Lifestyle: History Fun at Hampton Court

Jacket: Topshop
Jumper: Primark
Bag: LK Bennett
Jeans: Topshop
Boots: Missguided

Considering History was one half of my degree I think it is pretty safe to say I'm a bit of a nerd when it comes to the subject. I think it gets a bad rap for being 'boring' but in my opinion it is just like the gossip magazines of the past, full of interesting stories plus there are so many different eras and perspectives to look at I think you just need to find the particular part that you enjoy the most. For me it is the Tudor period as it is full of love affairs, notorious personalities, blood and guts and embroiled in mystery. One of the best things about History is visiting land marks or museums as when you see the artifacts or walk down the same corridor as a late monarch or servant it is really humbling and interesting to imagine yourself in that period and bring it all to life. 

Therefore, when Matt surprised me around a month ago with tickets to visit Hampton Court palace I was very excited! Having visited once before many years ago (I think it was year 7) I could only remember a little, so it was great to refresh my memory especially on such a lovely sunny day. Matt is quite indifferent to History but even he really enjoyed immersing himself in the rich atmosphere that Hampton Court has to offer.

The building itself and the grounds are very impressive - there is so much to explore that we couldn't do it all in one day. We learnt a lot about Henry VIII's early life through to the end of his reign which was an education for both of us as I have concentrated more on Elizabeth I in the past. We got to see the rooms that decisions that shaped England where made, bedrooms where the Royals slept, the chapel which was beautiful (you couldn't take pictures in there though boo!), the exact place Henry married Katherine Parr, original documents and portraits, the Royal kitchens and servant quarters amongst many other things. There was even a very convincing Henry VIII look a like strolling about who embarked in role play with other actors every so often. There are lots of different gift shops dotted around at various stages which offered a great deal of paraphernalia - I thought the blog book was very funny and apt!

Where Henry sat in council meetings

Each part had convincing props and sounds, with staff members on hand who were fountains of knowledge if you needed answers. You could also get an audio guide which we used and there was costumes you could wear to really get in the spirit if you wanted to! Finally a thought on the food - we stopped off for lunch in the larger cafe set in the gardens which kept to the theme really well and served really delicious food. Sometimes at places like this it can be over priced and disappointing but we had a really tasty stew and lemon and chocolate cake washed down with a cup of tea and a cappuccino, all of which was fantastic.

If you are at a loose end one weekend or just want to try something different then I urge you to try a day out like this as you learn a lot and have fun too! 

Do you like history? xxx

P.S. Once I had uploaded these pictures to blogger the resolution has been ruined as they are so much clearer and sharp on my laptop - can anyone help me fix this?

Date Day: Bluebird Chelsea & The River Cafe

Hi guys, I haven't done a personal lifestyle post in a while now so I thought I'd share what I did last Saturday with you. As you already know I had to defer my exams and therefore finished them later than everyone else.  I found out my results a few weeks ago and passed (yay!) and so Matt planned a lovely 'Date Day' to celebrate. If you follow me on instagram then you will have seen a few of my pictures of the day but here are a few deets of what we did.

First we had breakfast at the Bluebird Cafe in Chelsea. I'd been wanting to go here for ages because I love MIC (I know that's really sad haha) but unfortunately we didn't spot anyone famous! I had eggs royale with a pot of tea, while Matt had eggs benedict with a latte. It was so delicious and the service was super fast. We also ordered a Bloody Mary to drink as we hadn't tried one yet - it was so disgusting but at least we tried it!

After breakfast we wandered down towards Sloane Square tube station and popped into a few shops along the way, including John Lewis where we had to purchase an umbrella as it began to rain! We wanted to go Boris biking along to the river to the next destination but the weather didn't really allow this so that was the only disappointing part.

After working up an appetite walking around the shops we arrived at the River Cafe for lunch. This is another place I've been dying to go to for ages, one of the reasons being they serve the Chocolate Nemesis which I love to make from this book. It was a lot more modern that I was expecting but it was still gorgeous and very popular and busy. Once seated at our table we got presented with a bottle of champagne which Matt had arranged beforehand as a surprise :) It was so cute and reminded of me when we first started dating as he used to pre order a bottle of wine with a little note attached to it.

Food wise, the River Cafe is delicious but really expensive so I would definitely save it for a special occasion like we did! We chose to share a starter of seafood risotto which included scallops, squid, prawns, langostines and muscles. Matt carried on the fish theme by ordering the Seabass for main, while I had lamb with roasted beetroot and a horseradish cream. The food was of an amazing quality like you would expect and the service was friendly and attentive but not at all over bearing. After our late lunch we made our way home feeling very full and slightly tipsy and settled down to watch a scary film for the rest of the evening.

I had such a lovely relaxing and romantic day, it was great to enjoy ourselves and think of nothing else but each other. Sorry for the crap quality of the photos but blogger seems to have messed up their resolution! What is your favourite place to visit in London? xxx