My travels over the past few months have been amazing to say the least. I have been to Scotland and Sweden and have explored England from Brighton to Bath. Things here in London are as exciting as ever. In between course papers and classes I find time to watch plays and wander museums. (I even got to see my favorite actor, Benedict Cumberbatch, but that’s another story.)

Still the week-to-week routine isn’t very set in stone, and some weeks I find that I am eating out more that going to the grocery store. Although one thing I can count on is my daily cup of tea. The British take their tea very seriously.

This English Breakfast tea is Tesco’s Finest. It is clearly embellished to be a premium item for tea shoppers. The copper and lavender mingled with its symmetry are very pleasing to the eye. And thus it is in my pantry waiting to be consumed with milk and sugar.

Another thing the British seem to be obsessed with is elderflower flavoring. I first came across it on a hard cider in a pub and it sounded like it would be pretty good. It was. It tastes like what maybe lavender tastes like, and a little sweet. I found these Belvoir sparkling drinks in the Little Waitrose by my flat. The elderflower can is even decorated with little flowers. So I am going to take their word for it that elderflower flavoring really is made from some kind of flower. Interesting. 

And the last contender for “things British people love” are the crisps (aka chips). They have a huge section in every market I go into with just potato crisps with some extremely unique flavors. A few Walker’s brand crisps are smoky bacon, cheese and onion, roast chicken, and prawn cocktail. This Tesco bag caught my eye because of the unique hand lettering on the front. It looks very clean with the illustration of the bowl of sea salt. Alluding to my tea in the beginning of the blog, the use of black packaging to present more premium goods seems to be very effective for Tesco. I think it clearly distinguishes their products from one another in a kind of unconscious way.

Next week I will be in Lund, Sweden visiting my best friend from UCSD. I can’t wait to report back all the very interesting packaging I find in their grocery store.

Cheerio!

Alessandra