Where time begins

The Royal Observatory at Greenwich is home to the Greenwich Meridian where the brochures tell you east meets west and time is set.

Greenwich is where British naval power, science and empire come together, in a classically English setting of tended lawns and beautiful buildings.

As a recognised World Heritage Site, it is one of the spiritual homes of the Enlightenment, when science and exploration were feeding off each other during the 18th century, putting Britain firmly at the centre of the world.

You can get there easily on the Docklands Light Railway, which connects to the rest of the London Underground at Bank station.

The Royal Observatory at Greenwich is home to the Greenwich Meridian where the brochures tell you east meets west and time is set.

Founded by Charles II in 1675 it is, by international decree, the official starting point for each new day, year and millennium (sorry Gisborne).

At the top of the hill is the Royal Observatory, where the clocks of John Harrison, made famous in the best-selling book Longitude, are now kept. He won the competition to accurately judge a ship's longitude - saving many sailors' lives.

The Cutty Sark is also at Greenwich. She was launched in 1869 and for a time was the world's fastest ship. The last of the tea clippers, she has been in dry dock since 1954.

There is a 9 ($23.40) charge to visit the Cutty Sark and also to see the new Nelson & Napoleon exhibition at the National Maritime Museum, which runs till November, but the classic buildings of Greenwich are free to enjoy.

Henry VIII and Elizabeth I were born at Greenwich. The Queen's House is perhaps the more beautiful and is the model for a more famous house, the White House in Washington DC. Completed in 1635, the Queen's House is described as the first fully classical building in England.

Walk through a foot tunnel under the Thames from Greenwich to the Isle of Dogs, and you can see the remains of the slipway used in 1857 by Victorian engineering hero Isambard Kingdom Brunel to launch what at the time was the world's largest ship, the Great Eastern. It became stuck on the slipway and took two months to prise free and finally launch.

Fantastic views across to London and Canary Wharf, sweeping lawns, classic buildings and free museums, all just 20 minutes by rail from the centre of London. What more could you want?