London Part 2... Coming to you from Singapore about London
So from where i last left off. The next few days were pretty exciting as well.
Just thinking about the trip itself does send nostalgic feeling through my body. Here it goes.
So the next few days were spent with one of my close girlfriend from uni. She's doing her PhD now in The Netherlands. AND the sweet woman decide to hop onto a plane and fly over to London over the weekend to spend time catching up. Boy was it a trip well spent. Day 4 began with her flying over.
Day 4: Good times with JingXiu
"Time and tides wait for no man," obviously not wasting any time we dive straight to our activities. So we have had a whole list of things planned out, with exciting itinerary. BUT since when does things go according to plan right?
Lunch + Afternoon Tea @ Fortnum & Mason,
181 Piccadilly, London W1A 1ER
Fortnum's can be accessed by the Tube. We alighted at Piccadilly Circus and took a short 10 minutes walk. Do ask around for direction most brits know where this place is and would point you to the right direction. The beautiful exterior of the building.
JingXiu and I outside Fortnum's
It's said that visit to London is wholly incomplete without a visit to Fortnum's. Fortnum & Mason is one of the oldest stores in Piccadilly, if not the capital. It has nearly 300 years of historic past and is patronised by the royal family, the Queen. Whilst its known that Fortnum's is an expensive place, it's definitely a trip worth making. Let me convince you why.
Read on.
So the initial plan was to first have lunch. So we did. After looking at the menus, we decided on The Gallery restaurant on level 2. That's us on that pretty flight of stairs to The Gallery.
The Menu
Bread Basket to start off the lunch. I must say one of the best bread i ever had.
My lovely friend Jingxiu and her Confit Duck Cottage Pie~
That's me there. I had Pork and Sage Sausage Wheel with Mash and Caramelised Apple.
Plan Fail #1: So we wanted to visit St Paul's church. But we ended overstaying at Fortnum's for their afternoon tea! Tea time! Their afternoon tea, known as Gallery Afternoons, start at 3pm and goes all the way to 6. Here's a snapshot of their menu.
So the Gallery Afternoon Menu is pretty comprehensive. With elegant cakes, fanciful tea, beautiful silverware with enough shine to do your make-up! It's really a heaven for any girls and their girlfriends a good afternoon of tea party. I am just excited writing all these.
A small range of cakes not on the main menu.
Decisions, decisions, decisions. After much internal struggle, we have decided on these. Please, trust me if we could and can afford it, we would order one of each on the menu.
Top to bottom: Victorian Raspberry Cake, Earl Grey Tea for me and an Orange Chocolate Tart.
The Victorian Cake is heavenly. Rich home made raspberry jam stuffed in between layers of velvety soft sponge cake. Cake itself is very light on the palate. Jam is just right and not too sweet. It goes really well with the tea. The tart on another is a stark contrast in terms of taste. Rich chocolate with really strong orange flavour infused in it. Tart is not too hard, chocolate just right! These two dessert really compliment each other well. Needless to say, we finished it! Before i forget, I must emphasize about the great services. The waiters and waitresses here were very very hospitable and knowledgeable, introducing us great tea and mixes to make sure it suits our taste.
So after spending like 4 hours, wait or maybe 5? at Fortnum's *gasps i know, we girls have loads to catch up on* we went on to walk around the main shopping floors. The main floor is equally spectacular as well, interior decors are very elegantly put together with huge range of products on display. From
cabinate full of delectable sweets...
to pretty cookies....
to wide range of exotic tea...
to elegant tablewares and sparkly silverwares.
Each of us left with a little damage done. We both bought some great tea for personal consumption here back home as well as gifts for our friends.
To sum it up, the afternoon spent at Fortnum's is really time well spent. The food was wonderful, the staff were attentive and the place is gorgeous. The whole experience at Fortnum & Mason unrivalled. I would personally recommend anyone who visits London to drop by, may it be for photo taking or a good tea! You won't be disappointed.
Next up. We had to RUSH BACK home (cause it was already 5 when we left Fortnum's, disgusting i know) to change for our NIGHT ACTIVITY. Guess what we were up to...
A quick freshening up, changed and we were off again.
There's always time for pictures!
Any idea yet?
We were on our way to Queen's Theatre for Les Miserables.
The World's Longest Running Musical
Before the musical start
The cast of Les Mis 2013
Pretty handsome Jean Valjean right?
Cast Pictures (from telegraph UK)
So the longest running musical on the West End shows no sign of neglect. The cast were strong, set were majestic, creative staging lending a cinematic fluidity to a beautifully lit spectacle. It was an amazing experience to sit through this musical. So after the musical, we wanted to head to Ministry of Sound in London, highly raved in London.
But unfortunately, we were both dead tired at the end of the night. The chills (from the freaking rain) and the fatigue were definitely not the best combination for a high energy club. Hence, we decide to end the night there and head home. Wise choice really for what's in stall the next day.
To end off this post. Like to share this:
"Distance may rip us apart, but the miles that separate us
are nothing compared to how close we are in heart"
Wait up for Part 3 of the London trip.
Till next time,
Cheers!
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