Across the Pond
On board our British Airways flight from LAX to London Heathrow on Thursday afternoon.
Now Friday, we dropped our bags at our Airbnb in Camden & took the Tube to King’s Cross Station, where it was high time for a matcha pick-me-up from Frothee.
Amanda’s matcha & my “dirty” matcha, with a shot of espresso, were the delicious energy boost we needed!
Amanda at Word on the Water—The London Bookbarge moored on Regent’s Canal.
Purusing the books onboard the barge.
After dinner at our perennial favorite—Dishoom. The weariness is evident, but the food was delicious as always.
We are now the proud owners of this Matka token. On future visits, like on the final day of this trip, we show our token to the server discreetly when asking for the bill. They will return with a wooden board, a brass pot (the matka), & a single die. We shake the pot & roll the die on the board. If we roll a six, our entire dinner is on the house!
Amanda near the ornate gates to St Pancras Old Church, one of England's oldest Christian sites. When Roman Catholic missionaries brought relics of St Pancras to a chapel here in the 6th or 7th century, they gave their patron saint’s name to the surrounding land—and, centuries later, to the famed railway station. Dickens uses the churchyard in A Tale of Two Cities.
During the 1860s a railway line was being built over part of the churchyard. The novelist & poet Thomas Hardy oversaw the needed exhumations & had the displaced headstones staggered around the large Ash tree outside the church. In time the tree grew into the headstones.
Sadly, the Hardy Tree collapsed overnight on December 27, 2022 (while we were living in Edinburgh). The small woodland of towering trees surrounding the church creates a tranquil oasis amid the whirl and bustle of the city.
Saturday morning began at Attendant Coffee in Fitzrovia, located in a former Victorian underground gentleman’s toilet.
Six former full-height urinals were fitted with a countertop and now serve as bar seating. The coffee was exceptional…must be the water!
Avocado toast & mocha served à la commode.
Langstaff at The Langham Hotel, where Emma M. Lion occasionally has tea.
At noon we toured the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace. No photos were permitted until we were here in the back garden. I had the last word though: I’m one of the few, to do a poo, in a Buckingham Palace loo! 💩
At 2 p.m., we joined a small-group walking tour through the private gardens of Buckingham Palace. As expected, photography was not permitted in this secluded part of the grounds, leaving us to simply take in the experience & enjoy the surroundings. Afterwards, we treated ourselves to a lovely soft-serve cone, complete with the Palace’s signature wafer.
Our 3rd & final stop at Buckingham Palace was at The King’s Gallery for the Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style exhibit. The first dress was this gold lame and lace evening gown by Norman Hartnell that she wore in Wellington, New Zealand during her Commonwealth Tour of 1953-54.
The sheer scope of the collection is staggering, reaching all the way back to her first birthday dress.
Wedding dress
Wedding dress
The detail work on so many of the dresses was simply extraordinary.
The dress Amanda most wished she could wear.
Some of the brilliance of the blue is lost in the image.
For a visit to Japan, this dress was a nod to the kimono & the falling cherry blossoms of Sakura.
Amanda with the coronation dress, which borrowed elements of her wedding gown.
Coronation dress, which included embroidered images for England, Scotland, Wales, N. Ireland, & all Commonwealth countries.
The Scottish thistle
The Irish Shamrock
The English rose
The Welsh leek
Many examples of the Queen’s fine millinery. The sensational exhibit was as exquisitely curated as the wardrobe it celebrated.
We returned to Camden for dinner at Purezza Camden, where Amanda enjoyed this Caesar salad.
Steve’s masterpiece cheesy, tomato, & aubergine Parmigiana Party pizza. Every pizza begins with wholegrain sourdough made fresh on-site each morning. Deliziosa!
A glorious tiramisu.
We closed out Saturday night with a half pint of Guiness and a pint of Camden Hells Lager at The World’s End pub in Camden.
