Castles and Culture

Wednesday, May 18 Cont'd
Continuing with our "Castles and Culture" theme, it is now the afternoon/evening of culture.  We are starting with afternoon tea at the Savoy Hotel. Everything is quite posh and proper...I doubt we'll be able to pull this off.  Larry and John are just "thrilled" with the idea of a proper British tea...NOT!...but they are willing to play along.
While waiting to be served, we are sent to the American Bar.  Do we stand out that much?  Must we wait in a room dedicated to Americans?  Perhaps!  We check the bar menu and find that a Sazazerac costs $5000 (actually it's a special one with liqueurs from the 1950's)!  Guess we'll order a round of those!
We are given a menu of 51 teas to choose from.  Unfortunately Larry's favorite...Long Island...is not on the menu.  We are served several varieties of delicate finger sandwiches.  Which poses the question...are "finger" sandwiches supposed to be eaten with your fingers or a knife and fork?  Noticing that they are not bite sized, I opt for the knife & fork option.  Is that correct?  I'll never know.

Larry and John were thrilled to go to tea!

We also receive fresh scones with clotted cream, lemon curd, and strawberry preserves.  Quite yummy!
Next comes the tiered plates of pastries and cakes.  Delicious...and beautiful!  We are surprised that we are stuffed at the completion of the tea.  We hadn't thought there would be that much food.
The hotel is beautifully appointed and there are stunning floral arrangements everywhere.  The china and silverware are pretty.  All the niceties that the guys were expecting are presented.

Afternoon Tea at the Savoy in London

Now...on to the play!  We are seeing Les Mis in the West End at the Queen's Theater.  We are sent to the downstairs bar area to await our seating time.  While there, I hear an excited tourist telling the barmaid, "We saw the queen today!"  The barmaid replies, "I've never seen the queen...and I live here.  Well..I have seen her on t.v."
I have had the amazing pleasure of seeing Les Mis three or four times before, but this presentation is at a higher level.  We are seated in the "stalls", which we would call the orchestra area.  We're in the fifth row from the stage, so our seats are amazing!  The staging is wonderful with the side stages extending a bit into the seating area.  The middle of the stage is circular and rotates, which allows for some great special effects.  The acting and singing is superb!  As always with this play, I am brought to tears.  I love the redemptive story of this plot!
We have had a "Castles and Culture" day.  We have traveled through time...the 1100's of Tower of London; the 1800's of Les Mis, and 2016 at the Savoy.  Our eyes have been titillated, our ears soothed, our tastebuds excited, and our hearts moved.  Could a day get any grander than that?!