Лондон

London.

London is the capital of Great Britain, its political, economic and cultural centre. It’s one of the largest cities in the world. Its population is more than 9 million people. London is situated on the river Thames. It was founded more than two thousand years ago.

London is an ancient city. It appeared at the place where the Roman invaders decided to build a bridge over the Thames. There are four parts in London: West End, East End, the City and Westminster.

The City is the oldest part of London, its financial and business centre. There are many offices, companies and banks in this part of the capital. The heart of the City is the Stock Exchange. The Tower of London and St Paul’s Cathedral are situated in the City.

Westminster is also important part of the capital. It’s the administrative centre of London. The Houses of Parliament, the seat of the British Government, are there. Opposite the Houses of Parliament is Westminster Abbey where kings and queens have been crowned and many famous people were buried. The Houses of Parliament are often referred to as the Palace of Westminster.

The Towers of the Houses of Parliament stand high above the city. On the highest tower there is the largest clock in the country, Big Ben. Big Ben strikes every quarter of an hour.

To the west of Westminster is West End, the richest part of London. It is full of luxury hotels, super-markets, cinemas and concert-halls. In the centre of the West End the Trafalgar Square is situated with the famous statue of Lord Nelson.

To the east of Westminster is East End, an industrial district of the capital. Most of plants and factories are situated there.

The official London residence of the Queen is Buckingham Palace. The palace was built in 1703 by the Duke Buckingham. The daily ceremony of the Changing of the Guard takes place in its courtyard.

There are many museums in London. For example, the British Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum. The British Museum is the biggest museum in London. The museum is famous for its library — one of the richest in the world.

There are many beautiful parks in London. St James’s Park, Green Park, Hyde Park, and Kensington Gardens are linked together and form above 300 hectares of parkland in the heart of London.

The Tower of London

The Tower of London is a very old building in London. It is nine hundred years old. The Tower of London stands on the Thames.
In the early days of the history of England the English kings lived in the Tower. Then it was a prison where many people died, black ravens had much food near the walls of the Tower in those years.
The black ravens live in the gardens of the Tower now. The English people like them very much. A man looks after the ravens and gives them meat in the morning and in the evening.
Now the Tower of London is a museum and many people from other countries come to see it. They see the dark stone halls with small windows and thick doors. The walls of the Tower are five metres thick. In the museum they can see many old guns.
At ten o’clock e1. The Big Ben. The world-known clock. Everyday about 500 tourists come to London to see the Big Ben. Built in 1858, it was named after an architect whose name was Ben (Benjamin). The interesting fact is that you are not allowed to get inside the Big Ben if you aren’t an Englishman. No tourists allowed. 2. Madam Tussaud's Museum The most famous museum of waxworks. It presents all famous people from singers and actors to Prime Ministers and Presidents. All the waxworks are of such a good quality, that sometimes you can mistake them for a real person. 3. Piccadilly Circus. The place is far from what is called “a circus”. It is a well-known meeting point of the city. It has become so popular, that is now considered to be a place to visit for all the tourists. 4. London Eye. It is one of the biggest observation wheels in the world. Its height is 135 meters. It has 32 cabins which symbolize 32 districts of London. It takes 30 minutes to make a full circle. But it is the view you will never forget. The cost is about £20. 5. London National Gallery. The gallery has more than 2000 works of world-known artists of XIII-XX centuries. You can spend the whole day there and it will not be enough. What is interesting, is that the gallery is free for everyone. 6. Parks of London. London is famous for its parks. Combined, all these parks cover more land than the Principality of Monaco. The most well-known is the Hyde Park. It is a traditional place of festivals and celebrations. 7. St. Paul’s Cathedral. It was built on the highest point of London 300 years ago. It is the London Bishop’s residence and is the most popular place of visit. The price of visit is £16.

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