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23!

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Around the time A-Level/GCSE results came out I often had people at work ask me if I got the results I was after. Unfortunately, I took my A-levels 5 years ago and my GCSE’s 7 (aye karumba!) Yep, I turned 23 yesterday. When people ask my age, I still want to say 19. Twenty three. Two three. I AM SO OLD! Soon I will no longer be young enough to get away with being a “young adult”. I will be a fully fledged adult. Naaaaaaaah.


To celebrate my birthday I took a trip to London with my Mum to have a Charlie and the Chocolate Themed Afternoon Tea at One Aldwych hotel. Holy Moley it was AMAZING. I will tell you exactly what it consisted of in a moment, and provide you with photographic evidence (to make you drool).

We began our day out in London in Covent Garden. It’s changed a bit since I last went! I remember we would go on school trips to the theatre, and stop of at Covent Garden before hand and I used to love going to the David and Goliath. But alas it is no more. Instead it has been replaced with a Dior shop, next to which there is now a Chanel and Burberry. In fact most of the kooky little shops have been pushed out to make way for high end designer shops us normal folk can’t really afford. BOO.

Anyhoo, this didn’t stop Mother and I from going in to Dior, following which the highly enthusiastic sales person managed to persuade me (my Mum) to buy some blusher! We only went in to get a present for somebody and within seconds of discovering it was my birthday, the afore mentioned sales man had me sat in front of a mirror, spraying this new foundation on my face. Along with the make up came compliment after compliment, and it evidently worked! I didn’t buy the foundation as I never wear the stuff but somehow I was convinced that I need the blusher. Even Mommy, who was just sitting observing, said she would wear it to! That man did his job well! We then continued to mooch around the square before heading off to One Aldwych, for the afternoons main entertainment!

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Covent Garden!
We arrived at One Aldwych with hungry stomachs, ready to devour anything brought our way. Well, I was anyway! I didn’t manage to get any snaps of the lobby bar, the food was more important! Like any regular afternoon tea we began with savoury, this included: Hummus open sandwich, cheddar and apple chutney sandwich, cucumber and cream cheese sandwich, leek and stilton quiche and caramelised onion and goats cheese curd tart! My Mum asked for a couple of extra sandwiches, they ended up bringing out everything again! I was not complaining. Click here for the full menu
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 The greedy Gloop’s were on the front of the menu.
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 SAMMICHES
 
The sandwiches were top notch. I particularly enjoyed the apple chutney with the cheddar. You really can’t go wrong with a cheese and pickle sandwich! I also like the leek and stilton quiche. There was just the right amount of stilton. The tea selection was fantastic too. Most people who know me well are aware that I am not a fan of “English Tea” so I was a bit weary of being presented with a huge tea pot of…tea. I was in for a treat though. They had a lovely selection of teas, that weren’t like your normal boring (yeah I said it) cup of tea. To start of we chose Winter Whispers; A blend of the finest China black tea with real orange peels, cloves, hibiscus and cornflower blossoms, finished with the finest almond pieces for a soothing and relaxing winter cup.
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Next came the best bit. The sweet! My oh my it was INCREDIBLE! There was your usual Scones, Jam and Cream, but the jam wasn’t your bog standard jam. No no, it was Apple and Meadowsweet Compote mmmmmm. Also in the basket was, Cinnamon Brioche and Cocoa Bean Financiers. Also delicious. Now we come to the interesting treats. On the wooden display we have  (left to right) Apple and Blackberry Eton Mess, Mince Pie flavoured Candy Floss, Cheesecake filled Chocolate Egg with Mandarin Compote, Gingerbread Cake Pops and Chocolate Caramel Milk!!!! Yes, I just put four exclamation marks. That’s how exciting it all was. There was nothing I didn’t enjoy (surprise, surprise). The bottles of chocolate milk were sooo cute and the perfect size. The flavours of the Eton Mess had a lovely wintery twist. The candy floss tasted like Christmas. The Cheesecake was decedent but not sickly. Mmmmmmmmm. We were told to guess the flavour of the candy floss, I initially thought it was mulled wine because it had that winter spice flavour. Whatever it was, it was good (ask my Mum, she pretty much finished them both). Our waiter was lovely, really friendly and chatty, and upon finding out it was my birthday he brought out an extra cake with a candle on!
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Willy Wonka Christmas Tree
 
Overall, we had a really lovely afternoon. We ended up sitting there for about two hours, nattering away whilst stuffing our faces. I was in my element! But the cake eating wasn’t over yet. Oh no! Mother dearest had made this Cherry and Almond Victoria Sponge which we had waiting for us at home. I am very fussy when it comes to sponge cakes. I do not like shop bought ones as they are often way to sweet and horribly dry, but my Mum makes the best sponge cakes. Hands down. I definitely get my baking skills from her! I said that to her yesterday when my friends were round, but I think she assumed I was being sarcastic!
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I didn’t manage to get any decent classic family-round-the-cake photos as everyone seems to find it hard to use my camera. My Mum’s attempts were a bit wonky, my Dad’s a bit blurry and my Grandad, well he cut my Dad’s face out. Could have been on purpose mind. Only joking Dad! My bff’s came round to enjoy the cake and one of them, Hannah, brought me one of the best presents ever; props! She had gone and found materials, bowls and plates etc for me to use when I take photos for my blog! So expect snazzier pictures (hopefully) from now on!
All in all, I had a really lovely day. Thanks for all the cards, messages and presents. And a big big thank you to Mumma B 🙂

KB x

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