Because she's worth it.

I've had the most amazing summer.

It all began when my parents arrived in London on the 31st of May to begin their month-long trip to Europe. I have missed them both so much that I wanted to do something special to celebrate. Plus, I definitely had to make up for missing my mother's 60th birthday party. Afternoon Tea at The Ritz seemed a fair apology to me...

So, Lucy and I put our bestest outfits on and met them both at Green Park to break the surprise. Does Mum's smile mean I am forgiven?:


We made our way inside to the Palm Court. The decor is opulent and very tasteful. Unfortunately, photographs inside the Court are not allowed. (My mother says this is because in the past men would take their 'secretary' to lunch and photography would put them at great risk of discovery.) However, a photograph from the Ritz website does actually do the setting justice:


The atmosphere was lightheartedly delicious, and I was so pleased with our choice. A very polite waiter took my father and Lucy's orders for tea and mother's request for coffee whilst we familarised ourselves with the tea tray. Someone else's photo to illustrate:


The tray's middle layer is left for warm scones, and these were delivered shortly, along with birthday cakes for those who had ordered them. The pianist played 'Happy Birthday' and even though I hadn't ordered cake for our table, we sang along happily.

The sandwiches were lovely, and the cakes dainty. I thought the scones were entirely average, but there was plenty of everything else to satisfy. Other tables around us didn't seem to agree, and kept the waiters busy requesting more servings of everything. I appreciate it is quite an expensive afternoon, but eating one's weight in sandwiches doesn't seem the appropriate response.

I was also surprised at the casual dress at some of the other tables. Some ladies were almost in tracksuits. It was all very strange.

Anyway, we sat happily for almost two hours, and it really was a lot of fun. By the time it came to leave, we were able to meet up with Matt after his work to take in another highlight - the London Eye.

The Eye is an enormous ferris wheel built to celebrate the millenium, and is 135 metres high. It lives on the South Bank of the Thames and rotates at 26cm per second. It has 35 or so 'pods' which you step into at ground level for a 30 minute trip.

We were fortunate to pick a quiet time, so there were only ten of us in our pod. We got some lovely views, and it was especially cool to see Westminster and Big Ben from a new angle:


Mum had said this was one of her must-do-in-London things, and I actually think all five of us loved it. (Thank goodness for the clear sky.) It was a fantastic end to the first day of Mum and Dad's trip, and Lucy was on hand to capture 4/5 of a family reunited:



(I'm so looking forward to seeing that last 1/5th in January!)