London
不列颠之都--伦敦
英国首都伦敦（london）位于英格兰东南部的平原上，跨泰晤士河，距离泰晤士河入海口８８公里。
伦敦是全国的政治中心，是英国王室、政府、议会以及各政党总部的所在地。威斯敏斯特宫是英国议会上、下两院的活动场所，故又称为议会大厅。议会广场南边的威斯敏斯特大教堂，１０６５年建成后一直是英国国王或女王加冕及王室成员举行婚礼的地方。内有２０多个英国国王、着名政治家、军事家以及牛顿、达尔文、狄更斯、哈代等科学家、文学家和艺术家的墓地。
白金汉宫是英国王宫，坐落在西伦敦的中心区域，东接圣詹姆斯公园，西接海德公园，是英国王室成员生活和工作的地方，也是英国重大国事活动的场所。
白厅是英国政府机关所在地，首相办公室、枢密院、内政部、外交部、财政部、国防部等主要政府机构都设在这里。白厅的核心是设在唐宁街１０号的首相府，它是英国历代首相的官邸。
伦敦不仅是英国的政治中心，还是许多国际组织总部的所在地，其中包括国际海事组织、国际合作社联盟、国际笔会、国际妇女同盟、社会党国际、大赦国际等。
经济
伦敦城是大伦敦市３３个行政区中最小的一个，面积只有１.６平方公里。它拥有自己的政府、市长和警察部队，不受大伦敦市议会管辖。伦敦城是英国的金融和商业中心，也是世界上最大的金融和贸易中心之一。 伦敦城共有５００多家银行（至１９９１年），银行数居世界大城市之首，其中外国银行有４７０家，在伦敦拥有的资本总额达１０００多亿英镑。 伦敦城每年外汇成交总额约３万亿英镑，是世界最大的国际外汇市场。 伦敦城还是世界上最大的欧洲美元市场，石油输出国的石油收入成交额有时一天可达５００多亿美元，占全世界欧洲美元成交额的１／３以上。英国中央银行--英格兰银行以及１３家清算银行和６０多家商业银行也均设在这里。清算银行中最有名的是巴克莱、劳埃德、米德兰和国民威斯敏斯特四大清算银行。
伦敦城是世界上最大的国际保险中心，共有保险公司８００多家，其中１７０多家是外国保险公司的分支机构。在伦敦保险业中，历史悠久，资金雄厚，信誉最高的是劳埃德保险行。
伦敦城中的伦敦股票交易所为世界４大股票交易所之一。此外，伦敦城还有众多的商品交易所，从事黄金、白银、有色金属、羊毛、橡胶、咖啡、可可、棉花、油料、木材、食糖、茶叶和古玩等贵重或大宗的世界性商品买卖。
文化
伦敦是世界文化名城。大英博物馆建于１８世纪，是世界上最大的博物馆，集中了英国和世界各国许多的古代文物。博物馆内的埃及文物馆，陈列着７万多件古埃及的各种文物；希腊和罗马文物馆，陈列着各种精美的铜器、陶器、瓷器、金币、绘画以及许多古希腊、古罗马的大型石雕；东方文物馆，陈列有大量来自中亚、南亚次大陆、东南亚和远东的文物。馆内还有西亚文物馆、英国文物馆、金币徽章馆、图书绘画馆等。除大英博物馆外，伦敦还有着名的科学博物馆、国家画廊等文化设施。伦敦大学、皇家舞蹈学校、皇家音乐学院、皇家艺术学院和帝国理工学院等是英国的着名院校。伦敦大学成立于１８３６年，现设有６０多个学院。伦敦大学以医科闻名，英国每３名医生中，就有一名毕业于此。
伦敦是一座驰名世界的旅游城市，有许多世界着名的文物古迹。伦敦城东南角的塔山上，建有伦敦塔，该塔曾用作军事要塞、王宫、监狱、档案室，现在是王冠和武器的展览处，藏有维多利亚女王加冕时戴的镶有３０００颗宝石的王冠和伊丽莎白二世加冕时戴的镶有重达１０９克拉大钻石“非洲之星”的王冠。威斯敏斯特宫坐落在泰晤士河的西岸，建于公元７５０年，占地８英亩，是世界上最大的哥特式建筑。它古时是国王的宫殿，现为英国议会所在地。宫殿西南角的维多利亚塔，高１００米，全石结构，用来存放议会的文件档案，塔楼下面的白家大门只供英王使用。宫殿东北角是高达９７米的钟楼，钟楼上着名的“大本钟”重２１吨，表盘直径７米，钟摆重达３０５公斤。海德公园是伦敦的名胜之一，坐落在伦敦市区的西部，占地６３６英亩，是市区最大的公园。公园内有着名的“演讲者之角”又称“自由论坛”。每到周末，几乎整天有人来这里演讲，除不准攻击女王和宣传暴力革命外，演讲内容不受限制。
London is the capital city of the United Kingdom and of England. It produces 17% of the UK，s GDP and the City of London is one of the world，s major financialfinancial adj.财政的， 金融的 centres. The capital of the former global empire， London is a leader in culture， communications， politics， finance， and the arts and has considerable influence worldwide. New York City， Tokyo and Paris are often listed with London as the four major global cities.
London is a good choice for a visit in this country. If you are a newcomer to the area or haven，t visited for a while， the information provided on this and related pages will prove invaluableinvaluable adj.无价的， 价值无法衡量的 in assisting you to make your holiday or business venture here， as simple as a stroll down your local street back home.
London； the very name suggests history and a powerful past. However this isn，t all that London is about. Vibrant， pulsating and dripping with opportunities for entertainment or sightseeing by day or night， it，s a city that exhilaratesexhilarate vt.使高兴， 使愉快 and intimidates， stimulates and irritates in equal measure.
A cosmopolitan mix of third and first worlds， it really is a goulash of surprises that beg your discovery.
The river Thames， divides the city into northern and southern halves making navigationnavigation n.航海， 航空， 导航， 领航， 航行 reasonably easy. The central area and the most important sights， theatres and restaurants are within the Underground，s Circle Line on the north bank of the river. Trendy West End lies within the western portion of the loop and includes Soho， Trafalgar Square， Picadilly Circus， Leicester Square and Regent St..
The East End (lying east of the Circle Line) is now a cultural melting pot. There are interesting innercity suburbs in North London， including Islington and Camden Town. South London includes a mess of poor， dirty， graffitiridden suburbs， such as Brixton， which have vibrant subcultures of their own and are in many ways where the real vitalityvitality n.活力， 生命力， 生动性 of London lies.
Theatre lovers will be inspired by the productions held here， musicians will love the variety of sounds， artists will enjoy the age and colour of the place， the galleries and exhibitions. Sports enthusiastsenthusiast n.热心家， 狂热者 too， won，t be disappointed by the action on offer. Historians can get lost in a time warp and the young at heart will find plenty of opportunity to party the night through.
No matter what type of holiday destination you seek， London can almost guarantee a taste (if not the full course) of anyone，s dream holiday. Wherever your meanderings take you， you，ll find the place overflowing with interesting sights， activities and other adventures that boredom becomes a 3 letter word： “fun”. There really is so much to do that you are best advised to discover it yourself. The slower the better of course， but if you only have a few days in town， you，ll still be able to feel the mood of the place and see a few famous sights； enough to keep you coming back for more.
There are at least ten things worth seeing and doing if you visit London.
Go on a walking tour or take yourself to Buckingham Palace. Surrounded by vast parklands and gardens， this grand palace has been the Royal London residence since Queen Victoria，s time， and contains priceless works of art， fine furniture and decorationsdecoration n.装饰， 装饰品 that form part of the Royal Collection. From Buckingham Palace you can easily walk to other great London sights including； Houses of Parliament， Big Ben， Piccadilly Circus， St. James， Palace， Downing Street， the Thames and Trafalgar Square to name just a few of the great London sights that are a stones throw from Buckingham Palace.
Go shopping in Harrods or simply browse. This is one of the most famous department stores anywhere in the world and one place， where you literally can buy anything. Ranked as the third most popular destination in the city it，s an absolute “must do” activity.
Go people watching， feed the ducks， listen to someone telling the world how it should be run at Speakers， Corner， see folk out on a gentle trot along the bridle paths and step on land once hunted on by Henry VIII. We are talking about one of the world，s most famous parks， Hyde Park. When in London， this is a wonderful spot to relax between sightseeing or shopping jaunts and if visiting with children， it，s a great spot for them to stretch their legs.
