HOT FLASH! Puttin' on the Ritz!

Today we rendezvoused with our first "friends from home". Joyce and Chet are vacationing in London and Edinburgh, and graciously invited us to join them for tea at the venerable Ritz Hotel.

We waited for our hosts in the lobby of the Ritz. The hotel no longer uses the main entrance on Piccadilly, instead opting for a small lobby with two chairs that is accessed by a side street. Our invitation was to meet Joyce and Chet at 1:15 for a 1:30 seating. I guess they wanted to make sure that we'd be on time, and didn't realize that this particular family usually allows so much extra time for travel glitches, etc. that we wind up being ridiculously early. We arrived at our destination at 12:30. We got to watch the gatekeeper to the tea room area turn away a woman who made the mistake of wearing "trainers" (athletic shoes), in violation of the dress code policy, which also prohibits jeans, and stipulates coat and tie for gentlemen. Chet said he presumed that trousers were also mandatory.

Chet and Joyce made an elegant entrance down a mirrored circular stairway, and we paused for this photo op before entering the Tea Room. I didn't mean to be obscured in the photo, which was taken by a generous man with a Kiwi accent, but I guess it serves to further protect my blogging anonymity...

The gilded ceiling was enough to make one giddy, complete with latticework, cherubs festooned with garlands of roses, elegant round tables, and a harpist (more on him later).

Joyce and I enjoyed a pot of Jasmine tea, while Chet, Hubster and TeenE drank Earl Grey.
There was an anxious moment when I neglected to use the silver tea strainer on the first pour, but I assured Joyce that I would sift the tea leaves with my teeth without making any noise.

An array of lovely sandwiches-with-the-crusts-cut-off included chicken, cucumber, smoked salmon, cheddar on sun-dried tomato bread, and ham. It was difficult to not sample them all. The waiter informed us that the scones were being kept back until we finished our sandwiches so because he was keeping them warm for us. How thoughtful!

The scones arrived in due course, along with a pot of jam and another of clotted cream. They were savored/inhaled by all.

The top rack of the triple-tiered silver server contained luscious pastries. It was hard to decide which ones to sample. We did an excellent job on those, too, all the while chatting about Belmont, our transition to London and TeenE's to her school, the airline bankruptcies, and so on.

And the harpist played on. At one point the unmistakable notes of the prelude toStairway to Heaven were strummed. I thought perhaps I was imagining it until Hubster said: Is that Stairway to Heaven I hear? I was too busy talking and eating to notice if the harpest ever got to the really rockin' section, but I did notice some other popular tunes, including Fields of Gold by Sting, 'Till There Was You, which I know from the Beatles but I suspect is from a musical (Music Man? Sung by Shirley Jones? Somebody help me out with this). I kept waiting to here some Clash or Culture Club.

It was so delightful to be able to spend time with Joyce and Chet, and I know they enjoyed it too. I promised them I'd post this picture before the day was out, so here goes.