LONDON Trip
August 9 – 16, 2011
I met Leila Witkin from London when I spoke at the Global Speakers Forum in Amsterdam in March. During one of our conversations, I mentioned that I had not been to London for years except to fly through the airport. Leila responded immediately, “I have two very precious tickets to the ballet of ‘Anna Karenina’ on August 10. If you can come, you will be my guest.” What a generous invitation!
As I thought about it, I realized I would be returning from California August 6 and the National Speakers Association convention where I would be (to be kept secret until then) inducted into the Speaker Hall of Fame on August 2 and I was not booked to speak for the next week, so it would be possible for me to go to London. The more I considered it, the more I convinced myself that it was one of those serendipitous experiences that might never come along again, so several weeks later, I emailed Leila and told her I WAS going to come.
Leila and me at the ballet
One of my greatest loves is the theatre, so Leila planned my entire trip to center on that. She not only treated me to the ballet, but four plays as well, she had a gorgeous bouquet of pink roses in my room when I arrived, and she had arranged drivers to escort us for the entire week. She took me to her favorite restaurants for dinner and, to my delight, to three of her favorite shops. I have never been so well-treated and pampered in my life!
I stayed at the Cadogan Hotel, a charming boutique hotel on Sloane Street in Chelsea, just three blocks from the famous Harrod’s Department Store. The hotel is famous because Oscar Wilde was once arrested there for “lewd and lascivious behavior!” The service was outstanding, and one of the things that impressed me the most was when I asked for a wake-up call, a staff member PERSONALLY knocked at my door to make sure I was awake.
My flight going over was an overnight flight and with the 5 hours time difference, I arrived in London at 10:30 in the morning. After checking into the hotel, I unpacked, showered, and then Leila picked me up for a lovely dinner at the Opera House café where we were seeing the ballet. The ballet company was the Marinsky Ballet from St. Petersburg, and it was magnificent. I had read the book, “Anna Karenina,” years ago but still vaguely remembered the tragic story. What an amazing way to begin my week of vacation!
The next day I slept in to get myself acclimated to the time change and Leila picked me up for lunch. We then went to see Jude Law in “Anna Christie.” The acting was extraordinary. We should all watch for the other two main actors in the future as they were outstanding–. The story centers on the sea and relationships, and a central theme is the power of love and forgiveness. It was a small theatre, so it was a miracle that Leila was able to get tickets!
As we left, I spied a shoe shop, we stopped, and I found the most darling pair of zebra flats with red patent trim—a great shopping start to my trip! Afterwards, she took me to one of her favorite shops, a lovely store with gorgeous china and accessories, and then we had dinner at an exclusive Chinese restaurant (nothing like the Chinese restaurants in the US!)
Friday I got up and walked to Harrods to get some little gifts for family and friends. What a mammoth place it is—you really need a map not to get lost it is so huge! Of course, one does not want to buy much because the prices are exorbitant, but it is really fun to look. I took pictures of a monument to Princess Diana in the store and then picked up some glasses for Leila. We had lunch with a friend of hers, and then she took me to her favorite store, Baschia’s. The designer is from Poland and does gorgeous evening shawls and wraps with handpainted lace and sequins. Of course I found two things I could not live without…..;-)
We then went to see Kristin Scott Thomas in “Betrayal.” It was a very intense drama about an affair between a husband’s best friend and his wife presented in a chronological flashback. I was intrigued with all the intense pauses between the actors – almost made one uncomfortable as if they had forgotten their lines—but they were representative of the depth of feeling in their communications with one another and the level of betrayal on many fronts. Thomas did an admirable job, but it was the actor who played her husband who was the strongest character. We had another lovely dinner afterwards.
Leila was busy on Saturday, so I was on my own. I had a VERY expensive continental breakfast in the hotel ($36 US for fruit, tea, and some biscuits!) and then took a cab to the theatre district. My driver was very informative, and we drove past Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and Trafalgar Square. Although I did not get to visit these places on this trip, I found myself reminiscing about the times I was there both with Charlie and with my sister, Beth, many years ago.
I spent the afternoon at the astoundingly creative production of “War Horse.” I would strongly recommend that everyone who loves theatre see it as it was one of the most extraordinary performances I have ever seen. Although the horses were stylized life-size puppets, after the first few moments they absolutely seemed real. The actors who “played” them had to have studied equine habits to the smallest detail. During several emotional points in the play when the horses were hurt or abused, there was hardly a dry eye in the theatre—and they were only puppets! The play was based on a book about WWII and the use of horses in the war, so it was quite intense. As well as the unique presentation of the horses, the way they staged parts of the battle was fascinating. To change the scenes, they used sketches from an artist’s sketchbook of the war as a back drop. It was a powerful emotional experience I will never forget.
Afterwards two members of the Professional Speakers Association of England met me for dinner, Keith Holdt and Tim Bean. We had a lovely evening of sharing backgrounds, thoughts, and ideas as well as experiencing Covent Gardens. It was a lovely day!
On Sunday Leila took me to the River Café for lunch which was my favorite restaurant of the whole trip. We had a strawberry and a lemon tart that I will never forget! Then we went to the Old Vic Theatre to see Kevin Spacey in “Richard III.” I had taught this play when I was a high school and college English teacher, so it was really fun to see it presented in England. I had a rather poignant moment when Richard is wooing Anne, the wife of the deceased Edward, and he says to take his heart and his ring….”for both of them are thine.” These words were what Charlie had engraved on the inside of the wedding band he gave me when we got married in June of 1966. I had forgotten that those words came from this play, so it was a weepy moment for me, but also an assurance that he is always watching out for me.
Although I thought Spacey did an admirable job, Leila had seen Sir Laurence Olivier and several others whom she thought were better, especially since they were English. It is a bit odd to have Americans playing English royalty! I think the role of Richard must be one of the most demanding in theatre since the actor must always show his physical deformity as well as personally struggling with being the embodiment of evil. We do know, however, that evil incarnate is certainly alive and well today in people like Gaddafi and Mubarek! Afterwards we went to a lovely Japanese restaurant called Zuma for sushi.
On Monday morning I walked to the Victoria and Albert Museum which was about a 10 minute walk from my hotel. I was fortunate enough to get there in time for a tour of the most outstanding exhibits in the Medieval collection. It is a lovely museum and I also found a few more trinkets for gifts in the Museum shop. I then met Leila and she took me to the most delightful and different belt shop – every conceivable color and style of leather belts as well as literally hundreds of unusual belt buckles. We “played” there for over an hour, and I purchased three magnificent belts and buckles, another shopping extravaganza.
As my “going away” gift, Leila took me for champagne high tea at the famous old Brown Hotel. I loved the atmosphere, the tea, the cucumber and salmon sandwiches, and most of all, the clotted cream, strawberry jam, and scones. It felt as if we, too, were royalty! We then went back to my hotel and met Paul Bridle, a speaker friend, in the bar for a drink. He is always good for some thought-provoking and stimulating conversation! I then finished packing and went to bed by midnight since the trip back is a LONG day – about 22 hours of no sleep (if all the flights are on time…..)
I had a most marvelous time in London and really feel I could easily live there. It is refreshing to travel to another country where they all speak English – makes things so much easier. I also love all the history, the ritual, and the formality. People on the streets are better dressed, and manners seemed better there. Even the weather was sunny which they tell me is very rare. Food, clothing, and gas are much more expensive, yet theatre tickets were much more of a bargain than in the US. Leila treated me like a queen, so I will have to work hard to show her some special things when she comes to Sarasota. What a generous, thoughtful, and caring friend she has become—I feel blessed to have had such a glorious week in London and I can’t wait to return!
