last
updated 27th July 05
By 4ecotips
 It’s
unmistakably the city of landmarks
London is matchless for its impressive
range of landmarks, writes Bob Barton.
World-wide, few people would mistake
the location of Tower Bridge, Buckingham
Palace, Big Ben or Trafalgar Square,
for example.
A more recent landmark won the accolade
of “the world’s leading
attraction” by international
travel agents in the World Travel
Awards. It is the world’s largest
observation wheel, the BA London Eye,
standing 135m high beside the River
Thames: the country’s most popular
paid-for attraction, welcoming 3.7
million visitors annually.
 Another
landmark is taking shape in North-West
London: the massive arch of the new,
90,000-seat Wembley Stadium. Opening
in May 2006, it will be a key venue
for the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic
Games.
ALWAYS MOVING
Like all great cities, London never
stands still. Approaching the magnificent
National Gallery, you no longer dodge
London’s traffic, for the north
side of Trafalgar Square is pedestrianised
- and site of an open-air café
and regular entertainment. (And there
is less traffic in the city altogether,
since a charge, now £8, has
been levied to drive in the centre.)
The latest new attraction is a museum
devoted to statesman and wartime leader
Sir Winston Churchill, opened in February
beneath the streets of Whitehall,
from where he led the war effort.
The Churchill Museum includes his
personal artefacts, photographs, posters,
documents and film and is highly interactive:
you can find out what major event
happened on every day of his life,
before visiting the underground living
quarters and cabinet room.
They say there is a festival celebrating
something practically every weekend
in London. From the 111th annual BBC
Henry Wood Promenade Concerts at the
Albert Hall, a feast of classical
music (July 15 – September 10)
-- culminating in the Last Night of
the Proms -- to Diwali, the Hindu
festival of light (November), there’s
an outstanding selection of events;
you will never be short of things
to do.
The array of blockbuster exhibitions
includes the annual Turner Prize (October
18 to January 22) at Tate Britain
- always good for a bit of controversy.
By contrast, the National Gallery
is showing the finest work of George
Stubbs and his paintings and drawings
of horses (June 29 – September
25).
EXPLORING ARTISTS
‘A Picture of Britain’
explores how artists have been inspired
by the British landscape at Tate Britain
(June 16-Sept. 4). Looking at six
regions of Britain through the eyes
of artists such as Turner and Constable
through to Barbara Hepworth and Henry
Moore, the exhibition comprises 250
works.
The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich
is staging a major exhibition on Admiral
Lord Nelson & Napoléon
(7 July - 13 November) to illuminate
the impact of these two great leaders
on Europe. One of many events marking
the 200th anniversary of the sea battle
at Trafalgar and Nelson’s death.
London has a new Sunday market in
the heart of the trendy and ethnic
Brick Lane area of the East End. The
Sunday (Up) Market is within the 11-acre
site of the Old Truman Brewery, within
walking distance of Liverpool Street
station. Products on sale, from a
wide range of traders, include vintage
clothes and shoes, hand-made handbags,
jewellery, art, lighting, home-wares,
accessories, food and drink. The market
aims to be a platform for designer-makers
and is set to join the capital’s
other markets, including Old Spitalfields,
E1; Camden Lock, NW1; Greenwich, SE10
and Portobello Road, W10, as ‘must
see’ attractions for shoppers.
What’s more, London’s
reputation as a destination for fine
food continues to grow. Earlier this
year, international magazine ‘Gourmet’
rated the city as “the world’s
best place to eat”, underlining
the fact that it has become one of
the gourmet capitals of the world.
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