London is a city of many splendors. We had a fancy lunch planned as well as a trip to Fortnum and Mason and a show at the Vaudeville Theater. We had researched the train ride into London and the GWR was our only option. However since it was a weekend day, we were forewarned that maintenance may be going on for this line and the train may be delayed by 58 minutes or may be canceled. That was too many "maybes" and was not a confidence builder for commuters with a specific reservation time. So we opted to take an Uber into London. The cost was only 10 GBP more than the train so it was well worth it. We were a bit concerned that drivers would not want to take the fare as they would have to pay a surcharge for entering London in a non-electric vehicle. That was not the problem we encountered, instead the car that arrived smelled like an ashtray. We were not going to sit in that car and smell that stink so we had the driver cancel the trip and we called another. The next driver was an ex-smoker himself so he sympathized with us. When this man was a smoker he had issues with his throat and went to a Doctor. That Doctor refused to treat him because the cause of his problem was the smoking. If the smoking did not stop, there was no point in trying to treat the problems that it caused. Since we left early we arrived early as well. We took a walk around the area and peeked inside Fortnum and Mason, a massive shop specializing in Tea! We went tot he top floor and worked our way down. We had a limited time so we mapped out what we wanted to purchase on our after lunch return. Sexy Fish is a restaurant that we visited in 2019 and we made sure to revisit. It did not disappoint as the dishes were excellent and this time we were able put a dent in their gin list. Our waitress was Elena from Romania and she was great fun. Our story resonated with her and she gave us much of her time. We told them that we had been to the Miami Sexy Fish and showed them some pictures of our 2019 visit. None of the folks in our pictures still worked there, but Flavio, the Sommelier recognized James. Then we strolled through the shopping streets. We made it back to Fortnum and Mason to buy tea and explored further as we walked towards the theater. To our delight there was a Veuve Clicquoet themed art show. We needed appointments so we did not get in but we have appointments for later in the week. We also stopped by a Japanese Market and bought some of the tea that was out of stock back a Fortnum and Mason. The Theater was allowing people in when we arrived so in we went. It was a small theater but we had great seats. The show was rocking and it portrayed the six wives of Henry VIII as a modern, all female, rock band with six vocalists. On stage was their back up band with keyboard, bass , guitar and drums. The girls in the back up band seemed to be just that, teenage girls. The show was 80 minutes without an intermission and had it gone any longer I might have lost all feeling in my legs. The seats were not good, but the show was. After the show we popped back into an Uber and off to Windsor we went.
Putting on the Ritz
So many flags out for the coronation
Fortnum and Mason's building
Some impressive gates at the Burlington House
This giant peacock landed on the building
So many tasty treats
Whip it good
Caviar!
A grand staircase up the the 1st floor
A very special bottle of Veuve Clicquot
A Lounge on the third floor, one of six different placed to eat and drink at Fortnum and Mason
Tea towels for sale
Not a tea that I am interested in
The windows are just a nice as the interior
Nested cubes
It is all done with mirrors
The Sexy Fish is a mermaid
We were still early so we had to cool our jets on this bench
Koi fish above the bar
More fish and a mermaid on the wall
Elana also has the lust for travel!
Salt and Pepper squid
Yellow tail and avocado
Salmon roll
The bartender had to jump up on the counter and re-arrange the bottles
Perhaps we finished the bottles
Crispy duck and watermelon salad
Scallops
Our Sexy Treats dessert
So cute
and tasty too
Smooches!
Where did all the treats go?
The Kyoto Citrus Gin was bottled for Sexy Fish exclusively
back out on the town and walking along new streets
One fancy shopping arcade
So many cufflinks to choose from
SOS, save out iconic phone booths
Not all black cabs are black, this one is like a green MnM in a bag of black MnM's
Wave this flag in front of us and we will respond
Nice dome
Fortnum and Mason was out of our favorite Gyokuro tea but this Japanese shop had some
They also had some salmon and mackerel, this will help us survive through the show
Flying crows
A little bit of Switzerland
These are all the Cantons of Switzerland
Merry Poppins herself
No need for an umbrella on this fine day
The Bard is an indicator that we are approaching the Theater District
Very ornate building topper
Witty indeed
Some Morris dancers in the street. They may have been dancing around a Maypole nearby
A protest was going on outside the Zimbabwe House
Our show about the six wives of Henry the VIII
It was a smashing good show
The theater was a bit small or cozy as they would describe it in AirBnB
The ceiling
We are ready to rock
Back in a car and heading to Windsor
Some nice architectural highlights
Greek revival
Just a random house on our drive home
