A Visit to London

This is a conversation between Louise and her cousin Alice. Louise has lived in London for a few years. Alice came to London on a visit. She is very fond of England, its history and traditions. So she is eager to see the sights of London, which she read about in books, with her own eyes.

- Good evening!

- Good evening! You look a bit tired, but very contented. I expect you spent the whole day walking about the city and admiring its sights.

- Right you are. You know I go sightseeing every day, because I want to see as much as possible.

- I know you`re extremely interested in history, so will you tell me a few words about London`s foundation?

- Certainly. The Roman invaders established it at the lowest point where the Thames could be forded. That happened soon after their invasion in 43 AD.

- London has been the centre of commerce ever since. It was the financial preeminence of London that led to the capital being located there.

- And the historical heart of the capital`s financial district is the City, isn`t it?

- Yes, it is. And what places of interest have you already visited?

- I began with visiting Westminster Abbey, and then I went to the Palace of Westminster.

- It`s generally known as the Houses of Parliament and it is situated close by Westminster Abbey on the riverside.

- Although these buildings are in Gothic style, they are not truly historic for they were built in 1840 on the site of the old Palace which was destroyed by fire in 1834.

- All the time when Parliament is in session, a flag flies on the top of the Victoria Tower, and when the House is still sitting after the dark, a light burns over the clock face of Big Ben.

- I saw the Victoria Tower. It is the largest and the tallest square tower in the world with its height of 336 feet, if I`m not mistaken. Through its archway the monarch enters for the State Opening of Parliament each November.

- And the Clock Tower, popularly called Big Ben, is one of the best known landmarks of the world. Actually Big Ben is the name of the biggest of the five bells, the proper name for the tower being St. Stephen`s Tower.

- I have also been in Trafalgar Square. It`s splendid. As far as I know, it was built early in the 19<sup>th</sup> century to commemorate the battle of Trafalgar. And Admiral Lord Nelson`s statue stands on top of the column in the middle of the square.

- Trafalgar Square is situated in the West End. You know, it is the name given to the area in the centre of London to the north from the Mall to Oxford Street. The West End includes the main shopping areas of Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street, the entertainment centres of Soho, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square and Shaftsbury Avenue.

- I`m going to visit the National Gallery tomorrow. I`ve already seen its long low building standing in the north of Trafalgar Square.

- The National Gallery is worth seeing. It is rich in paintings by Italian masters; it also contains pictures by representatives of all the European schools of art and the nineteenth century French masters.

- I don`t know whether I`ll have time for that, but I`d like to visit the National Portrait Gallery too. I heard that there one can see portraits of British monarchs since the reign of Richard the Second and prominent personalities such as Chaucer, Shakespeare and Cromwell.

- That`s a good idea. Talking about galleries, I advise you to go the Tate, the National Gallery of British Art. It was founded by Sir Henry Tate, a sugar merchant. English artists are naturally well represented there, and the Tate has also a range of modern works by foreign artists.

- Louise, I nearly forgot to tell you, that I lost my way when I was going to Trafalgar Square. I asked a passer-by to show me the way and then I asked a policeman whether there was a bus from there to Trafalgar Square. He helped me and the bus conductor was so kind and told me that it was time for me to get off when we came to Trafalgar Square.

- I`m glad, that you had a happy end in this story.

- I say, I have some more days but I don`t know how to spend them to the best advantage.

- Well, you can go along the Mall to Buckingham Palace and have a look at Queen Victoria`s Memorial, facing the palace. Then stroll up Constitution Hill to Hyde Park corner and take a walk through the Park and Kensington Gardens to Albert Memorial, facing the Albert Hall.

- Sounds good, sounds great. I hope you`ll join me. I think, one can`t see everything in London even in a year, but to see the main sights in a fortnight seems to be possible.