Actors - Magical people

I have a close, young relative who is more than averagely interested in Harry Potter. According to her, there are people with magic abilities. Most people are muggles, but some are witches and wizards. I have actually spent quite some time trying to persuade her that Harry Potter is a fictional character and that magical people do not really exist. Lately, however, I have come to the conclusion that I have been wrong. Magical people do exist. They are actors, and they perform magic every day.

I work in the film business. I am a Visual Effects Supervisor. Visual effects are the film effects that are produced as part of the post production of the film and may be anything from replacing the sky with another sky to making it look like nighttime even though it was filmed during the day to adding dragons or making something that was filmed in front of a greenscreen look as if it was filmed in space. Being a visual effects supervisor, one of my tasks is to be on set during filming, making sure that everything is done the right way so that we can do our job later on. And that is where I meet them, the actors.

When I work on a movie, I start by reading the script. And even though I read it in a somewhat technical way to find out what effects needed and how we should go about creating them, I try to envision what the movie is actually going to be like. I mean, it is all there in black letters on white paper what is happening and what the characters are saying. The director often adds some information and visions to what is actually printed, but even so, it is rather clinical and sort of dead. It is difficult to be emotionally aroused. The actions and spoken lines remain only printed words on a page. Why? Because I am not magical enough. I am not an actor.

I had read the script for the last movie we did a number of times. A great number of times, actually. I had been involved in the project half a year before anything was filmed. The movie was about characters who walked around and said and did stuff, but they were not real. They had no life. They were not people. Then we started filming and the actors came on set. And suddenly the characters from the script were there, right in front of me. The characters that I had seen on the pages of the script for months had suddenly leapt off the page and started living. They had a personality, a voice and a way of doing things. And all this was born inside the head of an actor who had read the same script that I read, but who had managed to see through the paper and found a living person there.

Ok, so he had also had help from the director, who also is a magical person, but it was inside the actor that the character has been given life. He was born by the writer, had the director as a nanny, but grew up inside the the head of the actor. It is as if a person was born and has had all of his life inside the actor, and now is being released into the world.

And with many actors, this character grows to become more than he was as written words in the script. It is as if what is written is only a point in the life of this character and I get to see the character pass this point and move further. Some actors do not need much of a script at all. A few words on a piece of paper, and the actor can build a whole world out of it. I have watched scenes where the character passes the script point during the rehearsals and have gone on to a much fuller and richer life than anyone had imagined by the time the last take of the scene has been captured by the camera. That is magic. They are magical. They are actors.

Staying at the Savoy - Last day, the verdict

Check-out

It is always difficult to see something that is not there. You may think that is a rather peculiar sentence and that I have been to the American Bar again having more than four of their "Corpse Reviver No2" this morning, but I have not. What I have done is to open our guest room door here at the Savoy and found the Times hanging neatly in a leather bag on the door. In hotels like the Savoy you often get a free (or shall we say included) newspaper. That is when I realised that we did not have our newspaper yesterday. But I did not notice since it was not there. So it does actually make sense. I am a little surprised that the staff at the Savoy failed in such a simple act as hanging our leather newspaper bag on our door when the task is basically to hang one on the door of every occupied room. On the other hand it is in a way good to be able to fault them at some minor things so that these posts do not appears as pure and utter promotion for the hotel. 

So we have reached our last day at the Savoy hotel. I have asked for and been granted a late checkout at 4pm. I originally thought that it would be difficult to let me have the room that long, but I have learned the Savoy way now. Nothing is difficult. I have also read on the web that people have been charged extra for late check-outs. And, indeed, in the in-room information folder it says that if you want a late check-out, you should call reception and they will provide you with availability and rate. I think that within reason, late checkouts should be complimentary if available. And I find that it is in many places. The good thing is that I have been granted my rather late one for free. 

There is a thick envelope stuck in under the door this morning. This turns out to be a copy of my account and a letter about how to checkout. I was actually wondering about that. How do you check out if there is no reception counter to go to. Well, as you may have learned from yesterdays blog post, it should be as easy as going down and talking to one of the staff members in the Reading Room or Front Hall. It would probably suffice to go down, stand still and look lost, and they will come to you. But as I read the letter I find that I did not have to worry. Check-out may be done the Savoy way, meaning the way you want it to be done. I can

• Go down to the reading room and talk to a member of staff
• Fill out the express check-out form supplied in the envelope
• Check out via the television
• Check out by telephone
• Or, my favourite, just send an email saying you are leaving and then just leave and they will email you your final invoice

I must admit that I prefer the human touch, so after spending the day strolling around London, we pack our bags, call down to have someone come pick up our luggage and walk down to the Reading Room. Check-out complete, we walk out of the revolving doors for the last time. Outside our luggage is waiting for us. The doorman promises to do some exercise so that he can accompany me on my run next time we are here. We look dreamily at the S8 VOY, the Rolls Royce Phantom that decanted us on the doorstep of this great place two and a half days ago, grab our luggage and start walking towards the tube. Our magical Savoy encounter has ended, everyday life has been resumed.

The verdict

So, have I found my perfect hotel? Looking back to one of my earlier posts here, I see that I then defined my perfect hotel as being

"The hotel where I can soak up tradition and atmosphere, marvel at the thought and care that went into making the place, feeling at home and cared for and generally experience a touch of magic in the midst of all of life`s boring sides."

I can now truly say that the Savoy meets these criteria. It is positively dripping with tradition and atmosphere. And the recent restoration work has produced a hotel that while echoing the grandeur of the past also appears new and crisp. The location is great, especially for theatres. Our room has been as good as any I have had in any of the top hotels we have stayed in. All food and drink that we have had was of a very high standard. In addition to our tradition of coming to the Savoy for afternoon tea every time we are in London, I may take up a new tradition of going to the American Bar as well. 

But, as I have tried to make exceptionally clear in my previous posts, it is the people that work here that really makes the Savoy a special place. The absence of the reception counter, that barrier that so often separates the staff from the guest, makes interacting with the Front Hall staff very personal. And all the little details that are in place and that I also have described earlier make the whole experience even more welcoming and warm. There is nothing of the snottiness that I have seen in other famous hotels. Some times you encounter staff who know perfectly well that they hold an important position in an important hotel, and they want that to come across as much as possible. Nothing of that here. 

We did not experience the butler service this time as this is something that comes with staying in a one bedroom suite or above. I would truly like to test that out as well some day. Perhaps for our 25 year wedding anniversary in a couple of years. These suites are of course rather expensive. Searching for a random night a couple of months from now, the standard rate for a one bedroom suite is 1194 pounds per night, and in my world that requires a very special occasion indeed. But for that price you get a few extras:

• Butler service
• Transport to and from the airport
• Lokal dropp-offs with chauffeured car
• Beverages from the in-room bar
• Pressing of one garment per person
• Wifi

So you get quite a lot, but it costs a bit, too. But with my passion for personal service, I feel I need to test the butler service. Some time. We will see.

Was everything perfect in every way? Well, for the important parts, yes. There have been a few flaws as I have pointed out. 

• When we had not eaten all the fruit that we had ordered (and paid for) and left the rest to eat later,  the rest was removed for no obvious reason. I think this was the most severe fault during our stay.
• They charge extra for wifi. I do believe that I have made my view on that topic perfectly clear in my previous post.
• We did not get our newspaper on the first morning.
• Since we were arriving in the hotel car, the doorman should have been able to just welcome us by name in stead of asking my name. This is not a flaw, but an opportunity to add even more magic to the experience.

So, was it perfect? Well, it was pretty close anyway. I am sorry to say that yes, it is as perfect as it probably gets. Why should I be sorry about that? Because there are more hotels that I would like to try. There is Claridges and the Connaught, we should re-visit Browns again after their refurbishment and we should also try the Ritz again after our less than perfect stay there some years ago. But now all logic tells me that I should return to the Savoy and if I stay anywhere else I would feel as if I were cheating on them. 

How can I sum it up in a few words? Reading through all my posts, there are some words that i seem always to come back to. 

Elegance, tradition, warmth and friendliness. 

That, to me, is what the Savoy is.

Staying at the Savoy - Day two, service and a small crime

Service - the human touch

There is something very special with the old hotels in London. The buildings themselves radiate grandeur, tradition and history. They provide a feeling of solid luxury that has survived the ever changing whims of passing decades and confidently invite us into a world that still is the epitome of elegance. And they can do this because they in many ways defined elegance, luxury and the good life back in the days and they know it still is valid. And the really good ones manage to do this and still feel fresh and updated. This, of course, is especially true for the Savoy which emerged from a total restoration a few years ago and now stand before us old, but brand new. Walking in through the revolving doors is like being taken back in time while taking the present time with you. I am taken into a different world, a parallel universe and it is even as if I am transformed into another person. Perhaps even a better person. And if the best way of enjoying a holiday is to do something different, what could be better than spending that holiday in a entirely different world?

So is that the recipe for making a great hotel? Erecting a building that has certain qualities, looks good and make people go "wow" as they walk in the door? Well, it may be a good start, but it is just a small part of it. And it is even the easiest part. All it requires is enough money. If you throw a huge enough fortune at a building, you can always make it look good. The Savoy recently tried and succeeded when they closed down in December 2007 for a restoration period that lasted until October 2010 and cost  £220 million. But that is not enough. I guarantee that I could take over that gorgeous building and transform it into an absolute terrible hotel without any difficulties. No problem. Because the real valuable assets in great hotels are the people working there, not the building. And the systems they have put in place that allows these people to bloom and flourish. The most important part of a great hotel will always be the human capital.

Nowhere have I seen this more than at the Savoy. Or felt, actually. It gives a feeling of well being, of being looked after, a feeling of being seen and appreciated. It starts with the friendly greeting from the doorman as you arrive. It continues with the warm welcome of the staff member that greets in the Front Hall, and it never stops. Everyone I meet are smiling, warm and friendly. I feel like I want to stop and chat with them, be friends with them. And when I do engage in a bit of small talk, it turns out that they are good that, too. And that is an art form. Being able to conduct a random, but meaningful conversation with anybody. And nothing seems to be any trouble at all. There is a feeling of abundance and generosity. Even though you of course know that you are paying for this. But seeing and feeling that your money is being put to good use helps.

I often read about hotels where the staff remembers your name so that they can address you using your name all the time, and I have always wondered how that would be possible. I have also read that about the Savoy, and I was eager to see it in action. Well, to all of you who now await the solution to the mystery, it did not happen. And how could it? I mean, the Savoy has 268 rooms. If all the staff knew all the names all the time, I would be scared. It only shows that they are human after all. And I must admit that even though many of the staff introduced themselves to me, I can not remember any of their names. But I do believe that if we had stayed more than the two nights, some of the staff would start calling me by name, because I really think they try and want to. And I believe that it will happen easier here than in many other hotels because I feel that one interacts more personally with the staff here.

On this, our day two of staying at the Savoy, I am walking through the hotel noticing the big and small details that are in place allowing the staff to produce this feeling of personal service. Small things like, as I mentioned, they all present themselves by name if you interact with them for more than a few seconds. Also, a small incident in the American Bar as we visit there again this evening shows what I now think of as the small but valuable Savoy ways of doing things. As yesterday, we are escorted to a table by a young lady. She asks my room number and name, but this time saying "Can you remind me of your room number, please." I take that as a sign that she recognised me from yesterday, but could not  for obvious human reasons remember my number and name. Perhaps she would if we had come in the next day as well. Anyway, she goes away and enters my data into some kind of system. Then the waiter comes over. We did not see him yesterday and I doubt that we made such a remarkable appearance that he noticed and memorised us. But he has probably checked the same system and have seen that the same number and name was in here yesterday, so when he comes to our table he is able to say "Welcome back, mr. Moen". Nice.

There are numerous other small details that add to the experience. As I go out running today, I chat a bit with the doorman before setting off. I ask him to come with me, but he declines as he is needed where he is and the top hat would be impractical. And when I return, he is ready with a bottle of water for me. Also nice.

But I think that one of the most important reasons why it all feels so close and personal is not a small detail, but has to do with an important structural change that I believe was done during the rebuild of the hotel. As you walked into the Front Hall before December 2007, you would find to your right what usually defines the reception area of most hotels: the reception counter. The counter over which business transactions are made, which gives a rather formal feeling to the whole setting and that acts like a barrier between the guest and the staff. One thing that happened during the rebuild was that this counter  and barrier disappeared. Now you will find a small desk for the concierge in the same spot.

So where do you go when you need to interact with a member of staff? You have two options. The easiest and most pleasant as you stand there, facing the missing counter is to turn around. And there they are. There are always one or two staff members hovering in the middle of the room. Ready to greet new arrivals or to help anyone that approach them with anything. And as you turn around, chances are that one of them will already have noticed a guest in need and approaches you. And this one-on-one interaction, standing right next to a fellow human being as opposed to talking to a head master mounted behind his desk I think is a vital part of the experience. And if your business requires paper work or the use of a computer terminal, he or she will direct you to the Reading Room for further assistance.

Very nice.

The Savoy Grill

Tonight we have booked a table at the Savoy Grill. The Savoy Grill is an old institution in London. The restaurant was also restored to previous glory as part of the total rebuild of the hotel. It now emerges as an elegant art deco room dominated by huge crystal lamps in the ceiling. As we enter at 7pm, the room is bustling with life. The restaurant is reasonably full, and it seems to fill up entirely during our meal. As we are seated at one of the tables by the inner wall with a good view if the room, we notice that it is absolutely on the chilly side in here. We mention this to the person handing us the menus, and he sets off to deal with the air conditioning. And within a short time, the temperature actually becomes more comfortable.

The menu is dominated by traditional, no-nonsense dishes like steaks, braises, roasts and pies along with good starters and seafood. No modern rubbish, but tradition and quality. My wife orders the onion soup, an attempt to fight off the chilly temperature before the air conditioning is adjusted. I go for the farmhouse terrine with foie gras parfait and green tomato chutney. For our main course we choose the whole roasted Goosenargh duck with artichoke gratin and duck jus. The sommelier suggests a good Bordeaux to complement the duck and sets off to decant it. 

The starters are very good. The duck is then brought to our table whole for us to see before it is once more taken to the kitchen to be carved. It is served as slices of breast and one leg per person. The breasts are beautifully pink, perfectly cooked, tender and with a great taste. The legs remind me of duck confit. Tender, cooked through and the meat almost falling off the bones. As an amateur cook I wonder how they managed that. Pink breasts and legs cooked perfectly. My suspicion is that the legs did not roast with the breasts, but were cooked separately, but I am no expert. We have ordered new potatoes and creamed spinach as side orders, but it turns out that there was no need. The artichoke gratin would have been sufficient.

For desert we go for the Strawberry and almond millefeuille with elderflower ice cream. It is cut table side from a big piece and is absolute delicious. After the desert has been dealt with, we are presented with petit fours. Two pieces each. By now, we are starting to become seriously full. We make sure the bill is put on our room and prepare to leave. Bur our waiter asks us to stay a few minutes and leaves us. Then she returns. The fact that we are here at the Savoy to celebrate our recent 50th birthdays has trickled into the Grill as well, and we are each presented with a small, but filling piece of cake on plates decorated with "Happy Birthday" in chocolate. Somehow we managed to swallow that cake as well. We leave with a rather slow gait.

A smal crime

So is there nothing bad to say? Not much, but there is one thing. One rather serious thing in my opinion. Something that irritates me profoundly. The Savoy charges extra for wifi. There is a daily charge of around £9.50 for the use of the hotel's wifi. I view this as a serious flaw. In the year 2013 hotels do not charge extra for wifi. One just does not. In this day and age I regard this as a small, but serious crime. It is easily dealt with, however. Register in the Fairmount President's Club, and wifi is free. Membership is free as well. But still. It is not the Savoy way. It is out of character. 

Stop it! 

Now!

Staying at the Savoy - Day one, the big Savoy magic trick

Checking in

As I mentioned in my previous post, the first few minutes of anything are the most important ones. This is true for movies and hotel experiences alike. And the Savoy has fully understood this idea and aims to dazzle you right from the start. And it works, too. As we step out of the car and is welcomed by the top-hatted doorman, he asks my name. And as our luggage is taken into the luggage elevator, the doorman guides us in through the revolving doors into the front hall. There he hands us over to a smiling young man, and this young man knows who we are! And he has our papers ready. This is the big Savoy magic trick. What happens is that as I tell the doorman my name, he repeats it and the information about the incoming guest is broadcast from his microphone to the inside of the hotel. Neat and effective and also a hint at the small details that we will learn is an integral part of the Savoy service.

It could have been even more magical, though. Since we were arriving in the hotel car, booked through the hotel, and the chauffeur called in to tell that we were coming as we was nearing the hotel, the information about who this guest was could this time actually have gone the other way, out to the doorman. so there is actually room for improvement there.

But back to the smiling young man in the front hall. We are led into what is known as the reading room where we are seated in front of a desk where forms are signed and welcome information is given. He then gives us a tour of the place. For an overview, see this post.

After having been informed of the whereabouts of the different parts of the house, we are led along a thickly carpeted corridor adorned with small tables with vases and flowers, pictures on the walls and polished, brown doors along the walls. We stop outside room 216, the door is opened for us, and we enter our Savoy guest room.

The room

I booked a Deluxe King which is the second least expensive category, the least expensive with a king size bed. We have clearly been upgraded as this room has a large window out towards the river. Since we are on the second floor and since the trees are thick with foliage, we see more threes than river, but there are glimpses of it, the trees are nice and we can also see parts of the London Eye. The room is big for a London hotel room, the high ceiling and large window gives it a spacious and airy feel. It even smells good. Actually, the entire hotel smells good. I believe they actually cent the rooms and common areas in order to make sure guests are met with pleasant odours. I noticed the same when staying at the Dorchester some years back. A distinct feeling that the hotel had been perfumed. Well, why not. There is nothing worse than checking into a foul smelling hotel.

Furniture consists of

• a king size bed
• one arm chair with a small table
• two night stands, one on each side of the bed
• a writing desk with chair
• a cabinet holding what they call the refreshment centre, looking like a chest of drawers but containing the minibar and lots of chocolates, biscuits etc.
• one bench at the end of the bed
• one small table in the hallway

One bed stand has an iPod/iPhone docking station with speakers so that you can play your own music through that. The other has a small but fine clock. A very nice touch. There is ample wardrobe space. One cupboard with hangers in the room, one with hangers and one with drawers in the hallway. Lighting is good, but there could have been better reading light next to the bed.

The bathroom is quite big. Two sinks to the right, bath tub to the left, two frosted glass doors straight ahead, one leading to the toilet and one leading to the shower. Good products, nice, thick towels.

All in all this is a very nice room, spacious and with good light and a view. We do notice a bit of noise coming from the street due to not really sound proofed windows, but later on we learn that the thick curtains removes most of the sound when drawn.

Our guide shows us around and then leaves us to settle in. Our luggage is delivered shortly afterwords by a smiling young man who asks if there is anything else he can do for us. And after he has left, room service brings a few items that I have pre-ordered. I have ordered a bouquet of flowers for my wife and some fruit and water. The fruit has clearly been polished and looks very nice. We eat some of it and leave the rest for later. So far, the staff has been exceptionally warm and friendly. A good start!

Afternoon Tea

Afternoon tea is a British institution and one that we try to be part of every time we are in London. Tea may of course be taken in many places, but to experience the real deal, I suggest you try out the big tea happenings at one of London's better hotels. We have so far had tea at the Ritz, the Dorchester, Browns and the Savoy. We found the Ritz to be a bit stiff, the Dorchester was nice and grand, Browns cosy and homely provided that you live in an elegant British country house and the Savoy, we feel, is elegant but relaxed.

I have booked afternoon tea for us at 15:45. That may seem like a strange time. Why not 16:00? Because it seems they have certain fixed times you can book, and around the 16:00 mark, the available time is 15:45. Our table is next to the huge cage-like structure that encloses the grand piano. Our waiter for today is a nice, young woman who explains the procedures to us. Since we have been here a number of times for tea, we know the drill.

You can choose between two different meals. Traditional afternoon tea and high tea. The difference is that high tea also consists of some savoury dishes, not only the sweet ones. We go for the sweet, traditional, every time. Traditional afternoon tea is priced at £42.50. Newcomers may think that £42.50 is rather steep for a cup, or even for a pot of tea. But tea is only one small part of this. But apart that is taken very seriously. I counted 28 different types of tea on the menu. Some of them are rare and cost extra. And when you are at it, you may also have a glass of champagne. 

After choosing the type of food, type of tea and champagne or not, the first course is placed on the table. This is a three tiered stand containing 5 different types of sandwiches, scones with and without raisins, clotted cream, strawberry jam and lemon curd. Tea arrives in silver pots and are poured in china tea service especially made to complement the room. The sandwiches are really tasty, the flavours are enhanced with the help of herbs and spices. The scones are the best scones we know. Smooth and light. 

When we have eaten all the sandwiches and scones, our waiter asks if we want more of them. We do. But not too many. We know what is in store for us. After the cake stand has been cleared away, it is time for fine french pastries. Our waiter presents a tray with six different, artfully presented small cakes. They are beautiful to behold, and they are not too sweet, but are packed full of flavour. You may have as many as you like. I tried to have one of each once. That turned out not to be a good idea. And after you finish with the pastries, there are three signature cakes to choose from. This is normally when a slight nauseating feeling is starting to creep in if you asked for refills on the sandwiches and scones and chose too many pastries. 

When I booked our stay at the hotel, I informed them that we are here to celebrate our recent 50th birthdays. This information has been passed on to the staff in the Thames Foyer. Towards the end of our meal, ours and other birthday tables have a special piece of cake with a candle while the pianist plays "Happy birthday to you". 

All in all the traditional afternoon tea is a substantial meal. If you have dinner plans later on the same day, cancel it. After you finish the meal you will wish that you could just take the elevator up to your room and collapse on the bed. This time we could. If we cannot afford to stay at the Savoy every time we are in London, we will always be coming back for afternoon tea. It is always good and the service is very friendly and effortless. You can watch a youtube video about the Savoy afternoon tea here.

The American Bar

We have tickets for Billy Elliot tonight. Dinner is out of the question since massive amounts of cake is competing for space down there, so we decide to try out the American Bar for a drink before we set out for the theatre. 

From their web site:

"The American Bar is widely regarded as one of the world's best hotel bars with a history that harks back to the golden age of cocktails in the 1920's."

A nice, young lady leads us to a window table, asks our room number and name and hands us the menu. I must admit that we do not frequent bars very often, and neither of us majored in cocktails, so the amount of items on the menu feels quite overwhelming. There is a huge section for cocktails, sections for champagne, wine and sections for every conceivable type of spirit. But we are here for the cocktails which is what the bar is famous for. The cocktail pages are divided into several sections as well. There are

• American Bar legendary bartender’s signature drinks 
• Morning bracers, fog cutters and revivers
• Bon vivant, social libations, cups and cobblers 
• Aperitif and pre-dinner drinks
• After-dinner, night caps, and ‘one for the road’ cocktails
• Vintage cocktails

Drinks are mostly around £15, but the Vintage cocktails seem a bit special. They start at £80, and the most expensive of them is £5000. Wow! I wonder how many they sell of those.

Fortunately there is a today's special as well, and right now that is a cocktail called "Third in line" celebrating the newly born prince. It actually contains yoghurt in addition to the spirits and other ingredients. The order goes out to our waiter, and a short time afterwords he comes back with to glasses with white content. It really tastes very fresh and is very good. From where we are sitting we have a clear view of the bar itself where the bartender does his magic. There is quite a bit of theatre about a good bartender. And watching him work his shaker is as good entertainment as anything else. 

Drinks finished, we make our way to the Victoria Palace Theatre for Billy Elliot, which turns out to be a very good show.

The great fruit robbery

As we get back from the theatre, we note that the maid has been in and turned down the room. The curtains have been drawn, the duvet pulled back, slippers at the ready by the bed and a bottle of water placed on each night stand. And the room has been generally tidied. But one thing is missing. Our fruit. We had left most of it to be had tomorrow, but now it is all gone making what we had easily the most expensive apple in the world. I can see no good reason to remove the fruit. It should clearly have been left on the small table. The used plates and knifes might have been replaced with new ones. One scratch in the otherwise perfect first day at the Savoy.

Staying at the Savoy - A quick overview of the premises

Here is a quick overview of the layout of the main features of the Savoy hotel.

As you enter the Savoy through the revolving doors, you find yourself in the front hall. Standing with your back to the doors, to your right is a desk where the concierge team operate. Moving counter-clockwise, in the far right corner is a shop called Boodles selling bespoke jewellery. To the left of the shop, on the wall opposite the entrance, are a few black steps leading up to the elevators. Further up the steps is the business centre and access to the second floor guest rooms.






To the left of the black steps is a flight of steps leading down to the Upper Thames Foyer.

Further to the left is the entrance to the reading room which is the space where you can sit down with a member of staff for things like check-in, check-out etc.

On the left wall is a flight of stairs leading up to the American Bar and the small Savoy museum. The museum is a small collection of documents, photographs, dance cards, bottles etc. that document some of the history of the Savoy hotel. The famed American Bar is well renowned for it's cocktails. This bar brought this American drink to London and the walls are full of movie stars and celebrities who all have taken a glass in here.

Immediate to your left, on the same wall as the entrance to the hotel, is the entrance to the famous Savoy Grill. This rather formal restaurant is now being managed by Gordon Ramsay.

Walking down the stairs to the Upper Thames Foyer, you enter a small hall that acts as a vestibule to the Thames Foyer. When we were there, this room was dominated by a rather large orchid tree. To your right you will find the Savoy Tea shop selling tea, chocolates, bespoke tea accessories such at the hotel's own china tea service, handmade jams, biscuits and fresh patisserie.

Still with your back to the stairs back up to the Front Hall, to your left is a corridor leading to the cloak room and toilets. Further on along more corridors you find several function rooms, the Ballroom and the exit out to the Embankment side of the hotel.

Continuing straight on through the Upper Thames Foyer, descending a few steps, you enter the magnificent Thames Foyer. This is the heart of the hotel, and this is where Afternoon Tea is served. They also serve breakfast, lunch and light dinner. The room is dominated by a huge glass cupola situated in the middle of the room, right above a giant cage-like structure where the house pianist entertains. At tea time, this room becomes a heaven of quiet elegance and dampened conversation while waiters serve plates of sandwiches, scones, pastries and cakes while guests sip tea and champagne. If you are a fan of most things exceedingly British and have not tried this, you should. Immediately. And cancel any dinner appointment afterwards, you will not need it.

Off the Thames Foyer to the left is the Beaufort Bar. Before five o'clock it is closed off by some monumental mirrored doors. But at five they open and the black and gold interior gleam out inviting guests in for champagne, cocktails or other drinkables. And everything accompanied by nightly entertainment. There is even a cabaret on the first Sunday of every month.


Continuing straight through the Thames Foyer, you will enter Kaspar, the Savoy's informal but still elegant all day restaurant serving breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Staying at the Savoy - Arrival, the Savoy way

And so the day has arrived. If you have read my previous posts, you will know that my wife and I are celebrating our recent 50th birthdays with a couple of nights at the Savoy hotel in London. We will be entering this epitome of luxury in a little while. We are currently seated in great comfort in a black leather seat. The slight London rain is gently tapping on the black, highly polished metal that encase us and makes it looks as if the winged lady on the bonnet is sweating as she pulls us along the London streets.

As I have described earlier, I am a hotel nerd and I find great pleasure in seeking out and staying at great hotels. My goal is to find the perfect hotel. Or at least the hotel that is perfect for me. My goal is also to produce great memories for my wife and me. One should of course endeavour to inflict a little magic into every day life, but every now and again I want to create singular points in time that we can look back at and say "That was something special". Great hotels often come with a rather high price tag attached. For some people, staying at these hotels actually is every day life and possibly does not generate especially great memories. But for most people, staying at this kind of hotels is something that can only be savoured at special occasions and it is something that will take a rather large sum off the budget. Staying in top hotels becomes an investment. And that is how I see it. Our stay at the Savoy is an investment in future memories. And as an investor, I am a bit nervous. Have I invested in the right object? Have I invested the right amount of money? Will we be leaving in two days feeling that with the help of the staff at the Savoy we have produced great and kind memories that we will look back on and talk fondly about when we get older and our capital of fond memories is the most valuable we have? We will soon know.

Against this backdrop of investing in and crafting memories, I also become a script writer and director for our future capital of reminiscence, and as such, I need to think of how I can inflict as much magic as possible into our adventure within the budget I have given myself. As anyone in the film business will know, the first five to ten minutes of a movie can make or break the experience of the film. Look at the James Bond movies. The first ten minutes take you on a roller coaster ride that ensure that you love the movie even before it has properly started. That is why I often consider how we are transported to and arrive at the hotel.

Great hotels often offer several ways of greeting guests and transporting them to the hotel. The most special version of this often includes being met at the airport. This may be as you come out from customs clearance, but it may also include being met at the airplane door and being followed all the way through passport control and luggage collection. We tried that when we stayed at the Crillon in Paris, just to have tried it. A friendly lady met us as we disembarked the airplane and followed us through the airport until she handed us over to a chauffeur who drove us to the hotel. As much as it is fun to have experienced that, I felt that it was not really worth it. We did not save any time and it did not really have any other practical influence. I have heard from colleagues, though, that in some countries, most notably in Asia or Africa, a representative from a good hotel may be able to speed up and simplify the arrival process greatly. But in Europe I would not consider it as long as you are used to being in airports and can find your way around.

Transport between the airport and the hotel, however, may be worth looking into if you want to do something special. I find that if you really are trying to scoop up a bit of magic, pulling up in front of your hotel in a great car is a nice Bond way of starting your movie entitled "Our new, great adventure". So I have been in contact with the Savoy concierge asking for suggestions for how we may be transported, and they came up with a list of cars. Driving from Heathrow to central London may take some time, especially if there is a bit of traffic, and the Heathrow Express train only take 15 minutes and leaves frequently, so I decided that we take the train into Paddington and that we are met there by the car. But which car? The list given to me gave me a choice of several. What would be the correct way of arriving at the Savoy for our first stay there? Looking at the list I realised that there was only one correct answer to that question.

I needed a very special car. A very British car. A car that gives associations to the Savoy in as much as the entrance of the Savoy actually looks like it is modelled after the grille of this car. That is why we are currently turning into Savoy Place in the Rolls Royce Phantom with the iconic registration plate S8 VOY. And as the winged lady on the bonnet pulls the huge car down the only street in Britain where driving actually is on the right, turns and comes to a halt under the legendary Savoy entrance canopy that so closely mimics the Rolls Royce grille, the car door is opened by the doorman saying "Welcome to the Savoy, sir". The adventure has begun.