all about a very amusing experience I had at Claridges.
“I went to the toilet, and Deb requested photos, no not that kind – minds out of the gutter please, location/fitout style type pics.
Well, I got directions to the toilets, 2nd door on the right down this way Sir, I was informed.
So I went down the hallway, 2nd door on the right looked more like a reception area than the entrance to the gents. I was directed down to marble steps to my left by one of the two “gentlemen’s assistants” at “reception”. As I got to the bottom of the stairs I was about to take a photo when the door to a cubicle started to open, so I put my phone away. Suffice to say, the decor was the finest porcelain with gold tap ware and white tiles with blue patterns on them through-out. The urinals even had glass splash protectors for your shoes! I know maybe too much information there. ?
Anyway, I finished my ablutions, and turned towards the sinks. There in front of me was one of the “gentlemen’s assistants” waiting for me. He had turned on the water to just the right temperature, as I moved toward the soap dispenser he plunged it for me so I didn’t have to sully my hands with it. As I washed my hands he adjusted the water stream for me. When I was done, he turned the tap off and handed me a towel. I am glad he wasn’t down there when I arrived, who knows what he may have helped me with! ” ?
We enjoyed the walk home, really are beginning to think of this as home, we talk about our street, our church, our bustop …..
Going to Abbey Road early tomorrow, hopefully get a photo!
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Bahhaha haha Greg that’s hilarious!! Sounds like it was a very lovely day. Shame about no photos of the loo though.