London

When a man is tired of London? He is tired of life; for there is in London  all that life can afford.

Samuel Johnson.

Today, more than 200 years later, Johnson's words still ring true. There are few places that offer such a variety of sights, entertainments, educational and business opportunities, world- famous museums and theatres, and superb shopping. London draws people from all over the world. Some come to study, to work or on holiday.

London is naturally a very English city, yet it is the least typical of Britain as it is very cosmopolitan, containing goods, food and entertainment, as well as people, from many countries of the world. London spreads its influence over much of the southern areas of England; it gives work to millions of people who live not only in the inner-city areas, but in surrounding districts. Some people even commute over 100 miles (over 150 km) every day to work in London.

There is much in London  Which fascinates visitors and inspires the affection of Londoners: the splendor of the royal palaces and the Houses of Parliament, the Dignity of St. Paul's Cathedral and many monuments, the fine architecture of numerous historic buildings, and the beautiful parks. London shows examples of Buildings that express all the different areas of its history, it manages in a unique way to reflect it's past and at the same time to fulfil the functions of a modern city with its commercialism and bustle London is the capital of Great Britain. It is a political, economic and commercial center. It is one of the most enjoyable cities.

Visited by millions of tourists, the city offers them an astonishing variety of scenes. London is one of the largest cities in the world and its population is about 9 million. London  is situated on the river Themes. The city is very old. It has more than 20 centuries old history.

Traditionally the city is divided into several parts: the City, the Westminster, the West End and the East End.

The City of London today is the financial powerhouse of the country and one of the chief commercial centers of the western world. The City has its own Lord Mayor, its own government and its own police force. Here the medieval buildings stand side by side with modern steel and glass high-rise office blocks. The territory of the City of just over one square mile contains several banks, including the Bank of England, the Stock Exchange and offices of many financial companies.

The Westminster is the aristocratic, official part of London. It includes Buckingham Palace where the Queen lives and the House of Parliament stretching for nearly 1000 feet along the north bank of the Themes. Westminster Abbey is a national shrine where the kings and queens are crowned and famous people buried. Chaucer, Tennyson, Newton, Dickens, Hardy, Kipling were buried in Westminster Abbey. The House of Parliament called officially the Palace of Westminster, were formerly a palace for kings and queens. The Palace was used both as used as a royal residence and as a parliament house until the 16th century. In the course of the 16th when the royal family moved to the new palace within half of mile Whitehall Palace, the Westminster Palace was occupied by the Parliament and became its permanent home. The Parliament of the United Great Britain and Northern Ireland  consists of just over 1000 members of the different grades of nobility. In the House of comments, there are 635 members.

The Clock Towers, with contains the hour bell, called "Big Ben" is known all over the world. The bell is named after Sir Benjamin Hall, the first Commissioner of Works. The Tower of London was built in the 11th century. It was one of the first and most impressive castles built after the Norman invasion of England  in 1066. The Tower has been used as a royal palace, an observatory, an arsenal, a state prison and many famous and infamous people have been executed within its walls. It is now a museum. For many visitors the principal attraction is the Crown Jewels, the finest precious stones of the nation. A fine collection of armor is exhibited in the Keep.

Trafalgar Square is the geographical center of London. It was named so to commemorate Nelson's Victory at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805.The monument in the middle of this square known as Nelson's Column is surmounted with the Statue of Nelson 16 feet high. The pedestal of the Column is decorated with the bas-reliefs representing Nelson's most famous victories. At the base of the column, there are four big lions.

On the north side of the square are the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. The National Gallery has an outstanding collection of finest arts from Britain, Italy, Denmark and other countries. Piccadilly Circus has become an important meeting point - for traffic as well as sightseers. At its heart is a bronze fountain topped by a figure of a winged archer, popularly known as Eros, the pagan god of love. The majority of London's places of entertainment are concentrated around Piccadilly Circus. This area is now famous for its theatres, clubs and shops.

Whitehall is a street in central London running from Trafalgar Square to the Houses of Parliament and containing many important buildings and government offices: the Foreign and Commonwealth offices, the Treasury, Admiralty and Ministry of Defence. In the center of the roadway stands the Cenotaph, The memorial to the fallen of both world wars.

The Prime Minister's residence at No. 10 Downing Street is directly connected to Whitehall. London is always full of life. The streets are crowded with traffic. High "double-decker" buses rise above the smaller and vans.

The Parks of London provide a welcome contrast to the great built-up areas. St. James's Park, Green Park, Hyde Park, and Kensington gardens are linked together. They form 313 hectares of open parkland in the heart of London.

London is very rich in museums and art galleries. If you are fond of painting you'll go to the Tate Gallery. A rich sugar manufacturer Henry Tate founded it in 1897. There are about 300 oils and 19000 watercolours and drawings. There are many works by the English painter William Turner there. Most of his paintings are connected with the sea theme. There are a lot of paintings by the 16-th century English artists and paintings by foreign artists of the 19-20-th centuries. There are some paintings by impressionists there. You can see works by modern painters: Pablo Picasso among them. There are many interesting sculptures there. Henry Moor's can be seen there. He was a famous British sculptor.

The National Gallery is one of the most important picture galleries in the world. The Tate Gallery is the most necessary compliment to the National Gallery as it contains contemporary works particularly by English and French masters.

The British Museum is the largest and richest of its kind in the world. It comprises the national museum of archaeology and ethnography and the national library. The present building was built in 1852. By law a copy of every book, periodical and newspaper, published in Britain must be presented in the British museum. It contains books and manuscripts: Greek, Roman, British and Oriental antiques. It has a department of Ethnography. This collection is so vast that only a very small percentage of it is on show to the public. There's also a department of prints and drawings. There're departments devoted to maps, coins, medals and philately. Those who come to the British museum can see a fascinating array of clocks and watches.