london

we went over to london to attend a luncheon for p's parents' 50th anniversary. we got up early saturday, took the eurostar train and arrived in london in 2.5 hours. pretty amazing how quickly you can get there now. it just makes the difference between the 2 cultures so much more striking. up until the eurostar, the 2 cities were so far apart. the cities really feel so different.

we met up with p’s brother and family and then went to take a walk to buckingham palace and it’s park. it was a beautiful warm day. the park was crowded, but i rarely heard any english spoken! lots and lots of tourists.

the luncheon was held in the oxford and cambridge club, a "greek revival" building built in 1838. it was a lovely event, attended by 56 people. we started with champagne and mingling in a large living room. jj’s cousins and aunts and uncle were there. in addition, she got to meet p's 2 godfathers and various other people who had worked with p's parents (who had been diplomats) around the world . jj was thrilled to meet so many people who knew her dad as a child. afterwards, we went to the beautiful banquet room, with high ceilings, chandeliers and lots of rich details. we had a fresh mozzeralla/tomato salad, then lamb and potatoes, and finished with a wonderful poached pear in caramel sauce with mint leaf garnish. it was very delicious. p’s dad made a speech, as well as did p‘s 2 godfathers. it was very touching. it was easy to imagine these guys as young buddies in college.

afterwards, we walked around the area and then caught a train back to p’s parents home in the suburbs. jj and i returned to paris on sunday and p was to stay until wednesday. the nice thing about being here for this year is that jj will be able to see p’s side of the family much more. jj will see her grandparents at least 3 times in these first 4 months. Print this post