London - Hisotry, Places of interests

- inside is also the Whispering7 Gallery

- there were many famous occasions8: Churchill’s funeral service

wedding of Charles and Diana in 1981

- Britain’s heroes are buried there (Nelson, Wren, Duke of Wellington)

The Monument - commemorating9 the place where the Great Fire started

- it is 60 meter-high

Other - the other famous buildings here are Bank of London, the Stock Exchange, and

Lloyds insurance

The city of Westminster:

- known as a political and administrative centre

- familiar face of London

Houses of Parliament - political centre of United Kingdom, the home of British Parliament

- after Great Fire rebuilt in Neo-Gothic style, only Westminster Hall is original

House of Lords - in Gothic style, decorated in red with the throne of sovereign

- there also Woolsack where Lord Chancellor presides the

House

House of Commons - consists of parallel rows10 of green leather benches11, which

face the table where the mace is placed

- the Speaker presides this House

Big Ben - rises above the Parliament

- 97,5 metres high

- the name is not of the clock but of the bell

Westminster Abbey - monarchs are crowned and heroes buried here

- it was built in the 11th century

- there is Coronation Chair with a historic Stone of Scone

- there is also Poet’s Corner where some famous poets are buried

Buckingham Palace - home of kings and queens of Great Britain

- built in 1703 by Duke of Buckingham

- the first monarch who lived here was the Queen Victoria

- outside the palace Changing of the Guard is very big attraction

- the royal family occupy the north wing of the palace

- the royal Standard12 is flown when the queen is in the palace

Queen Victoria Monument - in front of Buckingham Palace

- commemorate the queen

- from the palace goes the Mall (expensive shops, gentleman’s clubs)

Trafalgar Square - largest square in London with busy traffic

- the square commemorates the naval victory of Admiral Lord Nelson over the

French and Spanish fleet

- in the middle there is Nelson’s Column (50 m high) with Nelson’s statue (5 m)

- the column is surrounded by four lions statues

National Gallery - on the Trafalgar Square

- is owns on of the greatest collection of Western painting from 13th to 19th century

- pictures from many famous painters ( da Vinci, Rubens, Rembrandt, van Gogh,

Monet, Manet)

- there also National Portrait Gallery with photos of a famous people

Piccadilly Circus - there is a lot of colour advertisements

- in the middle there is a fountain with a statue of a Eros the God of Love

Shopping:

- most best shops are in the West End

- Oxford street – the best known

- Regent Street – galleries, antiques13 and jewellery shops

- Piccadilly – clothes shops

- Soho – a lot of restaurants, very dubious14 night life

Parks:

- St. James’s Park - the oldest one, the home of many water birds

- The Hyde Park - the most famous, consists of trees and grass

- there is a Serpentine lake (boating and swimming)

- the Marble Arch was the executing place from 12th to 18th century