Christmastime a la Britain

Beyond seeing London and visiting us, the biggest reason that both of our moms wanted to be with us was Christmas. When we decided to move here it was with the understanding that we would use my school breaks to travel in the UK and Europe, not to go back to California. When my mom learned that I wouldn't be home for Christmas, she immediately staked out that break for her visit and when Joe's mom learned that my mom would be with us for the holiday, she quickly jumped aboard.

Christmas Eve, Christmas, and Boxing Day (24, 25, and 26 December) were days for relaxing and enjoying each other's company.

Christmas Eve

Festive Menus, set course meals with special recipes and treats, are popular all over London (and I imagine the rest of the UK). When we arrived in September nearly every restaurant we visited already had their Festive Menu available for booking any time from 22 November to the New Year. Joe and I wanted to participate in this tradition and give our moms a taste of fine British pub food, so we tried four different pubs in our area before settling on the Flask for our Christmas Eve "do."

The Flask did it right. We placed our orders ahead of time, so when we arrived they were ready to put on a little holiday party for us.

Christmas Crackers at every place setting - a British tradition (that I still don't understand).

A HUGE turkey dinner with all the trimmings in addition to our starters
and desserts - possibly the best valued meal we've had in an English restaurant.

Christmas "pudding" is a must, of course. Pudding is just the Britishism for dessert. This dessert is apparently like a fruit cake that is soaked in brandy for up to two months ahead of time. Then, on Christmas evening, you turn all the lights off and set it on fire and it glows blue. I even snapped a pic of this advert for it in a tube station on the way to the airport:

Here is Janis's Christmas pudding. I caught the blue glow!
The stuff on top that looks like cheese is custard, the British alternative to ice cream.

Christmas Day

All public transportation was shut down, so the moms got to order a taxi and avoid the bus for this visit to our flat. The day was relaxed. My mom and I cooked breakfast and dinner. We watched television (Christmas-y specials, DVDs, and a BBC special on Buckingham Palace). We lounged and occasionally dozed off.

instead of big gifts, we stuck to stockings

the most perfect London-themed Christmas wrap EVER!

Even in London we wanted to continue our tradition of Christmas brunch. We toned down the menu quite a bit, though, and stuck to pancakes and English bacon (basically ham) and, of course, mimosas. 

Pancakes the way we know them are an American thing. My regular grocery store does not sell pancake mix and only sells syrup in small bottles in the specialty foods aisle. We had to buy this pancake mix in the international food section at Marks & Spencer. In USD, this small container cost over $7. (Yes, we could have made scratch but this was a special occasion.)

Janis and Joanne both got to add pins to our map of the UK for the places we visited in County Kent. 

make-shift stocking weights on the radiator (that's like a fireplace, right?)

In the afternoon before the light disappeared, we took a walk to Waterlow Park, a hidden gem just above Highgate Cemetery and across the street from our flat. It was a beautiful day, perfect for a relaxed stroll. Joe and I love this park in our little corner of London; living so near a green space makes it easy to think we're not in a big city. 

On the way we saw a fox in the cemetery!

Instead of the traditional "Our First Christmas" ornament, our newlywed keepsake is a token of our year in England.

For dinner and dessert, my mom and I decided to be a little adventurous. We chose a Jamie Oliver recipe for roast Christmas duck that was delicious but more work than it may have been worth. The gravy/sauce was probably the best part. I love duck, personally, and will usually order it whenever I have the opportunity, but this recipe directed us to shred the meat before serving it and that wasn't very pretty. We also made the onion squash I'd received in my most recent Abel & Cole delivery, as well as Brussels sprouts (a British tradition), roasted potatoes, and Bailey's chocolate bread pudding with vanilla custard. Everything was delicious!

Boxing Day

Since BrewDog was closed on Thursday as well, I figured this was a good day to head down to Theatreland for a play. We debated the current offerings and tried to settle on something that would please everyone, but we just weren't hitting the right note. Lion King? Book of Mormon? A musical? A classic? Shakespeare?

Janis is a big Beatles fan and I knew she would be interested in seeing Let It Be, the musical that mimics a Beatles concert. My mom, however, would be more interested in one of the power musicals like Mama Mia or Les Miserables. So Joe and I decided to split them up and give them each what they'd want most: time with their own kid and the play they'd most enjoy. We also decided to keep the decision a surprise, even though we booked the tickets in the middle of November.

Both of our moms were thrilled when they opened their tickets on Christmas morning. Janis said she sang along to every word of the show and it was the closest she would ever get to seeing the Beatles live. Joe also really enjoyed the show, particularly its fidelity to each time period in the band's career. 

Seeing Les Mis live was an emotional experience for both my mom and I. From the first notes we both had to catch our breath; the music alone is so powerful and overwhelming. This musical is so special to us and we were both excited to share this experience here in London. Such a great memory to make!