Highlights High tea and high views

Tomorrow is Ian’s birthday and Jane had booked high tea at the Barbican for today as a celebration. She asked us if we would like to join them and we took 2 of the last 4 bookings remaining. We also decided this afternoon would be a good time to go up the ‘Shard’ as the forecast was good, so we started the day with firm plans in place. First though we drove to the supermarket (when it was actually open) to stock up.

We then used the tube to get to the Barbican although in a roundabout way as the station there was closed. The Barbican area has a number of apartment blocks, performing arts areas and a performing arts school, as well as an art gallery. We did a wander to finally find the Lakeside area and the sculpture garden, although we could not find any actual sculptures in the garden

The conservatory was due to open at noon for our high tea booking, but it was delayed as the food had been stuck in a lift. This delayed the tea so free prosecco was offered as an apology. We had glasses poured and then when they realised it was Ian’s birthday a bottle was left on our table, and the waiters sung to him. The bottle was not all drunk, however the food was all eaten as everything was delicious. Smoked salmon, coronations chicken, egg and cress sandwich, and pate and mousse were on the bottom as savouries. I even enjoyed the scones and they are not usually something I eat and they came with clotted cream and jam. Then 4 sweet treats that included the lightest pastry on an almond pie that we had all ever eaten. We all felt a little light headed and very full after our meal. A wander around the gardens afterwards helped us work off some of the ‘fullness’, although it was very hot and humid there. The turtles in the conservatory were much more at home than we were.

We stopped and stooped for a cache on the way to the tube and then headed up ‘the Shard’. It is the tallest building in the EU (for the moment anyway) being 306 m high and 310m to the tip. The tower's privately operated observation deck, The View from The Shard, was opened to the public on 1 February 2013. The glass-clad pyramidal tower has 72 habitable floors, with a viewing gallery and open-air observation deck on the 72nd floor, at a height of 244 metres. There is a hotel in the building but Jane told us that the design means you can look from one hotel room into another.

We had booked for the view on Saturday having spotted ‘the Shard’ on the Friday walk and all 4 of were keen for a visit. The forecast looked good for today so we choose 2.30pm to fit in with high tea. The weather and timing proved to be perfect and we even saw the Tower Bridge as it started to be raised for a ship to sail beneath.

The 4 of us took lots of photos from the top. They speak for themselves. The staff in the area were very good at pointing places out and taking photos for people. There was an option to pay to have champagne but none of us needed more alcohol.

We then headed back to Jane and Ian’s, taking the Jubilee line just to have a change.