Down the River to Greenwich
We set out in a ferry from Westminster pier on our journey down the Thames. It was a typical grey Autumn day in London, with the clouds heavy and low and threatening rain. We sat on the deck and watched the buildings go by. We passed under the Tower bridge and the Millennium bridge and Blackfriars bridge. We passed the Monument, swung around Canary Wharf, and landed just downriver of the Royal Naval College.
Greenwich Market
As it was Saturday morning, we visited the Greenwich Market. The booths and small shops sell fancy food, clothes, trinkets, jewelry, and lots of other funky items. We ate some tomato and cheese foccacia bread as we browsed, and found a couple of gifts for the folks back home.
Royal Observatory
Greenwich is famous for the efforts of the Royal Observatory to assist ship navigation. Situated on a hill to the south of London, the Observatory kept track of time by watching the stars and pushing the development of accurate watches for ship captains. When the globe was divided by latitude and longitude, the line of 0 longitude was agreed to pass through the Observatory. The official date line is also here, hence Greenwich Mean Time, or GMT.
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