A visit to the Royal Observatory Museum at Greenwich.
Today we visited Greenwich, and the Royal Observatory Museum that sits atop the hill in Greenwich Park. It has an expansive view across the park, past the Old Royal Naval College and the River Thames, to the skyscrapers in the Canary Wharf financial district of London. This observatory is where the question of longitude was studied – and in particular, a decades-long challenge to find a reliable means for mariners to estimate their longitude while at sea. As a result, it was later selected as the zero point – the reference point for 0º0’0″ longitude, aka the Prime Meridian. Given the importance of measuring time for measuring longitude, Greenwich was also designated as the basis for universal time – hence Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), now known as Universal Time (UTC). We and the other tourists had fun standing on the meridian, one foot in the Western Hemisphere and one foot in the Eastern Hemisphere.
The weather was a bit iffy, but I decided to head (once again) south of London to the region of North Downs for an extended hike through the countryside. Today’s hike began and ended in the pretty village of Gomshall, and passed through the tiny (and even prettier) village of Shere. The route strolled alongside sheep and horse pastures, past historic churches, and along a forested ridgeline following the North Downs Trail. Other than for a brief drizzle, the sun was a companion and the scenery pleasant.
Although many Americans think this iconic bridge is called London Bridge, it’s actually called Tower Bridge – and is just upstream from its famous and historic neighbor, the architecturally bland London Bridge. Tower Bridge opened to the public in 1894; as a bascule bridge its central span lifts open to allow tall ships to pass, while its twin upper walkways allow sightseers like us to enjoy expansive views of the river and the city. Today we took the opportunity to visit. On this rainy winter weekday, there were few other visitors so we almost had the place to ourselves as we climbed the tower, walked across the high pedestrian bridges, and then down into the depths to view the historic coal-powered engine rooms.
I’ve finally finished post-processing my photographs from October.
Back in October I posted about an enjoyable week in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, with a photography instructor and a small group of other aspiring photographers, at the height of the fall-foliage season. The focus of our photo workshop, if you don’t mind the pun, was waterfalls – but we also took advantage of mountain overlooks to capture the foliage in the golden light of sunrise and sunset. I snapped a couple thousand photos in five days, and worked hard to improve my photography skills. I finally found time to select and process the photos, and I’m pleased to share the best fifteen in this photo gallery – it’s also viewable as a brief slideshow.
An organ recital in a 13th-century architectural icon.
It is hard not to be moved when the first notes of the organ echo throughout an iconic 13th-century cathedral, especially one with such a storied history like Westminster Abbey. You feel the deeper notes resonate throughout your body as the music fills the hall with an even greater sense of grandeur.
After an organ recital at Westminster Abbey, London.
We were sitting near the front row, along with perhaps one hundred other lovers of music, history, and travel, and treated to a 40-minute organ recital by one of the Abbey’s senior organists. These weekly recitals are free and open to the public, as are weekly choral recitals and daily Evensong.
A side passage at Westminster Abbey, London.
“Although Westminster Abbey was founded in 960AD, the building we see today dates from the reign of Henry III in the 13th century.” You can read lots more about the history of Westminster Abbey, which has been used for 16 royal weddings and every royal coronation since 1066.
Westminster Abbey, London.
Just across the street from the Abbey is Westminster Palace; we crossed the Thames on Westminster Bridge for a good view of Westminster Palace (Parliament building) and Elizabeth Tower (with the bell named Big Ben). Westminster Abbey peeks out from behind the palace, just to the right of the construction cranes.
Westminster – Parliament building, Elizabeth Tower (Big Ben), and the River Thames. London.
There’s one important feature about an unbroken streak: one is loathe to break it. So, despite my aching back (and bruised ego) left over from last week’s hike, I was determined to get out this weekend for my 16th consecutive weekend hike. The weather was promising for sunrise – cloudy, with periods of sun – so I headed back to Primrose Hill to see what I might find.
When I arrived, a bit after sunrise, the sun was hidden behind thick clouds – just as it had when I was last standing on this spot, on solstice. Today, unlike then, patience paid off… and the sun emerged, spilling “god rays” among London landmarks like The Shard.
Sunrise view from Primrose Hill, London, with views of London landmarks.
I walked down the hill and past London Zoo into Regent Park – with a brief glance at Regent Canal as I crossed over the path of one of my December hikes. Along the pathway I joined a crowd of parents and children heading for the football pitches. Although the ground was frosted and the sun was struggling to eke its way through the clouds, the children were buzzing with excitement as they warmed up for Saturday matches.
Children preparing for football matches – Regents Park.
At the heart of Regent’s Park is Queen Mary’s garden, enclosed by a perfectly circular roadway. A quite street with almost no traffic on this Saturday morning, the “inner circle” road was spinning with lycra-clad bicyclists. As I walked round this circle, I recognized the same group of speedy cyclists zipping past me every few minutes, as they lapped the circle again and again. I took the opportunity to practice panning shots, that is, panning my camera sideways to photograph a fast-moving subject so the subject is clear and sharp and the background is blurred. Much harder than it looks! I need more practice.
Panning shot of cyclists riding the “inner circle” at Regents Park, London.
I walked a few more miles through the streets of London until I reached a favorite café, where I joined some computer-science colleagues over a chai and a croissant.
Regents Park. I still find it astonishing to see flowers blooming in January.
Hike stats: Distance: about 7.5 miles total
I didn’t track the whole hike with GaiaGPS, so the map is incomplete. The distance estimate is from the Health app on my iPhone.
Sunrise view from Primrose Hill, London, with views of London landmarks.
When offered a chance to tour Buckingham Palace, how can one say no? After all, we live within walking distance, and I often walk past the palace on my way for a stroll in Green Park or St. James Park. Out front, the grand gates attract throngs of selfie-taking tourists, gawking at the grandeur of the palace and snapping photos of the iconic guardsmen. Today, we stood with a small group of others who waited by the front gate for our designated entry time.
Waiting to enter the north gate of Buckingham Palace.
To be clear, it’s not like we were heading for an appointment with His Majesty King Charles, or others in the royal family. We’d bought tickets for a tour of the East Wing, along with a dozen other locals and tourists. Our wait, on a chilly gray winter’s day, gave us an opportunity to study the decorative gates and the heavily armed police just behind them.
After entering this gate, we walked to the right-side door where you can see a person is waiting, and entered Buckingham Palace.
Unfortunately, photography was not permitted once we passed through the gates, through airport-style security screening, and throughout the tour. Our tour guide walked us through three or four elaborate rooms and along a grand corridor spanning the front of the palace. (The East Wing has over 200 rooms; we saw four.) She explained that this wing had never before been open to the public, having been designed and used primarily as a residence for the royal children. Now, its rooms are used for meetings, and receptions. (They are separate from the State Rooms, which are only open for public tours in the summer.)
A photo of the Central Room in East Wing, from an email sent with our tickets.
Many walls decked with massive paintings of the sort one might expect in the National Gallery, or National Portrait Gallery – depicting famous figures or heroic scenes, like Queen Victoria or the Battle of Trafalgar. Our tour guide, who noted her two art-history degrees, delighted in telling us the backstory on many works of art, including murals, painted ceilings, and exquisite porcelain from China. Indeed, many of the rooms were thoroughly decorated in chinoiserie style, which apparently had been quite fashionable. (Indeed, that Wikipedia link includes an (outdated) photo of the Yellow Drawing Room we visited today; the caption says it is “rife with chinoiserie designs. King George IV was a keen patron of chinoiserie, and had many other rooms created in this style such as the Centre Room, also located in the East Wing.”) Much of it reminded me of the palace we visited in Brighton; no coincidence, because when Queen Victoria sold that palace she relocated most of its decorations to Buckingham.
Many more photos are available on the royal family’s webpage. We visited parts of the East Wing that has just been reserviced (renovated and restored), as described in this short YouTube video from seven years ago when the work began. Other wings of the Palace are currently under similar restoration.
In the final room, we were standing right behind the front, central balcony that looks out on the forecourt, past the grand Victoria Memorial, and down the mall central to St. James Park. The guides excitedly described how, just two years ago, King Charles arrived at Buckingham Palace after his coronation, walked through the same corridors, and waved to the crowds from this very balcony.
During our tour of Buckingham Palace, we looked out the windows behind the front/central balcony.
I glanced out the window at just the right moment – to see snowflakes swirling madly through the air. A snow squall was passing through our neighborhood in London – the first snow I’d seen in England – so I pulled on my coat and scurried outside. The snow had ended as quickly as it began, leaving only a dusting on the pavements and nearby garden squares.
I wrote yesterday about my lovely hike through Bois de Vincennes, in central Paris. We had arrived in Paris on Friday afternoon after a quick ride through the Channel Tunnel; only two and a half hours from London to Paris!
As I sat over my tea and croissant in an unremarkable Paris boulangerie, looking out into the pre-dawn darkness, snow began to fall. Large, fluffy flakes quickly dusted the sidewalk. Traffic was light on this Saturday morning, although it was nearly 8am. Sunrise wasn’t due for nearly another hour, but I bundled up and headed out, across the street and into the Bois de Vincennes, a sprawling, forested park sometimes called the “lungs of Paris”. I was determined to continue my unbroken sequence of weekend hiking – today was my fifteenth consecutive weekend hike, now spanning five countries.
David Kotz 