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London England

London is a huge city with several district articles containing sightseeing, restaurant, nightlife and accommodation listings consider printing them all.

Noisy, vibrant and truly multicultural, London is a megalopolis of people, ideas and energy. The capital and largest city of both the United Kingdom and of England, it is also the largest city in Western Europe. Situated on the River Thames in South-East England, Greater London has an official population of roughly 7.5 million people — although the figure of over 14 million for the city's total metropolitan area more accurately reflects London's size and importance. London is one of the great "world cities," and remains a global capital of culture, fashion, finance, politics and trade

Districts

The name London originally referred only to the once-walled "Square Mile" of the original Roman (and later medieval) city (confusingly called the "City of London" or just "The City"). Today, London has taken on a much larger meaning to include all of the vast central parts of the modern metropolis, with the city having absorbed numerous surrounding towns and villages over the centuries. The term Greater London embraces central London together with all the outlying suburbs that lie in one continuous urban sprawl within the lower Thames valley. Though densely populated by New World standards, London retains large swathes of green parkland and open space, even within the city centre.

Greater London consists of 32 London boroughs and the City of London that, together with the Mayor of London, form the basis for London's local government. The Mayor of London is elected by London residents and should not be confused with the Lord Mayor of the City of London. The names of several boroughs, such as Westminster or Camden, are well-known and self-explanatory, others less so, such as Hackney or Tower Hamlets. A traveller's London is better defined by recognized cultural, functional and social districts of varying type and size:

• Central
• West End - Greatest concentration of hotels and restaurants.
• Chinatown- Small, authentic and packed with great restaurants.
• Covent Garden - Designer and alternative shopping, as well as the famous Royal Opera House.
• Leicester Square - One of the mainstream entertainment hubs.
• Oxford Street - High-street shopping for the fashionista.
• Soho - Nightclubs and restaurants, the heart of gay London.
• Trafalgar Square - Churches, galleries and monuments.
• Bloomsbury - Academic and intellectual area, many of the University of London's constituent colleges are based here.
• Clerkenwell - Home of several old churches and popping up with new restaurants and clubs.
• City of London - The historical and financial core of the city.
• Holborn - Heart of legal London.
• Marylebone - Check out Madame Tussauds and walk along Baker Street, retracing Sherlock Holmes's footsteps.
• Mayfair - Most elegant and fashionable area of London.
• South Bank - A vibrant, artsy area fronting the river Thames that is home to the London Eye.
• Westminster - A city in its own right, and home of the United Kingdom parliament and Royal Family.
• West - Major centres include Chelsea, Kensington, Paddington, Acton, Chiswick, Hounslow, Ealing, Fulham, Hammersmith, Hayes, Shepherd's Bush and Uxbridge.
• North - Covers Archway, Camden, Crouch End, Islington and Wood Green.
• North West - The upmarket areas of Finchley, Hampstead, Hampstead garden suburb, Maida Vale and St. John's Wood; but also includes immigrant and working class Kilburn, Cricklewood and Wembley.
• East - A mixture of galleries and bustling nightlife, as well as the some of the most deprived areas in the country. Now the focus of redevelopment for the London 2012 Olympic Games. covers Bethnal Green, Bow, Brick Lane, Clerkenwell, Docklands, Hackney, Mile End, Poplar, Shoreditch, Stepney, Stratford, Walthamstow and Whitechapel.
• South West - Covers Battersea, Brixton, Clapham, Kingston, Putney, Richmond, Wimbledon, Streatham, Sutton, Tooting, Twickenham and Wandsworth.
• South East - Covers Greenwich, Bromley, Croydon, Deptford, Dulwich, Lewisham and Penge.

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