London - Starting at Zero

ZERO - Where Time Begins

Greenwich meantime - GMT.  Now be honest.  Where do you imagine this is located? And how do you think its location was determined; possibly some sophisticated, unique astronomical determinant? Well, as a long time boater, engineer and history buff, this question has been occupying Captain Steve into the wee hours.  Imagine our surprise to discover that a quick ride on the Thames fast ferry, exiting at the Greenwich Pier, walking up the hill to the Royal Observatory and you’re there!


Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) defines time for the world. Talk about drawing a definitive line, GMT is actually the orange line you see above. It’s the world’s prime meridian line, located at Longitude 0, 0’, 0” and Latitude 51, 28’, 38”. When the sun is at its highest exactly above the prime meridian, it’s 12 noon on the Shepherds Gate Clock, the name of the 24-clock showing GMT, which  is located at the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, a borough of London England.

The  concept of GMT began in the 15th century to aid navigators in finding the “New World”. In 1675 the race to create accurate navigational maps was formally launched by King Charles II (pictured far left) when he gave land to the Royal Society for Britain’s first National Observatory; designed by the famous British architect Christopher Wren. The building and its dome are in place to this day. Over the next two centuries,  competitions ensued to make clocks more predictable and map makers began to set latitude. Finally on November 1,1884 GMT was universally adopted and the international date line, as well as a 24 hour time zone established. To put this into perspective, at that time there were over 300 local times in the United States alone. 

ONE - Iconic Sporting Event

There is only ONE Wimbledon, with its iconic purple, green and white colored logo.  The  first Wimbledon Championship was held in 1877 on a croquet lawn of the All England Croquet and Lawn Tennis Club. In 1884 a woman’s championship was introduced.  Good thing, or we wouldn’t have been able to see Serena Williams play Giulia Gato-Montiocne on a very warm July 2nd.  That was after Rodger Federer played  Lloyd Harris on Central Court.  It was very thoughtful of Kate and  Carmella to save us seats in the Royal box! 

TWO - Teams Worth Worth Traveling For

So what prompted this trip to London you might ask. Have you heard of the Red Sox and Yankees rivalry, arguably the most combustible in baseball? Well, if your boys were flying across the ocean to play the first ever regular MLB season games in Europe against “the evil,empire”, what choice would you have but to follow along?

So there we were at London Stadium, in Stratford in northeast London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park at what was originally the 2012 track and field venue, now the home of the West Ham United Football Club - soccer to us Americans.  

 Nearly 60,000 fans packed both games, including Prince Harry with his American wife Meghan Markle,  now the Duchess of Sussex. There was fantastic pageantry with oversized country flags and dueling national anthems sung.  First pitches thrown, British little leaguers showed their stuff and the games commenced.  Take Me Out to the Ball Game was interspersed with God Bless America and, of course, Sweet Caroline for the Boston crowd.  Yankees ended up winning both games, but that didn’t deter cheers from Sox fans, who were disproportionality represented.  The sea of red would indicate that nearly half were Boston fans - which is amazing when you consider that Boston is a city of about 650 thousand and New York a city of over 8 million.  Goooo Sox!!!

THREE - Bridges out of 33

There are 33 London Bridges - here is three of our favorites from this trip. 

Millennium Bridge, which opened in June of 2,000. It’s a 1,000 foot long pedestrian footbridge that connects Christopher Wren’s iconic St Paul’s Cathedral with the Tate Modern and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre - or The City of London with Bankside.  Londoners nicknamed it the Wobbly Bridge after experiencing a slight swaying at its initial opening.  It’s since been fixed and yes, there are other ways to get across the Thames, but a wander across the Millenium Bridge is so much more memorable!

The Tower Bridge was built in 1894 and is located near the Tower of London.  The bascule design is 801 feet long with a 230 foot span that can be raised up and down as high as 139 feet, allowing  ships to access the port facilities at the Pool of London, between London Bridge (that’s next) and the Tower of London. On average it opens twice daily. 

London Bridge did actually fall down, or was pulled down several times during its history.  The first was a wood structure built by the Romans. In Medieval times it was replaced by a stone bridge and then another stone arched bridge in the 19th century. The current concrete and steel version was opened to traffic in 1973.  

FOUR - Performances Worth Searching For

What would a visit to London be without taking in its live theatre? Tickets or free, it’s all there for the taking!

Charlie Chaplin has taken up residence at an outside space at Covent Garden.  We saw him in 2012 down near the Tate. Charlie’s only gotten better!   Tina is one of the best of its genre and currently one of London’s most popular theatre offerings. By the end, your absolutely guaranteed to be on your feet and singing!  The Lehman Trilogy is as much about the immigration story as it is the history of the rise - and fall - and rise - okay and the challenges  of capitalism. As fascinating as the story, is the simple set design and versatility of its three actors who play multiple characters without changing costumes.  Definitely one to see.  And then there’s the live music. 

London truly has something for all tastes and walllets. 

FIVE - Museums Worth a Wander

Museum shows can be a tepid in the summer, but not so in London. There  are a couple of annual summer shows that you absolutely won’t want to miss! And London Art Week keeps venues opened on Sundays, with opening parties and visiting artists at many of the galleries near St James.  

1. The National Portrait Gallery’s Portrait Award - showcases 44 diverse and exceptional work selected from 2,538 international entries done in a wide variety of mediums and considerd anonymously by the judges, is in its 30th year.  Catch it between mid June and October. And it’s free! The National Portrait Gallery has the most extensive portrait collection in the world, with 215,000 works, spanning the 16th century to the present day.

2. The National Gallery - Has an exceptional collection of Flemish and Dutch art among its 2,300 pieces that date from 1250 through  the 1900’s.  The collection has three of Johannes Vermeer's 35 paintings completed in the mid to late 1600’s, known for his simple composition  and ability to capture minute reflected light.

3. The Royal Academy of Arts also has an annual juried show of 1,500 pieces called The Summer Exhibition, Rooms are organized by themes set by the show curators. All of the pieces are for sale, so bring your checkbook.  Note the red dots on this perennial favorite Stolen Thunder (The Final) by a a Camelia Parker. There’s a story there.  

4. The National Maratime Museum is the world’s largest maritime museum. What stands out is the truly state-of- the-art interactive exhibitions that covers an exceptionally broad array of topics from new world to arctic explorations. Give it a try.  Truly.  We liked it so much, we became members so that we could go back for more.

5. Old Royal Naval Academy 

The building itself was designed by, you guessed it, Christopher Wren.  But you want to come here to see the Sistine Chapel of the United Kingdom. Measuring over 43,00 square feet, no picture can do this oil paint on plaster justice. Sir James Thornhill painted this ode celebrating the English Monarchy over a 19 year period beginning in 1705. The ceiling recently went through a 2-year renovation that cost nearly 11-million US Dollars and reopened in March of 2019. 

Park City Utah - NOT Just for Skiing

Utah is one of those amazing states with dramatic  geographic diversity  - from lush mountains with skiing trails, rivers and deep gorges to the deserts of Monument Valley. Flying into Salt Lake City, you might wonder if you'll spot the Mormon's Temple Square, but it's the world's largest open pit mine along the panoramic Rocky Mountains that you can't fail to notice.  The Kenecott Copper Mine in Bingham Canyon can be seen from  space or, if on earth, the 9,000 foot ascent brings you to its lip.  Tours are readily available. 

A quick 45-minute drive from SLC brings you to the mountain town of Park City. In 1864 Fort Douglas soldiers found silver in the Wasatch Mountains. Prospectors arrived in droves and the population exploded! By the late 19th century millions of dollars had been excavated, but with it prices rapidly declined and Park City turned into a ghost town. Today these original structures have been restored, brightly painted and line Main Street and brighten the surrounding area.  Absolutely charming!

But 7,000 feet above sea level takes a bit of getting used to. Visiting with dear friends from Steve's McKinsey days, we're reminded to hydrate constantly, respect the sun's strength and be prepared to slow our pace in thinner air. Hmmm - someone didn't check the week's itinerary! 

Yellow metal bike racks give a hint that this is both an athleticslly and artistically oriented town. The annual juried art show  packs Main Street with tented booths and people come from miles around, so book a room early and don't expect to park near by! Every art form imaginable can be found here.  The Kaufmans have two pieces being shipped back to Boston. Come take a look.  

It's common to hear that people come here for the skiing and stay for the life style. (The population is 8,000 but swells in the winter months.)  Hiking and biking trails for every level abound.  Farm Trailhead is an easy picturesque 3-mile loop that includes this Nationally  Registered Historic Places farmstead. 

In the 1938 Joe Quinney developed the first chair lift in nearby Alta, to be followed in 1845 by the same in Park City. And so the area came back to life as a skiing destination. 

Is that Steve Kaufman there?  Or maybe that's  his Alpine cousin !

The 2002 Olympic Winter Games underscored Park City's winter activities, which have expanded well beyond skiing! The park is still incredibly active, even in summer. Anyone can come for a tour, but those in the know come on Saturday or Sunday. IF you sign a waver - you can zip line down Olympic ski trails, try out the lower luge path (at 60+ miles per hour that's all you need), use tires to glide down the Nordic ski trail or don a life jacket to slide down the least steep of the ski jump training slides.  (More on that later.)

Is rock climbing your thing? Plenty make their way up this wall, or at least try before tumbling into the water. The upper portion bends to nearly a 45-degree angle! So, YES, bathing suits are the order of the day.  The competitive pros can scramble up in less than 30 seconds and are rewarded with a drop into a cooling pool. 

 

If you're like me, you might be more of an observer. I've  always wondered how those down hill jumpers ever learn their sport.  Downhill slopes into bubbling water and landing on gigantic  "pillow tops" helps gain confidence.  The park offers courses to those that want to learn the many winter sports available here, beginning with children as young as 6!

However, an event you'll never forget is watching the Flying Aces sore down inclines, being launched into the sky to twist and turn as they practice jumps before landing in the water. 

Cluck here to see the Flying Aces perform - 10 previous and potential future Olympic participants.

After all that day time activity - and fortified with amazing food from the Deer Valley Cafe, Royal Street Cafe, Brass Tag, Le Spri and Bistro 412 to name but a few - a little music might be just the thing!

How about the Beetles performing at the Deer Valley Music Festival? Bring chairs, wine and join 5,000 others for a sold out evening of music memories.  Over 20 performers come here every year so there's something for everyone.  

We can't thank our hosts - Annie Lewis and Bob Garda enough.  Needless to say, we had a wonderful time and with these helpful hints, we know you will too. So your not a skier? That's no reason to not go to Park City. Have fun!