July 17: London

We decided to stay a few more days in London. Since we could not extend our stay our current hotel, we went in search of another. The Tourist Office suggested the Mitre Hotel, which is smack in the middle of Greenwich. We will move there tomorrow. After completing this chore, we went to the train station to book our tickets to Wales. I could not believe how inexpensive the tickets were (about £52 for the two of us), thanks to the senior discount.

We then enjoyed the panoramic view of London from the Royal Observatory. As we climbed the hill to the lookout, Dennis was amazed at how much prime land England gives to the people to enjoy. Greenwich Park, surrounded by a 12-foot high, two-mile long wall, covers 73 hectares (183 acres) and is the oldest enclosed Royal Park. People were sunbathing (yes, some in bathing suits) or sitting in the shade, playing games, strolling, or paddling boats on the pond–just having a good time.

The Shephard Clock Gate welcomes you to the Royal Observatory. The clock was probably the first to display Greenwich Mean Time to the public, and is unusual in using the 24-hour analogue dial.

The displays demonstrate how important having accurate time was for seamen. With it, they could determine their exact position (longitude and latitude) and avoid wrecking the ship.

The museum had models and anecdotes about the various attempts to develop a way to accurately determine time. Once such story is the Powder of Sympathy. It was believed that anyone cut with a weapon that was dipped into the powder would feel pain whenever the weapon was dipped into the powder. The plan was to cut a dog with a knife that had been plunged into the powder, and take that dog aboard the ship. Someone at the South Gate Clock would plunge that same knife into the powder at noon causing the dog to yelp and providing the captain with the accurate time. Of course, it proved absolutely useless.

In the past, the Prime Meridian (the first longitude) varied by country and mapmaker. Obviously, this caused a lot of confusion. In 1884, 22 countries voted to adopt the Greenwich meridian as the prime meridian of the world. You can see the prime meridian in the picture on the right. Nowadays, a green laser shines at night to indicate the the meridian; the green beam can be seen for about 15 miles.

Since we have not been using our packs, I am concerned about out-eating my caloric expenditure. While backpacking, I burn three times more calories per hour than when I am just walking. Notice how much Dennis at 180 lbs burns compared to someone like me at 130 lbs. It just isn’t fair! Do you think that if I gain weight, I will burn more calories?

The cabin we are going to in Wales on Saturday does not supply sheets or towels. Since we cannot backpack them after our stay, I did not want to spend too much. The  hotel concierge recommended ASDA as a place to buy inexpensive sheets. Once we got there, we discovered that ASDA is an English subsidiary of Walmart. Unlike the American chain, these had limited clothing and supplies; it was mostly a grocery store. Like the American version, it was mobbed.

Many street crossings are marked which way to look before crossing. I guess I am not the only one who had to be reminded about the safety rule to always look first in the direction of vehicular travel.

Author: Jane V. Blanchard

I am an award-winning author of the "Woman On Her Way" book series, writing about my travel adventures. For more information on the books, please visit janevblanchard.com. I started the "Woman On Her Way" travel blog in 2013 to share my experiences as I explored 13 countries with my husband, traveling by ship, foot, bike, bus, train, and plane. Dennis and I continue to make memories and hope you will enjoy following along. View all posts by Jane V. Blanchard