By chance, we stopped for breakfast at Alacosta Coffee. The cafe latte was superb, the garden where we sat was cool and peaceful, and the owner Eddy Wong (right) and his worker were energetic and friendly. Eddy developed his own blend of coffee to produce an excellent brew. He took time from his work to describe Greenwich and its attractions. I am looking forward to returning tomorrow to have another perfect java and to converse with Eddy and staff. I can’t think of a more perfect way to start the day.
We visited the Maritime museum and learned about England and its relationship with the sea. There was a special exhibition Visions of the Universe which explained the planets and the showed pictures of the universe taken with the Hubble telescope. We spent about four hours visiting the various rooms.
While Dennis slept beneath a tree on the museum lawn, I visited the Queen’s House. It originally belonged to Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I. In the 1800s, the house became an orphanage and school for training boys for maritime careers. Now the building is a fine arts museum. I loved the Tulip Staircase, the parquet entrance, and decorative ceilings.
We explored the Cutty Sark. It was interesting to learn about the ship, its travels, and cargo. The sailors’ quarters were miniscule; I can’t imagine laying in the short and narrow bunk that is just slightly longer than Dennis’ arm. Of course, the Captain and mates had more luxurious cabins and dinning area, but even these were not very roomy. I think it must have been a very difficult and dangerous life, at nature’s mercy, without communications, medical services, or guarantee of return.
We walked under the River Thames via a pedestrian tunnel. The air was cool, in contrast to the 90 F temperatures topside. Once on the London side, we walked east on the river path, hoping to get to the Thames Barrier, structures used to protect London from tidal flooding. We never got there. After walking for about two hours, we decided to take the train back to the hotel. Unfortunately, the closest station was several miles away and we walked an additional hour before arriving. It has been a full and tiring day.
Don’t you think Dennis could have been an Old Salt?
