Tea and biscuits

Hello from across the pond! As of Monday, I have officially begun my semester study abroad in London. While everything right now is still very new, beautiful and British, I’m slowly adjusting to the cultural differences. Luckily, one of the first truly British cultural experiences I got to indulge in was one of the best — afternoon tea!

As a sort of welcome to London, the agency that organizes our program in conjunction with USC and City University, where I’ll be studying journalism, took the eleven of us out to tea at the British Museum. Though simply getting to enjoy a meal in one of the most famous London landmarks would be amazing on its own, the tea was also incredible.

In America, when we have tea in the afternoon — or more likely coffee — we have simply that. Maybe we’ll indulge and share a pastry from Starbucks with a friend, but it’s nothing like afternoon tea in Britain. Here, high tea is an event. In addition to your tea (which comes in your very own pot to pour into your proper cup and saucer), tea includes trays of finger sandwiches, scones with jam and clotted cream (which tastes much better than it sounds), and mini pastries on tiered trays. You’re pretty much in foodie heaven.

And, after a long day of walking around the city in the 30-degree weather, it’s the perfect way to just be able to relax and talk with friends. We Americans are just too frantic sometimes I think (though I must say, the average walking pace in London is more of a sprint), and don’t always take a chance to enjoy the moment.

Afternoon tea is definitely a ritual I can see myself adopting.