We all do! My very first high tea experience was in Chicago at the Peninsula Hotel.
One of my clients really loved the experience and wanted to share it with me.
At first, I felt a little out of my league because everything was so small and dainty.
I am not small or dainty, nor are my mannerisms. I was sure that I was going to feel like the roughest lady of the bunch.
Boy was I wrong. I loved high tea. I loved the tasting experience of the high tea.
I loved talking about each little bite and sip with my client and sharing what we liked and didn't like. I loved that I left the experience feeling content. I was not stuffed to the gills.
I was not hungry. It felt great.
I loved that the ceilings were high, the dining room was grand, and that some people wore jeans while others wore dresses. I loved the harpist that greeted us at the entrance and the inclusive explanations the server gave as she laid each tea sandwich, veggie bite or scone in front of us.
I felt like I belonged.
The thing I loved the most about high tea was the conversation. It brought out a different type of conversation than I usually have at a bar or a restaurant. I think because we were "tasting" and "sipping" it forced us to be more deliberate and connected.
We listened better.
We spoke slower.
It felt relaxing like I was in another world for just a couple of hours.
This dainty world slowed me down for just a moment.
I wouldn't say that the conversation was more sophisticated. I would say that the conversation was more meaningful. It felt more profound and even more provocative.
It took my mind to places I hadn't been in a while and every time I think of that first high tea experience, I smile. It was nice.
After that one experience with my client in Chicago many years ago, I sought out other high teas. I've experienced high tea in San Diego, New York, and San Francisco. Each time, I felt myself slowing down, sipping, tasting, and experiencing the moment with whoever was on the other side of the dainty table. It felt good with each experience.
This is why when I saw that the Westgate Hotel in San Diego did a local author literary high tea, I had to be involved. I marched over to the hotel and had high tea with my friend Joyce. She is the Director of Sales at the hotel. We hatched a plan for me to be the author at the next literary high tea. She explained to me how popular their high tea is and how they have so many unique customers. She said she wanted to deliver her unique customers something different than she had before.
I really respect how the hotel wants to flip high tea upside down. They still want to deliver the tasting, sipping, elegant, high tea service experience that everyone knows and loves. However, they want to bring a new type of author with a new type of message to the event--that's where I come in.
On Sunday, September 25th from 2:30 to 4:30 I am honored to be delivering a conversation about conversations. I will share some of the secrets of the book and reveal a couple of stories that didn't make the book. I'll do a Q/A for the tea tasters as their scones and shrimp cocktail are delivered to their tables. I will also deliver a conversation about conversations. So much of our connecting as humans are done over a plate of food or a beverage. I am going to talk about how we can make the most of these slowed-down, over-the-table experiences. I'll also reveal the most important conversation I ever had and how it changed my life. Since we'll all be sitting around tables together, I'll provide some conversation topics and roam around from table to table chatting it up with the high tea guests. It is going to be a fun, interactive, high tea experience and I am honored to be a part of it.
I had fun last week taking pictures
at the hotel. I met a new friend who I named Fiona.
She will be at the high tea too.
If you're looking to slow down for just a couple of hours on a Sunday and have fun yet meaningful conversations with pals or even strangers, you should join us.
If you're looking to have high tea in San Diego and enjoy culinary delights while having sparkling conversations, you should join us.
I can't wait to slow down with you, sip some tea, have a giggle, and enjoy Sunday together. See you there.
Westgate Hotel high tea tickets can be purchased using this link. If you have dietary concerns or need additional information about the event, click this link.
Reservations close on September 24th and space is limited.
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