LONDON FACTS AND FINDS

HERE ARE SOME OF THE FAMOUS SPOTS I'VE VISITED IN LONDON FOR THE PAST COUPLE OF MONTHS

A lot of destinations can be visited and a week is not enough to tour the London area.

1ST LIVERPOOL UNDERGROUND ENCOUNTER
Liverpool Street railway station, also known as London Liverpool Street or simply Liverpool Street,is a central London railway terminus and connected London Underground station in the north-eastern corner of the City of London. It is the terminus of two main lines: the busier Great Eastern Main Line (GEML) to Norwich and the West Anglia Main Line to Cambridge. There are also local commuter services to parts of East London and Essex. In addition, it is the terminus of the Stansted Express, a fast link to London Stansted Airport.

It is one of the busiest stations in the United Kingdom, the third busiest in London after Waterloo and Victoria with 123 million visitors each year. Liverpool Street is one of seventeen stations directly managed by Network Rail. The station has exits to Bishopsgate, Liverpool Street and the Broadgate development. The station connects the Central Line, Circle Line, Metropolitan Line, and Hammersmith & City Line. The station is in Travelcard zone 1.

HUSTLE AND BUSTLE LONDON
It is the capital of England and the United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures.London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its founding by the Romans, who called it Londinium.London's ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its square-mile mediaeval boundaries. Since at least the 19th century, the name London has also referred to the metropolis developed around this core.The bulk of this conurbation forms the London region and the Greater London administrative area,governed by the elected Mayor of London and the London Assembly.


LONDON EYE
The Merlin Entertainments London Eye (commonly the London Eye, or Millennium Wheel, formerly the British Airways London Eye) is a giant 135-metre (443 ft) tall Ferris wheel situated on the banks of the River Thames in the British capital.

It is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe, and the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, visited by over 3.5 million people annually making it more popular than the Taj Mahal and the Pyramids of Giza.When erected in 1999, it was the tallest Ferris wheel in the world, until surpassed first by the 160 m (520 ft) Star of Nanchang in 2006, and then the 165 m (541 ft) Singapore Flyer in 2008. It is still described by its operators as "the world's tallest cantilevered observation wheel" (as the wheel is supported by an A-frame on one side only, unlike the Nanchang and Singapore wheels).[2]

The London Eye is located at the western end of Jubilee Gardens, on the South Bank of the River Thames in the London Borough of Lambeth in England, between Westminster Bridge and Hungerford Bridge. The site is adjacent to that of the former Dome of Discovery, which was built for the Festival of Britain in 1951.


PARLIAMENT HOUSE, BIG BEN AND WESTMINSTER BRIDGE
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly referred to as the British Parliament, the Westminster Parliament or, formerly, the Imperial Parliament) is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories. Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and its territories. At its head is the Sovereign, Queen Elizabeth II.

Big Ben is the nickname for the great bell of the clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London,and is often extended to refer to the clock or the clock tower as well.It is the largest four-faced chiming clock and the third-tallest free-standing clock tower in the world.It celebrated its 150th anniversary in May 2009,during which celebratory events took place.The clock first ticked on 31 May 1859.

SHAFTESBURY MEMORIAL FOUNTAIN AND EROS
Piccadilly Circus, London W1B - England, UK

The fountain, located on the south west side of Piccadilly Circus, was completed in 1893. The fountain was built as a memorial to the works of Lord Shaftesbury. The fountain is topped by one of the most famous landmarks in London, the ‘Eros’ statue. This winged statue was designed by Alfred Gilbert and is actually called ‘The Angel of Christian Charity. The statue is noted for being one of the first ever statues to be cast in aluminium, and it is the symbol of the Evening Standard newspaper.

RIPLEY'S BELIEVE IT OR NOT

The world's largest Ripley's Believe It or Not! Museum opened on August 20, 2008 at the London Pavilion, 1 Piccadilly Circus. It houses over 500 exhibits from educational artifacts to the truly weird and wonderful. It is famed for its large collection of Marilyn Monroe personal belongings and interactive exhibits.


LONDON TROCADERO

The London Trocadero is an entertainment complex in Shaftesbury Avenue, London originally built as a restaurant but most recently used as an exhibition and entertainment space.

The complex incorporates a number of historic London buildings, including the London Pavilion, that have in the past hosted the Palace of Varieties, the New Private Subscription Theatre, the Royal Albion Theatre, the New Queen's Theatre, the Argyll Subscription Rooms, the Trocadero Music Hall, the Royal Trocadero Music Hall, the Eden Theatre and the Trocadero Restaurant.

The name Trocadero indirectly derives from the Battle of Trocadero in 1823, through the Palais du Trocadéro in Paris, named for the French victory.

LONDON IS POPULAR FOR IT'S ENTERTAINMENT





WAPPENBAUM/ SWISS CANTONAL TREE
the Wappenbaum -the Swiss Cantonal Tree, displaying the coats of arms of the Confederation and the 26 cantons, which joined it 14 years later- was placed in the Swiss Court.



LONDON SOHO
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster and part of the West End of London, the capital of the UK. Long established as an entertainment district, for much of the 20th century Soho had a reputation for sex shops as well as night life and film industry. Since the early 1980s, the area has undergone considerable transformation. It now is predominantly a fashionable district of upmarket restaurants and media offices, with only a small remnant of "sex industry" venues in the west. Soho was excessively famous for the first large Cypriot immigrant community until late 19th century


THE NATIONAL GALLERY
The National Gallery in London was founded in 1824 and houses a rich collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900[a] in its home on Trafalgar Square. The gallery is an exempt charity, and a non-departmental public body of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.Its collection belongs to the public of the United Kingdom and entry to the main collection (though not some special exhibitions) is free of charge.


TRAFALGAR SQUARE
Trafalgar Square is a square in central London, England. With its position in the heart of London, it is a tourist attraction, and one of the most famous squares in the United Kingdom and the world. At its centre is Nelson's Column, which is guarded by four lion statues at its base. Statues and sculptures are on display in the square, including a fourth plinth displaying changing pieces of contemporary art. The square is also used as a location for political demonstrations and community gatherings, such as the celebration of New Year's Eve in London.

OXFORD STREET, SHOPPING!!
Oxford Street is a major thoroughfare in the City of Westminster in London, England. There are 548 shops in Oxford Street; it is Europe's busiest shopping street, as well as the most dense.The street was formerly part of the London-Oxford road which began at Newgate, City of London, when it was known as Oxford Road. Today the road forms part of the A40, although, like many roads in central London which are not now intended as through traffic routes, it is not signposted with the road number.

BUCKINGHAM PALACE
Buckingham Palace is the official London residence of the British monarch.
Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality. It has been a rallying point for the British people at times of national rejoicing and crisis.

THE VICTORIA MEMORIAL
The Victoria Memorial was created by sculptor Sir Thomas Brock in 1911 and erected in front of the main gates at Buckingham Palace on a surround constructed by architect Sir Aston Webb.