ESSENTIAL LONDON SIGHTSEEING TIPS



Eight years ago, someone described London to me as an extremely green and beautiful city, one of the first European capitals to be seen. This advice was given mainly because my route to Washington DC usually passed through London Heathrow (I took all my tickets from British Airways). At the time, I didn't understand why anyone would want to see London, especially since all my attachment was to Paris and eventually, secondarily, to Spain or Italy. The wisdom I have gained now, after quite a few trips, says that advice should be received, especially in connection with memorable destinations (and whose reputation sounds like that). Now, after seeing London, even in this short four-day chase that included a congress, I don't know how many European capitals would be ahead in terms of attractiveness. London is an alert city, extremely lively and cheerful, but at the same time with a distinction that does not exclude modernity - and, in terms of the dominant note of the inhabitants, cheerfulness is the first feature that stands out at the same time and common sense. An alert energy, a little more relaxed and open than in Paris, is felt in the air, and its circulation is facilitated, literally, by a high-performance infrastructure (streets set up to the millimeter, double-decker buses that do not leave even a minute early, very carefully calibrated bike lanes, etc.). In the few free hours we had left after the end of the conference program, we tried to see some of the tourist attractions: on the first evening we chose bridges as a theme, and we crossed Chelsea Bridge, where we lived, walking to Albert Bridge and passing on the left bank of the river the entrance to Battersea Park, as well as a strange place that looked like a place of outdoor religious worship. On the second evening, we chose Oxford Street as the theme, the busiest shopping area, but also London Bridge, a night landscape worth seeing after nightfall (multicolored artesian wells and the esplanade from which you can see London Bridge in the distance, enchanting lighting). Finally, during the day, we also chose a few walking areas near the Thames (without being able to reach Westminster Abbey) as well as the National Gallery of Art (which we only managed to see on the quarter). One evening we went to one of the well-known pubs (this was a nice, central one) because we couldn't go through London without eating fish and chips. I pleasantly noticed the warm atmosphere, the prompt services and the disposition of the neighbors at other tables (unknown to us), who were having a great time, but sober and civilized. As I said above, this good mood depends quite a lot on the infrastructure. I must therefore note the important role played by both double-decker buses and metro lines - as well as ultra-fast bicycle lanes - means of transport that ensure a very comfortable and predictable journey. The London Underground is quite crowded (many lines and connections that need to be studied carefully) and, for shorter journeys, the surface bus is preferable. If we keep talking about infrastructure, I must mention one of the important challenges in the UK: the reversed directions of the streets :). As pedestrians in Europe, we have the natural reflex to look left-right, but in Britain the meaning must be reversed: right-left, which is not very successful if the adaptation period is only a few days. We found ourselves, not only once, waiting for the double-decker bus on the opposite side of the street - and another time I was scared in the parking lot of the apartment building where we were staying, because it seemed to me that a car had a faulty brake ... but the impression was due to the fact that I was looking to the left, where the European driver usually sits :). During the walks through London I first appreciated the read more unmistakable architecture of the city: the design of the buildings with models in small squares, in which the windows were naturally framed (Sloane Street area

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