Initially, the all around hop-on and hop-off double decker bus tour is the best way to discover and explore London, the capital of England and the United Kingdom and the site of the coming 2012 Summer Olympics. Later you can organize your own tour by using the London Underground Network (LUN) which is regarded as the most extensive underground railway in the world.
Most tourists enjoy visiting London’s famous historical and cultural landmarks as well as the beautiful parks and gardens.
Situated along the Thames River, the longest river flowing through southern England, is the Tower of London, a historic fortress within rings of defensive walls and surrounded by moat once used as a home of Royalty, a prison and a place of execution and torture and now holds the crown jewels of England.
One of London’s famous and most recognizable sights is St. Paul’s Cathedral used for the marriage of Prince Charles of Wales and Lady Diana Spencer. This Anglican cathedral with a very substantial crypt holding more than 200 memorials like Sir Winston Churchill, Sir Alexander Fleming and Florence Nightingale is the seat of the Bishop of London. It has hourly prayer and daily services.
However, it is the Westminster Abbey, shaped like a giant cross, that is considered as the most well-known church in the United Kingdom. English sovereigns have been crowned here and for many centuries it was also the burial place of kings, queens, princes, and many great British poets including Geoffrey Chaucer and Alfred Lord Tennyson. Just recently the Abbey is the wedding site of Prince William and Kate Middleton.
Located in the City of Westminster is the official residence of the British monarch since 1837, the Buckingham Palace, containing 600 rooms with the state rooms, used for official and state entertaining and open to the public each year for most of late July till September. Schedule your trip to the Palace to see and enjoy the pomp and pageantry of the popular Changing of the Guard.
Over the Thames is the Tower Bridge, an iconic symbol of London. Consisting of two towers tied together by horizontal walkways, the red, white and blue bridge is mistakenly referred to London Bridge which is actually the next bridge upstream.
Not to be missed is the Palace of Westminster (known as Houses of Parliament) together with the most famous landmark in the UK, the Big Ben. The British Parliament is the bicameral lawmaking body of the UK consiting of the House of Commons and the House of Lords, as the lower and upper house respectively.
The Big Ben is used to describe the tower, the clock and the bell located at the north end of the Palace of Westminster. The main bell, officially known as the Great Bell, is better known by the nickname Big Ben.
Don’t miss out what’s happening at the famous Hyde Park, hosts to open-air concerts and quite popular for sports. Take a walk and wander through it. It ia historically famous for its Speaker’s Corner, an area for free speech.
Next we’ll visit the Natural History Museum, the Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, the Harrods, West London, Trafalgar Square,and Piccadilly Circus.
