In the city of London, capital of the UK

 "The parks be the lungs of London.” – Charles Dickens

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(in southeastern England) The city of London, capital of the UK, is among the oldest of the world’s great cities (its history spanning nearly two millennia) and one of the most cosmopolitan. Britain’s largest metropolis, it is also the country’s economic, transportation, and cultural center. London lies astride the River Thames some 50 miles (80 km) upstream from its estuary on the North Sea. In satellite photographs the metropolis can be seen to sit compactly in a Green Belt of open land, with its principal ring highway (the M25 motorway) threaded around it at a radius of about 20 miles (32 km) from the city center.

+ The City of London, its ancient core and financial center, was founded by the Romans as Londinium and retains its medieval boundaries. The City of Westminster, to the west of the City of London, has for centuries hosted the national government and parliament. Since the 19th century, the name "London" has also referred to the metropolis around this core, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire, which largely comprises Greater London, governed by the Greater London Authority.

+ Immersed in history, London's rich seams of eye-opening antiquity are everywhere. The city's buildings are striking milestones in a unique and beguiling biography, and a great many of them (the Tower of London, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben) are recognizable landmarks. A tireless innovator of art and culture, London is known worldwide for its art and distinctive culture. A city of big ideas and great imagination, Londoners have always been fiercely independent thinkers (and critics), but until not so long ago people were suspicious of anything they considered avant-garde.

+ Now a tireless innovator of art and culture, the city’s creative milieu is filled with left-field attitude, whether it is theatrical innovation, contemporary art, pioneering music, writing, poetry, architecture, or design. The city is deeply multicultural, with one in three Londoners foreign-born, representing 270 nationalities and 300 languages. One of the world's most cosmopolitan cities, its diversity infuses daily life. It even penetrates intrinsically British institutions; the British Museum and Victoria & Albert Museum have collections as varied as they are magnificent, while the flavors at centuries-old Borough Market run the full global gourmet spectrum.

+ To summarize, this is a regal city surrounded by a rush of modern life. London is layered with history, where medieval and Victorian complement a rich and vibrant modern world. The Tower of London and Westminster Abbey stand amid local pubs and markets, and time-worn rituals like the changing of the guards take place as commuters rush to catch the Tube. (This is a place where travelers can time-hop through the city, and when they are feeling a bit weary, do as Londoners do and grab a cup of tea.)