London --October 9

 

DAY 5

Sunday was, unfortunately, our last full day in London. For breakfast, we decided to check out the Orangery, which was recommended in basically every guide book I read. Now I know why. That was by far the best breakfast, if not one of the best meals, we had the entire trip. If only we had tried it earlier in the week, oh all of the missed meals! And besides superb food, there is a breathtaking view from the huge windows that line the restaurant. Basically, if you ever have the chance, eat there. Especially high tea, their pastries looked like an explosion of joy for your taste buds.


Just across the lawn in the Kensington Enchanted Palace. This was the most unique exhibit I have ever seen, and endless amounts of fun. I probably could have spent hours at this palace. The premise of the exhibit is that you are on a quest to find the seven princesses that have called Kensington home over the years. The exhibit is very hands on, a unique blend of modern art, fashion, and adventure seeking fun. If you can't tell, I loved it.

One of the neatest features were a stand of LED lights that were flashing slightly. At first, they just seemed annoying. However, when viewed from the corner of your eye, a fleeting image of a person would appear. Freaky, but awesome! Too bad capturing that on camera didn't quite work. As I said, hours could be spent there, however since it was our last full day in London, there were other things to do! Of course, since we had spent the last three days racing all over town I was ready for a bit of a slower day.

Lindsay and I decided to head over to Harrods again and take part in their high tea. It was lovely, with mini desserts and delicious scones. If only high tea were available in America. I'd probably have it every day. Look at those desserts, who wouldn't want that option everyday? We also found their French bakery. Oh the macaroon choices! We made our way to the East India Company and purused their extensive chocolate, tea, and jam selection. How very British. Dana even found a Boston Tea Party flavored tea, which said it had a very robust flavor. That's Americans for you.

Of course, we had to check out the Beatles London store. It was crammed full of Beatles shirts, socks, bags, posters, albums, and every Bealtes related memomorbilia a fan could hope for. It got +10 cool points for being on Baker Street. It got plus +100 cool points for being just a few doors down from 221b Baker Street.

Oh yes, the Sherlock Holmes museum was right there in all its wonderful glory. I was estatic with surprise. Since it was our last day, I'd given up on the hope of getting to see the Holmes museum. London: so much to see, so little time. Interestingly enough, address 221 should have been located on the other side of the street. Even numbers and odd numbers sort of thing. But the city moved the single address since that was the only location available for the museum. It was a quaint little shop, selling all sorts of copies of the stories, smoking pipes, and a wide assortment of Watson and Sherlock hats. Luckily I had brought along my Sherlock and Watson amigurumi so it was a great photo op.

It was a fantastic last day to spend in London. While we were each quite sad to be leaving the sprawling metropolis behind, the next day would begin our fantastic bus tour adventure!