Trafalgar Square

Trafalgar Square is the natural center of London. The square was so named to commemorate Nelson’s victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, and the monument in the centre, known as Nelson’s Column, is surmounted with a Statue of Nelson 16 feet high. On the north side of the square are the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery.

Nelson`s Column

Raised in 1843 and now one of London`s best-loved monuments, commemorates the one-armed, one-eyed admiral who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, but paid for it with his life. The statue which surmounts the granite column is more than triple life-size but still manages to appear minuscule, and is coated in anti-pigeon gel to try and stem the build-up of guano. The acanthus leaves of the capital are cast from British cannons, while bas-reliefs around the base – depicting three of Nelson`s earlier victories as well as his death aboard HMS Victory – are from captured French armaments. Edwin Landseer`s four gargantuan bronze lions guard the column and provide a climbing frame for kids to clamber over. 14 stonemasons held a dinner on top of Nelson`s Column before the statue was placed there. Every year, London receives as a gift huge Christmas tree from Norwegian city of Oslo.

The Tower of London

The Tower of London was one of the first and most impressive castles after the Norman invasion of England in 1066. Thousands years ago William the Conqueror decided to build a strong fortress to protect the City of London, which he had just conquered. The Tower of London has been used for different aims: as a royal palace, an observatory, an arsenal, a state prison. Now it is a museum. The Clock Tower, which contains the hour-bell called “Big Ben”, is known the world over.

Piccadilly Circus

During the weekend this place is absolutely packed with people. Nightlife is in abundance here, especially with nightclubs like the Hippodrome, MGM Cinema, local pubs and bars, people trying to draw your picture and the Trocadero centre. Inside the Trocadero is Segaworld the world`s largest indoor theme park, spanning seven floors and offering you all kinds of 21st Century games.

Shakespeare`s Globe Theatre

The biggest crowds currently to be found along Bankside are milling around this place, a spectacular reconstruction of the polygonal playhouse where most of the Bard`s later works were first performed. The theatre, which boasts the first thatched roof in London since the Great Fire, uses only natural light and the minimum of scenery, and currently puts on shows from mid-May to mid-September. Also on site are a restaurant, cafe, cinema and, inevitably, a shop selling lots of Bard merchandise.

Covent Garden

What started out in the seventeenth century as London`s first luxury neighbourhood is once more a highly desirable place to live, work and shop. Based around Inigo Jones`s piazza – London`s oldest planned square – the area had for years been a market centre for fruit and vegetables. That was closed in 1974 and for a while it looked as if the developers would move in on this prime central real estate and demolish it all for unwanted new office blocks. These plans collapsed and now it is the elegant old market hall, and shops, restaurants and arts-and-crafts stalls. It has become one of London`s major tourist attractions, which now boast some of the trendiest clothes shops, cafes and restaurants in London.