on a sunny day in october,
dan and i headed over to the hilton @ london tower bridge
for japanese afternoon tea.
we had been planning this date for quite some time,
so it was nice to finally make it out there.
though, i must admit
i was feeling extremely under the weather that day.
i caught a slight cold the night before,
and had a persistent headache
that simply would not give me a moment of peace.
regardless, i wanted to photograph as much as i could
because everything else was wonderful.
there just won't be as many pictures of us in this set.
this is london's new skyscraper - the shard,
aptly named since it literally looks like
a shard of glass.
as of right now, it is still uncompleted,
but it still looks breathtaking against the london skyline.
standing at 1,017 feet and 72 floors,
it will be not only london's tallest building, but also the tallest building
in all of western europe.
our short walk from the tube (underground) station
to our hilton destination.
if i'm not mistaken, this road is also where the
famous & touristy london dungeon attraction is located.
and, we are here!
the lounge inside.
there were many interviews and business get-togethers
all taking place around us.
i spy some apple product love.
after lounging on a comfy sofa for a few minutes,
we headed to our 1 pm reservation.
neat little towel that expanded from a tiny square to this
using just water!
we were relatively early,
but the place filled up very quickly.
within 45 minutes, there was already a queue forming
just to get a seat.
simple set up.
i have loved japanese food since a young age.
it may have been around 3rd grade when i first realized my appreciation for sushi.
and i'm not just referring to rolls - i even loved raw fish,
particularly salmon.
it was nice to come here
and have something different for a change,
since we're usually served lamb or gammon ham & potatoes in hall.
i was utterly delighted when our server set this
sushi box down in front of me.
the presentation was artistic, and everything was freshly made.
unfortunately, i had to say no to the desserts
since i was feeling a bit dizzy,
but dan said they were delicious as well.
a glass of champagne to complete the afternoon tea.
this time, we actually managed to get the matilda tickets,
and were excited to see the performance.
some had even told us that it was a
better musical than wicked.
dan did not agree, though, since he loved both
wicked & les miserables.
but for 5 gbp, this was absolutely worth it.
a picture collage from dan's iPhone.
i loved the colorful stage design
as well as its focus on alphabet letters,
since matilda loved to read.
watching this play brought back waves of nostalgia.
i have always been a bit of a bookworm myself,
and i still remember reading matilda for the first time in the 4th grade.
also, i just love roald dahl for his fantastic children's books.
even the intermission was fun-filled.
the square right outside of the theatre.
after matilda, dan and i stumbled upon a temporary modern art gallery
in an empty warehouse on our way home.
we weren't quite sure what to expect,
but ended up finding ourselves pleasantly surprised.
i won't caption too much from here on,
so maybe you can get a sense that you're walking through the gallery yourself.
i thought this was rather creative.
they had some two-dimensional drawings of other
sauces made into spray bottles.
[barbeque, tobasco, etc.]
lastly, this was an enormous wall mural at the entrance & exit
with images of famous people across time and space.
from leo dicaprio and martin luther king jr. to william & kate and mr. bean.
as per my facebook status of last night:
"After 22 essays, a near 60,000 word count, 18 Shakespeare plays,
Ulysses, and dozens of other books, I'm done!"
i can hardly believe it.
my fall semester at oxford is officially over.
i had my last class yesterday at 5 pm, so the rest of my time in England
will be filled with more relaxation and also continued exploration.
& yes, i will be continuing on with these posts, as i have
many more pictures to share from my england/europe adventures!
