Macabre London - Touring the Dark Side

	London

SITES

	The White Tower, Tower of London

The Tower of London
Having stood for almost 1,000 years, the Tower of London has seen much of the country's dark side. The Tower is more of a tower complex (a total of 21 towers, in fact), but began with the construction of the White Tower in 1078. William the Conqueror, England's first Norman King, built the fortress to protect the city from invasion, but it also served to protect the Norman people from Londoners unhappy with Norman rule. The complex was developed over the next few centuries, but has changed little since the completion of the Royal Armouries in the 1660s.

At least, the buildings haven't changed. The role of the Tower has, serving as a fortress, an armoury, a treasury and mint, a royal palace, a zoo, and, since the 1400s, the home of The Crown Jewels (in Waterloo Barracks). It has been a prison for famous or influential prisoners, from royalty (like Elizabeth I, imprisoned during the reign of her sister Mary), to the notorious (like Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess), and was commonly used for executions. Public executions took place outside tower walls on Tower Hill (a paved clearing marks the scaffold site), while private executions were held on Tower Green, within the Tower walls (a small plaque marks the site in front of the tower chapel). Many well known historical figures lost their lives at these two sites. Execution on the Green (by beheading) was reserved for nobility, such as Queen Anne Boleyn (Henry VIII's second wife), executed in 1536 for reasons many believe to have been fabricated. Henry charged her with adultery, incest, and high treason so that he could execute her and marry Jane Seymour. Queen Anne carved her name in the wall of her cell in the Queen's House. To this day, locals claim she can be seen walking the tower halls with her head under her arm. She is also said to haunt Blickling Hall, the family home in Norwich.

Other royals who fell to the axe inside the tower include Queen Anne's sister-in-law Jane Boleyn, Viscountess Rochford, executed in 1542 for arranging meetings between Henry VIII's fifth wife, Catherine Howard and courtier Thomas Culpeper. Queen Catherine herself was beheaded on the very same day for the supposedly adulturous affair.

Thee 16-year-old Queen Regnant Lady Jane Grey, great granddaughter of Henry VII, was beheaded in 1554, after reigning for only nine days. Lady Jane held a tenuous claim to the throne, and was imprisoned in the apartments overlooking the Green after being deposed by her cousin, Mary I. A Protestant rebellion led by Sir Thomas Wyatt sought to restore Jane to the throne, and prompted Mary's supporters to call for Jane's execution in order to end the rebellion.

	Windows Over Tower Green, Tower of London

The list of executions on Tower Hill, usually for treason, includes Lord Guilford Dudley, husband of Lady Jane Grey, executed one day before her, because of his role in the Protestant rebellion. Lord Guilford is believed to have carved the "Jane" inscription into the wall of his cell. Sir Thomas More was executed in 1535 for refusing to accept King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England. In 1586, Anthony Babington was hung, drawn and quartered on the order of Queen Elizabeth I for planning her assassination. In 1745, Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat became the last man beheaded on Tower Hill after being convicted of supporting an uprising against the Crown. The block and axe used in his beheading can be seen on display in the White Tower, Most of these figures were imprisoned, and some tortured, in the Tower of London prior to their execution.

Other macabre sights around the complex include the Salt Tower, famous for the many inscriptions prisoners carved into its stone walls (Beefeaters, guradians of the Tower grounds, claim this tower is haunted by those immortalised in the graffitti). Henry VI was imprisoned in Wakefield Tower, where he was murdered on May 21, 1471. The details are uncertain, but the most popular theory attributes his murder to Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III) during his quest for the throne.An altar now stands where his body was found.

The most controversial site is The Garden Tower (also known as Bloody Tower), the last home of the Princes in the Tower. Edward V, the Heir Presumptive to the throne of Edward IV, and his younger brother Richard of Shrewsbury, are believed to have been murdered between 1483 and 1485. Edward V would have been between 13 and 15 years old at the time. The most popular theory has the boys killed for (or by) Richard so so that he could claim the throne for himself. Another theory blames Henry Tudor (King Henry VII) who, after defeating Richard III at Bosworth Field in 1485, killed the boys to remove them from the line of succession so that he could claim the throne himself (and end the War of the Roses). A variation on this rumour has Henry VII's mother, Margaret Beaufort, murder the princes for her son.

Two centuries later, a chest containing the bones of two young boys was found in White Tower, burried under the stairs to the Chapel of St. John the Evangelist, reinforcing the rumours. The remains were examined by King Charles II's royal surgeon who believed they were the remains of the Heir and his brother.The remains were interred in Westminster Abbey in 1674.

	The Tower of London

Sir Walter Raleigh was held in Bloody Tower in 1591 for a marriage that displeased Queen Elizabeth I (Raleigh secretly married one of the Queen's ladies-in-waiting withought her permission), and again between 1603 and 1616 under suspicion of treason. It is said that a floor was added to the Tower so that Raleigh's family could spend time with him in "voluntary captivity". Guy Fawkes was imprisoned and tortured on the rack in 1605 for his part in the Gunpowder Plot, an attempt to blow up the Houses of Parliament and assassinate King James I of England. William Penn (the founder of Pennsylvania, USA), was held between 1668 and 1669, for his religious beliefs. In more recent times, many German spies were executed by firing squad outside Tower walls, during both World Wars. In fact, the last execution at the tower was of a German soldier by firing squad during the Second World War.

Among the most important sites within Tower walls is The Church of St. Peter ad Vincula (St. Peter in Chains) It is not clear when the church was founded. The current structure dates to the early 1500s, and many believe that the first St Peter's was at least three centuries older. The Church has been witness to many events, and remains the last resting place of many who gave their lives at the Tower, including Queens Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey. The church maintains a wall listing those buried on its grounds. In addition to various Beefeaters and an unidentified ‘White Lady’ who waves to visitors, spectral visits to what is considered the most haunted site in England are attributed to the spirits of Queen Anne Boleyn, Henry VI, Lady Jane Grey, Thomas a Becket, Jesuit Priest Henry Walpole, and Sir Walter Raleigh, all of whom were held prisoner in the Tower during their last days.

The Tower was last used as a prison to hold two of England's more notorious gangsters. Ttwin brothers Ronald and Reginald Kray were held in Waterloo Barracks in 1952 for attempting to escape a mandatory two year military service requirement.

Upon release, the brothers went on to operate various arson, protection, hijacking and robbery rackets out of The Blind Beggar Pub, a seedy club in the East End that they purchased in the mid 1950s. Through the 1960s, the nightclub grew in popularity and the twins became local celebrities, hobnobbing with famous photographers, actors, musicians, and politicians. The Blind Beggar was the site of many underworld transactions, and at least one gangland murder (that of gangster George Cornell) perpetrated by Ronald Kray in 1966. The Krays were convicted of the murder in 1968, but continued to control their operations from prison until the time of their deaths.

	Banqueting House, Whitehall

The Banqueting House
The Banqueting House, built between 1619-22, is the only structure from Whitehall Palace that remains in tact. Built for King James I to host celebrations, Banqueting House has the dubious distinction of being the site of the only execution of a reigning English monarch, Charles I in 1649. Charles I invoked the Divine right of Kings, which claimed the monarch ruled because of the will of God, not his subjects. As a result, Charles I fought with both Parliament and the public over laws, taxes and religous doctrine. His policies led to the English Civil War (1642) and his conviction of High Treason on January 29, 1649. Charles I was beheaded the following day. Although he was often seen as a tyrant, many loyalists view King Charles I as a martyr and defender of the faith.

London Bridge
There has been a bridge on this site since the middle of the first millennium, destroyed and rebuilt countless times. Until the mid 1700s, this was the only bridge crossing the River Thames. Many experienced seamen travelling down the river have made foolhardy attempts to steer their small ships through the rapids created by the medieval addition of water wheels (to power water pumps and grain mills) at the cost of their lives. The Bridge also included homes and shops, and became so crowded that it caught fire around 1212, sending nearly 3,000 to their end. To ease increasing congestion and traffic jams in the ever growing city, the Lord Mayor divided traffic crossing the bridge in the 1700s, an act often cited as the beginning of the English tradition of driving on the left.

	Modern London Bridge

The Southern Gate of the famous bridge was made infamous by the tradition of placing the severed heads of traitors on pikes for display, a custom begun in 1305 with the execution of Scottish hero Sir William Wallace in Smithfield Market. Many details regarding Sir William are lost to history, but his deeds are not. Born in Scotland when England claimed suzerainty over the nation, Wallace would spend much of his adult life fighting English rule. Between 1296 and 1305, the Scots won many victories against much larger armies, and claimed many English lives. On August 5, 1305, Sir William Wallace was captured near Glasgow. On August 23, he was dragged to Smithfield Market behind a horse, hanged, drawn and quartered, and beheaded. It is believed that 'Braveheart' was the second man in history to suffer this fate. A memorial plaque marks the site of his execution.

Other notable figures whose heads ended up on the pike include Sir William Wallace's brother John, Sir Simon Fraser, Jack Cade, a leader in the Kent Rebellion of 1450 against the rule of King Henry VI (homes on the bridge were also burned during this rebellion), and Catholic Bishop Saint John Fisher, executed for his stance against King Henry VIII's manipulation of the church.

During the Peasants' Revolt of 1381 (against unfair taxation imposed by Richard II), many of the homes on the bridge were burnt down. The peasants invaded the Tower of London and killed everyone inside, including Archbishop of Canterbury Simon Sudbury (then Lord Chancellor), and the Lord Treasurer. The Peasants' Revolt ended at St. John's Fields, where King Richard II's army captured and executed most of the leaders of the rebellion and many of their supporters.

The head of Thomas More found its way to the bridge in 1535, as did Thomas Cromwell's. Cromwell, the most famous supporter of King Henry VIII's claim to be the head of the Church of England, was executed at the Tower of London in 1540 after encouraging the King's failed marriage to Anne of Cleves. King Charles II put an end to the tradition around 1678.

A renovated London Bridge was built in 1831, which was sold to an American in 1968, and is now found in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. The current London Bridge dates to that same year.

Highgate Cemetery

	Sculpture in the Cemetery

The most famous cemetery in the city, Highgate Cemetery is long on history, myth and legend, and appeals to visitors for many reasons. It is the resting place of some very famous and influential world figures, from Karl Marx, father of Marxism (which gave rise to Communism) to Adam Worth, the so called napoleon of Crime, burried under the alias Henry J. Raymond, Esquire, and maintains many impressive works from Victorian mausoleums to intricate tombstones considered exceptional and historically important, and has become a veritable forested sanctuary for local wildlife.

It is also the home of the fabled Wampyr of Highate, a vampire said to have haunted the cemetery in the 1970s. Originally referred to as a ghost, the apparition became associated with Bram Stokers famous vampire Dracula, who lived in the area in Stoker's fictional novel. Other ghosts have been seen in the cemetery, but the nosferatu with hypnotic eyes quickly became the most popular. Investigators claim to have found animals drained of blood, lending support to occult superstitions. In August 1970, a body was found in the cemetery, burnt and decapitated (methods used to kill vampires in fiction novels). The body was never identified.

Smithfield Market
Smithfield Market, London's oldest produce and livestock market, began in 1327 in a large public greenspace used for a variety of events, from the market to jousting to executions. It was the primary execution site for those convicted of heresy, usually by burning, and convicted forgers who were boiled in oil. The Peasants' Revolt of 1381 began here with meetings between its leaders Wat Taylor, his priest Jack Straw and John Ball. It is perhaps ironic, then, that Wat would be killed on these grounds. On June 15, 1381, Tyler fought with the mayor of London who stabbed Tyler to death, signalling the end of the rebellion. Many others (in particular those accused of heresy) would give their lives here. The most famous victim of Smithfield was the aforementioned Sir William Wallace.

Tyburn
The former village of Tyburn, now part of Westminster, was London's preferred location for execution by hanging from 1196 through the end of the 18th century. In 1571, an unusual triangular gallows scaffold known as the "Tyburn Tree" was erected (near the modern Marble Arch). This unique structure allowed for the execution of multiple prisoners (as many as 24) at the same time, and often brought the end of London's most infamous criminals. The gallows proved so popular that "stadium" style public seating was built for the thousands of onlookers that would pay a small fee to watch the event. Tyburn's dark place in history was secured in 1661, when Charles II ordered that Oliver Cromwell be hanged from the Tree for his role in the rebellion against and execution of King Charles I, even though Cromwell had died of illness more than two years earlier. His body was drawn and quartered, and his head displayed at Westminster Abbey until 1685. Public hangings in Tyburn ended in 1783, when this form of execution was moved exclusively to Newgate Prison. the prison was demolished in 1902, and was replaced with the Old Bailey court.

Westminster

	Westminster Abbey

The City of Westminster, famous for the Palace of Westminster, has been an integral part of life in the city since the end of the first milennium. Its most notable feature is the Palace, which serves as the seat of government, and was the target of the Gunpowder Plot (among other notable events). It was also the site of the only assassination of a British prime minister, Spencer Perceval, in 1812. On May 11, Perceval was murdered in the lobby by John Bellingham after Bellingham was denied compensation for what he believed to be wrongful improsonment. Bellingham was executed for the crime on May 13.

Near the palace lies Westminster Abbey, a Gothic church used for the coronation of English monarchs, is the last resting place of many notable figures, such as Henry III, Mary, Queen of Scots, Saint Edward the Confessor, William Shakespeare, Geoffrey Chaucer, Charles Dickens, Charles Darwin and Isaac Newton. The abbey is reportedly haunted by the ghost of a Benedictine monk believed to have been murdered on the premises. The fact that this spectre is often seen hovering some feet above the abbey floor is attributed to the claim that the floor has sunk two feet due to centuries of renovations. He has never been identified. Jane Seymour (Henry VIII's third wife) and Catherine Howard (Henry VIII's fifth wife) have been seen in various parts of the abbey, particularly around the galleries and gardens. An apparition believed to be the Unknown Soldier has been seen wandering the halls, as has John Bradshaw, who presided over the trial of King Charles I. Bradshaw is also said to haunt Red Lion Square, along with Oliver Cromwell.

There were many important events in the City of Westminster, including the executions of Guy Fawkes (on Palace grounds), and Sir Walter Raleigh (at Whitehall Palace). The embodiment of chivalry, Raleigh was beheaded in 1618 for the Main Plot (to remove King James I from the throne). It is said that Raleigh's widow had his head imbalmed and would famously ask visitors if they would "like to see Sir Walter."

Hampton Court
Hampton Court is most famous as the favourite palace of King Henry VIII, but it is also known for its spectral visitors. The disembodied form of Catherine Howard, for example, has been known to appear in her former apartments, where she was imprisoned before being executed. Jane Seymour died of fever at Hampton Court after delivering Henry's only male heir (who would become King Edward VI), and has been spotted on occasion. Even the King himself, Henry VIII, has made many appearances.

London Tube Stations
Many of the stations along the London Underground are said to be haunted. In particular, commuters through Covent Garden station are said to see the ghost of popular actor William Terris, murdered by a fellow actor in 1897, outside the Adelphi Theatre. Reportedly, Terris' last words were "I'll be back", but he seems to prefer visiting the tube station, then the site of a bakery loved by the actor, to the theatre. The now disused Aldywch Station is visited by a theatre actress, and Bank is frequented by a nun. It is said the nun waited for her brother (who was executed for forgery in 1811) on this spot every day for the last forty years of her life.

	King's Cross Station

Farringdon sees the ghost of a 13-year-old girl who was murdered by a hat maker and his daughter. Highgate and South Kensington get phantom trains late at night. Travelers to the now closed British Museum Station have seen an unidentified, ancient Egyptian in loincloth and regal headdress. This station's walls are said to moan late at night. Elephant and Castle station is also visited by a young girl who walks through the trains and disappears. Sightings are so common that she has even made the newspapers.

King's Cross Station, in particular platform nine, may be home to one of the oldest ghosts in the country. Not long after London was founded, Queen Boudica led eastern Britons against the occupying Roman army, killing approxmiately 80,000 people. Around 61 AD, Boudica entered a young London, the seat of Roman power in her country, and burned it to the ground. Queen Boudica was defeated in the Battle of Watling Street, her massive army decimated by a superior, though much smaller, Roman force. The Queen herself is believed to have committed suicide, after which her remains were cremated. Some historians slaim she was buried under platform nine, and that her spirit can still be seen seeking justice for the nation. In 1905, a bronze sculpture of Boudica at war was erected at the west end of Westminster Bridge, near the Houses of Parliament. Recent excavations around the site of Tower Hill have uncovered a layer of burnt rubble covering coins and pottery dating to the time of the rebellion.

Jack the Ripper Sites
Jack the Ripper is without doubt the most famous serial killer in recorded history. This is a bit unusual, considering how little is known about him, but that is part of the phenomenon. Determining his identity has become an industry in itself, and every year sees a new book (there have been more books written about Jack than all US Presidents combined), a new theory, new victims and new suspects, which have included everyone from the surgeon for the Royal Family to author Lewis Carrol. Most of these new developments, however, are sensationalistic, and have little evidence to support them. It is not even certain how many victims fell to his knife.

While it is commonly accepted that five women (all prostitutes) met their fate in the Ripper's East End, many suggest that the monster of Whitechapel was killing long before, and long after the events of 1888. Again, there is little conclusive evidence. About the only detail that is fairly certain is that he was left handed. Some aren't even sure that the Ripper was a man.

In the latter half of 1888, five women living in the squalor of Victorian London's East End were murdered with a savagery seldom seen outside of Hollywood movies. The throats of all victims were slashed, cut through to the vertebrae. All but one victim suffered extreme abdominal mutilation (a witness is believed to have interrupted the Ripper immediately after cutting the throat of third victim Elizabeth Stride), and were completely disembowelled. Some organs were removed from three of the women, including the heart of fifth victim Mary Kelly and a kidney of fourth victim Catherine Eddowes. Two weeks after Eddowes' murder, the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee recieved a small cardboard box containing half a human kidney along with the now legendary "From Hell" letter claiming the kidney was from the victim. The attacks grew more horrifying as time passed, and the unfortunate Mary Kelly, Jack's last official victim, was virtually unrecognizable when found, the Ripper having mutilated every part of her body.

The city was gripped with fear, as Scotland Yard was unable to gather enough evidence to bring trial or even a lasting arrest, in spite of many possible witnesses, and news of the murders captivated the entire world. To this day, the Ripper victims are believed to visit their murder sites, usually seen lying down as when found.

All speculation aside, the details of the case have astounded and fascinated curious minds around the world for more than a century. So much so that to this day residents living near the murder sites are disturbed by the Ripper Walks that recount the events as they tour the East End. Ripper Walks often meet at the Ten Bells Pub, found around the corner from the Mary Kelly murder site. The Ten Bells, operating since 1752, was frequented by many of the victims, and is within walking distance from all sites related to the crimes. In 2005, Jack was voted the 19th century's worst Briton by BBC History magazine.

Other serial killers have further shaped the country's sense of security while inspiring countless authors of both true crime and fiction. So much so that somertimes the line between fact and fiction is blurred. As is the case with Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Legend has it that Sweeney had a great dislike of people in general. In 1762, at the age of 14, he spent time in Newgate Prison for theft, where he learned the barber's trade. He took his first victim (a man with whom Todd believed his girlfriend was having an affair) the year he was released. He was just 19 at the time. He soon set up shop at 186 Fleet Street, near St. Dunstan's (where the head of Thomas Moore has rested since 1533), and claimed an undetermined number of lives before being hanged in 1802. To this day historians and crime buffs alike debate the truth of the legend.

	The Streets of Modern London

The Ratcliff Highway Murders of 1811 claimed seven lives, including that of a boy just fourteen weeks old, with a ferocity never seen before (and not seen again until the Ripper struck) in the nation's capital. The man accused of the atrocities hung himself, or was hung, while awaiting trial. His body was paraded through the streets, whipped, and buried at the crossroads of Cannon and Cable Streets (to confuse his evil spirit) with a stake through its heart (to keep his evil soul in its grave). The viscious attacks led to one of the earliest manhunts in London's history.

After a series of murders in Canada and the USA, Dr. Thomas Neill Cream moved to London where he poisoned four prostitutes in 1891. Cream was convicted and sentenced to hang, and went so far as to claim to be Jack the Ripper while on the gallows (even though he was in prison in Chicago, Illinois in 1888).

In 1910, Dr. Hawley Crippen, an American physician living in London, shocked the whole nation when he savagely murdered his abusive and adulterous wife Belle and buried her under his cellar floor. Crippen poisoned, shot and dismembered her body before fleeing to Canada. Arresting officer Walter Dew, who worked the Jack the Ripper case and knew Ripper victim Mary Kelly quite well before her death, would later write that in his career the only murders more revolting than that of Belle Crippen were those of the Ripper himself.

Graham Young began poisoning his family and friends before he turned 13, and is believed to have killed at least two people, including his step mother. Dennis Nilsen lived in relative obscurity until captured, when he confessed to murdering 15 of his lovers because he didn't want them to go home, dismembering the bodies and disposing of the remains in various ways around his home (in eerily similar fashion as American seiral killer Jeffrey Dahmer who began killing in 1978, the same year as Nilsen).

As a chilling start to the 21st century, a woman's torso was found floating in the Thames in 2000. Some months later, three young boys found a bag of human remains in a canal. A series of similar murders led investigators to ex-convict Anthony Hardy. The remains of several women were found in his apartment. During his trial, Hardy would confess to their murders.

The well respected but sociopathic Dr. Harold Shipman was convicted of poisoning 15 people in 2001. He even forged the will of one victim. Investigations have linked the doctor with as many as 280 deaths over a period of 24 years, making him the most prolific killer in history. Evidence suggests the actual number of victims is actually much higher than recorded, and in an attempt to uncover the truth, a special help line was organized for the families of any patients who died while under Shipman's care. Shipman hung himself in his cell in 2004.

In 2003, a series of seemingly random attacks began. Known as the UK Hammer Murders, perpetrated against mostly female victims, the attacks have shown not apparent links, and have baffled the police and shaken the city. At least two women died as a result of the attacks, and more have barely survived with little of no memory of what happened.

ADDITIONAL ATTRACTIONS

The London Museum

	London's Famous Yeoman Warders, Slso Known As Beefeaters

The largest urban history museum in the world, the London Museum has plenty of exhibits and displays recording London's troubled past, including many skulls (called the Walbrook Skulls for being found in the Walbrook River) believed to date back to the massacre led by Queen Boudica in the first century. The history of the Black Death of 1348 (an outbreak of bubonic plague), which claimed almost half the population, and its resurgance during the Great Plague of London (1664-1665), the Great Fire (1666) and many more tragic events are recounted through various media exhibits and Bills of Mortality, the 17th century equivalent of death certificates. The museum is an exceptional repository of documents, artifacts and artwork capturing the major events and faces throughout the history of England.

The London Dungeon
The London Dungeon is one of the more famous museums dedicated to the macabre. Here, curious visitors can explore the many ways and means of execution, such as hanging at the Tyburn Gallows, beheading (through a recreation of the execution of Queen Anne Boleyn), the French guillotine and a particularly brutal execution called "The Wheel". Victims were tied to a large wheel and either beaten until all their bones were broken, stretched as the wheel rotates or turned slowly over a fire (roasted like a pig). A slow and excruciating death was often the result. Many methods of torture are also on display, from iron tongs (used to pull out the tongues of those who spoke ill of the King) to the rack (used to extract information or confessions). In similar fashion as with the wheel, the rack would stretch its victims until their joints dislocate. If stretched too far, the victim's limbs might be torn off.

As can be expected from any British tribute to the macabre, there is an unsettling and gruesome recreation of the crimes of Jack the Ripper, England's most well known serial killer. Continuing on, visitors can explore many tragic turns of fate from centuries ago (including the Great Fire and Great Plague), treasonous plots (such as Guy Fawkes and the GUnpowder Plot), myths and legends (such as the 19th century's Mary Ann Cotton, believed to have poisoned six husbands and 15 of her children).

Madame Tussaud's
Madame Tussaud's is a world famous wax museum is as much a part of popular culture as the figures represented within, and has a long and macabre history. The museum dates back to 1777, when Tussaud began crafting famous faces, but she would go on to make death masks (wax or plaster molds of the deceased's face) during the French Revolution. It is said that Marie would walk through the corpses looking for suitable heads to immortalize. The death masks were the first in what would eventually become the now renowned Chamber of Horrors. Madame Tussaud's has expanded, with museums in Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Las Vegas and New York City, but her very first permanent exhibit was set up on Baker Street in London. Among the displays of nefarious world figures are Adolf Hitler, American gangster Bugsy Siegel, various monsters from myth and legend, and a remarkable depiction of Victorian London during the terror of Jack the Ripper.

	Westminster Bridge and The Houses of Parliament

TRANSPORTATION

Getting around these sights is fairly easy, as London offers many options for local transit. Renting a limousine is popular, but can be more costly than many tourists care for. There are car rental agencies (foreign licences are valid for 12 months), but some western travellers find that driving on the opposite side of the road (and car) from what they are used to can be more challenging than it sounds. Local drivers are known to be aggressive (surveys claim 75% of England's drivers suffer road rage), fuel and parking can be expensive and driving doesn't allow for much time to look around. For most visitors, Public transit is the best option. The London Underground is a fast and inexpensive alternative, and takes sightseers close by (if not directly to) all the sights and wonders of the city. Above ground, the Docklands Light Rail system offers similar means of getting around, but with better views. The most popular choice may be the famous Double Decker bus system, which operates extensively throughout the capital, and provides a fun and inexpensive way to see the city, take pictures and discover the sights.

ACCOMMODATION AND DINING