{"id":1273,"date":"2016-09-17T10:16:51","date_gmt":"2016-09-17T14:16:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nymysteries.com\/?p=1273"},"modified":"2016-09-17T10:18:38","modified_gmt":"2016-09-17T14:18:38","slug":"new-york-city-london-blog-sept-16-sept-25","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/nymysteries.com\/?p=1273","title":{"rendered":"New York City London Blog \u2014Sept.16 – Sept. 25"},"content":{"rendered":"
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I flew to the U. K. on Virgin Air. Is there any better service? Disclosure: I flew Business Class. The only reason I\u2019m fessing up is so I can describe the gorgeous layout of Upper Class. That\u2019s Virgin Air\u2019s name for paying a great deal of money to fly for seven hours max plied with attentive, fawning service. When you enter the plane, the First Classers (Me!) are directed to go left and the rest, you poor sods, are directed to the right to sit on folding chairs and eat food you\u2019ve bought from a stand in JFK. The first thing I saw was a bar, lined with lovely cocktails. The lighting was very nightclub. I was escorted to my seat. Virgin Air has individual alcoves. Each resembles an ironing board between two barriers. Lots of gadgets to turn on and off – a TV in one wall\/barrier. Lots of gadgets to raise and lower the ironing board. Is Madame chilly? A sparkling white duvet was tucked around me. as I was offered a glass of champagne. After dinner – a little pate, a smidgen of duck, a tiny bouquet of perfectly cooked french green beens – I lay back on a fluffy pillow, the duvet around me, sipping chamomile tea and eating shortbread cookies, trying to sleep but always conscious that I had to stay awake or the plane would crash.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m staying at The Penn Club. It\u2019s named after William Penn and is run by the Quakers. It could be straight out of a Barbara Pym 1950\u2019s social comedy novel. It\u2019s quiet, bookish, there\u2019s the click of crockery, tea reigns. There\u2019s one TV in the whole place and a daily assortment of English newspapers. I\u2019ve noticed that we Americans, within the hotel\u2019s confines, speak our version of an English accent. Maybe it\u2019s the water.<\/p>\n

London, like NYC, had been hot and humid. It\u2019s now autumn, perfect walking weather. I got my bearings circling around Russell Square and then tried out the Oyster card, comparable to our metro cards, and took one of the big red buses to the Royal Academy. There\u2019s a David Hockney exhibit. Across the way is Fortnum and Mason. I was last in it many years ago when it could have been a stage set for Peter Pan<\/em>. It was gentle, lovely in a China dish way, and deserted. Has that changed. It\u2019s vibrant, enticing and filled with wonderful packages that proclaim Englishness.<\/p>\n

Off to the British Museum\u2026<\/p>\n

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