Day 8: Tea and Lights

If there is one place that you want to have Afternoon Tea in London, it’s at The Savoy. The Savoy has been serving Afternoon Tea since 1889. Afternoon Tea has been a tradition in England that dates back to 1840 when Anna, the seventh Duchess of Bedford, introduced the concept quite by accident. The Duchess got hungry around four o’clock in the afternoon, and the evening’s meal wasn’t until 8 pm., so the Duchess asked for a tray of tea, bread, butter, and cake to be served in the late afternoon. It became a habit of hers. When she began inviting friends to join her in her room to enjoy this afternoon snack, it soon became a fashionable social event. We love the practice and when we are in London like to try different places. This was our first time at The Savoy. We were joined by some friends of friends whom we met during their visit to Florida last year. They live north of London, but made the trip down to the city to join us. The combination of the atmosphere, the food and the conversation was perfect and we had a lovely time thanks to Wendy and Haider.

Later in the evening we headed to Green Park to catch our London by Night Christmas Lights Tour. We were in an open air bus on the upper deck so we had a great view of the lights, even if it was a little chilly! Temperature was 44 degrees Fahrenheit with a slight wind. The first Christmas lights in central London were installed in 1954 in response to a Daily Telegraph article that described London as dull in the winter. The lights were arranged and paid for by local businesses and retailers. Soon it became a competition between the retailers on the various streets and the lights became more and more elaborate. Our tour guide told us that eventually they came to a truce and now they keep the same lights year on year.

After our bus tour, we walked to the Hyde Park Winter Wonderland. This fair is held from mid-November to early January. It features several festive markets, over 100 rides and attractions from across Europe, a giant ferris wheel, as well as bars and restaurants. We booked tickets for the Magical Ice Kingdom and the Ice Bar. Both were fun to experience even thought they were very cold!! We walked around the Christmas Market area which was pretty much a repeat of the vendors that were at the Leicester Square Christmas Market, so that was disappointing. We had some sweet and savory crepes which were delicious. All in all, a fun evening of Christmas festivities.