Queen of The Night

June 3rd was a rare night. It was one of those times when Mariko, Mandy, and I all had time to meet up. We had a wonderful time catching up over dinner. They both knew of an event that was happening at Mead Gardens. Only once a year, the Queen of The Night flower blooms. The gardens were open late so guests could view the flowers before the blooms wilted by dawn. 

Myself, Mandy, and Mariko.

I was surprised by how large the crowd was; it almost felt like a festival or block party. Mandy said it was uplifting to see how many people were excited over a flower. It was lovely to be renewed with a sense of the magic in nature.

Mariko and her daughter Avy.

Last Stroll Through London

For the remainder of the day we decided to take a bus ride towards Trafalgar Square. 

The bus route ended at Charing Cross railway station. We got to see a reconstruction of the Queen Eleanor Memorial Cross made in 1864-1865. The original was made to honor Queen Eleanor of Castile (1241-1290) and was destroyed in 1647. 

Back at Trafalgar Square.

Leicester Square.

Chinatown.

Our last dinner in London was a feast of soup and dumplings at Joy King Lau.

Some lovely clouds over the Atlantic Ocean on the way back home the next day.

Millennium Bridge, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, and Borough Market

After St.Paul’s Cathedral we decided to walk across the Millennium Bridge to see more of London.

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre.

Walking under a tunnel to our next destination. There was a musician playing beautiful classical music.

Max with a colorful mural of William Shakespeare.

The ruins of The Great Hall at Winchester Palace. In its time, it was one of the largest buildings in medieval London. Now, it houses a medieval styled garden.

The famous chocolate covered strawberries of Borough Market.

Photo by Max McDougall.

Photo by Max McDougall.

We stopped at Arthur Hooper’s for a little snack. We had the Patatas bravas (above) and the Lamb kofta (below). Everything was delicious!

The location of the original Globe Theatre.