Greenwich (London), England (Day 120)

Hello Everyone!

We sailed from Dover and up the Thames river to Greenwich in the wee hours of Tuesday, 5 May 2026. This is the final stop on our 121-day, 4-month journey. We stayed overnight here, allowing some good time for sightseeing in the London area. I spent today visiting Greenwich, the Wapping neighborhood in the East End, and taking an evening cruise on the Thames. Tomorrow I'll disembark from the ship and head to Belgium to visit my friends who live there.

Our ship docked at the Greenwich pier, which is home to the Cutty Sark. Cutty Sark is a famous British clipper ship built in 1869, originally designed to transport tea quickly from China to Britain during the highly competitive tea trade era. Later, it carried wool from Australia and became known for its speed and elegant design. Today, the Cutty Sark is preserved as a museum ship, where visitors can explore the ship, learn about maritime history, and see one of the last surviving tea clippers in the world.

The Cutty Sark on Display in Greenwich

My morning excursion was a walking tour of Greenwich. Just after we left the ship I got this picture of the Viking Sky in the harbor.

Viking Sky at Greenwich Pier

We had an excellent guide, a former history teacher, who gave us the entire history of London from 50 AD through the present day. I don't think she skipped a single monarch!

The old Royal Naval College (now the University of Greenwich) was located here and we spent a considerable amount of time walking through some very old and historic buildings there.

This is King Charles Court, originally designed by Sir Christopher Wren as part of the Royal Hospital for Seamen in the late 17th century. Later it served as the Royal Naval College from 1873 until 1998, when it was taken over by the University of Greenwich. It currently houses the Trinity Laban Conservatory of Music and Dance. We could hear music from the windows as the students practiced.

King Charles Court

Here's another view of one of the old hospital buildings, now part of the University of Greenwich.

Royal Naval College

This building, also part of the Royal Naval College campus, has been used as a backdrop for a large number of films and TV shows such as Les Misérables, Thor: The Dark World, and Bridgerton.

King William Court

The Queen's House is one of the most important early classical buildings in England and a centerpiece of historic Greenwich. It sits between the riverfront buildings of the Old Royal Naval College and the hill leading up to the Royal Observatory Greenwich. Designed by Inigo Jones beginning in 1616, it introduced a refined Palladian and classical architectural style to England, inspired by Renaissance architecture in Italy. 

The building was commissioned for Queen Anne of Denmark, wife of King James I, though she died before it was completed. It was later finished for Queen Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I. Eventually  the site became part of a much larger royal and naval complex. The buildings of the Old Royal Naval College were intentionally separated to preserve the Queen’s House view toward the River Thames. Today, the Queen’s House functions as a free public museum and is part of the UNESCO Maritime Greenwich World Heritage Site. It’s often appreciated as much for its architecture and setting as for its collections.

Queen's House

Here's what the view from the Queen's House toward the Royal Naval College and the Thames looks like today.

Thames from the Queen's House

The Trafalgar Tavern nearby was named in honor of the British victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, where Admiral Horatio Nelson defeated the combined French and Spanish fleets during the Napoleonic Wars. Although Nelson was killed during the battle, the victory secured British naval dominance for more than a century.

Trafalgar Tavern

Nelson is commemorated by a statue near the Trafalgar Tavern because Greenwich is deeply tied to Britain’s naval history, and Nelson became the nation’s greatest naval hero after the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.

Horatio Nelson Statue

Just up the hill from the campus is the Royal Greenwich Observatory. The prime meridian (0° Longitude) runs through the observatory, and it is the home of Greenwich Mean Time (GMT), the time zone from which all others in the world are referenced.

Royal Greenwich Observatory

We continued our walk through Greenwich. It was very scenic, as most of the old architecture has been preserved. This pub is representative of the predominant building styles.

Greenwich Tavern

Here's a bit of whimsy. Near the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich there is a small sculpture called the “Monument for a Dead Parrot.” It’s a humorous public artwork directly inspired by the famous Monty Python's Flying Circus “Dead Parrot” sketch.

The sculpture was created in 2009 by artist Jon Reardon and depicts a dead parrot lying on its back atop a pedestal. The connection is to the legendary Monty Python sketch in which John Cleese tries to return a clearly dead parrot to a pet shop owner played by Michael Palin, who insists the bird is merely “pining for the fjords.” The sketch became one of the most famous comedy routines in British television history. 

Monument for a Dead Parrot

I also got chuckle out of this sign on another local pub. I'll assume that Pie & Mash with Eels is right up there with Toad in the Hole, Bubble and Squeak, and Spotted Dick.

Yum...

After the walking tour, a friend and I decided to venture to the Wapping neighborhood of the East End to see if we could find the flat where she and her husband lived in the 1990s. The easiest way to get there was to board the "Thames Clipper", a form of public transport that runs up and down the Thames. Thames Clipper service began operating on 24 May 1999. It started modestly with a single commuter boat running along the River Thames between eastern and central London.

The company was founded by Sean Collins and Alan Woods, who believed the Thames could once again become a practical transportation corridor for London commuters. Early ridership was quite small — only about 80 passengers per day on the original route.

Over time, the service expanded dramatically as riverside development increased in areas like Canary Wharf, Greenwich, and Battersea. Today it functions as an integrated part of London’s transport network, with frequent commuter and tourist services along the Thames. In 2020, the system was rebranded through a partnership with Uber, becoming “Uber Boat by Thames Clippers.”

Using the boats is incredibly easy - you simply tap a credit card as you get on and off the boat. I was able to use my Apple watch to do so, making it very quick. In fact, all of the public transport in London (bus, tube, rail) operates on the same payment system. Quite convenient.

Uber Boat by Thames Clippers

Along the way we passed the famous Tower of London, which dates back to 1066. It is a historic fortress, royal palace, and former prison located on the north bank of the River Thames in central London.

Founded shortly after the Norman Conquest by William the Conqueror, the Tower was built to protect and control the city. Its central structure, the White Tower, became a symbol of royal authority and military power. Over nearly a thousand years, the Tower has served many purposes:

• Royal residence
• Fortress and armory
• Treasury and mint
• Prison and execution site
• Home of the Crown Jewels

It is especially famous for imprisoning notable historical figures, including Anne Boleyn and Sir Walter Raleigh. Today, the Tower of London is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Britain’s most visited historic landmarks. Visitors can see the Crown Jewels, the medieval towers, the famous ravens, and the ceremonial Yeoman Warders (“Beefeaters”) who still guard the complex.

Tower of London

The iconic Tower Bridge is located adjacent to the Tower of London. Often mistakenly referred to as "London Bridge" (a very mundane structure upriver), Tower Bridge is one of London’s most recognizable landmarks — a combined bascule (drawbridge) and suspension bridge crossing the River Thames near the Tower of London.

Construction began in 1886 and the bridge officially opened in 1894. It was designed by architect Horace Jones and engineer John Wolfe Barry to solve a growing transportation problem in East London while still allowing tall-masted ships access to the busy Port of London.

The bridge’s two massive towers are connected by high-level walkways, and the central roadway can split and raise upward to let ships pass. Originally, the bridge was powered by steam-driven hydraulic machinery. Today it uses modern hydraulic and electrical systems. Its Victorian Gothic appearance was intentionally chosen so it would harmonize visually with the nearby Tower of London.

Tower Bridge remains both a working river crossing and a popular tourist attraction, with visitors able to tour the towers, engine rooms, and glass-floored walkways above the Thames.

Tower Bridge

We got off the Clipper and walked from the tower to Wapping, the neighborhood where my friend used to live. Wapping is a historic riverside district in East London along the north bank of the River Thames, just east of the Tower of London and within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

For centuries, Wapping was closely tied to London’s maritime world. It was filled with docks, warehouses, sailors’ lodging houses, ropewalks, ship chandlers, and taverns serving the busy Port of London. The neighborhood had a rough reputation during the 18th and 19th centuries because of crime, smuggling, drunkenness, and the transient population associated with the docks.

Wapping is also known for several notable historical associations:

• Execution Dock
  Pirates and smugglers convicted by the Admiralty courts were historically executed here near the Thames waterfront.
• Wapping dispute
  A major labor conflict erupted when Rupert Murdoch moved News International printing operations to Wapping, transforming the British newspaper industry.
• Thames-side pubs such as The Prospect of Whitby
  One of London’s oldest riverside taverns, long associated with sailors and dockworkers.

During the late 20th century, the rise of containerized shipping and the decline of the traditional London docks led to major redevelopment. Former warehouses were converted into apartments, and Wapping became a quieter residential neighborhood while still retaining much of its narrow cobbled streets, old dock architecture, and maritime atmosphere.

View Down Wapping High Street

After locating her former flat, we stopped in a local pub for a pint, then went back to the ship.

That evening, just around sunset, another friend and I joined in on a Viking-sponsored cruise up and down the Thames. It was quite scenic. Here's what our ship looked like as we departed on the cruise.

Viking Sky

Selfie with the Viking Sky
in the Background

We had some nice views of the London skyline as we slowly cruised by. Here's a modern building, colloquially referred to as "the shard". It's a mixed use (primarily office) building which opened in 2012. Its sharply tapered glass form was intended to resemble a shard of glass emerging from the city skyline — which inspired the name “The Shard.” It became a symbol of modern London, contrasting sharply with the city’s older historic skyline that includes landmarks such as Tower Bridge and St Paul's Cathedral. Its construction was somewhat controversial because some critics felt such a modern supertall tower did not fit London’s traditional character, while supporters viewed it as a sign of the city’s global and economic modernity.

The Shard

London Skyline

London Skyline

London Eye is a giant observation wheel located on the south bank of the River Thames near Westminster Bridge and across from the Palace of Westminster.

Opened to the public in 2000, it was originally built as a temporary attraction to celebrate the new millennium, but it became so popular that it was kept permanently. At 135 meters (443 feet) tall, it was once the tallest observation wheel in the world.

The wheel was designed by architects David Marks and Julia Barfield. Its large glass capsules slowly rotate around the wheel, giving passengers panoramic views of London over about a 30-minute ride.

Structurally, the London Eye is notable because it is cantilevered (supported on only one side), giving it a distinctive appearance compared with other Ferris wheels. The construction and erection of London Eye was a remarkable engineering project because the wheel was far too large to assemble upright in the conventional way. It was originally built flat on floating platforms, then supported by temporary cranes and cables before being slowly rotated into an upright position. Once it was up, the "spokes" (steel cables) of the wheel were tightened like the spokes of a bicycle wheel to make it rigid and true.

London Eye

We also cruised by the houses of Parliament and Big Ben. Very iconic and scenic.

Parliament and Big Ben

Big Ben at Night

After about an hour and a half of sightseeing, it was time to head back to the ship for one last night on board. Tomorrow morning the fantasy ends and it's time to go back to the real world!

But there's still more blog to go! I'll be spending the next five days with my Belgian friends, Digno and Lieve, at there home in Tremelo, just northeast of Brussels.

More to follow,
Jim