Scavenger Hunt at Alfie's

We're always doing fun and interesting things with the American Women's Club here in London, and last week was no exception. Antiquing is great sport in Britain, and this time we headed out to Alfie's Antique Market for a scavenger hunt. Each of us was given a list of objects to find in the collection of shops as we toured around and did some shopping.

Jewelry, silver, vintage clothes, furniture and bric-a-brac filled the shops. Photos were not allowed, sad to say, other than this one shot from the front door, but we were all entertained as dealers took the time to share history and stories about the objects for sale.

After exploring through the labyrinth of shops to find our list of items which included everything from biscuit holders, to coffee tables, to a dress worn by Marilyn Monroe, we took our turns at the "tie-breaker" test. We were given 9 silver, or silver plated utensils and were asked to identify their purpose. Would you be able to tell how these were all used?

Come on, give it a try!

Starting from the left, the first one stumped everyone, It fits in the spout of a teapot, to keep the loose tea from falling into your cup. The second is a pickle fork, fairly popular and easy to find in antique markets these days. The third is a scoop for tea leaves. The fourth was tricky. It is a clip to hold a tablecloth in place. The rooster utensil is an egg cutter. I just saw an antique one here for $1415--wow! Wish I would have priced the one at Alfie's!  Finally, the fifth is a Stilton cheese scoop.

Moving along, the first in this picture is a sugar scoop to transfer sugar from a bigger container to a smaller one. The next pierced spoon is a sifter spoon--powdered sugar on strawberries, anyone? Finally the last object was a marmalade spoon. The most surprising thing of the day is that I got a third prize gift certificate, so that meant back to the store to shop some more, where.....

I found this silver plated meat fork with a mother of pearl handle for just a wee bit more (OK, for 20£ more!) You know you can't let a gift certificate just clutter up your purse!!! Hope you enjoyed playing along with me!

Misery Bear in London

Sticking with the BEAR theme, I love this little video of Misery Bear put together by the guys at BBC. For all of you who have ever been first time travelers in London, I think you will enjoy this. I think we need to hook up Misery Bear and Paddington, because after all...Misery loves company.

Click  once on the play arrow and then again on the screen to view the full screen.

Paddington Bear

Just like Mr. and Mrs. Brown who found Paddington on the railway platform at Paddington Station, we first met our little Paddington Bear recently on a leisurely walk through the Paddington Train Station. We immediately knew our little Jordan would want to adopt this lovable orphan bear who came from Darkest Peru, but before turning him over to her, he's having a few adventures in London.

Any good bear worth his "marmalade" wants to see the sights of London, so off he went straightaway to Trafalgar Square....

and the infamous St. Paul's Cathedral.

He's been seen at some pretty classy places, such as tea at The Dorchester,

as well as Pizza Express for dinner.

Stay tuned for further adventures to come....

Shades of Purple

Shades of Purple
Originally uploaded by Debi Kirksey

Walking through London this spring, one couldn't help but notice that some of God's most beautiful handiwork is colored in purples.

Jason and Cristen Arrive

June 22nd finally arrived--the beginning of a new adventure for my son, Jason and his wife, Cristen. Jason has taken a 2 year assignment with his firm to work here in London, and so their adventure now begins! They are living with us for now, so we're all working on finding extra storage space in nooks and crannies that we have never used before today.

Their first day here, they were determined to stay awake and keep moving after an overnight flight, but.... they sat down for a few minutes and the next time I peeked on them, they were out like a light. They're up and going today though. We made a trek to Chiswick to pick up a chest of drawers that they purchased from an outgoing American expat, went for lunch at Chipotle (they needed a Mexican food fix, after all, they had been away from Houston 24 hours) and headed to the bank to discuss ££££'s. They rounded out the afternoon at the local pub watching England beat Slovenia to go forward in the World Cup rounds.  Welcome to the London life, kids!

Fine Dining in Russia

What did we eat in Russia, you ask? We tried the traditional and the new. For lunch, we really liked the pirozhki, which are stuffed pies, both savory and sweet.

We chose the chicken stuffing and then lemon for dessert, but there were many more options, including salmon, beef, cheese and a variety of fruits.

The next day we had lunch in the countryside at a typical family restaurant.

There were stuffed tomatoes, and stewed tomatoes and onions for starters,  

along with mushroom broth

and borscht with beets for a soup.

Our main course was cabbage wrapped pork stuffing.

Topping it off was blini filled with cranberries and vanilla ice cream. Truly a feast.

In a hurry one night before the ballet, a group of us decided to try the ultimate cross-over experience--

McDonalds!

It took 5 people to figure out how to order from the menu. It's not a quarter-pounder here, folks! I must say the fries were as tasty as ever!

And there was some green drink concoction that Shrek was promoting. I don't think it had vodka in it, but vodka was on every other table where we dined.

And the most ironic experience of all, was the pub just steps from our hotel doorway called Ye Olde Chelsea Arms, where we grabbed quick bites for dinner one evening. Too coincidental to be believed, but it was about the only sign we could read in the whole city. Yum yum--that's вкусная конфетка in Russian!!

Real men like Russian ballet

The evening after our arrival in St. Petersburg, our group was given the option of attending a production of Swan Lake ballet. A vote was taken, and even though the men were all eyeing each other to see how the others were voting, no one decided to opt out. I daresay peer pressure was at hand, because I know there were some doubts in the minds of the men, at least.

So after a packed day of touring, no time for anything but a quick bite of dinner, and the effects of a 3 hour time difference still hovering over our heads, we were off to the Palace Theatre's production of Swan Lake.

The Palace Theatre was quite extravagant, and we were quite pleased to find that our group was given the tsar's box. We felt quite sure the rest of the audience was watching us and wondering who those "famous" people must be, so we put on our best royal behavior. I must report to you that we were enchanted by the performance, even the men, and that no one, not one, even nodded during the production.

As you may or may not know, Swan Lake is a ballet written by Tchaikovsky in 1876. The story, taken from Russian folk tales, centers around Odette, a princess turned into a swan by the curse of an evil sorcerer. There have been several different endings performed through the years, but if you watch the clip below you will see that in the Russian performance, the sorcerer dies after the prince breaks one of his wings. Odette becomes human once again and is reunited happily with her prince.  Hope you enjoy a small piece of the finale that I was able to record. Click twice to see it full screen on YouTube.

Russian Palaces

Outside the city of St. Petersburg lie numerous palaces which have served throughout history as the get-away, or summer palaces of the tsars. Such is the case of Catherine's Palace, named after Catherine I, but  really shaped by Empress Elizabeth and later by Catherine the Great. Built in a lavish rococo style with elaborate gilding throughout, the interiors are exceptional.

The Church of the Resurrection with its gilded cupolas greets you on the east end as you arrive.

Every room is like a wedding cake

with flourishes and swirls of gold.

The Empress Elizabeth's inaugural gown graced one of the rooms. Without a doubt, the most famous room, which could not be photographed, is the Amber Room, which is a complete room of panels made of over 6 tons of amber, and backed with gold leaf and mirrors. So remarkable was the room that it was often called the "Eighth Wonder of the World." At the onset of  World War II, docents tried to remove the panels to preserve them, but they were so brittle by that point, that they feared destroying them, and chose instead to try to camouflage the panels by covering them with wall paper. The Germans were not duped however, and removed the entire room when they looted the palace. The mystery of where the original pieces of the Amber Room ended up remains today, and is an intriguing and ongoing search. The room was restored to its original appearance and reopened in 2003 at the cost of $12 million dollars,  taking 20 years to finish.

A short drive from Catherine's Palace is the palace of Pavlosk, the home of Catherine the Great's son, Paul. Definitely a more classical facade, one might be fooled by what lies inside. I know I was, when given the option of buying a photographer's pass to take pictures, I opted not to spend the money and regretted it as soon as we entered the first room. My sneaky husband did manage a few quick photos in one of the bedrooms when he saw my jaw drop.

Can you imagine this opulence?

Reminded me of Marie Antoinette's bedroom at Versailles.

Cupids whispering, "Sweet dreams...."

The day we left St.Petersburg, we had glorious weather, and it was the perfect day to visit the gardens of Peterhof, the favorite residence of Peter I.

Ofter referred to as the Russian Versailles, the Grand Cascade fountain featured above was based on Louis XIV's Chateau de Marly. The gardens are interspersed with statues and some 120 fountains.

The interesting thing is that none of the fountains on the property are driven by pumps. The Grand Palace sits high on a bluff overlooking the cascading fountains which lead to the Gulf of Finland. Water is supplied by natural springs and collected in reservoirs. The difference in elevation drives the numerous fountains between the palace and the gulf.

The gardens are laid out in the style of a French garden

of the 17th century.

No wonder this location has been designated as an UNESCO World Heritage Site. Truly a playground of beauty.