Day out with a difference: afternoon tea

When you say to people Cockfosters most of them will have a sly chuckle, as well it`s an amusing name, however have you ever been there? For something a bit different this summer you can get lost in the Ferny Hill Farm Maize Maze. From Cockfosters tube station it is a 45 minute walk or a 5 min taxi. When the Maize is high it is quite a challenge especially trying to find every single piece of the puzzle and map. Situated next to the maze is the Ferny Hill Farm tea room and shop that has a variety of organic foods and fresh produce. The cream teas are a must especially.

Cream tea (also called afternoon tea) is another lovely English tradition, taking tea between lunch and dinner time. The traditional cream tea is tea served with scones, jam and clotted cream (or butter for a light version). You can also choose from the variety of different cakes, tarts and cupcakes, or even canapés. Here is Short Let London recommendation of good places for cream tea in London, probably the best tea is served at Fortnum and Manson, however it can get pricey and it`s better to reserve your table in advance. More affordable place that we could advice for our tenants is Bake-a –boo in West Hampstead area, as it located very close to short term apartments in London and our properties for short let (Kilburn Park, Swiss Cottage, Kilburn areas, etc) and has got an amazing dolly atmosphere and grandma chic with colourful tea pots, mugs and net curtains. Some other great afternoon teas are served at Bond and Brook (Fenwick), Beams of Bloomsbury, The Ritz, The Berkeley hotel and Palm Court at the Langham. Visit these cute London tea rooms and houses for amazing British traditions to experience something different in London. Short Let London wishes you bon appetite!

Where the British Royals Live: pictures and videos

Definitely the most famous royal house is Buckingham Palace. All tourists admire the facade of the palace with its distinguished balcony and like to watch the spectacular Change of the Guards. By the way, next time when you pass by the Palace, have a look if the Union Jack is on the top. This will mean The Queen is home at the moment. We can also visit the queen’s residence (though one has to make an effort to get the entrance tickets). The inner yard of the Buckingham Palace looks even more gracious than the front. Many official occasions, banquets, lunches and garden parties are held by The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh here. Even a few weeks ago there was a big football match played by the oldest teams of the Amateur League. We believe Her Majesty was glad they did not break any windows during the game. The house interior reflects the tastes and richness of its previous royal residents. It has the most fascinating and rare art collection in the world. If you are lucky to be inside the palace, take your time to admire the Grand Hall and marvellous Grand Staircase with the old portraits on the sides. Did you know there are 775 rooms in the palace? Don’t they get lost there? Parts of them are offices and the State Rooms, where the Queen works. They say, she doesn’t like living in Buckingham Palace that much and considers Windsor Castle to be her real home.

Windsor Castle is one of the oldest and largest residential castles in the world. The Queen Elizabeth II continues the nine-hundred-years tradition of keeping it as a royal home. She and her husband usually stay there over the weekend and the Easter Holiday. New rooms, such as the State Apartments and Semi-State Rooms completed in famous Georgian style, have been opened to the public not long time ago.

Another home for the British royalties is in Norfolk. So you must plan your day out of London and visit Sandringham House and the medieval Sandringham Church nearby. Every Christmas Her Majesty with her family retreats there for the winter holidays. If you happen to be in Edinburg, take a trip to the Holyrood Palace, official residence in Scotland. Elizabeth II and Prince Philip like to spend their time there having picnics and relaxing around beautiful scenery of Scotland. When they are not staying there, travellers can wonder around the elegantly decorated rooms and the unique treasures collected for centuries by the kings and queens.

The most exciting and memorable experience London visitors may have in Kensington Palace, the birth place of the Queen Victoria. Here she spent her childhood and first met her future husband, Prince Albert. When you come in the palace you will get the feeling of how it is to live as a royal. The magnificent King’s Stairs and the huge lightning with thousands of Swarovski’s crystals in the centre will certainly impress you. The luxury Apartments of the Queen Victoria are worth seeing as well. In the beginning of October, Kate Middleton, Prince William and little Prince George finally moved in their newly refurbished home in Kensington Palace. Kate took part in designing her new twenty-room apartment. Their place is not for the public eyes of course. So we can just guess how nice it must be as the Duchess of Cambridge is famous for her classic taste. The young couple rents out their first house, Anglesey. Not sure how affordable it is for budget tourists though.

As we see, the British Queen is quite busy moving around from one house to another. We would gladly provide you with your temporary residence in London. Short Let London has nice and reasonably priced apartments in Central and North West London to offer you for a short term holiday retreat. Hope you will have a pleasant rest in our flats after visiting the royal palaces around the capital.

Why you should visit London in April: not only Easter!

As London is the host city for various events, it covers such events as Easter, St. George’s day, Bach Marathon, Virgin Money London Marathon, Oxford and Cambridge University Boat Race, Westminster International Canoe Race, The Queen’s Birthday Gun Salutes and other ceremonies in April. There are art, sport and national celebrations that could impress every tourist expectations.

It could be considered choosing London destination by art lovers will reach maximum satisfaction as visitors will be in the center of art’s Universe. London art galleries, theatres, concert halls, music venues are the main places, which compete among each other in order to deliver unique art and performance to customers.

Free and charitable spirit of Brits makes London a better place by organising Virgin Money London Marathon to help and support a range of charities. World coffee lovers are invited to come and enjoy the taste of coffee beans in a simple cup of coffee at London Coffee Festival, which will be held during 4 days in London. In Central London, gun salutes there will be heard in honour of HM Queen Elizabeth’s birthday which is celebrated publicly every year in April. Tourists exploring art city monuments could spend an entire “journey” at Royal Albert Hall, as a nine hours music session called Bach Marathon in memory of Johann Sebastian Bach will take place.

Plan a holiday in London to attend the Saint George’s Day

It has to be mentioned that The National Day of England (23rd April) which is Saint George’s Day is also celebrated in April . It is known that every city has its Patron Saint which protects the locals, travellers and city’s surroundings. London is proud to have its own protector – Saint George, and the Londoners are organising an amazing celebration with traditional music, dances, competitions, food and drinks. One of traditional customs that serves as a decoration of the city is to adorn the St. George’s flag on old public buildings.

Classic English dishes are served during the day, which include afternoon tea- a selection of cakes, sandwiches, baked rolls and different sort of tea. Among other traditional  delights, the most famous are fish and chips, steak and kidney pie. The latter pie is made of a mixture of beef, kidney, fried onion, and brown gravy. The main course list does not stop here and it is followed by tasty beef wellington that represents a combination of filet steak with pâté wrapped in puff pastry. Sherry trifle made from sponge cake, fruit juice, cream, fruit, and custard for dessert could be named. An English dessert called Eton mess which is a variety of strawberries, cream, and pieces of meringue could be consumed during St. George’s Day as well. Basically, this festivity is a perfect family day and for sure it is suitable for each tourist that is looking for London short let accommodation in April 2014.

Short Let Accommodation in April 2014

If you are planning a holiday in London during April 2014, a short let accommodation can be an ideal solution to save money and find the same comfort of own house. Short Let London offers studios and apartments close to main London attractions (Oxford Circus, London Eye, Big Ben, The Shard, Covent Garden, etc.). Some of them are in the centre of London and are perfect to visit the City by those who like to have a small walking. Check your agenda plan a trip in London and book one of our accommodation for April.

London scenes from Google's Street View spliced with 18th-century paintings

An artist has posted on social network site Reddit a set of images made by splicing scenes of London taken from Google Map's Street View and 18th-century landscape paintings. The collection of images by Shystone includes this composite using Canaletto’s 1749 painting of Westminster Abbey and how the same scene looks today.

World Water Day: 22 March 2014

Let’s do something good for the world: close our taps, take faster shower and try to save as water as possible!

How you can help?

Pledge your support this World Water Day adding your name to WATER AID Uk online form or tweet your support for a world where everyone, everywhere has clean water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030. They’ll display your name, or ‘watergraph’, on our giant, interactive waterfall for everyone to see. On 19 and 20 March in London’s Canary Wharf, your name will be sent cascading down our waterfall, alongside thousands of others to help raise awareness of the water and sanitation crisis.

Every minute, every day, people suffer and lives are lost needlessly because of a lack of safe water and sanitation. Help the world end this global crisis and transform lives.

St Patrick's Day Parade and Festival 2014

The London St Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival is now in its 13th year and attracts over 100,000 people. It has become a destination event, which showcases the best of Irish music, song dance, culture and arts.

The Mayor of London organised an amazing big parade on Sunday 16th March in Trafalgar Square. The theme for this parade is “World of Dance” to invite everybody to dance and celebrate the rich heritage of dance within Irish culture. The parade will feature spectacular pageantry, wonderful floats, marching bands from across the UK, sports clubs and Irish dancing schools.

Short Let London welcomes to three adorable sumatran tiger cubs born today at ZSL London Zoo! [VIDEO]

The as-yet unsexed triplets were born to five-year-old Sumatran tigress Melati, on Monday 3 February 2014, after a 106-day pregnancy.

Three of the world’s rarest tigers have been born at ZSL London Zoo, with zookeepers capturing their first moments on hidden cameras. The as-yet unsexed triplets were born to five-year-old Sumatran tigress Melati, on Monday 3 February 2014, after a 106-day pregnancy.

 

 

Three of the world’s rarest tigers have been born at ZSL London Zoo, with zookeepers capturing their first moments on hidden cameras.

The first cub arrived at 12.28 am, the second at 12.59am and the last was delivered at 1.18am. Everything was monitored using a remote camera technology and the animals have been observed 24/7. London Zoo staff never left alone the Sumatran tigress Melati during this period. They have been able to observe their eyes opening and their tentative first steps.

Born in the early hours of the morning and arriving within an hour of each other, the first cub arrived at 12:28am, the second at 12:59am, and the last was delivered at 1:18am, with keepers monitoring the whole birth using remote camera technology but they don’t know whether they’re boys or girls.

With wild Sumatran tiger numbers estimated to be as low as 300 individuals, the cubs represent a huge achievement not just for ZSL London Zoo but for the global breeding programme of this critically endangered species.

Source: ZSL London Zoo

If you are planning a short stay in London, don’t miss the opportunity to see with your own eyes this beautiful spectacle of nature. Plan your trip to London today and visit the tigers!