Queen Elizabeth II At 90

This week the Queen celebrated her 90th Birthday. She is one of the world leaders and women that I admire because of her longevity, dedication to serving her country and people, survivor, and so incorruptible. Well, she is the only Queen of UK I know ever since I was born. It was like growing up with the Queen always there. Then my family moved to Canada which brought us more closer to the Queen and her royal family.  I wish some world leaders will follow her example by being less corrupt and be more dignified. I wish the Queen a longer life to live and a better quality of life in her older years. 

The Queen was not born in a Palace but at 17 Bruton Street in London's Mayfair on 21 April 1926 and was christened on 29 May 1926 at Buckingham Palace. 

 
The Royal Family stayed in Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle during WWII. The Queen learnt to drive in 1945 when she joined the Auxiliary  Territorial Service as a Subaltern. 

  
The Queen and Prince Philip celebrated their Diamond Wedding Anniversary in 2007.

The Queen is a keen photographer and enjoys taking photographs of her family.

 
The Queen became the longest reigning monarch on 9 September 2015 surpassing Queen Victoria's long reign. Princess Elizabeth was crowned Queen in June 1952 at 25 years old. She is the fortieth monarch since William The Conqueror obtained the crown of England. 

 
Every day of every year, the Queen is kept fully briefed on matters affecting the realms and Commonwealth. 

 
The Queen has visited 117 countries, travelling at least 1,032,513 miles during her reign. 

 
Queen Elizabeth is Patron of 626 charities, organisations and military regiments.
Recent photo of the Queen with 3 generations of future monarchs. 

 Queen with her great grand children.

 

The Queen is passionate about her horses and corgis (photo above). 

 

Happy Birthday Her Majesty! Long Live the Queen!

Photo credits:  V&A Museum Postcards Queen's Diamond Jubilee, photos by Cecil Beaton, Tatler Magazine  and  @BritishMonarchy. 

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Postcards from the V&A Museum: A Diamond Jubilee Exhibition

Queen Elizabeth on her Coronation Day photographed by Cecil Beaton.


To commemorate The Queen's Diamond Jubilee, the V&A Museum exhibition displayed portraits  by Cecil Beaton of the Royal Family during his lifetime. Cecil Beaton was born in 14 January 1904 and died in 18 January 1980. The 1950s was more of an exclusive world unlike from now where everything is multi-media, with many photographers, magazines, tabloids, TV Shows etc. To become a favourite photographer of the Royal Family during the 1950s meant, having exclusive photos of the Royal Family in both their private and public life. Lucky for British Photographer, Cecil Beaton, was the favourite photographer of the late Queen Mother, which allowed him instant and exclusive access to the private and more guarded life of the Royal Family. Cecil Beaton was the official photographer during Queen Elizabeth's Coronation in June 1953. I am sharing here some of the postcards that I bought from the V&A about the exhibition. It showcased when Princess Elizabeth was a young Colonel of the Grenadier Guards to become a Crown Princess, a wife, a mother and then Queen.


I admire The Queen for her lifelong commitment to duty and service to her country. She has definitely lived a long and valuable life with lots of memories of  world history in both the 20th and 21st Century. The Queen has served the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth and the World with her honest and dedicated service. She has outlived other politicians both the great and the despotic ones. Long live the Queen! May God Save the Queen!

The Royal Family: King George, Queen Elizabeth(The Queen Mother), Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret.

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Afternoon Tea at Fortnum and Mason

When in London, do not miss Afternoon Tea. It is a tradition in England to take Afternoon Tea. There are numerous hotels and restaurants around London that offer them in different styles. My aunt and I  had Sunday Afternoon Tea at Fortnum and Mason. I love Fortnum and Mason as they are well known in London as the place to purchase their own brand of Teas, Coffees, Cookies, Candies, Chocolates and other food products including cakes and wonderful pastries. I will feature those foods and other products that Fortnum and Mason sell in their one and only store in Piccadilly in several other posts. The store also have five restaurants that I highly recommend. For this visit, we tried the new Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon on the Fourth Floor. I am sharing here my experience of Afternoon Tea at Fortnum and Mason.

The Diamond Jubilee Tea Salon on the Fourth Floor.

I love the teal and gold colour combination on their China and menu. I also love the Tea China set and tea strainer which are all for sale in the store.  One thing I liked about Fortnum and Mason, is that they encourage the guests to order a different tea for refills. This allow guests to try their different teas. We started with Countess Grey which is a Classic Earl Grey tea with orange bergamot, then we tried the Mango tea and the Vanilla Tea.

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