London Spring
Plus the LA Olympics get blooming, Chihuly sculptures get busted, and more...
This week on The Escapologist…
Right Now in Travel, as Briefly as Possible
LA28, the marketing moniker of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, released its official color palettes, fonts, and design elements this week and… well, I love them. Inspired by California superblooms and the bird of paradise flower – the official flower of Los Angeles – they also conjure the neons of the 80s. Malibu Barbie. LA Gear sneakers. The eye-crossing patterns of Jams shorts. The boldness and the brightness feel right on time. (la28.org)
You know that feeling when you realize that the small problems and the huge problems are actually all the same problem? To wit, eight major culture and heritage organizations are jointly suing to halt any further changes to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts without Congressional approval. This follows recent comments from the President that he may take the building “down to the steel”. (National Trust for Historic Preservation)
The New Museum in NYC reopened this week following the addition of a Koolhaas-designed new wing that, from a distance, looks like the main building has spawned a cute, space age li’l friend – its very own R2-D2. This New York Times piece (gift link) sums it up nicely and, as a bonus, contains a dirty word that I had to look up.
A guy walked into Chihuly Garden and Glass, an outdoor exhibit at the foot of the Space Needle in Seattle, and just broke a bunch of stuff. I could say something here about a certain kind of art aficionado and how they probably think the art deserved it, but… (NBC News)
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Scratchpad: London Spring
Status: I’ve been 10+ times, including several spring trips.
Why now? Bridgerton is fake but spring in London is real and it can fix everything that hurts. Why? The shimmery sunny days. The Gothic rainy ones. And never forget, the English are deadly serious about their gardens. If I was going, here’s what I’d do.
Sleep:
This new hotel wasn’t actually philosopher Bertrand Russel’s townhouse, but wow am I ever willing to indulge the fantasy. If all you’ve ever wanted from London was a Bloomsbury address and tea and conversation in the Bohemian garden, start here.
Sometimes, florals for spring are necessary. The Firmdale Hotels, experts in flower prints (and checks, and paisley) never seem to miss. Number Sixteen is situated in a Kensington townhouse that has a hidden garden and orangerie.
Dishoom’s spinoff brand, The Permit Room, operates a single hotel – with a single, two-bedroom suite – on Portobello Road upstairs from the restaurant and the famous flower market. The space, done in buttery yellow, has high ceilings, top-floor light, and South Asian contemporary art.
The Pig at South Downs, West Sussex, England / Laura Motta, 2025 If you’re ready to ditch the city for the freedom and beauty of the countryside – and indeed, a cottage that is absolutely not a cottage – The Pig in the South Downs has fanciful “wagon” rooms that sit in its dreamy walled garden. Wake up early and all you’ll hear are the chirping birds and the bees buzzing in the century-old fruit trees.
Eat and Drink: Keep it simple. The Tamil Prince for modern Indian, martinis at American Bar at The Savoy, brunch at The Grazing Goat, and lattes – as many as you want – at Monmouth.
See and Do:
Two fashion exhibits to book ahead of arrival – Schiaparelli: Fashion Becomes Art at the V&A and Queen Elizabeth II: A Life in Style at King’s Gallery.
Wes Anderson: The Archives at Design Museum. Yes, it seems that the Fabulous Mr. Fox characters are on view.
Magnolias, cherry blossoms, and tulips will be blooming at The Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew through mid-April, but there’s never a bad time to visit this sprawling, historic garden. While you’re there, make time to visit Kew Palace, the smallest of the royal palaces, where King George III lived and battled mental and physical illness.
If you’re getting lunch at Tamil Prince, walk it off along the houseboat-lined Regent’s Canal walking path, with a stop at Word on the Water, a book shop on a boat with an impeccable selection. End your jaunt at slightly spooky St. Pancras Old Church, which is thought to be one of the oldest Christian sites in Europe. With big literary history that connects to Thomas Hardy, Mary Shelly, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Charles Dickens, it’s a good place to sit with whatever you bought at Word on the Water.
If you’re staying at Bertrand’s Townhouse in Bloomsbury, you cannot miss Present & Correct, one of my favorite stationery stores on earth for its utterly original selection of design items, paper, ephemera, and more. Catch your breath in London Review Bookshop next door.
Millennial musical theater kids rejoice (maybe): A John Doyle-directed (hence “maybe”) revival of Lucy Simon and Marsha Norman’s musical The Secret Garden is currently playing in actual Yorkshire at York Theatre Royal. “They play their own instruments!” aside, we don’t turn down a Secret Garden revival in this house.
Follow: fox.in.london never fails to indulge my vision of London as the perfect setting for a romance novel.