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Letter III

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 November 2021

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Summary

Sailing in the German sea. Fellow passengers. The Thames. Gravesend. Greenwich. Deptford. London Bridge. The customs house. View of London. The hotel. A stroll. The police.

London, May 15

At four o’clock in the morning, the engine of the steamer started to pound. I came out to the salon, sat by the window, watching the pretty banks of the Elbe, where I had spent many delightful hours, slowly disappear in the distance. The morning was dull and gloomy: it was raining heavily. At about seven o’clock, we passed Cuxhaven and soon sailed into the open sea. The contrary wind grew stronger. The steamer started to roll violently, and all the passengers dispersed to their bunks. Dreary, exasperating, tortuous day! The only consolation was that our Countess Lansdale, despite the oppositional wind, flew like an arrow from a bow, doing up to ten knots per hour. The next day, the waves and the rolling subsided. Passengers climbed out of their dens and got acquainted with each other. But there was none of the refined society of the Naslednik that made me forget the monotony and boredom of the sea voyage. From the previously mentioned fellow passengers, there was only one, young Count Ugarte, who with his pleasant and friendly conversation, at times made me forget my loneliness. There were also two estate owners from Mecklenburg, sailing to London to buy stallions. They did not know a word of English and soon became friends with one crafty Englishman who spoke German very well and managed to take these simple-minded Germans under his British care. Now, I think, he sold them to the horses. The other passengers included English merchants, German Jews, etc., and also two English ladies, Miss Yes and Miss No. This steamer is not laid out as comfortably as ours are. The men's cabins on this steamer are located at the bottom, in the dark. The salon is decorated splendidly, with sofas, bronzes, mirrors; but the upper deck is uneven, narrow, and inconvenient for taking a stroll. It is also worth noting that the cleanliness of the deck was not exemplary. Only one thing was good—the food: breakfast, dinner, supper—delicious, hearty, even sumptuous. The wine and other beverages were good.

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Publisher: Anthem Press
Print publication year: 2021

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  • Letter III
  • Nikolai Gretsch
  • Book: Nikolai Gretsch's Travel Letters: Volume 1 - Letters from England
  • Online publication: 13 November 2021
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  • Letter III
  • Nikolai Gretsch
  • Book: Nikolai Gretsch's Travel Letters: Volume 1 - Letters from England
  • Online publication: 13 November 2021
Available formats
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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Letter III
  • Nikolai Gretsch
  • Book: Nikolai Gretsch's Travel Letters: Volume 1 - Letters from England
  • Online publication: 13 November 2021
Available formats
×