Tackling Time Zones in Greenwich

There are a few things in life that I simply cannot understand. One is how to work a DVD player. One is how “Deal or No Deal” ever got commissioned for television. And one is time zones. I am always perplexed when I lose (or gain) hours (or days) when going left (or right) across timezones. But it all seems to stem from the prime meridian in Greenwich, so I thought this was a good place to go.

Apparently the Prime Meridian at Greenwich is basically a big imaginary line that goes north and south around the globe, which is 0 degrees Longitude. I think the Equator is the equivalent line that goes east and west around the globe, which is 0 degrees Latitude. (Which has made me v excited to see where 0 degrees latitude and 0 degrees longitude would be – I’ve just looked it up and it’s… in the sea off the coast of Africa). So I obv. had fun standing with one foot each side of the line 🙂

Greenwich is also home of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) – ie. where time is measured from, and reference point for all time zones across the world. Pretty cool! There was a big ornate clock there, although bizarrely it didn’t tell the right time?? I’m quite impressed that they managed to illustrate not only Time but also British Ineptitude in one… bravo! (Either that or I’ve completely missed the point!)

Anyway, who cares about a broken clock that when there are stunning panoramic views over the whole of London?!

Note the Canary Wharf buildings in the centre, The Millennium Dome on the right edge, and the Thames to the left. We sat for a while taking in the view.

Greenwich is home of the Cutty Sark, a handsome clipper sail boat. They have obviously regenerated the area near the Cutty Sark and it was very pleasant to stroll to the Thames. (They have also installed the type of fountains that I love, which kids splash about in! – Yay!).

We explored the Old Royal Naval College, where there was a graduation taking place. It was fun to watch the students throwing their hats in the air. It was beautiful and we sat by the Thames watching the kids splashing in the shallows.

We looked around the town a bit, including the market which was quite atmospheric, selling any type of food you could want. We got a fine curry in the end in a small restaurant which was lovely. The day ended with a stroll back to the Thames to watch the sunset.

I was really impressed by Greenwich – I would never have thought of it as a day out, but there was lots to see and it was really pretty. It is definitely worth a trip if you’re in the area. It took about 40 minutes from central London on the tube/train.