Everybody has their favourite big-city destination. If you ask around, the same handful of names will come up, with a few variations depending on that person’s individual interests.
I’ve always been an advocate of going off the beaten path, but there are a few cities that should be on everybody’s itinerary.
So, I have a little list that I’ll be sharing with you, one by one, over the next few weeks and months.
I’d be happy to hear your additions/ subtractions and the reasons why. Comment below or send me an email.
London, England. This is the first major city I visited outside of my native Australia, and it’s the one I love the best. For me, London offers the best of all worlds — it is simultaneously old and new, its history and culture are palpable but it’s as modern as tomorrow.
My first stop way back when was the British Museum, and no trip feels complete unless I spend an hour or two there, revisiting such icons as the Rosetta Stone and the Parthenon friezes (controversial as they are; if you want to see them, that’s where you have to go) and the Egyptian gallery, or checking out what’s new.
Of course, there are dozens of other world-renowned galleries and museums in the British capital. From the Tate Modern to the National Portrait Gallery, there is something for every taste in art.
A visit to the Tower of London is a must. Who doesn’t want to say that they measured themselves up against Henry VIII’s suit of armour, saw the spot where two of his wives — Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard — lost her heads, or enviously gazed at the crown jewels? It’s gruesome and glorious all at once. Oh, and don’t call your guide a Beefeater. He, or she, is a Yeoman of the Guard.
After that, to reassure yourself that London isn’t entirely locked in the past, take a trip to see the 306-metre-high Shard. And, if you don’t hate heights (as I do), go for a spin on the London Eye to get the best view of the Houses of Parliament and other famous London sights (weather permitting).
The West End is the place to go to see some of the world’s best theatre, from the experimental to the traditional to the highly commercial. Cheap tickets can be obtained in Leicester Square, which is well worth exploring on its own.
What else? There’s too much to mention: St Paul’s cathedral; Madame Tussauds (cheesy but fun, and near Baker Street, where you can search fruitlessly for Sherlock Holmes’s fictional abode); Covent Garden; Hyde Park and the shops of Mayfair; any of the great railway stations (Paddington is my favourite); Buckingham Palace (a bit of a let down in my books, as it’s just a very big house with a very famous resident); the Roman wall; and the pubs and clubs and restaurants (some of which are excellent despite England’s poor culinary reputation).
And take the time to just walk and soak it all in. The grand architecture, the denizens of the City, and the sights, sounds and smells of the London Underground (bearing in mind that the Tube map is representative only and does not align with above-ground geography).
As the great man of letters, Samuel Johnson, said back in 1777: “Why, Sir, you find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.”
Edinburgh