Understanding London Series (2) - Those landmarks we must visit

Must-visit check-in places in London:

1. Buckingham Palace

When King George III purchased this building called "Buckingham Palace" , it is really a "second-hand house" worthy of the name. Since the time of Henry VIII, the property rights of the land where Buckingham House is located have experienced many transfers until 1703, when John Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham, built the residence here when he lived in London. Buckingham Palace officially became a royal palace in 1837 and has been the residence of the British royal family since then.

Buckingham Palace is located in Westminster, London. There are 775 rooms in the palace, including ceremony halls, concert halls, banquet halls, and galleries. There is a vast royal garden outside the palace. The main building of Buckingham Palace is 5 floors, and the auxiliary buildings open to the public include the Royal Gallery, Royal Stables and Gardens.

In the center of the square of Buckingham Palace stands a gilded statue of Queen Victoria, with the goddess of victory spreading her wings on the top. The Royal Guards drill in the square every morning. The steps below the monument are a good vantage point to admire Buckingham Palace. It is said that if the British Emperor's flag is flying directly above the palace, it means that the Queen is in the palace. The Queen's important state events are held here.

2. Big Ben

Big Ben, the bell tower of the Palace of Westminster, is one of the famous Gothic buildings in the world. London landmark. The large clock in the clock tower attached to the British Parliament Chamber. In June 2012, the UK announced that the clock tower of London's famous landmark "Big Ben" would be renamed "Elizabeth Tower". It is the second largest clock in the world that faces four directions simultaneously.

The Elizabeth Tower is located on the banks of the Thames River. It was built in 1859 and is 96 meters high. It is surrounded by four gilded bells and is part of the British Parliament building. The base of each clock face is engraved with the Latin inscription, "O God, please keep our Queen Victoria I safe."

The clock weighs 13.5 tons, the dial is 7 meters in diameter, and the hour and minute hands The lengths are 2.75 meters and 4.27 meters respectively, and the pendulum weighs 305 kilograms. "Big Ben" has 393 steps from the bottom to the top of the tower. The Elizabeth Tower is famous for its accuracy and the huge 13-ton bronze bell used to tell the time.

3. Tower Bridge

Tower Bridge is an upward suspension bridge located in London, England, spanning the Thames River. It is named after it is near the Tower of London. The first bridge starting from the Thames Estuary (the first 15 bridges to be built on the Thames), it is also a symbol of London. The bridge was built in 1886 and opened to the public on June 30, 1894, connecting the north and south districts of London as a whole.

On both sides of Tower Bridge in London, there are two tall towers built of granite and steel, about 60 meters high, with two floors. The upper level supports the towers on both sides of the bank, and the lower deck allows pedestrians and vehicles to pass through.

If a giant ship comes honking its whistle, the lower bridge deck can automatically tilt to both sides. At this time, pedestrians can change their route and pass through the upper deck. There are shops and bars inside the bridge. Even on rainy and snowy days, pedestrians can shop, chat or lean on the railings to overlook the scenery on both sides of the strait.

The Tower Bridge is equipped with hydraulic machinery used to open and close the bridge weighing 1,000 tons each. Since the Tower Bridge was built, its mechanical functions have been normal and there has never been a failure. After the giant ship blows its whistle in greeting, it only takes one minute for the lifting machinery to raise the bridge deck. It takes five people to open the bridge deck, with one person in the control room and four others outside monitoring the road conditions.

4. Royal Greenwich Observatory, RGO

The Royal Greenwich Observatory is located in the small town of Greenwich on the southeastern outskirts of London. It is one of the famous attractions in London. Greenwich Observatory was built in 1675.

In 1884, the meridian passing through this observatory was determined to be the standard reference meridian for global time and longitude measurement, also known as the zero-degree longitude. In Greenwich, visitors can adjust their watches to the most standard time in the world. In 1997, the Royal Observatory was listed as a world precious heritage by UNESCO.

The observatory roof was built in 1859 as a flat-topped drum to house the 1-inch Merz telescope.

The roof has a wooden structure with openings extending from the top to the floor. Since the telescope needs to be used in various orientations, the roof needs to be able to rotate, so it is installed on the cannonball that acts as a bearing.

This device was prone to problems and was abandoned when installing the 28-inch telescope. The new telescope was eight feet longer than the original, necessitating the design of a new roof to avoid the massive reconstruction of the supporting brick building below. The current roof is a fiberglass replica of 1893, erected after the 28-inch telescope returned to Greenwich in 1971.

5. The London Eye

The London Eye is located on the banks of the Thames River in London, England. It is the world's first and largest observation wheel as of 2005. Because it celebrates the New Year It was built for thousands of years, so it is also called the "Millennium Ferris Wheel". The London Eye opened in late 1999, with a total height of 135 meters (443 feet) and a weight of 1,600 tons. The most wonderful thing is that this behemoth can stand firmly on the Thames River.

The London Eye has 32 cabins. The inside and outside of the cabin are made of tempered glass and there is no air conditioning system. Each cabin can carry about 25 passengers. Two motors on the platform drive it to rotate at a rotation speed of about 0.26 meters per second, which means one revolution takes 30 minutes. Passengers can take the "London Eye" up into the air and get a bird's eye view of London. The adult ticket is 26.5 pounds and the student ticket is 15 pounds.

The London Eye was originally scheduled to operate for five years, but its owners want to keep it operating. So far, more than 8.5 million people have taken the "London Eye" into the air to get a bird's-eye view of London.

British Airways, which owns part of the London Eye, said the 1,500-ton structure could last at least 50 years. At night it turns into a huge blue halo, greatly adding to the dreamy quality of the Thames.

6. St. Paul's Cathedral

St. Paul's Cathedral is located in an open area two kilometers away from the Aurelian City Wall. Take the Central Line of the Metro to St. Paul's Get off at the station and walk for about 2 minutes. The architecture of St. Paul's Cathedral is in the gorgeous Baroque style. The church is in the Renaissance style and is covered with a huge dome. It is about 111 meters high, 74 meters wide, 157 meters deep, and the dome has a diameter of 34 meters.

The dome will appear in the background of the BBC London screen every night and is a London landmark together with Big Ben. There are two bell towers with obvious Gothic heritage on both sides, which are representatives of British classical architecture.

When it was first built, it was surrounded by a vast field, so it was called "Saint Paul outside the city". In 604 AD, King Ethelbert of the East Saxons built this cathedral on the top of Ludgate Hill and named it after Saint Paul, the patron saint of London. After being destroyed and rebuilt many times, this cathedral has always been the location of the main church of London. .

It ranks among the five largest cathedrals in the world, the fifth largest cathedral in the world, the second largest domed church in the world, and the largest cathedral in the UK.

The famous British design master and architect Sir Christopher Wren completed the design of this greatest church in London at the end of the 17th century and spent 35 years of hard work. The characteristic of the church is that it was designed and built by only one person. It is known as a monument of classical architecture.

St Paul's Cross College, located in the cathedral district, is a law school with an extraordinary status in the UK and the seat of London's first "Parliament".

Many major events have been held in St. Paul's Cathedral: the funerals of Nelson, Wellington and Churchill; Queen Victoria's Diamond Wedding Ceremony and Queen Elizabeth II's Golden Wedding Ceremony, etc.

Prince Charles and Princess Diana chose to hold their wedding at St. Paul's Cathedral. The wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana. On April 17, 2013, the funeral of Margaret Thatcher, the "Iron Lady" and former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, was held here.

7. Hyde Park Hyde Park

Hyde Park is the largest royal park in the UK. Located in the Westminster Abbey area in central London, Hyde Park covers an area of ??1.6 million square meters and was originally the property of Westminster Abbey. Before the 18th century, this was the deer hunting ground of the British king. In the 16th century, King Henry VIII of England used it as a royal park. It is the largest park in the Royal Family and the most famous park in London.

There is the famous "Free Forum" in Hyde Park, also known as the "Speech Corner". This is a place where public speeches can be made. People often give impromptu speeches here, and there is a large-scale open-air speech held almost every year in the summer. Concerts are also held here.

There is the Hyde Park Cavalry Camp at the southern end of Hyde Park. The first thing you see in the morning must be the taming horses. There are fountains and sculptures in the park to commemorate the unknown heroes who died in the war.

Hyde Park is divided into two parts by the Jiuqu Lake. Hyde Park is connected to Kensington Park to the west and Green Park to the east, forming a luxurious area in London where every inch of land is precious. of green space. Visitors can visit Kensington Palace, where Princess Diana once lived, in Kensington Park.

The busiest time of year in Hyde Park is when the gun salute is held on the King's birthday. At that time, Hyde Park is gorgeous and colorful, and audiences come from all directions like a sea wave.

At 11 o'clock in the morning, the Royal Artillery cavalry arrived at the review ground from Marble Arch. After the 41-gun salute, the gunners loaded the cannons on the carriages, then jumped on their horses and ran towards the north of London. Camp. Of the 41-gun salute, 21 were to celebrate the King's birthday and 20 to pay tribute to the capital, London.

8. The National Gallery? The National Gallery

The National Gallery is located due north of Trafalgar Square in central London, England. It is also known as the National Gallery in London and was founded in 1824. At that time, there were only 38 paintings. From these, George IV persuaded the government to purchase 38 works by Rembrandt, Lahr and others, and it gradually expanded into the current national art museum mainly focusing on painting collections.

The National Gallery is divided into four wings: southeast, northwest and southeast. All works are displayed in chronological order. There is no fee to visit the National Gallery, and donations are free.

If you want to learn more about the background explanations of major works, you can get a portable guide device from the National Gallery at the service desk. The Micro Gallery in the museum provides computer query services, which can be called the most complete encyclopedia of electronic art in the National Gallery.

In the maze-like exhibition halls of the National Gallery, from Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael to the Venetian School, British Landscape Painting School, French Realism, Early Impressionism, until Cézanne and Van Gogh . For all painters who study Western painting, the happiest thing when they come to England is to eat bread every day, drink mineral water and soak in art galleries.

9. British Museum British Museum

The British Museum, also known as the British Museum, is located in Russell Square north of New Oxford Street, London, England. The museum was founded in 1753 and officially opened to the public on January 15, 1759. It is the oldest and grandest comprehensive museum in the world and one of the largest and most famous four major museums in the world. .

The main building area of ??the British Museum is about 100,000 square meters, of which 60,000 square meters are exhibition halls and 40,000 square meters are libraries. Founded in 1753 and opened in 1759. The building is a 17th-century building - Montagu Palace.

The collections displayed in the British Archaeological Monuments are some of the most intact cultural relics in existence, spanning more than 2 million years of human history.

The British Museum has a collection of more than 8 million items. It has collected many cultural relics and treasures from all over the world and the manuscripts of many great scientists. The richness and variety of collections are rarely seen in museums around the world. Due to space constraints, 99% of the collection cannot be displayed publicly.

The museum adheres to the principle of practicality, and its collections are open to the public and can be visited free of charge. This principle is also based on an enlightenment idea, that is, although there are differences between human cultures, they can understand each other through mutual communication. The museum is a platform for this kind of human cross-cultural research.

10. Westminster Abbey?

Westminster Abbey, commonly known as Westminster Abbey, is located on the north bank of the Thames River in London. It was originally a Catholic church. Benevolent monastery. It is not only the most outstanding Gothic building in Britain, but also a rare historical museum. The church was first built in AD 960, expanded in 1045, completed in 1065, and rebuilt from 1220 to 1517.

Westminster Abbey is the exclusive church of the royal family, and the dean and its regulations are determined by the royal family. This is the place where kings of all ages were crowned and enthroned, and wedding celebrations were held. It is also the location of the British royal mausoleum. It can be said that Westminster Abbey is a stone history book of the British royal family.

Westminster Abbey also houses the remains of famous British politicians Churchill, Chamberlain and many other famous figures. Later, due to limited space, some of the tombs of great men were moved to St. Paul's Cathedral.

In addition, the rosters of British officers and soldiers killed in the two world wars are also kept in the church. There is also the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the middle of the church compound for people to stop and pay their respects.

11. Notting Hill?

Notting Hill is the name of a place near the western suburbs of London, England, close to the northwest corner of Hyde Park. In fact, there is no mountain there, just because of the terrain. Named for its height.

The rare thing about Notting Hill is that although it is in London, it has an exotic feel.

In the 1950s and 1960s, this was the place where immigrants from the Caribbean settled when they first arrived in the UK. It was an immigrant settlement, and most of the immigrants came from Latin America, India and Pakistan.

Since 1966, Latin American immigrants have held a carnival with a strong national style in the Notting Hill area every August during Bank Day. By the late 1990s, millions of people attended each year, making it the largest carnival in Europe.

Now Notting Hill has become a must-see for travelers to London, also because of the movie "Notting Hill". The beginning of the movie shows Notting Hill - Portebello Road Martet, which has various stalls and colorful products. The tortuous and beautiful love story of William, the owner of a cafe in the market, and the famous star Anna takes place. Here it is.

London is a city with a history of two thousand years. It has experienced vicissitudes of life and is ancient and profound. London is also the world's largest international financial center as famous as New York and the largest economic center in Europe. It is also full of vitality and vitality. vitality.

Recently, the 2018 world city rankings were released, and London still ranks first. Regardless of Brexit or not, this is a country worth stopping and understanding deeply.