Royal Observatory

Today I visited the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, England. This was about a 30 minute ride on a combination of the London Underground and light rail. I had been to Greenwich when I was in London sixteen years ago and wanted to go back. Many of you know of Greenwich Mean Time, also known as Universal Time. Well, this is where Greenwich Mean Time is kept. This is also where the prime meridian or zero degrees longitude passes through. Looking at the first picture, I have no idea the significance of the statue on the meridian. The thing on the wall to the right of the picture is a digital clock noting Greenwich Mean Time. What you can not tell from the picture is that, both this clock, and another one not in the picture, do not note the time in what they call "summer time" around here. Or daylight savings time.
Outside the planetarium, I saw a very interesting piece, I was puzzled by it until I read the signboard. I hope that the picture is clear enough so that you can read it. It is placed on the prime meridian. I'll let the sign board speak for itself.

I walked to and from the Observatory through Greenwich Park, one of the older of the Royal Parks in the London area. For obvious reasons, the Observatory is on a hill in the park, so no matter which way you approach it, you have a short climb. On my way to the Observatory, I passed through an absolutely exquisite rose garden. Sorry, no pictures. All the roses were in bloom, and they were all quite well cared for. I have to confess that I only ended up at the Rose Garden because I took a wrong turn trying to find the Observatory. There were lots of school aged children, playing in the Park, along with people with dogs, and the like. Oh, and they even have special containers for dog poop.

Tonight I am seeing some London theater, Billy Elliot on the advice of a friend. I had thought about not bothering to see a show while in London. I decided that I would not forgive myself if I were to pass up an opportunity to see theater.

I have part of a day in town tomorrow and plan to go to the British Museum which is a short walk from the hotel where I will leave my bags. Then off to Heathrow for the long journey to Johannesburg and from Johannesburg to Malawi.