London

?When a man is of London, he is tired of life?
(Samuel Johnson)

The above saying is a clichs but indeed there are so many things worth seeing in London that you cannot be bored there. The capital of Great Britain is one of the most fascinating places in the world where all the races, nations and civilizations meet. Apart from its variety, London is also famous for its numerous historic buildings, monuments, museums, galleries, parks, theatres, cinemas and shops. To discover this unique city, visitors may use the popular tube or the famous double-decker buses. A good idea is to go on a guided walk which lasts about three hours and has some specisl theme, for instance ?Royal London? or ?The Beatles London?. Another possibility is a tour on a sightseeing bus or a cruise down the Thames.

The most famous sights

Traditionally, most tourists start visiting London from Westminste Abbey where all British sovereigns have been crowned . This magnificent Gothic Church is also famous for its numerous tombs and monuments to distinguished figures in Britain?s past.
Not far away from Westminster Abbey there is the massive complex of the Houses of Parliament built in the Gothic style in the 19th century. Now the public can visit both the House of Commons and the House of Lords where parliamentay debates are held.
To the west of Paliament Square there is James?s Park, the oldest of London?s royal parks where tired tourists may rest for a while before they proceed to Buckingham Palace, the Queen?s residence. There they may observe the Changing of the Guad, a very colourful ceremony which takes place most mornings in the forecourt of Buckingham Palace.
Leading east from the royal residence is Whitehall, a street crowded with government offices, ministries and the Prima Minister residence at Downing Street No.10 (a small side street off Whitehall).
At the far end of Whitehall lies Trafalgar Square, famous for a large statue of Admiral Lord Nelson, fountains, pigeons and New Year revelries. To the north of the Square stands the National Galley housing one the greatest collections of paintings of the world.
When visiting hictoric London, tourists should not forgetthe Tower of London. It is traditionally guarded by the Yeomen Warders of the Guard (known as ?Beefeaters?) who daily erform the Ceremony of the Keys (the ritual locking of various parts of the Tower). The former prison and royal residence is now a museum where visitors may see the fabulous Crown Jewels, the executioner?s block or the oriental and other armouries.

Entertainment

The centre of London has many different area. An interesting place to see is colourful Chinatown, a Chinese district full of oriental shops and restaurants. Shaftesbury Avenue separates Chinatown from Soho ? the centre of London entertainment with numerous cinemas, theatres, discotheques, night clubs, pubs, restauants and gambiling clubs. To the south of Soho there is Picadilly Circus with its colourful neon signs, the statue of Eros and the Trocadero ? a new development of shops, restaurants and entertainment.

The City

The City of Londonis one of the world?s greatest financical centres and the historical centre of London. The area contains several banks, including the Bank of England and the Stock Exchange. The most impressive building inthis part of London is St. Paul?s Cathedral, the architectural masterpiece of Christopher Wren. It houses many gaves and monuments to important figures in the history of England, such as Nelson, Wellington or Montgomery.

Green London

Visitors to London may rekax in wonderful London parks: Richmond and Kew Gardens are full of beautiful exotic plants and trees. Another good ida is to visit Greenwich Village, a very charming place on the River Thames. A special touist attraction is the Cutty Sark ? the most famous tea clipper in Britain, and also the Royal Observatory with zero longitude which runs through it. The time in every country is calculated from this line.

Other attractions

The list of London attraction is not over. There are so many things worth seeing there that it would take a lon time to enumerate them all. Those who like doing the shopping should visit busy Oxford Street and Regent Street. Other may contemplate the impressive ancient, medieval and orientak collections of the British Museum or have some fun at Madame Tussaud?s museum of wax figures. Discovering London may be really a fascinating experience.

Royal London

You can visit Buckingham Place, the Queen?s London home and see the Changing of the Guard at 11 a.m. every day. In the Tower of London, you can see the Crown Jewels and visit the place a boat trip on the Thames to Hampton Court, where Henry VIII lived with five of his six wives. In the gardens of the palace is a famous maze, which is easy to get into but not so easy to get out of!

Rainy Days

London is one of the best places to be on a rainy day (wich is quite often!), because of all its museums and galleries. If you like machines, you must go to the Science Museum. Next door you will find the Natural History Museum with its excellent dinosaur exhibition. The British Museum is one of the world?s great museums with its excellent collections from ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. Art-lovers can visit the National Gallery, the Tate Gallery or the National Portrain Gallery.

Shopping
London attracts shoppers from all over the world for the latestfashions. The main shopping area is the West End, around Oxford Street. There are also famous street markets at Portobello Road, Camden Lock and Petticoat Lane where you can buy anything from bargain jewellery to expensive antiques.

Going Out

There is always a wide choice of plays to see at London?s many theatres in the West End around Covent Garden. There are many clubs with modern music like house or jungle or more traditional music like salsa and samba. Music lovers can also fin many places for top quality classical, jazz and pop music.

London Timerline

? 43 AD When the romans arrived in Britain, London was already a small town. Unter the Romans ?Londinium? became the capital of the Roman province of Britannia.

? 886 King Alfred the Great United England. He captured London from the Danes and made it capital of his kingdom.

? 1666 The Fire of London destroyed much of the city. The reconstruction was organised by the architect Christopher Wren who designed St Paul?s Cathedral.

? 1850 By the middle of the nineteenth centuy, London was the largest city in the world and the most important port. In this period it was famous for its terrible pollution.

? 1939-45 In World war II, London was seriously damaged by German boming.

? 1980 In the last twenty years, the old port area has been rebuilt. There are big, new skyscrapers and the Millennium Dome, the largest dome in the world, which was finished in 1999. In 2000 it held the millennium exhibition.

Until the 1960s, London was a very polluted city. Factories poured their waste liquids into the River Thames. There were no fish and it was even dangerous if you fell in. People burned coal to heat their homes and the smoke polluted the sky. In winter, the smoke often combined with fog to create smog, and many people died of breathing problems.
But since then, new laws have stopped people polluting the rivers and the atmosphere. They?ve made the river much cleaner, and there are plenty of fish again. Cleaner fules are used for heating, and there hasn?t been smog for years.
However, like in all cities around the world, traffic in London is growing and causing more and more pollution. The most serious threat to every country in the world is global warming. Gases like carbon dioxide form power stations or traffic go into the atmosphere and trap the sun?s heat like a greenhous. The average temperature all round the world has risen by several degrees over the last few years, and there is a risk that the ice caps will melt and the sea leave will rise, and there will be floods in many countries.