Maurizio Patti led our tour of Greenwich. Seldom have we met someone whose breadth of knowledge was so extensive; Maurizio could weave together themes of architecture; science; maritime, art and social history seamlessly. Moreover, he went out of his way to engage our 15-year-old daughter, Charlotte, in the tour in a very kind and thoughtful way. His tutorage paid off: when we went on our next Context tour with Vivienne Haxby, Charlotte was able to identify a small sampling of a mural used on one of the placards at the Crown Jewel exhibit as coming from the painted ceiling in the Dining Hall of the Royal Naval College in Greenwich which we had explored with Maurizio (something even Vivienne could not immediately place). Vivienne was equally gracious and warm during her tour, and her knowledge of the Tower and royal history was superb. This isn't in the nature of a critique, just an observation: there is so much to experience in Greenwich, it is impossible to do in a three-hour tour. Maurizio did an excellent job of giving us an overview and pointing out the things we might like to do on our own after the tour was over.

The narrated ride down the Thames was terrific (and was the part of the walk we expected to care about the least), and the whole walk gave us a very good overview of Greenwich, including its royal history, its architecture, its importance as a port and its importance to astronomy and the calculation of longitude. Our group enjoyed it very much. Speaking only for myself, I would say that I enjoy your in-depth themed walks more than the overview ones, although an overview was what we needed here.

The tour of the Thames en route to Greenwich was terrific and fun, and it was delightful to leave our usual London haunts in the care of a genuinely insightful guide. The itinerary was perfect. Sarah Jane Kitching had many interesting points to share.

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