Museuming, cream tea and Hamilton

We started Tuesday with the Churchill War Rooms, which is a museum created from an underground warren of offices and living spaces that the people running the war effort in WWII England used to work and sleep (they were down there so many hours, they were required to have sun lamp treatments to prevent rickets).  Very interesting museum, with lots of rooms set up as they would have been at the time.  I've read the series that starts with "Mr. Churchill's Secretary" (the Maggie Hope series), and the author was clearly inspired by visiting this museum.  It's really important to get tickets in advance (on line).  Not only does it save money, but they only let in people who didn't buy advance tickets after all the ticketed types are let in.  We were there at 11, and the non-advance ticket line, led by a rather entitled acting guy, was in revolt after being told they probably wouldn't get in till after 2pm.  (and of course, it was raining).

After that we went off to the Tate Britain, so that Jay could get his fill of JMW Turner, his favorite painter (I love some of his work, and other pictures just do nothing for me).  Apparently his (self) portrait and most famous painting are going to be shown on the 20 pound note starting in 2020.

We found a quintessential British tea shop, the English Rose, for a cream tea (given our various play schedules, we been going for a two meal a day schedule).  Tea, warm scones, clotted cream, jam, finger sandwiches and cakes.  I love clotted cream, but it will clog your arteries just by slavering over it, so I try to have it once every year or so.  We tried out the two ways of eating scones -- in Devon it is cream then jam, in Cornwall it is jam then cream.   Jay likes jam first and I like cream first -- both of us because cream first causes the cream to melt a bit.  I had a piece of Victoria sponge, another very sweet British cake.

The highlight of the day/night was Hamilton.  We had row F seats for the cost of the nose-bleed seats in New York City.  The productions was everything people say it is.  It was in a newly refurbished theatre (the Victoria Palace), which is gorgeous.  Here are a couple of photos of the theatre

They obviously wouldn't let me photograph the performance, but here is the set

I can't say enough good about the production.  Of course, I haven't seen the Lin Manuel Miranda version, but I can't imagine those actors were significantly better.  The dancing and singing was superb, and the story, from what I can tell (I haven't read the Hamilton biography that it was based on) ,veers from historical accuracy just enough to make the story exciting.