I can't remember what I was looking for when I stumbled on Hotel Chocolat's workshops for kids - but what a find! For one hour, my kids got to hang out with a handful of half-pint, sweet and chatty London locals, while learning about the chocolate making process, and decorating their own desserts. The workshop was held downstairs in HC's classroom, one level below their drool-worthy Covent Garden store. When I tell you that Hotel Chocolat makes some of the best chocolate I've ever tried, keep in mind that so much of *gourmet* chocolate on the market today leaves me unimpressed. (Is it just me or does there seem to be no palatable organic chocolate??) Too often it seems chocolatiers are trying too hard to impress, and I'm left craving a bag of predictable Hershey's Kisses. The minute we walked into Hotel Chocolate and were offered a sample of the less-than-appealing-sounding Carrot Cake Chocolate, I had doubts. But the fact that it actually tasted good enough for use to purchase and take away, really says something. We stocked up and plan to do a little more at their Oxford store, before flying out.
Each one was a beautiful, delicious mess.
From our workshop, we went back down underground and back up to South Bank to walk across Tower Bridge. We had planned to tour The Tower of London, but by the time we arrived it was only open for another 45 minutes, and with a steep entrance fee. We've had to drop at least one thing everyday due to all the things we hadn't plan for. Instead, we went into the bookstore and scanned the books for pictures of the Crown Jewels, then walked around the water for a bit before heading to our dinner at The Medieval Banquet.
So fun! We met Henry VIII, ate gruel, enjoyed entertainment in singing, acrobatics and sword fighting. The best part was getting to pound our elbows on the table after each performance - an absolute favorite for Tiny Buns!
Tiny Buns and the quote of the day:
"I'm just so full I want to crawl into a garbage can and die for twenty years, and then come back to life.
Oh, sorry! It was inappropriate of me to say "die".
But actually, we're in medieval times so... not really!"
Meet three of my all-time favorite people: Mr. Noodle, Miss Frijoles and The 8 year old.
