London

Big & brash & bustling, cutting-edge yet traditional, historical yet modern - the quintessential global metropolis. A center of culture, trade, retail, finance, politics, entertainment, fashion, transit & trends, London can feel like the capital of Earth. The emblematic city of Big Ben, double-decker buses, the Queen & the Tube, quite cosmopolitan but still quintessentially British. Tourists come for history & royal pageantry but they return for all the charms of the modern city, not least the vast diversity of its cultural life, with world-class art galleries & theatres, buzzing nightlife, music, culinary & fashion scenes. It has a glut of every conceivable activity & contains something for everyone. Prepare to fall in love with the English capital.

1. Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, 10 Downing Street & London Eye
2. St. Paul's Cathedral, The Wall, Tower of London & Tower Bridge
3. Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, Grosvenor Square & Russell Square
4. Covent Garden, West End, Soho, Bloomsbury, Mayfair, Westminster
5. South Bank, Camden, Bayswater, Notting Hill, Kensington, Chelsea
6. British/Soanes/Natural History/Science/Victoria & Albert Museums
7. Royal Opera House, National Gallery, Tate & Royal Albert Hall
8. Kensington Palace, Kew Gardens, BBC Centre & Windsor Castle
9. Fulham Palace, Royal Observatory, Cutty Sark & Hampton Court
10. Stonehenge, Bath, Oxford, Dover, Canterbury & Brighton (daytrips)

1. Ride the Tube & a Double-decker Bus. Tour Oxford. Have Afternoon Tea at Green/St. James's Parks. See Hackney Marshes on Sunday.
2. Picnic in Hyde Park. Ride London Eye. Take a Thames river cruise. Watch Changing of the Guard. Cross Millennium Bridge. Tour BBC.
3. Stroll The Mall & Whitehall. See Tower of London's Crown Jewels. Eat Brick Lane curry & Marylebone kebab. See Dover White Cliffs.
4. See Parliament Hill vista in Heath. Visit Stonehenge. Ride black cab. Eat Chinatown dinner. Hear cockney in East End. See Wembley.
5. Go to the theatre. Shop at Harrods. Hear Evensong at Windsor Castle. Grab a Bitter pint & Fish & Chips in a pub. Roam South Bank.

• Fish & Chips, Pie - Mash & Liquor, Meat Pies, Bangers & Mash, Steak & Kidney Pudding, Jellied Eels
• Whitebait, Boiled Beef & Carrots, Bubble & Squeak, Water Souchet
• Pea & Ham Soup, Balti/Indian Curry, Kebab, Roasted Chestnuts
• Chelsea Buns, School Puddings, Tea, London Dry Gin, Gin & Tonic

• St John (City of London) - British
• North Sea (Bloomsbury) - Fish and Chips
• Tayyabs (Whitechapel) - Pakistani
• Rules (Covent Garden) - British (Traditional)

• Ye Olde Chesire Cheese (City of London) - Pub/Tavern
• The Lamb and Flag (Covent Garden) - Pub/Tavern
• The Spaniard's Inn (Hampstead) - Pub/Tavern
• The George Inn (Southwark) - Pub/Tavern
• The Eagle & O'Hanlons (Clerkenwell) - Pub/Tavern

• Ministry of Sound (Southwark) - Dance Club/Disco
• Fabric (City of London) - Dance Club/Disco
• Ronnie Scott's (Soho) - Jazz Club
• Stringfellows (Covent Garden) - Strip Club

1. Harrods & Harvey Nichols (Knightsbridge) - Department Store
2. Oxford/Regent/Bond Streets (Mayfair) - Shopping District
3. Camden Market (Camden) - Bazaar/Flea Market
4. Hamleys Toy Store & John Lewis (Mayfair) - Department Store
5. Portobello Road (Notting Hill) - Shopping District
6. Kings Road (Chelsea) - Shopping District
7. Fortnum and Mason (St. James's) - Department Store
8. Jermyn Street (Westminster) - Shopping District
9. Carnaby Street (Soho) - Shopping District
10. Covent Garden Market (Covent Garden) - Bazaar/Flea Market