Mix together a beautiful European-like city with attractive residents
(call them porteños), gourmet cuisine, awesome shopping, a frenzied nightlife
and top-drawer activities, and you get Buenos Aires, a cosmopolitan metropolis
with both slick neighborhoods and equally downtrodden areas –but that’s part of
the appeal. It’s an elegant, seductive place with a ragged edge, laced with
old-world languor and yet full of contemporary attitude. BA is somehow
strangely familiar, but unlike any other city in the world.
In between cutting-edge
designer boutiques, ritzy neighborhoods and grand parks are unkempt streets
full of spewing buses and bustling fervor. Seek out classic BA: the old-world
cafés, colonial architecture, fun outdoor markets and diverse communities. Rub
shoulders with the formerly rich and famous in Recoleta’s cemetery, making sure
to sidestep the ubiquitous dog piles on the sidewalks. Fill your belly at a
parrilla (steak restaurant), then spend the night partying away in Palermo
Viejo’s trendiest dance club.
Hunt for that antique gem in a
dusty San Telmo shop, or visit on Sunday for the barrio’s spectacularly popular
fair. Learn to sweep your leg dancing the sultry tango, and then attend a
super-passionate fútbol match between River and Boca. These unforgettable
adventures (and many more) are just waiting for you to go out and experience
them.
Everyone knows someone who has
been here and raved about it. You’ve put it off long enough. Come to Buenos Aires and you’ll
understand why so many people have fallen in love with this amazing city, and
even decided to stay. There’s a good chance you’ll be one of them.
London is the capital city of England and the United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and
the largest urban zone in the European
Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been
a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its
founding by the Romans, who called it Londinium.London's ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its
square-mile medieval boundaries. Since at least
the 19th century, the name London has also referred to the metropolis developed
around this core.The bulk of this conurbation forms the London
and the Greater London administrative area,
governed by the elected Mayor of
London and the London
Assembly.London is a leading global city, with strengths
in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare,
media, professional services, research and development, tourism and transport
all contributing to its prominence. It is the world's largest financial centre
alongside and has the largest city GDP in Europe. It has the most
international visitors of any city in the world and London Heathrow is the world's busiest airport by number of international
passengers.London's 43 universities form the largest
concentration of higher education in Europe. In 2012 London will
become the first city to host the modern Summer Olympic Games three times.
London
has a diverse range of peoples, cultures and religions and more than 300
languages are spoken within its boundaries. In July 2010 Greater London had an
official population of 7,825,200, making it the most populous municipality in the European Union.The Greater London Urban Area is the second-largest in the EU with a population
of 8,278,251,while London's metropolitan
area is the largest in the EU with an estimated total population of between
12 million and 14 million.London had the largest population of any city in the
world from around 1831 to 1925. London contains four World Heritage Sites: the Tower of London; Kew Gardens; the site comprising the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey, and St Margaret's Church; and the historic
settlement of Greenwich (in which the Royal Observatory marks the Prime Meridian (0° longitude) and GMT).Other famous
landmarks include Buckingham
Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, 30 St Mary Axe ("The Gherkin"), St Paul's Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square and Wembley Stadium. London is home to numerous
museums, galleries, libraries, sporting events and other cultural institutions,
including the British
Museum, National Gallery, British Library, Wimbledon and 40 theatres.London's Chinatown is the largest in Europe.
Early modern
During
the Tudor period the Reformation produced a gradual shift to
Protestantism, with much of London passing from church to private ownership Mercantilism grew and monopoly trading
companies such as the East India
Company were established, with trade expanding to the New World. London became the principal
North Sea port, with migrants arriving
from England and abroad. The population rose from an estimated 50,000 in 1530 to about 225,000 in 1605.
In the
16th century William
Shakespeare and his contemporaries lived in London at a time of
hostility to the development of the theatre. By the end of
the Tudor period in 1603, London was still very compact. There was an
assassination attempt on James I in Westminster,
through the Gunpowder
Plot on 5 November 1605. London was plagued by disease in the
early 17th century,culminating in the Great Plague of 1665–1666,
which killed up to 100,000 people, or a fifth of the population.
The Great Fire of London broke out in 1666 in Pudding Lane in the
city and quickly swept through the wooden buildings. Rebuilding took
over ten years . In 1708 Christopher
Wren's masterpiece, St Paul's
Cathedral was completed. During the Georgian era new districts such as Mayfair were formed in the west; and
new bridges over the Thames encouraged development in South London. In the east, the Port of London expanded downstream.
In
1762 George III acquired Buckingham House and it was enlarged over the
next 75 years. During the 18th century, London was dogged by crime and the Bow Street Runners were established in 1750 as
a professional police force In total, more than 200 offences were punishable by
death, and women and children were hanged for petty theft. Over 74 per cent of
children born in London died before they were five. The coffeehouse became a popular place to
debate ideas, with growing literacy and the
development of the printing
press making news widely available; and Fleet Street became the centre
of the British press.
Architecture
Characterised by any particular architectural style, and have
been built over a long period of time. Many grand houses and public buildings,
such as the National
Gallery, are constructed from Portland
stone. Some areas of the city, particularly those just west of the centre,
are characterised by white stucco or whitewashed
buildings. Few structures pre-date the Great Fire of 1666, except
for a few trace Roman remains, the Tower of London and a few scattered Tudor survivors in the City.
The Monument in the City of London
provides views of the surrounding area while commemorating the Great Fire of London, which originated
nearby. Marble Arch and Wellington Arch, at the north and south ends
of Park Lane respectively, have royal
connections, as do the Albert
Memorial and Royal Albert
Hall in Kensington. Nelson's Column is a nationally recognised
monument in Trafalgar
Square, one of the focal points of the city centre. Buckingham
Palace is the official residence of the British monarc.
Leisure and entertainment
Within the City of
Westminster, the entertainment district of the West End has its focus around Leicester Square, where London and world film
premieres are held, and Piccadilly Circus, with its giant electronic
advertisements.London's theatre district is here,
as are many cinemas, bars, clubs and restaurants, including the city's Chinatown district (in Soho), and just to the east is Covent Garden, an area housing speciality shops. The United Kingdom's Royal Ballet, English National Ballet, Royal Opera and English National Opera are based in
London and perform at the Royal Opera
House, the London
Coliseum, Sadler's
Wells Theatre and the Royal Albert
Hall as well as touring the country.
Built in 1630, Boston is worldwide considered the major centre of
culture, science and education. Not to mention also being the capital and
largest city of the state of Massachusetts, where it is said to be the
economical and political centre of this particular region. Its own unique style
often gives Boston the name of “New England”.
When you
enter the city, you can first notice the highly academician atmosphere, very
calm and peaceful, but also very colorful and full of life. From the streets
you can see the brightly colored flowers emerging from flower pots hanging over
the lampposts and smell the sweet delicious scent all over the place. The order
and cleanness of the streets are unbelievable, and we can see how respectful,
tidy and caring the Bostonian population is, since they are responsible for
maintaining such wonderful neatness and its incredible beauty.
Boston is
mostly characterized by its inimitable style, which mixes the past with the
present. We can see this type of architecture represented everywhere: from
ancient churches and red brick sidewalks to glass towers. In several cases,
architects accomplished to join past and present by placing strategically the
glass buildings next to antique constructions, so we can see the old churches
and buildings reflected onto the modern ones.
One key
factor that makes this city so culturally rich in every way is its huge
diversity of cultures. We can see this characteristic in languages, foods and
philosophies all the way through Boston. What gathers all the foreigners in
this particular town are two of the most famous, prestigious and with best
reputation universities around the world, including Harvard University and the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, better known as M.I.T. Both of them are
specialized in sciences, so the city is considered one of the most important
centers in the world of research, electronics, engineering, technology, finance
and biotechnology.
Tokyo (東京 Tōkyō?, "Eastern
Capital"), English:; officially Tokyo Metropolis (東京都 Tōkyō-to?),[3] is one of the 47 prefectures of
Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and
the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese
government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial
Family. Tokyo is located in the Kantō region on the southeastern side of the
main island Honshu and includes the Izu Islands and Ogasawara Islands.[4] Tokyo
Metropolis was formed in 1943 from the merger of the former Tokyo Prefecture (東京府 Tōkyō-fu?) and the city of
Tokyo (東京市 Tōkyō-shi?).
The Tokyo Metropolitan government administers the
twenty-three special wards of Tokyo (each governed as a city), which cover the
area that was the city of Tokyo, as well as 39 municipalities in the western
part of the prefecture and the two outlying island chains.
