London is the capital of
Great Britain, its political, economic and commercial centre. It is one
of the largest cities in the world (together with Tokyo and New York)
and the largest city in Europe. The city is very old. It has more
then 20 centuries old history. Once, London was a small Roman town on
the north bank of the Thames, but slowly it grew into one of the world’s
major cities with population of about 8 million. Fewer people live in
the centre now, but the suburbs are still growing. Traditionally
London is divided into several parts: the City, Westminster, the West
End and the East End. They are very different from each other. The
city is the oldest part of London, it's financial and business centre.
Numerous banks, offices and firms are concentrated here including the
Bank of England, the Stock Exchange and the Old Bailey. Few people live
in the City but over a million come to work here. Two masterpieces are
situated within the City: St. Paul's Cathedral and the Tower of London.
St. Paul's Cathedral was built in the 17th century by Sir Christopher
Wren. The Tower of London was built in the 11th century. It was used as a
fortress, a palace and a prison. Now it's a museum. Westminster is
the aristocratic official part of London. It includes Buckingham Palace
where the Queen lives and the Houses of Parliament stretching for
nearly 1000 feet along the north bank of the Thames. The Clock Tower of
the Houses of Parliament is famous for its big hour bell, known as "Big
Ben". Westminster Abbey is the place where coronation of nearly all
kings and queens has taken place. Many of them are buried here as well
as some other famous people of the country (G. Chaucer, Tennyson,
Newton, Ch. Dickens, T. Hardy, R. Kipling, etc.). The West End is
the richest and most beautiful part of London. It is a symbol of wealth
and luxury. The best hotels, restaurants, shops, clubs, parkland houses
are situated there. English aristocracy lives in this region. One of the
busiest streets in the West End is Oxford street. There are many
various shops in it which attract customers from different countries of
the world. By the day the whole of London is busy. At night, the
offices are quiet and empty, but the West End stays alive, because this
is where Londoners come to enjoy themselves. There are two opera houses
here, several concert halls and many theatres, as well as cinemas, and
in nearby Soho pubs, restaurants and night-clubs are busy half the
night. Trafalgar Square is the geographical centre of London. It
was named in the memory of Admiral Nelson's victory at the battle of
Trafalgar in 1805. The tall Nelson's Column stands in the middle of the
square. Opposite the Nelson’s monument is the National Gallery and
the National Portrait Gallery. They contain the finest art collections
in the world. Not far from the National Gallery is the British Museum
famous for its rich library (about 7,000,000 books). One of the
most popular museums in London is Madame Tussaud’s. Almost every visitor
has seen Madame Tussaud, an old lady of 81 standing at the entrance of
her own exhibition. She is made of wax, like all the models of people in
the museum. Madame Tussaud’s brings together a host contemporary
celebrities from many different walks of life during many centuries.
Kings and queens, politicians and military leaders, presidents and
writers, scientists and musicians, actors and actresses stand, sit and
lie in many different rooms of exhibition. The history of Madame
Tussaud’s goes back over 200 years during which time the exhibition has
formed an integral part of experience of countless million of visitor to
London. The East End is an industrial district of London. There
are many factories and the Port of London there. The region is densely
populated by working class families, those people who have built the
palaces of the West End. Old residents of the East End are proud to be
called cockneys, which means true Londoners, hereditary inhabitants of
the area. They love the district very much. London is situated on
the river Thames. A hundred years ago, the river was crowded by ships,
leaving for Java and Japan, New Zealand and New York, but now people
travel by air, and London’s main airport, Heathrow, is one of the
busiest in the world. The London Underground is the oldest one in
the world. The first line, opened in the middle of XIX century, was like
a tube. That’s why it was called the Tube. Like all big cities,
London has streets and concrete buildings, but it also has many big
parks, full of trees, flowers and grass. Sit on the grass (you’re
allowed to!) in the middle of Hyde Park or Kensington Gardens, and you
will think that you’re in the countryside, miles away. London is
one of the world’s most enjoyable capitals of Europe.
