My Dream - A Chocolate Walking Tour in London

Jess writes: Our family loves chocolate, and we could all happily eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Naturally, when mum and I were given the option to go on a Chocolate Ecstasy Tour around Mayfair, we immediately said yes.

The three hour long tour started at 10am, when we all met at Sketch. This was possibly one of the coolest and strangest restaurants I've ever been to, as it consists of many different parts. There is a tea room, an enchanted forest, a large diner-style room and award winning toilets! These toilets were like little pods, and the ceiling had colourful glass. It certainly wasn't something you see every day...

[caption id="attachment_1061" align="aligncenter" width="940"] The weird but brilliant toilets[/caption]

Our small group (only eleven people) sat at the back of the tea room, where our tour guide Lindsay taught us all about chocolate.

We learnt that the Mayans were the first group of people to use cocoa beans, but they made it into a drink which translates into "bitter water". The drink was cold, and does not sound nice at all...

I was particularly interested that the Aztec Emperor Montezuma used to drink over 50 goblets of a hot chocolate drink every day. He mixed red berries into his drink to turn it into "blood" and told his subjects that he would drink them if they misbehaved - this was an unconventional but effective way to get them to do what he wanted!

We gradually went forward in time, to learn about the development of the first chocolate bar, and how milk chocolate was created. Next, we were told how chocolate is made, and how to tell if it is good quality or not.

We all got to touch cocoa beans, which have nibs inside once the outer shell is removed. These nibs have over 50,000 antioxidants - who knew eating chocolate was so healthy?

[caption id="attachment_1060" align="aligncenter" width="940"] The delicious hot chocolate[/caption]

We were given a hot chocolate and a delicious apple pastry, and Mum and I agreed that the hot chocolate was the best we have ever tasted - it was even better than the ones in Vienna!

After sampling some Valrhona dark chocolate, it was time to leave. Our first stop on the tour was London's oldest chocolate shop: Charbonnel et Walker. The company has been at this site since the 1970s but have been on Bond Street since the company was established in 1875.

[caption id="attachment_1062" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Truffles![/caption]

Charbonnel et Walker provides chocolates to the Royal Family, and has some fascinating and very intimate pictures up on the walls - given to them by the Royal family. I particularly liked one of Princess Anne and Prince Charles, where Princess Anne is halfway out of the window!

[caption id="attachment_1063" align="aligncenter" width="940"] A rose cream - the Queen's favourite[/caption]

We got to try the Queen's favourite chocolates - rose and violet creams. I thought that these were utterly delicious, and could have happily eaten more. Next were Marc de Champagne truffles, the shop's best-seller. Mum and I adored these, and they were not too alcoholic.  As we were on the tour, we had a 10 per cent discount on the shop's chocolates. Consequently, we bought some, and mum was even offered another free chocolate.

Next came Prestat, favourite of the Queen Mother and Roald Dahl alike. The shop was tiny, but it was full of loads and loads of chocolates. We were given a choice of four cocoa-dusted Napoleon truffles, which were fabulous. I chose the plain chocolate one as the others were alcoholic, and absolutely loved it. We were also allowed to choose any chocolate of our choice, which was a very hard decision indeed! I eventually decided on a honey nougat chocolate and was not disappointed.

[caption id="attachment_1064" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Me with a knickerbocker glory bar we purchased[/caption]

Our third stop Carpo was definitely my favourite. It is a mixture of scrumptious chocolate, amazing nuts and dried fruit, which was amazing. We were given chocolate covered almonds, which were so good mum and I had to buy some to take home. We also bought salty macadamias, which we finished instantly when we got home as they were just too good...

[caption id="attachment_1066" align="aligncenter" width="940"] The huge slabs of chocolate at Carpo. We would have loved to buy one![/caption]

The last shop we visited on our tour was Paul A Young, home of the best salted caramel chocolate in the world. We were allowed to choose any chocolate we wanted, which was a very difficult choice. Mum tried the salted caramel which she absolutely raved about afterwards (and then bought one for dad to try), whereas I braved the Marmite. It was mouth-watering, and I liked it more than I thought I would.

[caption id="attachment_1068" align="aligncenter" width="940"] From left to right: award-winning salted caramels, the display table, marmite truffles[/caption]

We left the store with a stick of marzipan, and a small bag of chocolates including salted caramels, peanut butter and raspberry truffles and banoffee pie truffles.

By the end of our tour, we were all thoroughly chocolated-out. Lindsay thanked us, gave us leaflets and even gave us chocolate hearts as a late Valentine's day gift.

[caption id="attachment_1069" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Mum and me in Paul A Young[/caption]

Mum and I had such a brilliant time, and learnt a lot. The small group size meant we all felt included, and Lindsay was really lovely and knowledgeable. All of the chocolate was delicious, and I liked how there wasn't too much walking. I had a fantastic time, and would be more than happy to try another chocolate walking tour in the future!

Disclosure: The Mayfair Chocolate Ecstacy tour costs £40 per person, and includes the tastings (and hot chocolate!). The company also runs tours elsewhere in London and in Brighton. Check out their website for more. We took part in the tour on a complimentary basis, but all our views are our own. 

Top Secret: A Brilliant Visit To Bletchley Park

Jess says: After years of mum and dad promising to take us to Bletchley Park, home of the World War II code-breakers, we were finally deemed old enough to have a look round. I was thrilled - I love logic puzzles and trying to crack codes, and really wanted to find out about Alan Turing and the rest of the code-breakers. Furthermore, our family loved The Imitation Game with Benedict Cumberbatch, and I really wanted to see where it was set.



Robert says: First of all, we walked into the opening exhibition. I ran straight towards the video, which was about Enigma, what it was, and how it was cracked at Bletchley Park. In the beginning bit, there were also lots of facts that were displayed in different ways, and my favourite was when they asked a question and there would be a picture underneath the question. When you lifted up the picture, it would say the answer.

[caption id="attachment_1042" align="aligncenter" width="940"] An Enigma Machine[/caption]

Jess says: What interested me most about the opening exhibition was that many code-breakers had to learn specific languages which were not taught in Britain (such as Japanese and Italian) to find out what the codes were saying. We even saw the flashcards that they taught themselves with. I also enjoyed looking at the Enigma machines, and learning how certain messages were encrypted with an interactive display.

Robert says: After we came out of the opening exhibition, we went to pick up our audio tours, which come free with your ticket. There was an option to get the family or adult tour on your machine. Mum, dad and Jess say that the adult tour was really good, and I thought the family one was brilliant. It had quizzes at the end of some videos and they all had three categories: the equivalent of easy, medium and hard. As well as questions, they also had word searches, anagrams to solve and fill in the blanks. One of my favourite things of the audio tour was a picture of the modern day building at Bletchley, and when you rubbed the screen, it changed into the old version.

Jess says: We walked outside before going into Block B. I was surprised by how big the exhibition was - although it looked tiny on the outside, we must have spent around 45 minutes to an hour looking around. However, I did find this slightly overwhelming, as there was just so much to see and do, and not many places to sit! We learned the story of the breaking of the Lorenz cipher and what the Bombe (an electro-mechanical device to speed up the Enigma machine) actually was. There were lots of people on hand to talk about the machines and other facts.

[caption id="attachment_1039" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Robert with a machine in Block B[/caption]

Robert says: As well as seeing the largest collection of Enigma machines in the world, we also got to learn loads about Alan Turing and his life and even managed to see his watch and teddy bear. That was cool. It also showed an explanation of what life was like during the war. There were posters and rooms to look into, showing what life was like.

Jess says: Finally, it was time to look around "The Mansion", a 19th century house which was the headquarters of the Bletchley Park operation, and initially housed the code breaking sections. It was full of rooms to walk through, had information about the brilliant people who worked at Bletchley and included a special exhibition devoted to the "The Imitation Game". We got to see the exact bar that had been used in the film and see where Benedict Cumberbatch had sat. Unfortunately, we were not allowed to buy drinks there!

[caption id="attachment_1041" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Benedict Cumberbatch and Keira Knightley's outfits from the film[/caption]

Instead, we sat outside the mansion on benches and ate sandwiches from home. However, food is sold from Hut Four and there is a Tea Room in the Mansion.

Robert says: To get a little break from the Enigma, we went to the post office which the mathematicians would have used to send letters to family. There were two rooms to it, and one was really old and had interesting stationery. There were stamps, weights to weigh parcels and lots of bits of bobs that you would expect like paperclips and rubber bands. I really liked it, especially the person in the first room who let me have a go at stamping lots of pieces of paper. I even got to stamp a Top Secret one!

[caption id="attachment_1038" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Mum in the corridor of Hut 6 - you can see how narrow the corridors are[/caption]

Jess says: Next, we had a look around the Huts. I really liked Huts 3 and 6, as they had been made to look like what people think they did in World War Two. We got to see real furniture and projections with actors, which made it much more lifelike. Once the day's key was discovered, German messages were decrypted in Hut 6, before being translated in Hut 3. Hut 11 was fascinating, as it was home to the “Bombe” itself, and it was amazing to see Alan Turing's office in Hut 8.

[caption id="attachment_1040" align="aligncenter" width="940"] Outside Hut 8[/caption]

Robert says: I really enjoyed Hut 8, as there was never much queueing. There were so many interactive things to do and if there were two people in line for one thing, you could always just come back to it later. The interactive boards showed the parts of intercepting and decoding codes. You also learnt about the tiny possibility of getting the right combination you want in Enigma. You may not know that there were millions of millions of millions of different combinations in an Enigma machine, so some of the activities, like just flipping a coin or rolling a die, showed you that it was so hard to get what you wanted.

Jess says: Overall, the whole family had a fantastic day. Although there was a lot to take in, it was great to step back in time and experience what it was like to work at Bletchley Park during the war. There were some lovely touches, such as a kids's playground, and everyone was very nice and friendly. I think that Bletchley Park is a must for everyone who lives in or near London.

PLEASE WATCH THE SHORT VIDEO I MADE ABOVE

The admission price for Bletchley Park is £16.75 for an adult ticket, £10.00 for children over 12 and free for children under twelve. These tickets allow you to visit Bletchley an unlimited amount of times for a year after their first use. It is located in Milton Keynes, about an hour or so from London.

Disclosure: we were given free entry into Bletchley Park. All our opinions and views, however, are our own.

More from us:

The Sherlock Holmes exhibition at the Museum of London

The Roman Baths, in Bath!

Enjoying the beaches in Tenerife

When Robert was a toddler we took him to Ireland and he was entranced by the sea. He stood at the side of the water just watching and then started to pick up some pebbles and throw them in. He has loved the sea and the beach, wherever they may be, ever since.

So, when we decided to go to Tenerife over Christmas, we knew that the sea would be a popular destination. However, we didn't know how impressive it would be and how we would all be happy just to sit and watch the remarkable waves, crashing onto the shore.

We stayed in an apartment near the San Miguel golf course, about five to ten minutes from the shore. This was not a beachside location - the terrain near the water was coarse and pebbly. It was also wonderful and a magnificent place for walking.

[caption id="attachment_1024" align="aligncenter" width="940"] We had a lovely walk above the sea, and them made our way down to the water's edge[/caption]

We love walking with the kids, especially when there's no rush and no particular destination! Instead we just traipse along for the fun of it, enjoying the views and the chat. Obviously this has become easier since the children got older, but it really is a great part of family time, and something we don't often get to do together at home in busy London.

So, on the first day, we walked along to the marina and watched the waves crashing as we did so. We had competitions to see who could throw their stones the furthest and enjoyed the sun on our faces.


Another day we walked in the other direction, which was even more impressive. I hadn't expected Tenerife to be so beautiful and we were overwhelmed by the extremely clear water, the endless views and the huge numbers of differently shaped rocks.

Of course we also we couldn't holiday in Tenerife without visiting some "proper" beaches and we loved these too. We'd also recommend both the ones we tried out.

[caption id="attachment_1026" align="aligncenter" width="768"] Robert loved bungee jumping at Los Cristianos[/caption]

We spent one gorgeous hot day in Los Cristianos, about 15 minutes from our apartment. It was a beautiful sea front, with loads of sun loungers and sand. It was also extremely busy, packed with tourists (as you'd expect), but it was all nice and clean and had a fun atmosphere.

That was fine for us. Robert built some sandcastles, we all paddled and Jess and I enjoyed lying in the sun (not something we'd be doing back home in December!). Robert also enjoyed trying out some bungee jumping and the assistants there were incredibly friendly, showing him how to do turns and tricks.

[caption id="attachment_1027" align="aligncenter" width="940"] The beautiful beach at Playa del Bobo[/caption]

The second beach was one we visited by chance, as Jess told you in her blog post on when things go wrong on holiday. The Playa del Bobo, on the Costa Adeje was utterly gorgeous. We loved paddling in the waves and the beach was enormous. It was less busy than Los Cristianos, but also surrounded by some lovely shops, restaurants and ice-cream bars. It also featured the most marvellous views and was a real treat.

So, Tenerife went beyond our expectations, despite missing Mount Teide! We thought it was a great place for a family holiday, easy to eat out, with lots to do for all ages and breathtaking natural beauty. It was also so lovely and hot! We'd love to go back.

More on Tenerife:

Robert tells you about Siam Park Waterpark

Jess explains how a trip to Mount Teide went wrong...

We've joined up with the lovely Country Kids this week - pop over there to see more outdoor fun.



 

Winchester, Wolf Hall and more

[caption id="attachment_1015" align="aligncenter" width="363"] The Nave of Winchester Cathedral[/caption]

We had a terrific time when we went to Winchester a few years ago, particularly enjoying the Science Centre, but also doing some brass rubbing and trying on some armour at the Westgate Museum (a former debtors' prison), having a lovely mooch around the city and standing in awe at the incredible cathedral (which had its own children's trail, as well as the grave of Jane Austen, which meant two extra-good reasons to visit).

Now the city has found a new way to market itself, in connection with Wolf Hall, Hilary Mantel's book, which is currently being screened on BBC 2. As a Tudor aficionado (I studied Tudor history at school and then at university too), I am really enjoying my Wednesday night treat, even if I was never particularly sympathetic to Thomas Cromwell before now, so I was intrigued by this new Wolf Hall trail. And I have to say it might require another trip to Winchester!

The revamped trail (which you can see here) has been launched in response to many enquiries about the Tudor attractions in Winchester and includes The Great Hall and Winchester Cathedral. If you are a hard-core fan, and want even more, you can also take a walking trail which connects filming locations for Wolf Hall with Tudor landmarks.

Other properties connected with the television seriesl include the gorgeous Barrington Court in Somerset (which represents York Place/Whitehall, the home of Cardinal Wolsey) and Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire, which not only represents Wolf Hall itself, but has also appeared on the small and big screen before, including in Pride and Prejudice and two of the Harry Potter films.

Read about our trip to Winchester

Watch our video of Hever Castle, childhood home of Anne Boleyn

Churchill's Scientists: An Exhibition at The Science Museum

By Jess:

Over the weekend, I had a lovely time visiting the "Churchill's Scientists" exhibition with my cousin. I hadn't been to the Science Museum since August 2013, when we watched "The Energy Show". Therefore, I was really excited to go back and learn about Churchill's involvement with science during the war.

Churchill was the first UK prime minister to have a scientific adviser but few people are aware of his passion for the topic. This new exhibition aims to educate the public on the fascinating scientific developments that took place during his career.

As soon as we arrived, my cousin and I decided to go straight into the exhibition. We were greeted by a large sculpture of Churchill's head, and read columns written by him in newspapers. I was excited by essentially the world's first "onesie", a velvet green siren suit worn by Churchill during air raids. There was even a picture of him wearing it!

It was intriguing to learn about the development of atomic bombs, and we watched a film of Britain's first ones ever going off. We learnt that they decided to place it on an island off Australia in 1952, and even saw the high-speed camera that filmed the first milliseconds of the detonation of the bomb.

[caption id="attachment_1000" align="aligncenter" width="940"] The camera that captured the detonation of Britain's first atomic bomb.[/caption]

A large section of the exhibition was devoted to radar. I wish that I had known something about this before the day because I got slightly confused. By the end, I knew that radar is the sending out of radio waves which are reflected off the object back to the source, but I was still baffled as to how this could translate into a visual display for humans to use. We watched old introductory videos which were really cool, and looked at different maps and pieces of equipment, including the original radar receiver used by Robert Watson-Watt in an experiment to prove that radar works.

I absolutely loved seeing the cigar Churchill smoked on winning the election in 1951. He left it on the table after discovering his victory and it was never thrown away. It was brilliant to actually see Churchill smoking the cigar on film.

[caption id="attachment_1002" align="aligncenter" width="940"] A molecular model of Penicillin by Dorothy Hodgkin in 1945.[/caption]

Although those were the highlights of the exhibition, I enjoyed everything, such as learning about the development of penicillin and the creation of a ration system that cut down on food consumption while ensuring the nation was still healthy.

The whole exhibition was really engrossing and I learnt a lot. It was slightly complicated in places, but the majority was fine for someone my age (13). We saw so many incredible objects, and I loved seeing so many amazing films. I would definitely recommend a visit to the exhibition and the rest of the museum as it is free and there is a lot to see and do.

All photos are courtesy of The Science Museum

More exhibitions that I've been to and loved:

The Sherlock Holmes Exhibition at The Museum of London

A Visit To Kenwood House