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| The British spread included a contribution from the relatives across the ocean: It's those chocolate chip cookies again. |
The Alien family enjoyed celebrating with our comrades in anglophony last weekend at a Jubilee Tea. We don't really know that much about the Queen (shhhh), but we'll toast her with pleasure if it comes with cake, cucumber sandwiches, and Union Jack lollipops.
I, as the woman of the house, started the afternoon with the question that transcends all national and cultural barriers: "What will I wear?" Having received a gracious but unhelpful "anything goes" in response to my dress code query, and not having any red, white, and blue in my wardrobe (a situation I hope to remedy in time for the the next holiday that demands those colors), I chose my most comfortable dressy shoes and picked an outfit to go with them. The comfortable shoes were a must, because our friends who were holding the party live in Cologny. Cologny is only about 4 miles away, but it is on what one calls here "the other side of the lake," requiring either a tortuous drive through the center of town or a three different TPG conveyances, with a good amount of walking in between. If you've been paying any attention at all to previous blog posts, you'll have no problem guessing which option we chose and why shoes drove my wardrobe choice.
The 14 Tram, the 12 Tram and the 1 Bus brought us to Cologny, where we were greeted by a lovely spread, then told we couldn't partake until we publicly demonstrated our ignorance of all matters royal by participating in a Diamond Jubilee Quiz. Actually, the quiz was not bad, because we got to do it in teams. My team included three actual Englishfolk, one of whom was even named Elizabeth, so clearly we had a chance. Also, the questions weren't just about the monarchy, but also about diamonds, the number 60, and the name Elizabeth. We referred all math questions to the high school student on our team, and all Elizabeth questions to Elizabeth. We faltered a bit on the diamond questions, but guess who could name every monarch between William I (the Conqueror) and the current queen? (Thank you Mars Hill Academy Middle Ages History Curriculum!) I was a little less up on current news, however, having no idea how old the Queen was when she met Prince Phillip, and not being able to name even one -- much less all -- of the royal grandchildren. This is what comes of being more interested in the past than the present and more interested in fiction than reality (at least the kind of reality that makes the 6 o'clock news). I admit this with embarrassment, but other members of the family are not as ignorant of current events as I, so I rely on them. Anyway, our team, appropriately named "Elizabeth and Her Subjects," trounced the other teams and won the gold medals, which were actually wrapped Cadbury's chocolate. Unfortunately, I forgot my medal when we left, my friend's daughter brought it to Lucas at school to give to me and, well, it never made it home. The defense: "It was too tempting."
Following the quiz, we devoured tea and its accompaniments, including a cake decorated with a fondant Union Jack (very impressive to the family bakers). The kids swam, even though it was not quite 70 degrees, and there were many flips on the trampoline. (Also involving only those under 16 years of age.) I am thankful to Queen Elizabeth for a pleasant afternoon with friends. It was interesting, though, to hear our kids musing (fortunately at home and on the bus, not around the actual English) about the queen in particular and royalty in general. "It's not fair that the Queen makes such a huge salary," was one comment. We understand becoming rich in America, but not so much just being rich, although there is certainly hereditary wealth and privilege in the U.S., too. The kids also had questions about the devotion that the English have to the royal family. "We just don't feel that way about our president," they said. Well, no, but no one is president for very long, and we never watch our presidents grow up, knowing one day they will inherit the title. Plus, as one of my English friends explained when I asked her a similar question, being queen is not a political position -- in fact, it is a position somewhat above and outside of politics. She pointed out that having a monarch around can be nice for the prime ministers who, no matter what their party or positions, can talk to the queen knowing that there will be no leaks and that she's not really on anyone's side -- except the country's. I don't know that America has any equivalent. Perhaps Billy Graham when he was the spiritual confidant of presidents both Republican and Democtratic -- but of course, that was not weekly, nor has it continued for generations.
Musing on the differences between the old country and the young one makes this a good time for a news flash concerning a former old country that would like to be new again . . . or something. Some Savoyards apparently held up traffic at the border crossing, demanding that Savoy (an area of France bordering Geneva) be recognized as an independent country. Given that when they were independent, they attacked Geneva, I'm not sure what I think of their request (though the attack was about 500 years ago, admittedly). Anyway, we've been wondering if maybe our family should send a letter to the U.N. requesting to be our own country. We could hold up traffic entering the neighborhood until they grant our request. We think we'd like our own time zone as well, if that's not too much trouble.
Following the quiz, we devoured tea and its accompaniments, including a cake decorated with a fondant Union Jack (very impressive to the family bakers). The kids swam, even though it was not quite 70 degrees, and there were many flips on the trampoline. (Also involving only those under 16 years of age.) I am thankful to Queen Elizabeth for a pleasant afternoon with friends. It was interesting, though, to hear our kids musing (fortunately at home and on the bus, not around the actual English) about the queen in particular and royalty in general. "It's not fair that the Queen makes such a huge salary," was one comment. We understand becoming rich in America, but not so much just being rich, although there is certainly hereditary wealth and privilege in the U.S., too. The kids also had questions about the devotion that the English have to the royal family. "We just don't feel that way about our president," they said. Well, no, but no one is president for very long, and we never watch our presidents grow up, knowing one day they will inherit the title. Plus, as one of my English friends explained when I asked her a similar question, being queen is not a political position -- in fact, it is a position somewhat above and outside of politics. She pointed out that having a monarch around can be nice for the prime ministers who, no matter what their party or positions, can talk to the queen knowing that there will be no leaks and that she's not really on anyone's side -- except the country's. I don't know that America has any equivalent. Perhaps Billy Graham when he was the spiritual confidant of presidents both Republican and Democtratic -- but of course, that was not weekly, nor has it continued for generations.
Musing on the differences between the old country and the young one makes this a good time for a news flash concerning a former old country that would like to be new again . . . or something. Some Savoyards apparently held up traffic at the border crossing, demanding that Savoy (an area of France bordering Geneva) be recognized as an independent country. Given that when they were independent, they attacked Geneva, I'm not sure what I think of their request (though the attack was about 500 years ago, admittedly). Anyway, we've been wondering if maybe our family should send a letter to the U.N. requesting to be our own country. We could hold up traffic entering the neighborhood until they grant our request. We think we'd like our own time zone as well, if that's not too much trouble.
That cake looks so distractingly delicious I can hardly think of anything else.
ReplyDeleteEverything I know about Queen Elizabeth I learned at the movies. Specifically, The Queen. Which was a pretty awesome movie, but, you know, a movie.