Reviews
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Afternoon Tea at the Ritz
While my parents were in town last week, we decided to do Afternoon Tea in style. I don’t just mean because the Ritz is a pretty fancy place; they also have a dress code. No one can wear sneakers, and men are expected to wear a jacket and a tie. Which meant a quick shopping trip before making it to our reservation. Once there, I did ask, and the cloakroom is used to lending out ties, jackets and shoes to people who don’t fit the dress code. So don’t worry, they won’t turn you away 🙂 We were let in a little early, and got to choosing our teas. My…
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Hotel Cafe Royal ~ Oscar Wilde Style
Yesterday, we had another little midday break in our scheduling, so Molly and I ventured to the Hotel Cafe Royal for an afternoon tea in the Oscar Wilde Bar. First of all, the room is absolutely gorgeous, with the mirrors reflecting all the gold and making it all the more impressive. Not to mention the pianist who not only serenaded us with Disney, movie and musical tunes, he also took requests from Molly 🙂 Upon the waitress’ and Molly’s urging, I did not take the masculine, Oscar tea, but I did take the golden one, inspired by the details of the room’s ceiling. I forget the name and didn’t actually…
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Mad Hatter Tea Party @ The Sanderson
Monday was dance night here at LAMDA, so other than a couple of rehearsals scattered throughout the day, we mostly had the day off. We took advantage by rehearsing our scenes and dances for the performances on Thursday, but I also invited a few friends to join me for a Mad Hatter Tea Party at the Sanderson Hotel. Since the tea was Alice in Wonderland themed, all of the napkins had riddles on them, the menu was tucked away in a book, and the sugar came in this super cute ballerina music box, that actually played music every time Sydney opened it to get some sugar. The tea selections came…
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Stratford-Upon-Avon
Last week, everyone in my semester program spent 3 days getting close to Shakespeare. We did have a short workshop I mentioned in my last post, but most of our time was spent being tourists, which included a lot of food 🙂 When we first got there, we went for lunch at Hobson’s Patisserie. The mac and cheese was calling my name, but I still indulged in a scone with clotted cream and jam. We only took the large ones, because if you take the giant scone, it is at least 10 inches high. The kind of thing you have when you’re not also having pasta. Next, we checked into…
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Afternoon Tea at Brown's Hotel
The afternoon tea at Brown’s Hotel not only looked spectacular during my research, it was also the one place that was consistently recommended to me, no matter who I talked to. Lucky for Molly and me, it did not disappoint 🙂 I got there early and was brought to our table to wait. I didn’t even have to ask for the comfy chairs by the fireplace, to warm my hands and bones until I could order my tea. I ordered the Brown’s Morning Blend, and it was delicious. At the end of the meal, we also got a little package each to take home 🙂 When the food trays arrived,…
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Adieu French King
I can’t believe today is the last day of January. I am already done my fourth week in London, which is crazy! On Monday, Debbie had us working on our monologues, and she saw me standing there with my arms crossed, so she told me to stand more open, and to take up more space. Harder said than done for someone who tries to take up the least amount of space and go unnoticed most of the time, but I was determined to try. In stage combat, after we spent most of the class practicing what we had learnt and adding more things to it, we were asked to do…
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Kensington Palace & Orangery
On Sunday, I decided to cross two items off of my list for London; the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace, and Afternoon Tea at the Orangery. Although I had excellent intentions to be at the Palace an hour before it started so I would get a prime spot, I found myself meandering to previously unvisited places in Hyde Park, as well as getting stopped to talk to a boy on a bench overlooking the pond with the swans. Luckily, people weren’t lining up to the side gates, only at the front ones, so I got a prime spot for all of the action. The whole thing at the…
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O Thym
It was Chelsea’s birthday this week, so we went out for supper to celebrate that, as well as her being one step closer to completing her PhD. Have I mentioned I have an amazing and talented cousin? We went to a really cute restaurant in Montreal, so I decided it would be the perfect opportunity for my first restaurant review. The first course was a soup, that none of us ordered, but was included with everyone’s meal. It was delicious. Pumpkin, turnip and sage, according to the waitress. I don’t really like turnip, but the flavors blended so I didn’t notice it. Perfect for a chilly evening 🙂 Some of…
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An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth by Chris Hadfield
I started this book knowing that I loved all of the Chris Hadfield quotes that I had found on the internet, and that my cousin had told me she found the book too technical for her to really enjoy it. Having just finished reading and watching the Astronaut Wives Club, I was actually kind of interested in seeing how space travel had changed, so the technical stuff didn’t bother me. As it turns out, a few pages into the very first chapter, I was hooked. I don’t know if it is because me pursuing an acting career is highly unlikely as well, but when he explained his theory on wanting…
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Lean In
While I was on vacation, I read a book that Sam had originally lent to my mom. I had been hearing a lot about Lean In and figured it was time I read the book that started it all. Or at least the longer version, called Lean In for Graduates. It was the first book that wasn’t for school or offering acting advice that I still felt I needed to take notes. Until a few years ago, I had never really thought of feminism as something we still needed, especially not for myself and the women around me. I don’t think I had ever consciously thought that I was missing…