My Kind of Day--Day 18

First off, I thought I would satisfy the curiosity of those who would like to see the inside of our student residence. Here is my room (albeit a little messy):

My desk and bed are on the left.

 Our lovely kitchen:

And the fifth floor common room:

Now for the details of my day. I am in a very contented state of mind at the moment for a variety of reasons. First of all, I had another successful shopping trip at the grocery store today. Secondly, my friends and I went out for some coffee this afternoon at a nearby French bakery/cafe called Paul. At said cafe, I had the richest, thickest, and most delicious hot chocolate of my life. It was basically like drinking melted dark chocolate. My friend had their mocha, and I'm betting it would rival the mocha from Cafe Alba. As you might imagine, I am very willing to find out. I also felt a little peckish at the cafe, so I ordered a similarly delicious chocolate pastry. My father loves chocolate pastries, and I must tell you that I have come by the same love honestly.

After that delightful little pick-me-up, I ventured alone to the Chelsea Physic Garden, a mere 15 minutes from our residence and very easy to get to from a navigation standpoint. What a charming little place! It is situated on 3.8 acres just to the north of the River Thames and is cozily tucked behind red brick walls. I was glad for the solitude of this secluded location, and it was only 5 pounds to get in with my student ID card. I was just in time for the free 3 PM tour of the garden, and it was extremely interesting and fun. It started sprinkling a little during the tour, and I was afraid that it would rain and that I wouldn't be able to get any pictures to show you. However, it cleared up nicely, so I was very pleased. Anyway, the Chelsea Physic Garden was founded in 1673 as an academic institution for the benefit of aspiring apothecaries. It did not open to the public until more than 300 years later in 1983, during which time it began to gain eminence as a teaching and research institution and as a supplier for botanic gardens. Today it is still concerned with research (particularly the re-emergence of interest in the medicinal properties of plants) and has partnered with botanic gardens around the UK to work on plant conservation measures.

An example of the layout of much of the Physic Garden. Each bed contains plants within the same order (plants that are related). This layout has been in use since the garden's inception.

The seal of the apothecaries. The gold figure is Apollo, who is kind of the patron god of apothecaries. The rhinoceros on top represents the medicinal qualities of plants (the horn of the rhinoceros was once very valuable and sought after as an aphrodisiac).

 Some of my favorite parts of the garden were the rock garden with its pond, the spice garden, the pharmaceutical garden, and the vegetable garden. The rock garden has stone from the Tower of London, which was given to the curator when the Tower was under construction and ended up with extra material. The Physic Garden needed rocks in order to grow some of its medicinal plants, so those in charge of the Tower construction consented to donate the extra building material. The rock garden is also made up of basalt that was donated by Sir Joseph Banks--a botanist and patron of the natural sciences--from his voyages to Iceland. The oyster shell in the center of the pond is a tribute to Sir Joseph Banks.

The grey stone with the lines carved into it is from the Tower of London. The darker grey/black rocks are Icelandic basalt.

 The spice garden was really fun because it was brightly colored and featured a lot of interesting spice plants, including tumeric, cumin, and paprika. I'm a pretty big foodie, so I love flavorful food and that was another reason I enjoyed the spice garden. I thought this arch was kind of pretty with the brightly-colored flowers twined around it.

 The pharmaceutical garden appealed to the biologist in me, with its many categories of medical conditions and plants used to treat those conditions (including skin diseases, cancer, cardiopulmonary diseases, ocular diseases, intestinal diseases, and psychological disorders). The garden contained such plants as belladonna (to dilate pupils) and mandrake root--a mild sedative (yes, it really exists!).

The vegetable/herb garden smelled wonderful! I'm pretty sure I picked up the scent of sage or some other herb with a magnificent, fresh aroma. It was like walking through a farmer's market. I saw such edibles as fennel, dill, basil, and strawberries. Near the vegetable garden was a wonderful olive tree, the largest olive tree grown outdoors in the UK.


I'm really glad that I visited the garden, not only because I'm a huge plant lover but also because I felt like I was making good progress on my term paper. So, when you put together chocolate and plants, you have the makings of a very good day if you're me.

A garden illustrating various methods of seed dispersal.

Peppers grown in boxes.

A display illustrating various kinds of rope created from plant fibers (from left to right: manila hemp--from a plant related to the banana, cotton, flax, sisal--related to the agave plant, coir--extracted from coconuts, and regular hemp--of the genus Cannabis).

 On the walk back from the Physic Garden, I couldn't resist taking a picture of this cute little side street with its multicolored houses.

It looks like the inside of an ice cream parlor. Or maybe Easter?

I'm looking forward to a quiet rest of the day so I can recharge for next week, when I'll be visiting the Tower of London for History of London (Wednesday) and St. Martin-in-the-Field church in Trafalgar Square for a little classical music by candlelight (Friday). Have a restful Sunday afternoon/evening!