They arrived a little time after we made our way to the Greenwich Pier and started our walk up to the Naval College, However we had one little stop we wanted to make on the way.

Tucked away in the lush grounds of the Devonport House hotel in Greenwich, you'll stumble upon a bird sculpture that's nothing short of quirky. Picture this: a feathered fellow lounging on its backk, as if it's taking a leisurely sunbath on a tiny pedestal. But let me assure you, this bird isn't enjoying a siesta—it's well and truly shuffled off its mortal coil, perched atop its own little plinth.

Now, this masterpiece, titled "Monument for a Dead Parrot," is the brainchild of the artist Jon Reardon. He came up with this avian oddity without a proper place to put it. It took a whopping two years of haggling with London borough councils before this curious creation found its cozy spot in the hotel garden, conveniently close to the National Maritime Museum.

One can't help but wonder if Reardon drew inspiration from the infamous Monty Python "Dead Parrot" sketch. You know the one, where John Cleese's character tries to convince a shopkeeper that his Norwegian Blue parrot is dearly departed (though our cockatoo here also boasts some seriously splendid plumage). 

Interestingly, the sketch was filmed in a pet shop up on Caledonian Road in London, so you might ponder why this parrot chose the more southernly Greenwich for its eternal roost. Perhaps it had a secret yearning for the Docklands – who can fathom the depths of a parrot's desires, after all.

The small sculpture on a grey plinth can be easily seen through the railings at the corner of King William Walk and Romney Road, behind the phone box. There is a side gate near the statue, or you can go into the car park of Devonport House and go through the arch.

We meandered along through the college grounds and made our way up to the observatory.

Read the next blog post for part two . Greenwich observatory and Cutty Sark.