Macarons

Before we left for London I told my mother that I wanted to be sure to visit Harrods.  I'm sure she was taken aback: we never go to Harrods.  But I had discovered that Harrods was home to a London branch of the Parisian pastry-shop Laduree.  I wanted macarons.

As it turned out, on our first full day in London, we walked by a second Ladurée shop-- this one much closer to our hotel-- in Covent Garden.  Ladurée created the double-decker macaron.  Macarons are delectable.  Unlike the American conception of a coconut-y hard cookie, French macarons are two slightly crunchy cookie shells with a layer of flavorful ganache in the middle.

I think I first had macarons at Alex in Las Vegas.  The hostess handed Emily and me some pastry-cookies in a package on our way the door, but we were too stuffed to take much notice.  I opened mine later, at the Vegas airport, and was suddenly wafted away to food heaven.  Since then, I've longed for a good macaron.  I've tried a few here and there, but they've never been quite the same.  So I figured, why not go to the creator of the macaron?  So, Ladurée.  Now, had I known, there was a Ladurée in New York City I could've visited, but I didn't know.  Thus, London!

Shall I describe the taste of a vanilla macaron or a rose petal macaron?  Each is incredibly delicate-- the vanilla is soft and sweet, like the best Italian gelato you've ever tasted with a slight crunchy texture.  The rose petal tastes just like England-- despite the fact that it's a French dessert.  It tastes like afternoon tea and delicate floral china.  The orange blossom, too, and the violet each have their charms.  By the end of the trip, even my mother couldn't get enough of macarons.

So if you ever come across a Ladurée, or a small French pastry shop that you know does amazing food (because macarons are very hard to make well), I suggest you try one, just a bite.  You might never want a pie or cupcake again.

(This is not a sponsored post.  Ladurée doesn't know me and I paid for all my macarons.  Photo found here.)

The Week in Brief

Puddle-jumped and now I'm back in the USA.  Leaving London felt too sad-- still so many things I wanted to see and do, and I had so hoped to make it to Cornwall this trip but it just didn't happen unfortunately.  I didn't even make it out to Bath.  But I did do so many other things and I feel that I can't adequately describe them all in a single post, and I want to start posting about life back in the USA.  Thus, I think little bits of England will come flitting in and out of future posts for quite awhile.

But just a brief overview of Monday to Sunday-- I got to meet my scholar in Oxford, I read The Paris Wife, I went shopping on the high street and bought two dresses that make me feel like Kate Middleton, we ate at a restaurant called Eyre Brothers in Shoreditch and I've never been so full and happy, I had amazing drinks at Callooh Callay and at Jamie's Italian (Earl Grey martini anyone?), I walked the length of Portobello Road and we had lunch at a great pizza place called Pizza East, I toured Kensington Palace and stood in the hall where Victoria and Albert first met, I had rose petal and vanilla macarons at night while watching buskers in Covent Garden, and I visited the aMAZEme book maze installation at the Southbank Centre.  I stood on Millennium Bridge and looked across to the Olympic rings on Tower Bridge.  Overall, a fantastic week in England.  Who could ask for better?

But returning to the States has so far been equally exciting.  Only moments after returning home, I jumped onto the metro and headed into the city to meet up with my best friends from college.  We met at Chinatown, then had dinner at an Italian restaurant... yes, seriously.  But it was a really good Italian restaurant and had unlimited refills on soda which I think was the only thing that kept me propped up until after midnight-- jet-lag and all!  We recalled old times and talked about new times and then headed to Northeast to play Cards Against Humanity with yet more friends.  Best game ever.  Like Apples to Apples, but for terrible people, which of course we are (for example: prompt card-- What ended the orgy?  Winning card-- The Care Bear Stare).  I don't think I've ever laughed so hard in my life, though being delirious with sleeplessness probably added to the effect.

I wish I could explain how much that night meant to me.  Sitting with Brian, Kay, Mike, Josh, Kelsey, Davia, and Dan, with the wine pouring (though not for me, as I feared it would put me to sleep) and random donuts and feeling young and happy and all the stress melting away.  We have a "five year plan" to live in the same place again and I would give almost anything if it actually happened.  We could have so much fun all together.

Then yesterday, Zan!  Finally!  We headed to Staunton for a "launch party" for Zan and his sister, Lys', film The Garment.  It also served, I think, as a miniature engagement party for Lys and her now fiance Zach!  So many congratulations to the happy couple!  They got engaged last week at the beach and I really, really couldn't be more excited for them.  I had a wonderful talk at the party with Marlena, one that really bolstered my resolve and esteem.  I got to see Rick Blunt and his fiance, Bridget, who I know from working with the touring troupe last summer.  All in all, a happy, warm, loving evening.  Great food, friends, and film.

And now, I suppose, you're all caught up!  Hopefully soon I can get a bit more in depth with different adventures, but I wanted to get them down, at least in this small sketch, so that I wouldn't forget.  Life is moving very quickly these days and summer already seems to be fast coming to a close.

Spice Up Your Life!

(Pre-Closing Ceremony Going Live)

The crowning moment of the weekend was, of course, the Olympics Closing Ceremony.  I got a last minute ticket through Visa, and I couldn't have been more excited.  The day began with the British Museum and the exhibits described in the post below, then back to the hotel around noon so my parents could catch a bus to the men's basketball game final.  We had a quick lunch, then they were off near one o'clock.  I spent my time showering, catching up on e-mails, and FaceTiming with Zan.  A good use of an afternoon, I think.

At three forty-five I, too, made my way to a bus.  From the hotel to the Olympic Park took about an hour through the thick London traffic.  We made our way through White Chapel, past Victorian-esque buildings and roads lined with Indian restaurants, and stopped in the North Lot of the Olympic Park.  After a long walk, I made it to the Visa Hospitality place where I awaited my parents arrival.  There, I had goat cheese and fig salad, black bean and beef stew, two kinds of sushi, and some pork and potatoes.  Yum.  Then I got my program for the Closing Ceremony and walked to the Stadium.

Inside, magic was already underway.  The center of the stadium had been transformed into London, with the London Eye at the center, Tower Bridge, Big Ben, and the Gherkin, which was on its way up... quite humorous to watch, given the shape of the Gherkin ;).  An Emcee came out and instructed us about how to act once the Closing Ceremony went live.  We practiced our responses to Russell Brand's rendition of "I Am The Walrus" and a few other odds and ends.  Then he had us all take out our camera phones and take a picture at once.  A collective gasp arose from the crowd.  It had been beautiful, thousands and thousands of little flashing lights like stars.  I think that was honestly prettier than anything else that night.  Just all of us gathered together sharing a moment, or should I say creating a moment.  For, after all, the moment could only be created by our willing participation.  Such a very, very simple thing.  Sometimes humans are magical.

Then the Emcee told us there would be pyrotechnics and anyone wearing Primark clothes in the front row better be careful (Primark clothes are mostly cheap synthetics, thus, highly flammable).  We all laughed.

Before I knew it, Big Ben chimed 9:00 and the ceremony began!  I'm sure you all watched it, so I probably don't actually need to describe much to you.  But, being there felt vibrant.  Prince Harry came out with Kate beside him (Wills was called off on RAF duty).  Real cabs and trucks began circling the stadium as "London" came to life.  A plethora of musical acts.  And the athletes!  They came running right down our aisle!  We saw Belgian athletes, and Australian, and others I couldn't even tell from where as it wasn't written big enough on their uniforms!  They all looked so excited and happy and so many had cameras and were giving high fives.  It was a really, really thrilling moment for us all, I think.  Once they had entered the stadium these people in what I call "TARDIS" outfits (blue jacket and shorts and a blue hat with a little light on top) kept them in their designated areas.  They conducted the Men's Marathon Medal Ceremony (go Uganda!)--

(The Tardis People Awaiting the Athletes as the Flags Advance Across the Stadium)

Then the real music began.  I'm sure you all saw it.  George Michael, Russell Brand... but the real fun started with Jessie J, Tinie Tempah, and Taio Cruz.  Suddenly everyone was on their feet dancing and singing and I felt incredibly thankful for all that time I spent listening to BBC Radio 1.

THEN-- THE SPICE GIRLS!  Need I say more?  AH-MAZING!  My elementary school self was in total awe, and so was my twenty-five year old self.  Gah, The Spice Girls!  I went a little crazy screaming and dancing and singing along, but so did everyone else in the crowd so it felt alright.  And now, I think, my life has been made.  Seeing all five of The Spice Girls together.  They could've just made the Closing Ceremony a Spice Girl's Concert and I think that would've been fine with just about everyone there.  The true highlight of the night (minus the camera phone bit). 

Overall, a magical, wonderful, evening celebrating the best of Britain... and now, my friends, it seems that the entire city of London has Post-Olympic Depression.  We keep saying it's not really over because we still have the Paralympics, but the energy has definitely changed a little bit.  The good news is, after the Olympics ended the shopping sales began... ;)

Stay tuned for Oxford: Round Two, dresses fit for a princess, a trip to Notting Hill, and more!

At the Museum

So the exhibit I mentioned at the British Museum? Living and Dying-- it's about how people from across the world make sense of their lives and their mortality. How they face it, deal with, try to prevent it, accept it. How they relate to ancestors, or animals, or God. How they use shamans, Western medicine, and prayers to prevent death or predict life. Very, very interesting. I felt absolutely connected in that exhibition hall. Everyone everywhere deals with so much of the same things, and we all-- in some way-- deal with it. And all those varying methods somehow seem exactly the same.

And the Picasso exhibit-- just pen and ink sketches but so moving. The Vollard Suite. Gorgeous.

Be sure to check out my morning post about the Banqueting House, below, if you missed it.

Banquet in the Banqueting House

I woke up uncharacteristically late on Saturday morning. 11:00 AM.  That, my friends, is what the British might call quite the lie-in (pronounced like "lion," which can be very confusing if you don't know that's how they say "sleeping in."  Example: "Our schedule is very full, but we get a lie-in on Sunday morning."  A what???!!!  Really??!!!).  

Anyway, when I did finally decide to climb out of bed my parents had just returned from a tour of the Houses of Parliament.  We walked around Covent Gardens/Seven Dials and settled for lunch at an Italian place in the area.  Then we got macarons at Laduree in Covent Garden, before stopping to listen to a busking group of young musicians called ClassyCool, who played classical music on strings while dancing around.  They were very fun and very funny.  A little girl was dancing to their music, so they got her to sell CDs for them :).  It was hilarious.  Then I got a migraine, and the rest of the afternoon was pretty much shot as I spent it in my darkened room trying to drown out the pain.

But that evening was magical!  My migraine dissipated and my parents and I had a banquet to attend at the Banqueting House.  They had had the banquet scheduled for days and I had been trying figure out what to do while they were at the Banqueting House.  I refused to eat at the nearby pub while they feasted under the Rubens paintings.  But in the end, I ended up getting to go, too, and I'm so glad I did.  For those who don't know, the Banqueting House is the only remaining part of Whitehall Palace, which used to be a massive residence for the Tudor and Stuart monarchs.  The incredibly large room played host to many of the Stuart Court masques devised by Ben Jonson and Inigo Jones.  The grand ceiling has the painting series The Apotheosis of James I by Rubens.  Most tragically, Charles I walked out of the Banqueting House onto the specially prepared scaffold on the day of his beheading.  All of the history in the room!  In my mind I pictured cloud machines and lavish costumes and music and perspective scenery from all of the masques, and people twirling around drunkenly, laughing, dancing.

Our banquet was much more subdued than a Stuart Court masque, though still quite fun.  It was catered by the same group that catered the Royal Wedding (!), with steaks so good you could cut them with a butter knife.  We sat next to British luge athlete and two time Olympian Mark Hatton and his wife, and they were both incredibly lovely and charming.  At the end of the evening, four former/current Summer Olympians from the USA, Britain, Australia, and New Zealand gave a panel speech about their Olympic experiences.  Then we were free to walk around, take pictures, get autographs, etc.  I tried to climb behind the paneling to see out the window they made Charles I walk through to his death, but couldn't really get behind all of the lighting and sound equipment used for the Olympian talk.  Oh well.

In the end, I just stood under the Rubens, looking at the tables being cleared, the half-drunk glasses of wine that had been refilled countless times, the people wandering about laughing and talking, and couldn't help but feel that history continues ever swiftly on, and it should.  All that happened in the room centuries past now only exists in whispers, unimportant to most of the people excitedly waiting to get their picture with an Olympian.  New dreams, new goals, very real, living people on a continuous spectrum and the Banqueting House has seen them all. 

Oxford: Round One

The next day I took the train to Oxford.  I was hoping to see my former tutor from my time studying abroad and to meet a scholar I admire.  The scholar and I had been e-mailing, but we hadn't set a firm time to meet.  I thought perhaps I could just drop in on her, as per the advice of a professor from back home.  I put on a nice outfit, took a taxi to Paddington Station, and bought a same-day return ticket to Oxford.  In short order I found myself passing the smokestacks of Didcot Parkway and veering right towards the spires of Oxford.  Everything is just the same as four years ago.  Stepping off the train I made my way towards the high street, passing familiar shops and buildings.  I think perhaps the name of the pub by the canal has changed, but that's only superficial.  It was very hot, so I stopped in at the Pret on Cornmarket Street for water.  Then I headed towards the college.  Neither my tutor nor the scholar were there.  Back out on the street, I wondered what to do with my day in Oxford.

In the end, it went quite well.  I surprised myself by how much I remembered of Oxford.  I walked back up the road and turned down the street towards Christ's Church College.  I stopped in at the Alice Shop-- where Alice "in Wonderland" Liddell used to buy her sweets as a child, and which now sells only Alice in Wonderland themed merchandise-- and then up to George & Danvers for some ice cream.  I then wandered down Cornmarket Street and stopped in at a few shops.  I ended up with an adorable new red jumper, a pair of tan flats, and a pair of sea-green cropped pants.  Then I walked up to Blackwell's and restrained myself from buying books-- two for the price of one on all classics!  I have too many books that I need to read already.

I ended by trying the porter at the college again to see if either my tutor or the scholar were in.  Success-- my tutor had popped in for lunch!  I had a lovely couple of minutes talking with him about where I was now, and he told me he was going on a cruise down the Adriatic the next week.  What a wonderful man.  I absolutely adored him at the time, and I daresay he looks even better now than he did four years ago when I was his pupil.  Feeling at last as if something had been accomplished by the coming to Oxford unannounced, I bought a Cornish pasty for lunch and made my way back to the train station, and soon found myself again in London.

As my parents were out on their Olympics Package, I decided to walk up to the British Museum to have a look around.  They just installed a Shakespeare exhibit, but unfortunately it was the only exhibit to cost money.  After looking through the exhibition book, I decided I didn't absolutely have to see it.  Instead, I wandered through their world-famous Egyptology sections, seeing ancient statuary and mummies (!), I browsed some Greek and Roman statuary, and then somehow found myself in their new Picasso exhibit-- which was really fantastic!  I ended, finally, in an exhibit called Living and Dying, which intrigued me so much that I returned to it less than forty-eight hours later.  Afterwards, I took to the nearby pub for some fish and chips and communal watching of the Olympic track and field events before turning in early to read.

Stay tuned for continuing adventures at the British Museum, Covent Gardens, the Banqueting House, the Olympics Closing Ceremony, and Oxford: Round Two!!!

What I'm Up To in London

As the whole world knows, the 2012 Summer Olympics are happening in London this year.  That's why we're here-- my dad got an Olympics package (that I'm not actually on, so I didn't get to see any of the sporting events).  So, while my parents have been doing their Olympics package thing, I made my own fun in London!  One of the first days here, while my dad was in a business meeting (part of why he has an Olympics package), my mom and I headed over to Boroughs Market on the advice of my neighbor, Dan.  I'd never been before, but now I want to go all the time.  We had flat whites and an almond croissant at Monmouth Coffee right outside the market, bought six perfect macarons at a stall in the market, then we admired the meringues, pies, ostrich meat (seriously!), cheeses, spices, ice creams, vegetables, etc. available at the different stalls.  If I lived in London I might actually do all my shopping here.  I do have a few pictures of the market and of Monmouth Coffee, but I don't have a camera cord connector, so I'll just do a nice big picture post at the end of this English Adventure.  Walking towards St. Pauls from the market we took a few back roads and found the foundations of the original Globe theater (marked by a plaque, built over with apartments) and the Rose Theater.  We also walked down a street called something like "Bear Baiting Way."  Wonder what could have possibly happened there back in the day ;).

That afternoon I got lunch with my friend Alex, who I met in Taming of the Shrew my freshman year of undergrad.  She was Kate, I was Bianca.  She was an exchange student from Exeter College, so she came back to the UK following the play.  We haven't seen each other literally since then, so we had lots to catch up on.  She's a barrister now!  How exciting!  Really a perfect day.  I suppose here I should take a moment to thank Mike Johnson for making me try out for Taming.  Life-changing.

I'll pause here-- but let me tell you there's lots of good stuff to come.  Stay tuned for stories from Oxford, the British Museum, and a very special evening at the Banqueting House (which is even more special if you're super into British history like I am, or art history).  Also, I just might have some Olympics stories to report, too... think Spice Girls.  Because really, that's what it's all about.

Birthday Weekend Concluded

So, you may be wondering what happened after I got off the train in DC after a magical weekend in New York City.  Never fear, I shall tell you!

My dad was at the train station to collect us, and home we went for just a little while.  Clouds were starting to roll in and fearing rain, we drove to Screwtop for my birthday dinner.  Screwtop is a wonderful little wine bar in Arlington.  We got baked goat cheese with plum chutney, carnitas tacos, and bison sliders.  I also got a Hofbrau original beer (so, not wine, but whatever).  Such a great birthday dinner with my parents.  And after dinner?  Back down to Williamsburg with my mom for a brief 24 hours.  My mom needed to get the generator up and running (fun!), to take care of cat-related things, and I had dates to see both my friend Kristi and my undergrad/masters adviser, Professor Whittenburg!

Seeing Kristi was lovely-- her daughter Natali has grown up so much!  Almost two years old!  We chatted away without having missed a beat, and she had two very cute pairs of Mickey Mouse earrings for me for my birthday.  So wonderful.  And seeing Professor Whittenburg was similarly fantastic.  We had lunch at The Cheese Shop, talked about my academic career, fun goings on in the history department at W&M, NIAHD, and everything!  I didn't get to see Dr. Mrs., unfortunately, but he said she was doing well.  I love the Drs. Whittenburg.

Then, basically, we headed back to DC.  We stopped at a Popeye's Chicken on the way home (love me some red beans and rice), arrived in DC, got a card in the mail from my friend Maggie, and Season Two of Sherlock from my mother, and then packed for my early flight the next morning.

All of which is to say... I'm in London!  Stay tuned for the continuing adventures!

New York City, Center of the Universe

In the continuing whirlwind of my journey back east, I ventured up to New York City for the weekend to celebrate my birthday with Broadway-- and my mom and Kay.  Seeing Kay again was soooo wonderful!  It had been way, way too long.  We took a morning train up on Friday, Kay got on the train in Philly, and into the city we went!  After checking into the hotel we lunched at John's Pizza (No Slices!) and then decided just to go see about tickets to Book of Mormon.  Of course, those are impossible tickets to get, but why not?

We got tickets.  For that night's performance.  Three seats together in a box.  What a way to kick off the birthday weekend!!!  Then Kay and I hit up American Girl Place (to revisit our lost youth) while my mom headed over to the Brooks Atkinson theater to see about tickets to the Saturday matinee of Peter and the Starcatcher.  She managed to get three tickets, fourth row orchestra, center, at a 30% discount.  Holy crap.  Thrilled, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner and the musical.

We had a great dinner at Del Frisco's with a very funny waiter (or two) who gave us a free slice of lemon cake with buttercream icing since it was (almost) my birthday, then walked down two blocks to Book of Mormon.  It was, indeed, great, though not as great as the shows on Saturday would be (though we did not know that yet).  The musical was hilarious, as anyone who has heard the soundtrack must know, but it had so much more heart than I had anticipated.  It dealt with tough subjects-- the AIDS epidemic in Africa, female circumcision-- in a very thoughtful way.  I really did not expect that.  And while yes, it made fun of Mormonism a bit, it didn't go for too many cheap shots :).  Overall, I was impressed and I can see why it won the 2011 Tony for Best Musical.

But the next day!  Saturday was magical. Magical.  Upon waking, Kay and I went to Starbucks for breakfast (she prudently got yogurt, I got a rice krispie treat), then went to the Disney Store (sensing a pattern in our interests?).  Then we went next door to Forever 21.  Kay got some belts, I got a shirt and a clutch, and we headed over to Carmine's for lunch.  But after lunch the magic really began.

Before I get to the shows, I should tell you that between our matinee and evening show Kay and I ran into our friend Andrew in Times Square!  Such a small world!  We spent an hour or so catching up with him and it was wonderful.  We got gelato at a coffee shop in Times Square and tried to get him a ticket to Book of Mormon (but failed).  We bid him a fond farewell as he headed off to meet a friend and to see Warhorse.  But to turn to the magical theater we saw...

Peter and the Starcatcher was the best thing I've seen in a long time, possibly ever.  It's not a musical-- it's a play "with music."  That is, they sing a little bit, but mostly it's a play.  A bit like Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (or really, Shakespeare's anything).  It tells the story of how Peter Pan came to Neverland and became Peter Pan.  It's a show that children might enjoy, but it's not a children's show.  It was an amazing ensemble piece-- I really don't even know how to describe it.  All of the actors were phenomenal.  It won Tony awards for lighting, sound, costume, and set.  Each was deserved a million times over.  I laughed uproariously through most of it, and at the end it brought tears to my eyes.  It was so good I was almost sad we had tickets to Once that night, because I wanted to see Peter and the Starcatcher again immediately.  Can you tell I was blown away? 

But when we got to the theater to see Once, I could tell it was going to be magical, too.  And it was-- it won the Tony for 2012 Best Musical.  It, too, felt totally different.  We walked into the theater and the ensemble was onstage in a set that looked like an Irish pub playing pub songs.  Audience members (real ones!) were on the stage buying drinks (real ones!).  And then the musical itself-- each actor played an instrument or four, and they danced with them.  They were the orchestra, the dancers, the actors, all in one.  More beautiful than anything.  And also very bittersweet-- anyone who has seen the movie could guess that.  I loved it.  Loved, loved, loved it. 

After the show, Kay, my mom and I went to the hotel bar for a drink and snack.  We talked all the way until it was my birthday.  Then we went back to the room and I opened the present Kay had brought me: The Paris Wife and Paris stationary.  She knows me too well :).  We rediscovered this weekend that we really are the same person.  The last morning in New York we met my friend Kiki for coffee and she had a beautiful journal for me for my birthday.  Such a surprise!  We had a great time catching up, then Kay, my mom, and I had a train to catch... back home we went, after an amazing birthday weekend!

A Few Days in the 'Burg

This place is beautiful and I never want to leave.  Just before I left, my parents got a home here for their impending retirement (and sold the townhouse)-- and this house is gorgeous.  I'd forgotten how much I enjoy having a piano around.  And exercise equipment.  And such a glorious kitchen.  Plus, I've seen the sun every single day since I got here, and I've witnessed a few thunderstorms, too.

The first night I was here, my mom and I got a vanilla coke at Wawa, then I went out to the new DoG Street Pub with Megan, who was also visiting!  We had such a great time eating potted crab, cottage pie, and catching up on each others lives.  After dinner we got dessert at Retro's, then walked down DoG Street all the way to the capital, discussing our students, our grad programs, the Olympics, China (Megan just got back from there), and all the things WM does so well, even if we didn't appreciate it at the time.  I am so glad to have such a wonderful friend as Megan.  After I dropped her off at home, my mom and I watched the Irene Adler episode of Sherlock.  It's such a brilliant show!!!

The next day my mom and I went to Swem Library where we found my masters thesis in the stacks!  You can look me up on the Swem system and find my thesis!  So cool!  We took pictures.  

Afterwards I visited Blair, saw Professor Corney briefly, and got another vanilla coke.  Then that night-- trivia at the New Leafe with Anna, Kate, Kaitlyn and more!  We talked, we laughed, we caught up on the latest in each others lives. And we won!  Obviously, with categories like, "Colonial American History" and "Roman Mythology."  So fun to see so many people from my masters program again, and I even met some new people!

Then yesterday-- Zan came down!  Hooray!  We haven't seen each other since July 5th, so it was a lovely reunion.  We made 'Spearean Risotto from Trader Joe's, hugged Sphinx (my Virginia cat), and today we're heading to Aroma's and the Cheese Shop!  I am so enjoying my time back east.