At some level, I suppose I realized I would eventually cross from the Eastern Hemisphere to the Western Hemisphere at some point during my pilgrimage. Still, it caught me a bit off guard when I saw a sign for the Greenwich Meridian adjacent to the trail.
I pulled out my phone to see if the sign agreed with the GPS. It was definitely close enough. The longitude on my phone showed west, starting with a zero, a decimal point, and three more zeros. If I were to trust the phone, I probably crossed the actual meridian about 50-100 yards earlier.
A few minutes later, I came across a group of about a dozen workers that had gathered in a shady spot to enjoy a late-morning coffee break. They had extra coffee and extra cups, so they offered the passing pilgrim some. I politely declined.
This kind of thing happens a lot. Sometimes I accept the generosity that’s offered to me. This time I just imagined they’d all come out to the middle of this vineyard to greet pilgrims entering the Western Hemisphere.