Gotta go - so I better set my watch right

London Voyage - Thursday, October 10, 2002

As I was sick of the Azores when I left to come to England, I was beginning to get sick of being on vacation. I think I just really wanted to get off my feet, and that just wasn't going to happen while in England. So while I was having a blast being on break, I was also getting ready to come home. Didn't have much planned for this day, except a London Walks (what else, right?) trip to Greenwich. Before we left, we stopped by St Pauls to kill some time. I went in quickly to see it. Then we left for the harbor to catch the boat to Greenwich. For some reason, I thought it would be really far away or something. But no, it's just down the Thames from London, a few miles or so. We did get to go on another boat to get there, which was cool. But by then, I really didn't care about the sights along the river. I was just glad to be off my feet. So was Alan, who totally missed the chair as he tried to sit down. Funny stuff! Anyways, we got a tour of the town of Greenwich, starting with the original Cutty Sark clipper. We moved through the market and on up to Greenwich park, which houses the Royal Observatory and is also next to the Maritime Museum and Queen's House. We were there right at 1:00 PM, which is when a ball that is above the observatory drops like in Times Square, every day at 1. So right now, my watch is Greenwich certified! OH yeah! Our tour ended back at the Cutty Sark area, but we went to the Trafalgar bar for some eats, then went to the Observatory to see the Prime Meridian and straddle both hemispheres at the same time. Feel the power! It was here where Alan and I parted, as I had to be at Heathrow by 4, as my flight left at 6. Well, leaving at 3 PM from Greenwich (and still having to go back to my hotel to get my bags), probably wasn't my best plan. It took almost an hour to get to the hotel via the trains and tube and walking. I finally got to Paddington train station and then to Heathrow at 5 - just a little bit later than I had hoped. But needless to say, there wasn't a huge line for the Air Portugal airline and I checked in immediately. I got in to Lisbon that night, spent the night in a decent 4-star hotel (which was about $20 more than my hostel per night), and then made my way back to the Azores the next day. Just in time for me to encounter all the bad weather I so longed for. And it's been like that pretty much since.

Greenwich Tour

And that's it! I highly recommend everyone go to London for a trip. It's expensive, but well worth the effort and cost. I know I will be returning - one day. Cheerio!

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