A TRIP TO MAYFIELD LAVENDER FARM (2ND OF 2 PARTS)

Here’s the first part.

Every summer Jared and I organise different activities for the kids at church as part of our youth ministry outreach program. We always encourage them to spend time with their church friends rather than with their school friends simply because they usually get themselves in trouble when they are with their school friends (yes, we do our best to keep them out of trouble). Whether or not the kids travel during the summer holidays, we always have some activities lined up for them and those that remain in London have the option of joining whatever church activity we’ve planned.

The lavender field trip wasn’t part of our young people’s summer activity. It never was. It’s rather on my personal bucket list this year; I’ve been wanting to do it since the ‘Burlington Ladies’ lavender picnic didn’t materialise last year. (Take note Aimee, Dynah, Kristine, Marj and Precy!) I wanted to do this excursion on a weekday when it’s not too crowded. So I’ve invited Joy to join me for three reasons — first, she and I both have free time during the week to do an out of town trip together; second, we both share some common interests like baking, crafting, etc., and we enjoy talking about those things other than spiritual matters; and third, it will be our first time to do things together on our own outside of the church. But alas, it never happened. For good reasons. Every time we set a date to go last month it gets either too cloudy and/or rainy, or something else comes up. In hindsight, we realised that the Lord arranged it that way for specific reasons.

When I mentioned to Jared at the beginning of summer that I thought about inviting the teenage girls to join us for the lavender field trip, he thought it’s not something they’d be interested in doing, and that, it would be the last thing these teenagers would ever wanna do. I told him he was wrong but I didn’t mention anything to the girls until three weeks ago.

The topic came up when we took Angeli and Anisa out to dinner (we had pizza btw). I was wearing my new maxi skirt and the topic of ‘skirt-sewing’ and ‘lavender trip’ just naturally came up. But before any of our teens and/or anyone from church reading this blog raise their arms up in protest or get jealous that we took the two girls out to dinner without the other kids, let me just say that that week we only had four of our teenagers in town while others were traveling. And we had planned a special activity for those who were in London but for some reasons, two of them couldn’t join us. So with only two girls able to do something with us that week, Jared and I decided to just take them out to dinner after the Wednesday night bible study rather than do something else the following day.

Over dinner I mentioned to Anisa and Angeli that I was going to a lavender field with Joy wearing the skirt I just made. The girls were thrilled with the prospect of visiting a lavender field for the first time (which greatly surprised Jared. I proved him wrong ha!), they were giggling talking about walking in the field and taking loads of photos in maxi skirt. Anisa even mentioned that she will tell her Mum she needs a new maxi skirt. I told the girls I could teach them how to make the exact same skirt I had on — they got more excited about it so right then and there we planned a sewing workshop. A couple of days later, I took the girls out to a fabric and haberdashery shop to buy the materials. It only costs each of them a total of £9.50 — the fabric was on sale from £5 per metre down to £2 but because they bought 3 metres they got an extra 50 pence discount hence, they only paid £5.50; zipper – £2.30; thread – £1.50, and 20 pence for the hook and eye.

As soon as we returned to church, we started the workshop. I’ve given the girls detailed instructions on how to take a proper body measurement to determine their waistline; to take the desired length of the skirt; fabric allowance for sewing; width and length of waistband, and so on and so forth — it was clear-cut. Easy enough to follow and they did a great job measuring and cutting the fabrics on their own.

Sewing is a little bit tricky for beginners but they very quickly learned how to use the sewing machine. Angeli brought her grandma’s sewing machine; Heather brought her dad’s sewing machine; but regrettably, Anisa’s didn’t work, she has the cutest and ‘girliest’ (just made up the word, it’s not in Webster dictionary yet) sewing machine I’ve ever seen. With only 3 sewing machine and five girls, two of them had to wait and work on something like redo the plaits, or cut the fabrics for the belt while others were sewing. I had to quickly move from one girl to the next, keeping an eye on what everyone was doing to make sure they’re on the right track. It was a lot of work and I was moving around like a headless chicken.  At the end of the second day, I was dead tired and felt like the puppies on the pics below haha! (photos from the internet)

Except for Heather who, instead of a maxi did an easier midi-skirt version, it took the other girls three sessions to work on their skirts. Sewing the invisible zipper was a bit complicated so I had to do it for them except for Heather who had the courage to do it on her own, it was a trial and error but she did it right after two or three attempts. All of them had to remove the stitches or redo whatever mistakes they made, and at times, they showed their frustrations like rolling their eyes or something — that’s expected from teenagers, right?   They seemed excited and happy doing it, but Heather and Angeli were the ones who showed so much enthusiasm and excitement. And for their first ‘real sewing’ project, I must say that the girls did a great job. I am so proud of them. See photos below of all five girls — Anisa, Angeli, Heather, Jasmine and Jemimah — with their skirts on.

And yes, we finally got to do the lavender field trip last week! Heather was away and missed it. (Sorry Heather!) We couldn’t put it off for another week simply because the lavender season is almost over. In fact, mid-July is the best time to visit when the lavender crop is at its finest. As you can see in the photos, the purple hue isn’t as bright as it should have been a month ago.

The girls look fabulous in their outfits.

They had fun goofing around the field and posing for photos like there’s no tomorrow!

Some people passing by actually looked at the girls from head to toe probably wondering why they were in their Sunday’s best.

Loved seeing them very happy and having loads of fun. But they’re teenagers so at times they’d roll their eyes when they’re told, ‘Come on girls, give me a big smile!’ 

Oh, and this ‘sleepy-dreamy’ look? Blame it on the photographer and the magnificent smelling lavender.  The gorgeous smell was very relaxing and made us feel sleepy haha! (I love lavender. I could live in a ‘bahay kubo – ‘small hut’ in the middle of a lavender field.)

If anyone (am guessing may be some of our church mates who skipped reading the story and just  wanted to see the photos) is wondering why Joy and Oliver ended up joining our young people’s outing (as they’re not part of our teens ministry), here’s the short answer — please scroll up to read the full story — the teenagers just tagged along with us. Joy and I originally planned for this excursion on our own. We talked about going very early as soon as the field opens, taking selfies and/or photos of each other and sitting in the cafe to catch up over tea and scones. But alas, we didn’t even get to sit down and have tea! Lord willing, next year we’ll get to do that ha!? 

Trystan was our official photographer and he did a wonderful job! Thanks to Oliver/Joy for T’s solo picture below. So cute. He had fun taking pictures of everyone.

Photos below (courtesy of Joy & Oliver) show the kids and adults alike in action. Even Elijah ended up posing like a model with his head tilted and lips slightly open (with thousands of bees buzzing around us, I was afraid that a bee would actually end up in his mouth as he posed for photographs). 

There were loads of honeybees around the field and being stung by a bee is not part of the lavender tour. 

Trystan took this picture of Oliver, Joy and the girls.

He also captured Elijah and Jeremiah — either gazing at the horizon or watching people, and also, probably arguing on who’s gonna carry the bags.  (We made them carry our bags to free up our hands for the photo shoot. See Elijah carrying my bayong? Thank you man!) Part of the fun of being in the lavender field was actually watching people posing, selfie-taking, or sometimes just staring at the flowers swamped with bees (lavender fields are a magnet for bees).

We didn’t get to tour around the 25 acre field but we got to walk around a portion of the field where the lavender are still in bloom and waiting for harvest. We stayed for about 4 hours and it was long enough for us to leisurely meander around, enjoy the scenery, and take loads of photos.

We first ended up at the lavender shop, about a mile and a half from the field, but it actually was a blessing in disguise because we got to see Mayfield’s quaint shop.

I love its rustic charm, and all the beautiful smelling lavender products.

Mayfield Farm is in a remote but charming part of the Surrey countryside, not in Kent as I originally thought. It’s the only lavender field in England that’s quite close to Britain’s capital city, only 15 miles from central London.

It has a small shop and a cafe at the entrance of the field where anyone can buy fresh and gorgeous smelling freshly harvested lavender, soaps, aromatherapy, cosmetics, and pretty much everything lavender infused products; the guests can also try their lavender tea, lavender scones and other lavender flavoured sweets. They have a car parking which is free of charge, if you’re able to find somewhere to park. It gets quite busy and the field was crowded when we arrived. In fact, we could hardly get any photos without a photo bomber. But at 5 pm people started leaving and we were able to get some good photos without anyone walking, standing or taking selfie behind us.

Jared and Trystan both don’t mind taking photos of everyone but themselves. In saying that however, they happily posed for a nice photo with me before we left. (Photo courtesy of Jas).

Jared took loads of photographs and the one below is my number one favourite — the gorgeous blue skies, rows of green and purple hues, and my eyes aren’t shut — they usually are in most photos  — and to top it off, I am holding a lovely bouquet of lavender like a bridesmaid haha!

Mayfield isn’t like any of those lavender fields in Provence, France (the lavender capital of the world) but for Londoners who love this gorgeous-smelling plant, it is a great place to visit. I’d highly recommend this to anyone who likes lavender or wants an ‘Instagram-worthy’ photographs. I wish they do allow picnics in the field but sadly, they don’t. Food and drink can only be enjoyed in the sitting area provided in the coffee shop.

There is no time limit in place for the guests, they can stay for as long as they want, between 10 AM to 6 PM.

The wafting gorgeous aroma of lavender was overwhelming. I love lavender and just couldn’t get enough of it. It was a blessing to be there; I was reminded while traipsing around the field that only a Wise God can create those magnificent smelling plants. The Lord is the only One who has the power and the ability to provide the increase — growing plants, blooming flowers, bees collecting pollen and nectar to make honey — practically everything around was a beautiful reminder of God’s power in creation. Our teens may not have the time to even pause for a minute and think about God and His glorious creation, but I am so glad they have been a big part of this venture — maxi skirt sewing and lavender farm traipsing — we created a lot of memories together that, hopefully, will linger on long after Jared and I are no longer around. I can only hope that someday their first lavender field trip will become one of those funny stories that they can tell their grandkids.

SUMMER IN LONDON: ALL ABOUT ROSES

Summer is my favourite season of the year. I am a tropical girl after all.  Regrettably, London has a very short summer and there is no distinct four seasons here. It’s a rather odd and unpredictable weather with a cold, wet and long winter months but very brief hot summer days. When it’s not raining I like to go out and take a long walk in the park. And we are blessed to live in a neighbourhood that’s only a few minutes walk to some of the most beautiful parks in the city — Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park and Holland Park. There are other parks in London that I love to visit whenever I get the chance. One of them is Regent’s Park — a massive area and home of London Zoo, Royal Botanic Society, etc. And my favourite part of the park is the rose gardens which is absolutely stunning when all the flowers are in full bloom.

The rose garden is part of Queen Mary’s Gardens created in the 1930s, and has the largest collection of roses in London. There are over 12,000 roses and 85 variety beds aside from many other flowers like begonias, tulips, etc. It is indeed a floral paradise.

The garden was named after Queen Mary, the wife of King George V. 

In 1932 when the garden opened to the general public, the first superintendent planted a rose garden which was completed in 1934.

Almost all rose varieties, from the classics to the most modern English roses, are present at Regent Parks’ rose garden.

There are shrubberies around that add a sense of fascination to the gardens.

The wonderful sights and scents of the gorgeous roses, the superb shrubberies and many other plants and flowers all play a significant part in the experience of visiting the park.

Visitors can sit on the grass, have picnic, and enjoy the garden.

All the rose varieties have name plaques such as Keep Smiling, Pride of London, Deep Secret, Lovely Lady, and many other captivating names.

I can’t get enough of these roses.

The garden smells absolutely divine.

I’d probably come here every single day in the summer if we live closer to this park.

We hardly ever come here but about a month ago Jared and I managed to do it; we walked around Regent’s Park for about 3 hours from Primrose Hill all the way down to Avenue Gardens and Queen Mary’s Gardens.

Jared and I took loads of photographs and this last one is my favourite (I am not the subject but a rather shadowy figure in the background).  If you love roses and happen to be in London in the summer months you should visit Regent’s Park, and you’ll enjoy seeing the sea of roses.

DIANA, OUR MOTHER: HER LIFE AND LEGACY (ITV DOCUMENTARY)

The new ITV documentary ‘Diana, Our Mother: Her Life and Legacy’ is not in any way an explosive version of Princess Diana’s interview about intimate details of her marriage, or her, and her husband’s extra-marital affairs. There was none of that. Rather it was an intimate account of her sons, Princes William and Harry, on how they view their mother and the impact she had on their lives yet with very little new insight. William and Harry speak about their mother on film for the first time and they didn’t really go that far or that deep which is understandable. They probably feel it would be a dishonour to Diana if they revealed too much about her life. I wish we heard them talk about what they learned from their mother’s mistakes, or their own reservations about a life lived in front of the public eye.

Interestingly, Prince Harry talks about her mother being a “naughty parent” and telling him “to do anything naughty as long as you don’t get yourself caught doing it.” I’ve read some biography books about the late princess and learned about the complexities of her public persona, how she manipulated the media and all of that, but watching her talking to a stalker demanding he gives her and her sons some privacy is absolutely compelling.

Towards the end of the documentary, Prince Harry talks about the first time he cried after his mother’s death, and Prince William reveals how he keeps the memory of his mother alive for his children. He says, “I do regularly, putting George or Charlotte to bed, talk about her and just try and remind them that there are two grandmothers, there were two grandmothers in their lives, and so it’s important that they know who she was and that she existed.” William also jokes that his mother would have been a “nightmare”grandma. He says, “She’d love the children to bits, but she’d be an absolute nightmare. She’d come in probably at bath time, cause an amazing amount of scene, bubbles everywhere, bathwater all over the place and then leave.”

It was then finally, as I watched William share all of that, that it went from public to personal testimony – with William talking of an imagined grandmother, suddenly showing up unannounced at bath time, creating madness around yet making it so much fun for the kids, and leaving just before it gets all too messy — perhaps just enough for the kids to cry out, “Granny, please don’t leave!”  It is perhaps the most fitting comparison given in this documentary for Princess Diana’s legacy – showing up, moving things around, creating a little bit of a mess here and there while making everyone around laugh and feel loved, and then disappear in an instant.

Whether you’re a fan of the late princess or not, you’d enjoy watching this documentary. Footages of Diana shaking hands with AIDS patients, talking to the homeless people in London, accepting flowers from a little girl on the street, or visiting the landmine victims in Bosnia — all of these show that she really had a unique gift of making people feel loved; that she can easily empathize with anyone, and she really did care for the less fortunate.

Enjoy watching!

Note: Sorry the link to ITV no longer exists, and it’s not available on YouTube.

TOO CLOSE TO HOME

The terrible tragedy in Kensington last week caused me to once again ponder about the uncertainty and fragility of life.  It was the second most horrific event in London this month following the June 4th London Bridge terror attack and the Finsbury Park terror attack the other day.  In all three London atrocities, and particularly the blaze that ravaged the 24-storey residential building in west London, really did hit too close to home than I might want to admit, literally and figuratively, the realisation that a disaster can happen without an apparent warning.

On the 4th of June, eight people were killed and forty eight were injured when three men ploughed pedestrians with a van at London Bridge before slashing Londoners and tourists alike at Borough Market.  And then the Grenfell Tower blaze occurred ten days later; seventy nine people had been killed (as of today’s count), many people are still being treated at hospital, and no one knows for sure how many more remain unaccounted for.  Then five days later Londoners once again woke up to another terrible news — the Finsbury Park terror attack that killed one person and injured 10 people.

I could not even begin to imagine what the survivors as well as the victims’ families are going through right now.  It must be a dreadful experience.  Some have lost not just a family member and/or friends but also their homes and possessions.  Just the thought of it sent chills down my spine. 

It was wonderful though to hear the stories that people shared — the survivors who revealed their dramatic escape as well as the people who helped the victims.  How the emergency services arrived quickly and risked their own lives to save others.  How the doctors, nurses and other medical staff worked round the clock to help those severely injured.  How the neighbours and strangers from across England came together to distribute relief goods and reach out to the evacuees.  There are other tales of tragedy and heroism following the fire and terror attacks that were very touching and heartwarming.  They influenced many lives and made people feel loved and valued.

There’s a story about some of the residents in the tower hanging out of the windows crying out for help.  And a young woman who, out of desperation, dropped her baby from the window of her 10th floor flat and a man on the scene ran forward to safely catch the tot.  This poor mother got a backlash for what she did.  But she probably made the wisest decision she could ever make given the circumstance.  These are just some of the harrowing accounts in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire.   

It’s a haunting experience to come upon the debris site as I was making my way closer to Grenfell Tower on Wednesday afternoon.  The fire trucks and other equipments were already removed, but pieces of the shattered building are still strewn across the neighbourhood while the emergency services are still trying to recover the remains of those who were trapped inside the tower.  It was heart-wrenching to see people huddled in small groups weeping together, some of them were waiting to hear some news about their loved ones; others were hopeful that the firefighters will be able to pull out from the ravages of fire any physical remains of a missing family member.

On my way back home I noticed the street sign ‘Clarendon Road’ — it leads to Holland Park, one of Britain’s wealthiest neighbourhood, and I thought about the evacuees, the homeless people who used to live at Grenfell Tower, most of them are London’s poorest and are on welfare or state benefits.  As I look back and saw the dark gutted tower block it dawned on me that Grenfell Tower is too close to Holland Park, that it is not that far away, yet it really is a world apart.

It’s not the first time that a blaze and a terror attack hit London, and sadly it’s not likely to be the last.  In fact, there is a serious danger of terror attack or other type of disaster and it could happen to any of us at any time.  It is indeed a sobering thought.  A week ago I stood on Grenfell Road astonished at the devastation; I then looked up at the bright blue skies and this passage came to mind, “You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” (Isaiah 26:3, KJV)As I stood there taking it all in while watching the firefighters come and go, I prayed for the victims and their families, the emergency rescue team on the ground, the government leaders and the British people as a whole.  I particularly prayed for the Christians around the country that they will continue to stand up for the truth and try to make a difference in the lives of others, and I ask the Lord to give peace to those who keep their faith and trust in Him.

There’s so much craziness going on around us — terrorism, persecution, violence, crime, economic uncertainty, etc.  We fear for our safety, we fear for our families, we fear for our financial future, and the list goes on.  There actually is so much we could potentially worry about.  But the scripture tells us to “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.” (Deuteronomy 31:6, KJV)

Note:

Featured Image: BBC 

Spring Blooms in Notting Hill

Other than seeing blossoms, there are other things I am so thankful for when spring arrives in London.  For one thing, the sun finally makes an appearance; I get to wear my spring jackets and put away my winter coats!  Consequently, I get to feel the warmth of the sun on my skin and get Vitamin D from sunlight.  The days are also longer with temperatures rising; the trees begin to burst back to life, and the flowers are blooming making the parks and the streets look a little bit more magical.

Continue reading “Spring Blooms in Notting Hill” →

Things I learned about the British Culture: Christmas Traditions (Part 2)

In this series: ‘Things I learned about the British Culture’ Part 1.
Before I moved to London I knew next to nothing about the Christmas traditions in the UK. I had no idea that the main Christmas meal is eaten at lunchtime or early afternoon on Christmas Day; that the dinner table is decorated with Christmas Cracker; that people eat goose, brussel sprouts, pudding and mince pies for dessert (I thought mince pies were made with mince beef!), that they drink mulled wine, and that they tell their kids that their presents were from Santa. Seriously, every kid in the Philippines knew that Santa is a fake. Houses have no chimneys so how was he supposed to climb down to deliver the presents? Besides, it’s hard to believe that Santa is real when you see a skinny Filipino guy at the shopping malls or a hotel lobby dressed up in a red suit with fake cotton beard. 😆 Continue reading “Things I learned about the British Culture: Christmas Traditions (Part 2)” →

Quintessential Mews in Notting Hill (2/2)

In my previous post I talked about how my fascination with mews housing came about, and how mews evolved from its lowly equine function to expensive homes. Continue reading “Quintessential Mews in Notting Hill (2/2)” →

Quintessential Mews in Notting Hill (1/2)

Prior to my first London trip back in 1999 I had no idea what a ‘mews’ was.  My very first visit to a mews was in west London, at Jared’s family home, located in a quiet enclave called ‘White Swan  Mews’ in Chiswick.  But it’s not the typical Victorian period mews with a cobbled-street and two or three storey cottages.  White Swan Mews is a rather modern, a post-war era gated neighbourhood with three-storey houses and a spacious backyard garden. Continue reading “Quintessential Mews in Notting Hill (1/2)” →

Things I have learned about the British Culture: They love to talk about the weather (Part 1)

Let’s face it, those of us who come from far flung countries like the Philippines or Japan, have no full comprehension of the British culture even after living in the country for over a decade. If you’re like me, the first few months of living here must have brought some culture shock to your system. And I’m not even talking about any difficulty you may have encountered in trying to understand the British accent (it can be a challenge), but rather I’m referring to the British way of life; how the Britons conduct themselves and what motivates them to behave in a certain fashion.  I deem the topic of such interest that I decided to do a series of post about all the things that I have so far learned about the British culture in the last sixteen years. I’ve lived in England that long, I’m afraid! 😉 Yet there are far too many things I don’t understand about my adopted country.  But let’s not even go there, I’m here to talk about the things I have come to fully understand and eagerly embrace.  Here’s the very first one . . . Continue reading “Things I have learned about the British Culture: They love to talk about the weather (Part 1)” →

Elizabeth at 90: A Family Tribute

A ninetieth birthday is a remarkable achievement by any standards. But when the person celebrating also happens to be the longest reigning monarch in British history, it is an occasion worth celebrating. And that’s exactly what the members of the royal family did in this documentary to honour the Queen’s nine decades on earth.  Continue reading “Elizabeth at 90: A Family Tribute” →