London - The Capital of Capital

A typical view of London, England's historical capital and world city with its financial centres: A grey, rainy day. However, the English are keeping their notorious chilly humour, and nothing should stop you from exploring the buzzing town with its theatres, bars, galleries and musea with objects from all over the world. In the distance you can see the London Eye, the famous ferry wheel (highest in Europe) which even lets you have breakfast inside during the 30-minute ride. Of course, it is not really cheap, but on a sunny day it should be a nice experience.

Piccadilly Circus is a busy place in the heart of London, with historical monuments and lots of flashy advertising. Watch out, don't get run over by one of the cabs or red two-storey buses (double-decker). You can see one of them in the photo below. A ride is worth its money! Oh, also don't get confused by the people driving on the left side of the road... a specialty that is different from most of Europe. Here, you can see Admiralty Arch at The Mall, close to Trafalgar Square. The Latin inscription of the triumphal arch states that it was built in the tenth year of the reign of Edward VII (1910) in gratitude of Queen Victoria who gave the name to the Victorian era with its notorious staunch morality and technological progress accompanied by a certain uncertainty regarding the future.

The National Gallery is one of the world's finest art collections featuring paintings from various centuries. It is currently run by an Italian-British curator... no surprise? A focus of the current exhibitions lies on Spanish and Italian art which provides rich colours from the Mediterranean. You can also do a virtual tour!

Westminster Cathedral is an emblematic building of London and serves as a spiritual centre with political implications as the diverse national flags in the foreground show (remember that the Anglican Church was founded by King Henry VIII, which had profound political significance for the religious world of Europe). Surprising is the neo-Byzantine style which is quite rare in England: Besides a striped exterior part of the building (not in the photo), there are golden mosaics with Greek letters inside.

Buckingham Palace, the royal residence and administrative headquarters, is famous for the Royal Guards with their red uniforms and tall black fur helmets. Its interior is richly decorated with parts from the former colonies or trade partners of the British Empire (such as India and China). Its net worth is estimated to be over 1 billion pound Sterling!

The Tower of London is the fortified historical prison complex of the city. Today you can see the royal jewels inside! Very close is the blue-and-white Tower Bridge, which you have to see and walk for yourself... I am done with spoilering now.

While you are in London, don't miss the Big Ben, the British Museum, St Paul's Cathedral, Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, musicals such as The Lion King, The Shard, King's Cross and any pub with original live music! Cheers!

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