Amazing Alps – Charmonix, France

Charmonix, home to highest peak in the Alps, Mont Blanc at 4807 meters (15,777 feet) high, was the grand finale of this trip. Under a nice blue sky, the ride from Zermatt to Charmonix was picturesque, just as the hotel owner in Zermatt had pointed out to us. Nearing Charmonix however, clouds started to gather and by the time we reached out hotel, Auberge du Bois Prin, the town was surrounded by thick, gray clouds, which obscured the high peaks as well. Glacier des Bossons could still be seen from the hotel; if it had been a clear day, Mont Blanc could have been seen rising above the glacier. Alas, not on that day.

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Weather the next day was not congenial either, sprinkling now and then, and cloudier. Mer de Glace, largest glacier in France, was closed on that day, and it was obviously not a good day to go up to Aguille du Midi, which, at 3842 meters /12605 feet high, is one of the most popular ways to see Mont Blanc.

Moving on to other things on the list, we took our chance with Lac Blanc, which is a lake located on lower peaks across the valley on opposite side of Mont Blanc massif. Other than hiking, it can be reached by a cable car ride from La Flegere station in Les Praz neighborhood of Charmonix, followed by L’Index chair lift. Half way into the cable car ride, clouds came down so fast and heavy, visibility became very poor.

Once at the upper station, it took us a little while to find L’Index station even though it was next door. There was no attendant nor any passenger at the small station. We stood there and watched the empty chairs move automatically upwards and disappeared into clouds one after another. We abandoned the rest of the plan. Except a few hikers, no other visitors were around and the restaurant at the cable car station was closed.  Le Refuge de Flegere, a simple stone building providing accommodation to hikers, however remained open.

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Luckily, we had one more day in Charmonix, our third day, and weather was indeed much better in the morning, Mr. Sun was out and lots blue in the sky. Although there was still no sight of Mont Blanc yet, we were going to explore Aguille du Midi and take our chances.

I hadn’t pre-book tickets due to the uncertainty of the weather so we got up earlier than usual and arrived at the cable car station about 8:30am. We were able to buy tickets for 9:50am. We stayed at the station and waited, eating pastries for breakfast and admiring the spacious station and its surrounding. Eventually, clouds dispersed and Aguille du Midi was now clearly in view above the cable car station. Hopefully we’d see Mont Blanc soon.

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Views going up are stunning and even better from upper station. Apart from the stunning views, Aguille du Midi is an amazing, spread-out complex of more than a dozen small to medium sized terraces at different level. The most popular is probably Summit Terrace at 3842 meters/12,605 feet high, which is the highest peak we have ever ascended. Summit Terrace is also where you can access Step into the void. There was a long and slow-moving line so we skipped it. While we were admiring the spectacular views on Mont Blanc Terrace and waiting for the cloud concealing Mont Blanc to clear, the opposite happened; thick layer of clouds moved in and so quickly, the environment changed completely in a few minutes. Luckily, we could still watch mountain climbers sport their stunts. Le Tube is probably the closest spot to watch them in action, climbing over a series of rocks until they reach Mont Blanc Terrace. P.S. A pair of binoculars would come handy for this.

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Once we arrived at the top, we were given a timed return ticket which allowed us one hour to explore. At the end, we spent two hours up there and went down an hour later than the scheduled time, with no problem, no one checked the time on our tickets. We didn’t get to explore many of the areas because the high altitude started to make me dizzy after two hours.

We left Charmonix the next morning. No sighting of Mont Blanc on this trip! Disappointing? Yeah! But honestly, only a little bit. It was still a great time in Charmonix. Charmonix was not only picturesque, but also a gourmet town. For a town of under ten thousand people, it boasts 33 Michelin starred restaurants. One of them is in located at our hotel so we tried it on the first night, and it was an amazing 3-hour affair. In the meantime, there are many other delicious options in town that is more economy. Take a stroll through the car free town center, you will be spoiled by choices of restaurants and cafes. There are also many nice shops with lots temptations. Last but not least, if you are there on a Saturday, don’t miss the market by the river on du Mont Blanc.

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Keep on Traveling!

Amazing Alps – Murren and Zermatt, Switzerland

Murren

The drive from Ortisei, Italy to Murren, Switzerland was a long one, and what we had expected to be 6.5-hour journey became an 8-hour one, mostly due to construction works on a few one-lane roads. It however was not unpleasant at all; the day was brightly sunny and there were lots nice views of towns, mountains, waterfalls and lakes to keep us company along the way. St. Christopher in particular is a picturesque ski town at the foothill of Arlberg Massif, Austria that we drove pass. It was tempting to stop for a while but we stopped only briefly for a break and picked up hot dogs for lunch from Walter’s Kiosk right off Autobahn 197/Arlbergstrabe. Fresh bun and sausage, it was one of the best hot dogs I had.

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Murren is a car free mountain village at 1638 meters/5374 feet high. We opted to drive to Lauterbrunnen, park there and take cable car then train to reach Murren. I had wanted to prebook a parking spot but was told by out hotel – Eiger Guest House – that while it is possible to book seasonal parking, it is not possible to prebook parking for short term. It was not a problem; though arriving on a Sunday, there was plenty of parking space available at the multi-story car park near the train station, Parkhaus Lauterbrunnen.

It was about 7:30pm when we checked into our hotel; dinner then a stroll through the village in dim light were all we managed to do on the first day, but it whetted my appetite and I couldn’t wait to explore further.

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The next day came and weather was beautiful. After walking around in the village, we took a funicular to Allmendhule, a hill behind the village, where you can enjoy spectacular views and appreciate playground with the most beautiful setting in the world. We could have returned to the village by funicular but chose to go back via a walking trail. And I to this day still applaud myself for doing that (smirk), for that hike allowed us to experience Murren’s intoxicating flower valley and the most wonderful Alpine vistas. Although our time in Murren was short, it had left happy, lasting memories.

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Hotels and restaurants were more expensive in Switzerland than the other three countries that we had bee by that point. Other things were probably about the same. Looking for conditioner, I found a Coop store in Murren that was stocked with items of decent quality and reasonable prices. We wanted a small, quick bite for lunch on day 2 in Murren, picked up some salad, cheese, bread, juice, beer from the store and ate in our hotel room’s balcony with nice view.  Just the two of us, we ate out for almost all meals, but I could see Coop being a nice option for budget family meals, especially in Zermatt, where the store is bigger and has lot more prepared items available to put together a multi course meal. Two restaurants we tried in Murren were Eiger Guest House and Eiger Hotel which are next to each other. Both were nice but I liked my meal at Eiger Hotel slightly better.

Lauterbrunnen

Lauterbrunnen is a picturesque town located in its namesake valley at 802 meters/2631 feet high and home to many water falls. Staubbach is probably the largest conspicuous from almost every corner of the town center. You can also hike up to get behind the waterfall, which I can only imagine a cool experience since we didn’t have time for it. We did drove on In der Ey away from town center, and spotted several other waterfalls along the cliffs. I’d recommend taking a day trip to Murren if you are staying in Lauterbrunnen, the train ride alone is worth it. P.S. once in Lauterbrunnen, take a cable car near the railway station to get to Grutschalp train station, and switch to the train that goes to Murren.

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Zermatt

We were hitting the road again, but for a much shorter drive this time, 2.5 hours. It was a smooth journey with an interesting surprise. Some point into the drive, we hit a toll both, paid up and drove on without thinking twice about it. It didn’t take long for us to have to stop again. It turned out we arrived at Lotschberg Tunnel train station, where a train was to take us through the next leg of the journey. Shortly after, a very long, partly open train slowly moved into the station and we followed other cars to drive onto it. This train then took us on a 20-minute ride through a tunnel that is dark in most of it sections. It reminded me of the time we drove to Belgium from London and had to cross the English Tunnel on a train from Folkestone, UK to Calais, France. On that train we could get out of our car to stretch our legs and there were even toilets on that train. For Lotschberg Tunnel train, we had to remain in our seats with all lights off.

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Zermatt is also a car free town; we parked our car at Tasch car park, a large multi-story garage at the train station, which we could reserve a spot in advance, and then took a train to Zermatt which takes about only15 minutes. Train station at Zermatt is right in town center and it is about 15-minute walk to our hotel, Alpen Lodge. Zermatt is on a big hill and many hotels offer free transportation between train station and hotel on arrival and departure. Once on the train in Tasch, I called the hotel and was given name of the taxi that would be waiting for us at the train station. Zermatt is largely car free except these small taxis.

Matterhorn, at 4,478 meters (14,692 ft) high, is an iconic landmark in the Alps and conveniently visible from pretty much every corner of the town. Zermatt itself is picturesque and pleasant to walk about. The main street in town is The Bahnhofstrasse, filled with shops, restaurants and bars. Despite the touristy feel, it is still quite a fun place to be, looking for souvenirs, browsing a variety of Coocoo clocks and trying out samples at Lauderach which now has my favorite chocolate, FrischSchoggi, nutty chocolate slabs. Church of St. Mauritius in the town center is also interesting to visit. We had dinner at Osteria Bella Italia and Le Gitan Grill, both good.

Look for the ingenious and adorable Cat-walks, and me putting my Yoga prowess to good use, LOL!

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Gornergrat, at 3100 meter (10, 285 feet) high, is a popular destination from Zermatt and at 135CHF round trip per person, it is the most expensive of any attraction on this entire trip. I wished the weather was better and Matterhorn was not hiding its tippy head in the cloud on the day we took the train up to Gornergrat, but I am glad we did it. It was interesting to see Gorner Glacier. We also hiked from Gornergrat to Rifflberg, stopping at Rifflesee on the way, and got back on the train at Riffleberg to return to Zermatt. P.S. Having read that the views on the right side is better, I waited for the next train for a “better seat”. It turned out either side of the train would have been fine.

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Amazing Alps – Italian Dolomite

Is it paradise on earth! Photos don’t do justice and words pale the beauty of Italian Dolomite.

1.5 hours from Innsbruck brought us to Ortisei, Italy and into a world that was beyond my imagination. As we neared the town, roads once open became narrower and bendy, mountains closed in and we were higher and higher up. When we arrived at La Cort My Dollhouse – Adult Only, our hotel for the next 3 nights, we were welcomed by the loveliest vista. Located on the outskirt of Ortisei, La Cort -1230 meters/4035 feet – enjoys a wonderful view of the town in the valley and surrounding peaks. I couldn’t have asked for a better start.

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Looking for lunch next, we took the hotel’s recommendation and headed to a cable car station near town center just a few minutes away, Ortisei – Alpe di Siusi (in Italian), or Seilbahnen St. Ulrich – Seiser Alm (in German). With a short ride, we reached the top of Mont Seuc, which, at 2005 meter/6578 feet high, is the mountain that separated Ortisei from Alpe di Siusi, Europe’s largest high-altitude Alpine meadow that is between 1600 – 2350 meters (5249 – 9705 feet) high. What I saw next took my breath away; in front of us were a heavenly lush meadow and majestic peaks of Salssolungo. Lunch that day, polenta with cheese and mushroom, was of course the best!

From Mont Seuc, you can go down to Alpe di Susi by foot or by chair lift. Being close to end of day, we took the chair lift to save time but still had only a few minutes before being hurried back to the chair lift by a grumbling Italian man, for the last chair-lift run of the day. We had miscalculated and thought we had more time. What a shame! I have to go back and spend more time on Alpe di Susi.

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It rained heavily during the night and I woke up morning of the second day to see the town and valley covered in clouds. So, we slept in a while longer and took our time for breakfast. By the time we were ready to head out, it has stopped raining and the clouds over the valley had evaporated.

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The next several hours, we drove through the Sella Pass along SS242 until about 6km before Canazei. Despite the heavy clouds, the sceneries along this famous mountain pass were still mesmerizing, and the grey sky seemed to render the environment even more dramatic. Most imposing is the point shortly before reaching the peak of the pass, where Sella and Salssolungo peaks loom large from both sides of the road and appeared to be closest to each other. It is also a convenient location for a hotel, restaurants, a tiny church, and a cable car station, Telecabina Passo Sella.

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Telecabina Passo Sella is an upright and ride-standing-up cable car that goes up to Toni Demetz, a restaurant at 2685 meters/8809 feet high that is wedged in a small area between two Salssolungo peaks. From Toni Demetz, there are hiking trails that lead to Alpe di Siusi and others but they look tough. The paths are uneven and rocky, the kind one has to carefully negotiate with the path for each step. But what stopped me was the freezing temperature and the heavy fog that quickly moved in unexpectedly and obscured the surrounding. I wonder what happened to those climbers scaling a straight up rock not far from the restaurant. We stayed in the restaurant to warm up, with a cup of hot tea for me and a beer for Jay. When we headed back down, the peaks were still shrouded in clouds but the lower level was clear.

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After that, highest point on Sella Pass is literally just around the corner, where there is a parking area, a souvenir shop and a hotel with restaurant, which on that day was serving only drinks when we tried to get some lunch around 2pm. Just behind the hotel, there is a green hill with a spot for panorama. It is not far but takes a steep climb to reach it.

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On the third day, we visited Lago di Carezza, or Karersee in German, that is an hour away. The beauty of this lake and surrounding area is so intense that words and photos combined cannot express how deeply it touched me! We did part of the Konig Laurin Tour hike, from the lake to Paolina cable car station, had lunch at a restaurant nearby, Pizzeria Kupferkanne, and returned via the same route. The whole path was so beautiful and quiet, I thoroughly enjoyed every minute of it! While walking around the lake, I thought it interesting that it is entirely free, free to view the lake and free to park across the road as well, although it seemed easy to set up to collect fees from the visitors. P.S. I use my Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, and no, I did not use any filter or do any editing.

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La Cort turned out to be a perfect lodging option, apart from the great view, it offers rooftop pool, sauna, other lounging areas, breakfast buffet and dinner buffet, or Linnet Buffet, served 5 to 7pm. I had expected Linnet buffet to be snacks and/or light hors dOeuvre, but it was actually a substantial dinner buffet, and so yummy! Breakfast was superb too. Both were included in the room rate, and we had our dinners at the hotel.

One cool fact, signs in this area are posted in both Italian and German and it sounded like staff at the hotel speak both Italian and German, well, English too.

Bye for now Ortisei, but you might see me back soon!

Amazing Alps – Innsbruck, Austria

Innsbruck is a little more than an hour’s drive from Grainau and German is also the official language in Austria. Although it wasn’t immediately apparent that we were in a different country all together, Innsbruck is clearly a world apart from Grainau. Modern building blocks, apparent groups of international tourists, and that wide and torrential river running through the center of city all seem to be echoing the dynamic of a much bigger town. In the meantime, Innsbruck is equally picturesque with Alpine peaks flanking all its sides.  

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A stroll through the Old Town should be a must. It is a great place to observe the beautiful old buildings, eat and shop. If you can, climb the tower of old city hall, views of town from the top are delightful. Do not miss The Cathedral of St. James (German: Dom zu St. Jakob); although not the largest cathedral you might have seen, it is nonetheless breathtakingly beautiful.  

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Continuing the theme, we went up to the top of Innsbruck, Hafelekar Peak at 2,300 meters/7546 feet. It is reached through a combination of a funicular ride, Hungerburg Funicular to Hermann Buhl Square, and 2 cable car rides after, Nordkette cable car to Seegrube Peak and Hafelekar Cable car to Hafelekar Peak. Each level yields a different prospect of the city. There are short trails once at Seegrube Peak. We did follow one of them and enjoyed the lovely views and various wild flowers along the way. By the way, once at the 3^rd cable car station, there is a short but steep climb to get up to the actual top on Hafelekar Peak itself. 

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Swarovski or not Swarovski? We did visit the one and only Swarovski theme park in the world, Swarovski Kristallwelten and was pleasantly surprised by exhibits indoor and out.  

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We stayed at Hotel Mondschein. Located across the river from the old town with great view, its superb location cannot be beat, and here is a cool fact about the hotel, it was originally built as an inn in 1473. Thanks to its river side location and being convenient for transport and trade, it has been a popular hotel since and is still privately owned at the present.

At first glance, menus in Innsbruck look the same as those in Germany and then we discovered there are also many Italian restaurants. Our first lunch were salads at Mama Mia, an Italian Restaurant in the old town, and it was perfect for that warm day. We tried Kaiserschmarrn as desert for the first time, it was too yummy for our own good, two of us ate what is meant for 4 people, hahaha! We found it at Restaurant Goldner Adler Hotel where we had dinner twice. Food was great and it is a historic hotel that had seen Mozart and other luminaries as its guests. We also tried Altstadt Schmankerl for dinner, my husband liked his Wiener Schnitzel very much, and I found my dish of sausage with potatoes and Bratwurst quite nice too.

Temperature, which was already warmer than expected in Germany at around 80°F, became warmer in Innsbruck and it was approaching 90. Locals expected rain or even thunderstorm. Although no thunderstorm came, it did pour heavily late afternoon on day 3. It lasted no longer than 30 to 40 minutes. Hustle and bustle quickly returned to the city afterwards and music from an event at a square by the river drifted into our hotel room until the late evening.

Amazing Alps – Grainau, Germany

1.5 hours from Munich airport, 1 hour to Neuschwanstein Castle and 10 minutes to Zugspitze, Grainau makes a perfect base for our first visit to the Bavarian Alps. Once there, I was delighted to discover so much more about it.  

Seemingly standing at the foothold of majestic and awe-inspiring peaks of Zugspitze, Germany’s highest Alpine peaks, Grainau is picturesque at every turn. When the gentle evening light befalls the traditional chalets and their murals and flower boxes, when all traffic has come to a haul and all is quiet except the ringing of the cowbells, the magic vibe of this Bavarian village sends thrill down your spine and fill your heart with wonder and delight.  

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We finally got to see famously iconic Neuschwanstein Castle! Towering over Hohenschwangau, Alpsee and beyond, it commands an unsurpassed spectacular view. The castle itself is unique and fairytale-like and the story of and mystery surrounding the “mad” king who built it only add to its intrigue.  

Entry to the castle is timed and managed by a metal gate with a fastidious exactness, for no one can enter before the set time, not even a few seconds earlier. More importantly, tickets to Neuschwanstein sell out fast in summer time. I needed 4 tickets for my husband, I and a couple of friends coming to join us from England and tried to book 2 weeks before but it was already sold out on its official website. Luckily, I found some on Viator, offered by a local tour company, Bavarian Castle Tour. The tickets worked exactly the same as those from castle website but cost twice as much and we had to pick up the tickets from the operator’s office. We probably could have tried get tickets at the castle on the day but I didn’t want to risk it and decided to pay extra to secure us some tickets.  

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Going up to Zugspitze, Germany’s highest mountain at 2962 meter/9718 feet high, was a thrilling experience. It was my first ride of such altitude. Although the cable car ride was mostly smooth, it did swing wildly when passing by cable towers, eliciting panic exclamations from passengers at the first tower. Plus, the change in altitude and prospects were exciting. Once at the upper station, I was completed wowed, the views are breathtaking!

The upper station is a decent sized and relatively leveled area with multiple viewing platforms and clean facilities, shops and cafes. The official highest point is however a small peak, marked by a golden cross, separated by an icy patch from the main station. Like majority of the visitors, we contented ourselves by staying-put and watched the brave ones attempt the short hike and steep climb.  

I prebooked the ride about a week in advance and went up and down from station Eibsee-Seilbahn, named after the lake at the lower station. I had planned to go up from Eibsee-Seilbahn and come down via a different route since the same ticket allows two different options, but we chose to come down the same and quickest way because the high altitude was affecting some of us and needed to get back down asap. 

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If you have time, take a stroll around Lake Eibsee. Its sea of deep, clear, gorgeous blue water and surrounding lush green peaks will delight you. It was a Sunday and Lake Eibsee was busy with locals on sail boats, paddle boards, swimming, picnicking and children playing. Still I came away with a serene feeling, quite an interesting phenomenal!  

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To Jay, No Speed Limit sections of Germany’s Autobahn was equally thrilling if not more! 

We stayed at Guesthaus Richter and were happy with it. It is now run by the 3rd generation of the same family and has a stunningly gorgeous and relaxing garden with a pool. 

Food, from breakfast at the guesthaus to other meals at local restaurants, exceeded expectations. The three restaurants recommended by the guesthaus are Restaurant Zugspitze in the village, ToniAlm just outside the village and Zur Shranne in nearby town Garmisch – Partenkirchen. As it’s typical of Bavarian meals, there are lots meaty options on the menu, but also fish dishes that I enjoyed very much every day. The portions are surprisingly generous as well. Egg yolks are orange, not the yellow that I am used to seeing, which remained the same throughout the entire trip.

Amazing Alps – Overview

Having not visited for 4 years, I longed to go back to Europe. But where? Eventually, a brainwave hit and an exciting idea emerged, along with a 2.5-week long itinerary. 

Subsequently in June, my husband, Jay, and I did our “grand” tour of the Alps, flying direct to Munich, spending 3 nights in Grainau, Germany, 3 nights in Innsbruck, Austria, 3 nights in Ortisei, Italy, 2 nights in Murren, Switzerland, 2 nights in Zermatt, Switzerland, 3 nights in Charmonix, France and 1 night at Munich airport before flying home.  

As usual, I did all reservations myself online and we drove around in a pre-booked rental car (Europcar) that we picked up and dropped off at Munich airport. Although that is a lot of driving, the flexibility and opportunity of unexpected experience are rewarding. There is no border checkpoint at all but since our car has a German tag, we still had to pay border fee in the other countries except France. In Austria and Switzerland, you can get a multi-day sticker at gas station and put it on the windshield; in Italy, we paid at a highway toll on the border with Austria. In France, while there is no fee for border crossing, all motorists are required to pay for an emission fee, but it was difficult to figure out how to do it as a tourist and we gave up.  

We had visited many beautiful places and enjoyed many wonderful holidays, still, this tops all. I was interested and elated the whole trip. It was as if there was a natural and pure happy-hormone in these places and I could regularly and automatically top up on it. The ponderer I am, I attribute it to beautiful surroundings, clean air, fresh water, healthy and delicious food! 

Alps is to me without a doubt the most beautiful place on earth! The Alpine communities must have done something right too. I find it interesting that while they differ in languages, food and mannerisms, they also share these things in common, the bounty and challenges of Alps, passion for climbing, skiing, cheese, beer and wine, and traditional Alpine architecture. In almost every town, there are impressive networks of cable cars, chair-lifts and trains ready to literally uplift and give visitors amazing Alpine experience.  These are snaps while driving from one place to another. 

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I hope the communities take care of these precious areas forever. Sighting of these naturalistic designs throughout the areas are inspiring, surely, they are homage to mother nature. 

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England Revisited – RIP Queen Elizabeth II!!

It is sad that Queen Elizabeth had passed away. I wish I had published my posts, especially the one about Jubilee, a lot sooner. In any case, it now feels even more precious that the queen did make Platinum Jubilee and that we were in England at that time.

The queen was 96, and I had noticed some sort of decline since Prince Phillips passed away. Still, she had been around for so long and going on so strongly, I somehow had expected her to go on forever, or rather perhaps I had wished her to last forever, along with the steadfastness, stability and unity she embodied.

Although I had been an Anglophile for a while, my understanding of the British royal family didn’t become meaningful and real until I lived in London. It is tradition, a way to unite the country through the constant changes of politics, added diplomacy for the benefit of UK and the Commonwealth, a boost to tourism, on and on.

QEII was extremely privileged, but she was also exceptionally dutiful, determined and hard working. She was beautiful and graceful. She had unrivaled stamina, uncanny ability to carry on with perfect balance of dignity and humanity, also intelligence, empathy, adaptability and sense of humor.

She was what had made the British Monarch a great success for the last seven decade and a powerful example to womanhood all over the world.

I watched the Queen’s procession from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall for her Lying in the State, via Sky News Live on YouTube. The ceremony immaculate, the Funeral Marches by Beethoven, Chopin and Handel evocative, it was a memorable event like no others. It is also touching to see so many people show up to show respect and say goodbye. The line to enter Westminster Hall to see the queen at this moment, at 9pm BST on Sep. 15, 2022, is almost 5 mile long, and growing.

Reflection and recollection brought back a fond memory, 2017 Trooping the Colors, when we saw the queen in person, albeit from a distance. I regret my phone camera at that time didn’t have a powerful zoom and closeups were fuzzy. It however certainly did not diminish the memory.

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RIP Queen Elizabeth II! As we mourn her loss, we also wish great success to the new monarch.

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England Revisited – QEII’s 70th Jubilee

Friends had put me on alert once Buckingham Palace announced the dates a year ago for Jubilee celebration, Jun 2^nd to 5^th, 2022. It was lucky we were able to make our visit coincide with it.

So how do the Brits celebrate the Platinum Jubilee? With gusto! That is for sure, plus bunting galore and lots of bubblies. We spotted buntings and Union Jack flags on buildings and houses everywhere. The Mall, the thoroughfare in front of Buckingham Palace, was certainly leading the pack and decked out with numerous numbers of Union Jack flags.

Buckingham Palace organized a four-day celebration and almost every village, town and borough of London has its own celebratory activities. There were many private parties too. My friend Amanda’s village organized an impressive four-day program that included a fly past! We attended its Big Lunch on Sunday, June 5th. Main section of The Street, the main thoroughfare of the village, became pedestrian only and families set up gazebos and tables with spread of food and drinks. The patriotic theme of red, blue and white was apparent. It was a treat to have experienced this unique British tradition!!

As a bonus, we saw Buckingham Palace’s light show on June 4th from our hotel room, The Cavendish, sweet! Just so happened, I had a lunch date with some girlfriends the day after the celebration ended. These are girls who love a few drinks and were always drinking every time we had met. Yet they were not drinking at that lunch. Reason? They had been drinking too much over the weekend and still “hanging over”, ha-ha!

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England Revisited – Hello London!

Last but certainly not least, it was time for the big town.

Having returned our rental car at Heathrow, our taxi ride in a black Mercedes into London was a crescendo of anticipation. A long ride on M4 was followed by A4, Natural History Museum on Cromwell Rd, Harrods on Brompton Rd, Hyde Park, Wellington Arch, and a few more minutes of snaking through the traffic of Piccadilly, we arrived at Cavendish Hotel. Centrally and conveniently located with fantastic view from our room on 9^th floor, I couldn’t have hoped for a better welcome to London! Adding to the excitement were Jubilee activities taking place on Jermyn Street.

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And I couldn’t be happier with the location, walking distance to many great places, Fornum and Mason, which I had visited often, is just across the street, Academy of Arts practically a block away, Piccadilly Circus, Chinatown, Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, National Gallery, Portrait Gallery, The Mall, Buckingham Palace, Green Park and St James Park, Hyde Park, St James and St Martin in the Field where I had been to for concerts and such. The list goes on and on. It is close to luxuries such as Ritz, Lanesborough, Galvin at Windows, Old Bond Street, Burlington Arcade and Piccadilly Arcade, but also close to packs of eateries and shops that are easier on the wallet, and main shopping areas on Regent Street and Oxford Street are also close by.

It seems that central London is always busy, with the exception of first lockdown in 2020. During our stay, it was less busy than before the pandemic, especially after the Jubilee, which I preferred. The rest of our stay was a whirlwind of visiting with friends, shopping, eating, and having a good time.

Old Bond Street

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Burlington Arcade, Fornum and Mason and Piccadilly Arcade

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Lovely dinner and best Crème Brulee ever at Cote on St Martin’s Lane

Cote is one of my favorite places to eat in London. We walked there via Leicester Square and strolled leisurely back via Trafalgar Square.

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Piccadilly Circus to Oxford Circus

Shopping on Regent Street, lunch at Bilmore then a leisurely stroll back via Oxford Street.

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Green Park and St James Park

London has many amazing parks. We were able to revisit the closest two, Green Park and St James Park.

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A Happy Birthday!

I am a tea drinker and Afternoon Tea works its wonder on me. I think I can safely say that nowhere else comes close to the variety and quality of Afternoon Tea that London can offer. Among a list of places I’d tried, Dorchester and Fornum and Mason come up on top, Dorchester for most gorgeous tearoom, and F&M for most delicious savories and sweets. This time, I booked Peter Pan themed afternoon tea at Aqua, Shard for my birthday.

Fortuitously, Jane Ausen Society London Branch, of which I am still a member, organized a walking tour following Jane Austen’s footsteps between Convent Garden and Twining on The Strand that would coincide with my birthday. I couldn’t have planned it better.

Highlights of our walk included Royal Drury Lane, Convent Garden Markets, St Paul’s Church, Henry Austen’s house on Henrietta Street where Jane Austen stayed, Somerset House and Twining where Jane Austen was believed to have shopped.

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“What! Are they naked?”

In addition to the lucky walking tour, we landed on extra entertainment. One day while waiting at a bus stop on Piccadilly just outside the main gate to Academy of Art and across from Fornum and Mason, a large group of cyclists appeared a few blocks away on Piccadilly. My husband was wondering out loud, “Are they naked?”. I couldn’t tell and had to use my camera to zoom in. Yup, they were wearing between very little to utterly nothing. We thought they might be passing by but they turned down to St James Street instead. And I was not disappointed, I’d probably be more embarrassed than the nude cyclists if they got too close, ha-ha!

And guess what! An hour or so later, having done my shopping at Twining on the Strand, I was standing outside the store front, admiring the majestic Royal Courts of Justices right across the street, who else but that same group of cyclists, hundreds of them, appeared on the other side of the street, streamed down The Strand eastwards right by the Royal Courts of Justices. Being closer this time, I had a better view, but was still able to avoid the embarrassing details, thanks to my nearsightedness. While a few painted themselves orange, green, or something else, the majority of them had nothing but their birthday suits on. A few boasts of eye pleasing physiques, most are average, and a few not so great.   

It couldn’t be comfortable riding in one’s birthday suit, could it? I couldn’t help but wonder what they were baring themselves for!? It was picked up by many news media of course, but this is the official website, World Naked Bike Ride London: https://wnbrlondon.uk/

London is probably not stranger to quirkiness, but we somehow didn’t run into this one when we lived there.

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London, we will meet again!

Dinner at Hawksmoor on Air Street on the day before leaving was delicious and London under full moon was memorable. I won’t say good bye London, we will meet again!

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England Revisited – Minchinhampton, Stroud, Glocestershire

From rugged sea cliffs of North Devon to gentles hills in landlocked Cotswold, the landscape was quite a change indeed. Nonetheless Cotswold’s idyllic charm appeals in equal measure. I’ve been to Cotswold a number of times before and covered many of towns better known by tourists. Where to this time? The guiding idea was to experience a manor house hotel, and Burleigh Court Hotel made the cut due to availability, affordability and location.

It worked out perfectly. Burleigh Court Hotel is located on the outskirt of Stroud, Glocestershire, and within walking distance to Minchinhampton, a 17th century market town with a market house and town center that have remained unchanged for hundreds of years, and it has an excellent onsite restaurant.

The walks between Burleigh Court, Minchinhampton and Box are delightful, with typical Cotswold vista and glimpses of Stroud Valley along the way. The Commons here are immensely impressive, especially in springtime when the fields are covered in pretty little wildflowers, where people picnic or play golf, alongside herds of grazing cows, picture of pastoral bliss.

Here is the self-guided walking route that we followed:

Click to access Burleigh-Court-Circular-walk.pdf

Following this route, we passed Weaver’s Cottage where we ran into a couple working on their garden and learnt from them that this little corner used to be the “red district” of the town two/three hundred years ago.

Burleigh Court Hotel :

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Minchinhampton town center:

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Minchinhampton – Weavers Cottage:

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Common areas between Minchinhampton and Burleigh Court Hotel:

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