The next morning we are headed up the Thames River to our final port of call – Greenwich.
About 15 miles east of central London we pass through the “Barrier” which was constructed starting in 1974 to control flooding of London which has been a problem since Roman times. Storm surges can raise the water level about 11′ and flood about 45 square miles of the London area. There have been 221 flood defence closures since it was completed.We pass under a gondola for transport over the river.And pass the O2 Arena which was originally constructed at the Millennium Dome back around 2000 and then remodeled to be this big event venue. Madonna played there last year for instance. Comments from our local communitarians report that the original tab on public funds was not popular.We turned our ship around at about this point and backed up the river about a half a mile to our Greenwich “anchorage” spot which was a few miles down from the Tower of London etc.And do our final tour of Greenwich.Starting with a look at the Cutty Sark – a fast tea clipper in its day but now a shoreside attraction.Here’s a statue of Walter Raleigh whose illustrious career includes credit for establishing Jamestown and Virginia. He was a favorite of Queen Elizabeth but ticked her off when he married one of the gals on her staff without her permission so spent much of his final years as a “resident” of the Tower of London”Needs no introduction.Also needs no introductionWe visit many buildings designed by Christopher Wren, some of which started out as a hospital and retirement place for sailors. Current use for some are for Trinity Music College.This frieze depicts the dead body of Nelson being received by Britannia (presumably into heaven?) after his death at Trafalgar.A look back at the city from Greenwich.And a look up at the Royal Observatory which played a major role in the history of astronomy and navigation and is the location that establishes the Prime Meridian – zero longitude.The next morning we head to Heathrow and get a tour through London with a peak at the Tower of London, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, etc. Our trip home was smooth sailing as Viking had us going first class which was very nice.
Charlie and Marty’s World Cruise 