Yesterday I met Chris Roche on Tower Hill in London and spent a pleasant day walking along what's left of Radcliffe Highway. We began with the memorial garden for merchant sailors lost at sea during World War 1 and 2, Trinity House (the HQ for Thames pilots) and the "Chain Locker" (the shipping office where sailors signed on or off for voyages), and the remnant of the old Roman wall, all in and around Tower Hill.

There's not much left of London's "sailortown" that an old shellback would recognize other than some of the warehouses which have been converted to luxury condominiums, a few churches and sailor hostels, the dock-pools, and a few old pubs. We managed to talk our way into one of the former sailor missions which was converted into a nursery school; we got to see and photograph a number of plaques commemorating sailors who were lost at sea, some hiding behind children's artwork. The pubs were the most fun, and the best of all was The Whitby, all dark varnished wood, the bar set on old barrels, a ship's mast supporting the stairway, nautical paintings and prints, chock-a-block with memories going back 400 years or more. We also got to see the Old Mahogany Bar which C. Fox Smith mentioned which has been converted into Wilton's Music Hall; it seemed an appropriate use for such a place and it looked very well used.

Later that day we joined Judy and her friend Pat at the hotel in Hampstead and then took the tube to Camden Town for dinner at a favorite Italian restaurant, followed by an evening of singing at Sharp's. I didn't recognize many people at Sharp's except for David Jones but everyone was very friendly and their voices certainly filled the room. We all got to lead two songs and I did "Mobile Bay" and "Bound Away." I wish I'd been able to get a list of names of those attending but I'm never very good at remembering new folks that I've met.

Today we do some more wandering around London, pick up some last minute gifts, and begin final packing.

This trip has been a whole lot of fun.

Cheerily,
Charley Noble, resident in London