Passing the Holidays in a New Place

Snow Man at West India Quay

London is a wonderful place to spend the winter holidays and to celebrate the arrival of the new year. You might think that Christmas and New Year's are much the same sort of holidays in London as in the United States.  Actually, they are quite different, as we discovered by choosing to stay here to celebrate them in a new place.

First, there was the weather:  London has a reputation for being rainy, and it delivered, along with some cold, gusty days.  There was even some snow outside the city and a dusting that immediately melted -- or was it ash or lint?  One will never know, but we were happy to have no snow to shovel this year, and we didn't worry about a power outage.

Other sights to enjoy:  Bond Street's elegant shop windows and building decorations, Carnaby Street's tribute to the Rolling Stones' 50th anniversary, Sloan Square, Regent Street's Twelve Days of Christmas cross-street banners, and Oxford Street's Marmite-focused decorations.

Asprey - Bond Street


What we learned was that religious holidays are truly honored here in England.  You must prepare in advance for restaurant and store closures on both Christmas and Boxing days, as even convenience stores remain closed.  It is refreshingly clear:  you should stay home and enjoy time with family and friends, so stock up!

We also discovered:  Turkey with stuffing is the meal of choice for Christmas, since Dickens' goose is wildly expensive.  Roast beef with Yorkshire pudding is a second or additional choice for a crowd, and desserts, known "puddings" include mince pies, trifle, Christmas puddings (usually a spiced cake mix of dried fruits and bread along with suet, steamed, flambéed and topped with brandied cream or custard).  Ginger cookies are also tops on the sweets list, but the stacks of Christmas cookies we make in the US are virtually non-existent here.  As for vegetables, Brussels sprouts and parsnips are the traditional choices, being easily available during the winter season.

London puts on its party hat from the beginning of December.  In fact, from Halloween on, the decorations begin to appear.  Throughout the city, ice rinks are set up in beautiful spaces, surrounded by trees lit by blue lights.  There is a list, which includes:  Tower of London, the Natural History Museum, Somerset House, Canary Wharf.  Each of these and other sites are special in their own way and are worth a visit, as they last till mid-January and then are gone till the following year.

And, just to be sure you are in the proper mood by Christmas, be sure to attend one of the myriad concerts!  We attended a Christmas Sing-Along concert at Royal Albert Hall, presented by candlelight by the Mozart Festival Orchestra (dressed in 18th century costume) and Chorus.  Wonderful.

I send you my best wishes of the season.  May this new year bring you great happiness, good health, love, spiritual fulfillment and some challenges to help you continue to grow as a person -- nothing beyond what you are capable of, just enough to stretch your understanding of yourself and the world around you. 

Carnaby Street's Rolling Stones 50th Anniversary Tribute (timeout.com)



The Lord Mayor's Show and a Nice London Weekend

Oarsmen on their way to march in the parade

The British know how to celebrate, and they have many occasions for doing so.  Take the Lord Mayor's Show this weekend.  It celebrates the first full day of the new Lord Mayor of the City of London, which we saw as a huge parade/procession from Mansion House to the Royal Courts of Justice, where he was sworn in.  The procession was 6,500 people strong, with 200 horses, and 150 floats, as well as various conveyances, old and new.  It was a remarkable display of British history and pageantry.

Historically, the Lord Mayor's role dates back to the 12th century, when London came to its leadership role as a city of commerce.  The Lord Mayor, who swore an oath of allegiance to the monarch, is the official representative of the City and the City of London Corporation.  It is largely a ceremonial position, but he acts as business ambassador for the City worldwide, and spends about 3 months per year promoting the City abroad, and does the same nationally, as well.

Are you aware that the City of London is actually quite small?  It is (see the map, below)!  The City of London is actually marked by dragons along its perimeter.  London is actually made up of many boroughs (as is New York City), such as Westminster, Chelsea, Kensington, Greenwich, etc.  The City (with a capital "C") is but part of the Greater London area.  It's also referred to as The Square Mile.

As I mentioned above, the perimeter is marked by dragons, ten in all.  The originals (which are depicted on the City of London coat of arms) were located above the entrance to the Coal Exchange on Lower Thames Street; however, they were moved when this building was demolished in 1963 to Victoria Embankment.  The remaining eight others were made as copies of the two originals, and are located at various "gates" around the City of London's perimeter.  Here is my photo of one, located near the Royal Courts of Justice (background):


Dragon by the Royal Courts of Justice

Of course, we were really there to see the parade, and it was a spectacle in every imaginable way.  There were floats representing all businesses and civic groups that operate within The City, as well as representatives of the various historical guilds.  The variety of what we saw was astounding.  It's probably best just to show you a bit:

A Right Jolly Green Giant



Bank Representatives Having Fun



Wind Energy Promoters' Float

A Slab of English Beef

Guild Flags



One of the Many Marching Bands



Armed Forces Representatives



Various "Antiques" Were Welcome Sights



A team of horses and riders

The cream of the crop:  The Horseguards

Fantastic Costumes

A Young Spectator Enjoying a Fall Day





Missing Park City in Autumn

Autumn is a great time to be in Park City, Utah.  This is a fact.  Unless there is a lot of storm activity that blows the newly-changed leaves from the trees, leaving them to molder in a soggy mess along the slopes and yards across the mountains and hillsides, this small town turns into a golden paradise when autumns cool breezes arrive.
Just look at what I saw during autumn in Park City:

       

Romesco Cauliflower

Russet Apples

Harlequin Squash

Iron Mountain, Park City, Utah, USA

In London, the autumn colors are out there, but you must get out to see them in the parks, along tree-lined streets or outside the city.  There are many golden oaks and sycamores, a few maples and chestnuts galore.  

 

The colors of autumn are evidenced in the seasonal foods on offer, as well:  take a look at these, some of which are new to me.



English Conference Pears

Hey, wait:  whether you have tree-filled mountains or not, you have the colors of the season.  You just need to adjust where you look!

 

The Beauty of the Season is Everywhere - Just Open Your Eyes.





Autumn has arrived. Or, Europe at its best!

Planet Earth has adjusted its angle vis-à-vis the sun; we've changed our clocks, so the evenings are dark.  There's a brisk, cool breeze blowing, that brings with it the scent of the crackling, fallen leaves underfoot.  It is autumn in London and throughout Europe, a magical time of year, filled with sights and scents of the harvest:  beers, wines, hearty soups and stews, pies, crisps and orchard fruits.

Rekorderlig Pear Cider



Did you know that the English do not have  apple cider as we Americans know it?  For them, apple cider is 4-8.5% alcohol - a pub drink - not one for the kids as an after school treat.  They do, however, have fresh-pressed apple juice, which Americans would consider cider.  Both are excellent, though the former is tart, rather than sweet.  If you have a chance, try Rekorderlig (a Swedish brand) pear cider, which is delicious (Rekorderlig also make several other varieties, including apple, strawberry lime, mixed berry)!

Autumn is also the time when we begin to think about the autumn and winter holidays.  For Americans, this begins with Halloween and stretches to New Year's Day.  Here in London, Halloween was a bit of a non-event.  Some orange decorations and candies were on display and for sale at the stores, but most are now for sale at half the price for those who waited until Halloween had passed. 

When we visited the British Museum on Halloween Day, there were some children's activities, such as decorated hat construction indoors and pumpkin carving outside.  All was very quiet, with no excitement or loud link to Halloween.  In fact, both processes were very reserved -- quite unlike American kids on such an exciting day!

British Museum

One thing that is fun, no matter what time of year you visit:  motoring on the Thames aboard the Thames Clipper ferry service.  It's just as fast as the Tube, faster than a bus AND you get to see the city from the vantage point of this all-important and historic artery.  If you have an Oyster Card (the discounted metropolitan transit card),  the fare is reduced.  We paid £5.40 per person for a one-way ride from Canary Wharf all the way to Victoria Embankment next to the London Eye.  That was over 4 miles!  The ferries are large catamarans, so anyone who is worried about a rocky ride may rest assured that these boats are very stable, and comfortable, too. 

 

A Thames Clipper next at Westminster/Houses of Parliament

This weekend, the village of Blackheath will celebrate the season with its annual fireworks display.  Beginning at about 5PM with food stalls opening and fun rides for children (from 4PM), and climaxing with the fireworks beginning at 8PM, this event is expected to be attended by approximately 100,000 people!  If you like fireworks and crowds, this will be the place to be tomorrow night (3 November, Blackheath Common, Shooters Hill Road, Blackheath London SE3 0TY)

 

Blackheath Fireworks - This weekend!

 

Happy Autumn to You!

 

The calm after the summer storms....

Our first summer here in London has been one of constant activity.  We have been kitting out our apartment, running about in attempts to see as much of the special events as possible, enjoying the Olympic fervor nearby and right at our doorstep (Deutsches Haus, the German Team's base, was quite literally outside our apartment!). 

London's summer appears to be coming to an end.  The morning light's angle has changed to one of autumn, the breezes are now cooler and there is a heaviness in the air that we'd not noticed before.  The children have returned to school; we now see them less frequently, and when we do, they're in school uniforms and carrying their book bags and packs, and yet still with the wonderful expressions on their faces that comes with renewed excitement of a fresh beginning.

I thought this week's post would be a good opportunity to recap some of the wonders of a London summer.  This being an especially historic one, the first images pay homage to England's long-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.

Enjoy!



Giant Image of the Royal Family in 1981



Westminster on Diamond Jubilee Day




Georgian Gallery at Royal Naval College, Greenwich

Rolls-Royce Hood Ornament from Canary Wharf Auto Show




Tower Bridge with Olympic Rings



Paul Ryan's Yacht, Octopus



Dragon Boat on Race Day

German Ship-Hotel Docked in Canary Wharf During the Olympics



Notting Hill Carnival Revelers

 

London Celebrates

London likes to play. 

On a the small scale, every Thursday people mark an early end to the work week at a bar or pub near their offices, to enjoy a drink with their co-workers.  Why Thursday?  Because on Fridays they're rushing off to the weekends' activities, either at home or abroad.

This celebration of the week's end shows just how social Londoners are.  They like one another, even seeking one another's company outside the workplace.  It's refreshing, really, after work in the US, where often I barefly knew my co-workers, beyond when they arrived and left the office.  Here in London, you get the sense that people genuinely care about and for one another, which is why you'll hear "Sorry!" so often, as people jostle their way through the Tube stations and up and down escalators and stairways. 

There is an inate politeness in the English that appears to be inbred.

A drummer at Notting Hill Carnival

The autumn sun

The crowd




This  statement was challenged this weekend by the Notting Hill Carnival attendees.  The two-day celebration of Caribbean culture was filled with an altogether different group of people, very unlike those we see in very business-like Canary Wharf:  they were brazen, loud, openly pushing boundaries against public drinking, drug use and littering.  You could see signs that they were not trusted:  some storefronts were boarded up against broken windows, while the police were in evidence everywhere we looked. 

 

The Tuesday papers announced that this distrust is well-founded:  there were several reports of injury and a man stabbed late at night and in hospital. 

 

This celebration is not for the faint of heart or the fool-hardy, but enjoy a bit of daytime revelry in the visual, rythmic and musical manifestations of culture and you won't be disappointed.



Settling In

Life in London takes some getting used to, especially when you're used to being a foreign expat. 

What I mean by this is that, when I've been setting up a home in countries where I do not speak the language, or cannot drive because it's forbidden for women to do so, fellow expatriate women quickly become participants in the process.  I would meet them at my children's school, in the markets, within the confines of the compound where I was living.

In London, however, being an expat is a different thing altogether.  People from all over the world, both ex-colonies and not, flock to this island in search of opportunities.  They flow through Heathrow, Gatwick, the train lines and even from the ferries in droves, looking for jobs, knowledge, love, a new life.  Some come for a brief time; others come for a lifetime; still others come with no set plan; they just know that they need to find something better than where they were.

Brick Lane

You will run into every type of expat anywhere you go in London.  They will be pushing prams in the park, handing you change in the off-license shop or their hands will be beside yours on the pole in the Tube.  You will note that some dress differently, especially now that Ramadan is upon those of the Muslim faith:  women veil themselves, wear hijab; even little girls, too young to have reached puberty, cover their hair.  Indian women wear their saris or shalwar cameez and Africans may wear tribal prints, especially when attending a celebration.

This is but part of the variety that makes up London's population.  The city's visitors have added another dimension to the mix, with their national colors, languages and enthusiastic cries.  While the British have long been known for their reserve, I have seen little of it, except in Edwardian era television dramas.  Walk by a pub on any match night, and you will hear the cries and songs of opposing teams of viewers, as they heckle the screen and each other with a touch of alcoholic good humor.

You have to appreciate the place.  I am positive that I have, after a few months, merely scratched the surface of London.  New encounters raise new questions, for instance:  do the British have as many words for water falling from the sky as do Eskimos for snow?  Why do they like mushy peas?  Why are eels appealing, and Marmite, too?  Where did the idea that Brits serve malt-based beverages at room temperature come from?  My beers have always been served to me cold.  How do some people wrap their mouths around the accents they produce?  I know we both speak English, but some I simply cannot decipher!  These are but a few of the questions that can keep a visitor entertained for an entire visit.  Imagine living here -- and all this was without benefit of a television!

"Our" pub in the Nelson Docks area