Blackbird wanted to know what I was wearing during my trip to England

After singing seven services in as many days? Mostly choir robes.

And a tired smile.

Buxoms 1; Looters 0

Just a quick note to let you know that we're fine. We traveled to Canterbury last Monday and have been busy with rehearsals, services, and short day trips every since.

Also, I've been chaperoning an extra teenager in addition to my own kids. It's obviously a question of the blind leading the blind, but there you are.

Naturally, I've done some shopping--my motto is, after all, Dum spiro, shoppo. But a lot of it has been in gift shops or places like TopShop for my daughter. Not for myself. Damn it.

I've got my eye on a Boots, though, and as God is my witness, I'll be there today.

Trip report: England; Day 3; Westminster Abbey and the London Eye

Again, I'll just say what I wore and what we did, although I have no pictures, because I have to use my husband's laptop. There will be photographic evidence aplenty after I arrive in Canterbury tomorrow.

I wore

• white Banana Republic scoop neck t-shirt with satin trim at the neckline
• periwinkle blue BR boyfriend cardigan
• Not Your Daughter's Jeans, medium rinse, bootcut
• black Chanel Cambon flats
• black Chanel Cambon wallet-on-a-chain
• travel guides, umbrella, bottles of water, etc., in the Coach Poppy tote
• black Nordstrom rain anorak

This worked out perfectly for a day of walking. And I'm so very glad I brought the umbrella!

We got started bright and early to make the morning Eucharist at Westminster Abbey. Luckily for us we made good time, because we had to change routes due to the rioting that took place in North London yesterday.

Our new route took us further west, so we drove by Hyde Park, Chelsea, and Sloane Square. The sight of all the shops didn't evoke moans of longing from me. But it was a close thing.

I felt a little underdressed for church ... until I saw the rest of the congregation.

Westminster Abbey

I'm hardly an expert on English cathedrals, having been inside a total of five, plus one in Wales ... but frankly, Westminster Abbey benefits greatly from the masses of history in which it is steeped. Because parts of it look like an English cathedral (with a soaring nave and a positively exquisite ceiling) that has become an antique store specializing in Victorian statues. There is a lot of pompous marble around, and it's trying very hard to be poignant.


But then you start reading the plaques and seriously, it's a name-drop-athon of notables. And that's not to mention various Coronations and the very recent Royal Wedding.

After church, we went across the street to the Methodist Great Hall to use the restrooms in their basement, and yes, I am aware that worshipping in one church only to run into the competition to use their bathrooms looks tacky.

We made up for it by eating lunch in their cafe. It was pretty good--and cheap! The Methodists have gone in one day, from being my liturgical first cousins once removed to my favorite branch of Protestantism. Way to go, Methodists! 

The London Eye

Then we walked by Parliament and Big Ben and over Westminster Bridge. It started mizzling, but we forged on. I come from New England, and we like to think we're even hardier than people from Old England. What's a little rain? Pffft!

Of course, then it poured.

We decided to abandon our original plan of heading to Camden Locks Market and hunker down in the vicinity. We also decided that with the rain and clouds and whatnot, the lines for the Eye would be shorter than usual, because the visibility would be so bad that the entire experience would be kind of lame.

As you will shortly see, we were absolutely right.

Here's the deal with the London Eye; it's only impressive if you live somewhere with no skyscrapers. Unfortunately, I live in the epicenter of skyscraperdom. The Sears Tower and the John Hancock building are both taller than the Eye and afford more dramatic views. I can also state that the Empire State Building, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Montmartre, Coit Tower in San Francisco, and the outdoor restaurant at the Forum Hotel in Rome have better views than you'll get from the London Eye.

Especially if, like the Buxom party, you have just climbed to the top of St. Paul's Cathedral. If you've done that, you've already seen the view. So don't fall for the Yelp reviews and don't listen to your teenagers; skip it. It's lame. And overpriced.

The London Film Museum

When we got off the Eye, it was raining again, so for me to decide which of the tourist attractions in the immediate vicinity was the most compelling was the work of an instant. The London Film Museum won because the Museum of the Moving Image closed before I got a chance to see it; I'm a film geek; I had teenagers with me, and it was still raining.

It's actually a fun museum in a large, rambling, repurposed space. They have props, costumes, clips, scripts, and hands-on attractions. Also a few places to sit. And completely ridiculous photo ops. Which you'll see soon enough.

And then we walked the long walk in now sunny London to head back to the hotel for dinner. My feet appreciated the change out of the Prada loafers but would really like a nice long soak in the hotel sink.

Verdict: my outfit, while a bit casual for Sunday morning services, was perfect for splashing through puddles, gawking at monuments, judging Victorian tomb sculptures, feeling a new empathy for the Parisians who thought the Eiffel tower was a blot on the landscape, posing for pictures with R2D2, and warming up to Methodism.

Trip report: England; Day 2; The Tower of London and St. Paul's Cathedral

OK, let me get this out and then I promise I won't whine much more: what is with hotels that don't offer wireless internet? I don't even care that much if they charge a little something for it. I think charging for wireless internet is ridiculous, too, but not as ridiculous as charging 20 pounds a day for high speed internet access via ethernet cable. Come on, Marriott--get with the program!

I have to use my husband's work laptop to type this, and it's balky and uncomfortable. And I can't get pictures.

Instead, I'll tell you what I wore, and what we did.

I wore

pink Eileen Fisher 3/4 sleeve cotton t-shirt

J. Crew City Fit Cafe Capris

tan Prada driving mocs

black 3/4 sleeve Nordstrom rain anorak

under the rain anorak, my Chanel wallet-on-a-chain

I also carried my idiotic Coach Poppy tote for things like bottled water, my umbrella, sunglasses, the guidebook I broke down and bought, etc.

What I Did

Our first stop for the day was the Tower of London. Can I just say how ... weird ... it is that I've only been to London once before, and this choir trip's itinerary is duplicating so much of what we did 20 years ago? Luckily a few things were different or I'd start to feel ossified. The crown jewels are displayed differently; the Tower is more Disney-fied (every attraction exits into a gift shop) and this time, we have teenagers with us. So that was interesting enough, I guess, and it was a lovely morning--sunny, but mild. Good weather for exploring.

We ate lunch at a sort of outdoor food court area in a newly-developed area just west of the Tower (for newly-developed read "after 1991".) There were lots of tourists of different stamps, and the food selections were OK; the teenagers could chow down on hot dogs with fries, but I could go to Paul and get a ham baguette and a bottle of Badoit.

(I love Badoit SO MUCH but they don't sell it in Chicago. I bought three bottles.)

After lunch we went to St. Paul's Cathedral. I was ready to give it a quick walk through and bail, but the teenagers insisted on really exploring. So we walked up the 200-plus steps to the whispering gallery and another two-hundred steps through some very steam-punk looking metal stairways to the dome. There we had great views of the London Eye, and the London Eye had great views of us.

Afterwards we hit a bookstore for a little browsing (and the purchase of a much-needed guide book) and then the teenagers insisted on going back to the cathedral for evensong. The choir sang a setting of O Nata Lux that our choir has sung, and the teenagers just loved hearing it.

Sitting in St. Paul's--site of the previous Royal Wedding (Charles' and Camilla's doesn't count) listening to gorgeous music and watching the sky darken through the clear glass windows while the setting sun illuminates the gold in the mosaics? Is well worth the blisters those Prada driving shoes gave me.

Trip report: England; Day 1

Thanks for the good travel wishes! We arrived safely in London and have already toured our first historical site. More about Hatfield House when I've managed to email my cell phone pictures to myself.

What I really wanted to report on was the success of my travel outfit. I had a brainstorm when I was packing when I realized that some of the clothes I was bringing to wear as a chorister at Canterbury Cathedral would also be great to wear on the plane and during our first stately home visit.

No one would play along and take a picture of me, but my husband and daughter both complimented me on what I was wearing. My daughter said I didn't look like I was going to be traveling, which given the state of modern travel, is high praise.

Inspired by MaiTai's recent posts on visiting New York, this is what I was wearing:

a gray Banana Republic crew-neck t-shirt with silk trim banded at the neckline
 in case I spilled something on myself on the plane

black Eileen Fisher pants
 with their elastic waist and knit fabric, they're almost as comfortable as sweats--perfect for sleeping on the plane

thin black cashmere Leila Rose cardigan
in case the plane was chilly. And it was.
 
black Chanel Cambon ballet slippers
as comfortable as slippers and just a little dressy, with the patent leather CCs

black Chanel Cambon wallet-on-a-chain
I bought this last spring for this trip because a WOC is so perfect for travel. I could carry my money, passport, boarding pass, pen, lipgloss, gum, and a comb and know that my pocket won't be picked and I won't lose anything. It might be a little matchy-matchy with the shoes, but hey, I'll risk being too pulled together any day.

black and white Hermes Bolduc silk jersey scarf, folded on the bias and double knotted off to the side
This was to add a little pattern and texture to a very plain outfit. And a scarf can help keep you warm (although I had to take it off during our tour of Hatfield House, where, due to the fact that I had nowhere else to put it, I knotted it onto the handle of my WOC. How very Babe Paley of me.)

I only managed to sleep for a little while on the plane, and so,

as dear Samuel Pepys would put it,

to bed.

Packing, packing, packing.

People, I know. I start blogging again with a bang, then ... radio silence.

The thing is, between the house being painted, the basement being flooded, and my entire family heading to England on Thursday, it's been busybusybusy around here.

See, we're not just going to England to visit the Tower of London to drool over the Royal Jewels. Although that's definitely in the itinerary.

Will you get a load of this? And this is the stuff that isn't locked up for tourists to gawk at.

We're also going to be spending the week in Canterbury, being a visiting choir at the cathedral. And the preparations are dizzying.

First of all, we had to watch Becket.

Richard Burton is OK, but Peter O'Toole leaves him sitting in the road.

Because it would be remiss to visit Canterbury and not understand why the characters in the  Tales were journeying to the cathedral in the first place.

Also, I'm very busy trying to plump up my family's flat American vowels so the tourists who hear us sing won't realize we're from Chicago.

Not that we won't sound good, but if I were a tourist at Canterbury Cathedral, I'd be a bit disappointed that the extremely professional-sounding choir (complete with angelic, soaring trebles) was actually American. I feel it only polite to disguise my Colonial origins. At least, while I'm singing.

The other thing keeping me busy is making sure we're all stocked with sufficient choir clothes. It is not, unfortunately, enough that we'll be wearing floor-length choir robes topped with knee-length surplices. We also have a dress code to adhere to as cathedral musicians: black skirts or pants topped with white blouses or shirts. Closed-toe black shoes. Neutral, white, or black hose. Or--thankfully--no hose.

Having done this before, I've managed to accumulate a significant stock of black pants (God bless Eileen Fisher)




















sensible black closed-toe shoes,

Chanel Cambon ballerina flats--way too logo-y, but INCREDIBLY comfortable

Haute Footure wedges by the very clever Taryn Rose

and a nice collection of blouses.

Lafayette 148 is a favorite for these.

Dear Fashion Gods: Enough with the ruffles. Those of us with a lot on our balconies would appreciate it. Thanks! Love, Poppy

The gem of my blouse collection is one by Samuel Dong that I swear is made of the earth's supply of petroleum by-products. If I spill spaghetti sauce on it,  I could probably clean it off with Windex. Which makes it perfect for travel.

Let us not forget a stylish pair of wellies, should the weather prove inclement.

Getting the children properly kitted out has been A Mad Scramble, let me tell you.  Young Master Buxom is 16, and in the two years since we last went to England (and tried to trick American tourists into believing we were an English choir) he's gone from wearing a boy's size 20 shirt to a 15/33. Which makes for a lot of shopping.

And of course, there's the girl. Who is wont to declare that everything she once liked is now Woefully Out Of Style.

So while I get ready, do me a favor and come up with suggestions of fun, frivolous things to shop for in London. I plan to visit Boots and Top Shop. What about Mango? And are there any fabulous products for aging English complexions that I need to buy and bring back to the States? Any products that are imported to the U.K. but don't make it to the States?