Day Two, Cont: V&A, Lanesborough, Harrods

As I mentioned in the previous post, Day Two was very full! After a nice lunch at the Orangery, we headed to "the V&A." That stands for Victoria & Albert museum. This museum is a very popular place with Londoners, and I can understand why! It's got a very diverse and interesting collection! There is a large Dale Chihuly blown-glass creation in the center of the atrium. In this photo, I like the contrast of the Chihuly out-of-this universe shape with the traditional religious scene in the background.

We had a customized tour through the collections, focusing on tea things. We started with early Asian pieces of china, then moved through the centuries. I was fascinated with the tilt-top tea tables of the 1800s. I can't find a good photo, but they have scallops around the edge to allow for several people to place their teacups/saucers. I'd love to find a reproduction of one of these. At least one of our number is so lucky!

After our V&A excursion, we headed to the Lanesborough Hotel for Afternoon Tea in the Conservatory. It's a very posh hotel.

I think the pictures say it all! It was wonderful! We even got to exit via the back way, just like the stars. :-)

The day was not yet over. Next we headed to Harrods for an evening of shopping. Thanks to Denise for recommending we approach Harrods like a museum, rather than a normal department store.

Most of us came home with these delightful Harrods tea pattern "shoppers." A shopper is a reusable bag sold in all the grocery and department stores in London. The tea patterns are from the Harrods archives. A very fun souvenir!