The West End, The East End and the sights

The West End can be called the centre of London. It is the richest part of London, the symbol of wealth and luxury. The largest and best hotel, theatres, cinemas, shops, restaurants, museums are to be found here. Piccadilly Circus is the heart of the West End, a meeting point of half a dozen famous London’s streets.  It’s grand eloquently called “The Hub of Empire” or even of the Universe. It draws visitors from all the continents and is known as the center of London’s entertainment world.

It’s called a “circus” because the square is round. A lot of streets in the capital are lit up at night by huge advertising signs. But Piccadilly Circus is quite fantastic with enormous advertisements which are ablaze with light and dancing neon. In the center is the memorial fountain to the 8^th Earl of Shaftesbury, the Victorian philanthropist. In the middle of the fountain stands the bronze statue of Eros, God of Love. It was unveiled at the mid of the 19^th century.

The main streets of this part are regent Street, the best shopping center, Charring Cross, famous for bookstores, Oxford Street, the busiest street in London and many others. The district between regent Street and Charring Cross is Soho, where there are all kinds of foreign restaurants.

Londoners are fond of parks and gardens and are proud of them. There are about 550 parks in number with picturesque surroundings, ponds, fountains, flowerbeds and even animals as deer and water birds as pelicans, ducks, swans. The most beautiful parks are Regent park with the Zoo, the Open air Theatre, a 20 acre boating lake; St. James Park, one of the smallest royal parks. The island in the lake is preserved as a breeding-place for water-fowl; Green Park, Kew Gardens, the unique botanic garden with exotic plants and flowers. Londoners often take a rest at them, riding on horseback or getting sun-tanned, or just sitting in an open air.

One of the largest parks is Hyde park together with Kensington gardens. Boating, sailing and bathing are very popular there. Hyde Park is famous for its “Speaker’s Corner” where orators of all types declare their opinion or make speeches on politics and other subjects. Hyde Park is also a scene of political demonstrations.

Like all capitals with a long history London is rich in institutions of culture, art and science. The British Museum is one of the most remarkable museums in the world comprising works of Art, from Asia, Egypt, Rome, and Greece as well as Britain and other countries. The British Museum consisting of the national museum of archaeology and ethnography and the national library, is the largest and riches of its kind in the world. It was built in the middle of the last century. Anthony Panizzi designed the plans for the construction of the famous circular Reading Room at the British Museum.

Visitors to the museum wishing to enter the Reading Room must have a ticket for admission. They can have it only if they are over the age of 21, engaged in serious study and cannot take the books they want elsewhere. They must also have someone to sponsor them. The first thing which strikes a visitor on entering the reading Room is its unusual shape. It is a perfect circle. Many scientists and scholars from different countries are using this library because they have all the necessary books and magazines at their disposal.

Among lots of museums in London there’s one of special interest which has the name of its founder – Madam Tussauds. This is the largest exhibition of life-size wax figures. There are about 500 figures of kings, queens, statesmen, writers as well as some murderers and thieves.

The port of London is to the east of the City. Here were kilometers of docks, and the great industrial areas that depended upon shipping. This is the East End of London, formerly unattractive in appearance, but now changing because of the introduction of new industries and very expensive housing.