Where exactly is London?

London, the place of my birth, frequently tops polls for best city in the world, and with reason. It's engagingly historic, once the largest city on earth, vibrant, hugely diverse, in terms of population as well as architecture and city areas. The food is great (if expensive at times) and you never run out of new things to see and do.

'Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner
That I love London so
Well, maybe it's because I'm a Londoner
That I think of her wherever I go

I get a funny feeling inside of me
While walking up and down
Well, maybe it's because I'm a Londoner
That I love the London town'

(Song by Hubert Gregg, 1944)

London might arguably be the greatest city in the world, but what most of us call London isn't actually the City of London. Naturally, it's much more complicated than that. My posts are based on ceremonial counties, the country's administrative regions, and the name of the London regional county is Greater London. That's what most people mean when they say London. Today, the region of Greater London comprises 32 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs AND the City of London. That's a separate ceremonial county. Just to confuse things even further, one of the London boroughs also holds city status. That's the City of Westminster, affluent Central London, seat of the government of the United Kingdom and official home to the monarch. So, you will find the City of London under a separate post here. The City of Westminster has its own post (under Greater London) here. And Greater London has its own 4 posts :

• Greater London - the Maritime and East End Boroughs
• Greater London - The Southern and Cultural Core
• Greater London - The Royal and Wealthy West
• Greater London - The Northern Heights and Literary Hubs

(The map is attributed to Peter Fitzgerald, Richtom80, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.)

London - Facts and Factoids

• The Greater London Authority looks after strategic local government across the region. Regular local government is the responsibility of the borough councils.
• Greater London has an almost entirely urbanised land area of 606 square miles and an estimated population of almost ten million. The wider metropolitan London Urban Area, which also includes Hemel Hempstead, Watford, Woking, Harlow, St Albans and Bracknell, is the largest in Western Europe, with a population of 14.9 million. Apparently, that makes London a megacity. It doesn't help that sources like Wikipedia seem to talk about cities and urban areas interchangeably.
• The River (Old Father) Thames is the iconic defining feature of the area, entering Greater London near Hampton, in the west running through the centre and and flowing (generally) east, before exiting downstream of Dagenham. Several tributaries of the Thames flow through the area, but these are now mostly culverts, ignominiously, part of the sewerage system.
• The land immediately north and south of the river is flat, but rises to low hills further away, notably Hampstead Heath, Shooter's Hill, and Sydenham Hill. The highest point is Westerham Heights in the North Downs (245 metres) and the north-east contains part of ancient Epping Forest.
• London's diverse cultures speak over 300 languages.
• As one of the world's major global cities London exerts a strong influence on world art, entertainment, fashion, commerce, finance, education, healthcare, media, science, technology, tourism, transport, and communications. The London Stock Exchange survived Brexit (just) and London remains Europe's most economically powerful city and one of the world's major financial centres. London hosts Europe's largest concentration of higher education institutions. Imperial College London (natural and applied sciences), the London School of Economics (social sciences), and the University College London. are amongst the highest-ranked academic institutions in the world.

Exploring London

You can try to see everything that London has to offer, but I haven't managed it yet and I'm defintely getting on. London is the most visited city in Europe and has the world's busiest city airport system, whilst the London Underground is the world's oldest rapid transit system. It's best to use it, or the buses. Only the super rich, with chauffeurs and time on their hands brave the traffic in Central London. There are taxi and bus lanes in some areas. and a black cab driver is supposed to know London like the back of his hand. He has to pass a test called 'The Knowledge'.

Or walk - London's an eminently rewarding place to stroll. Be more adventurous - traverse north to south or east to west and note all the changes in environment and atmosphere. Or follow one one of the marked footpaths: The Capital Ring, the Green Chain Walk, the Green Link Walk, the Jubilee Greenway, the Jubilee Walkway, the Lea Valley Walk, the London LOOP and the Thames Path (right to the source in Gloucester). I've done most of these. The Thames Path is my favourite, for the everchanging outlook and the many pubs.

London has an ever changing skyline and it's always a delight (if you don't count the traffic and the stressful folk rushing on and off the tube). But what to see? There are four World Heritage Sites are located in London: Kew Gardens; the Tower of London; the site featuring the Palace of Westminster, the Church of St Margaret, and Westminster Abbey and Greenwich Observatory, home of the Prime Meridian (0° longitude).

Otherwise, a plethora of landmarks, too many to mention: museums, theatres galleries, libraries and sporting venues. London became the first city to host three Summer Olympic Games, in 2012.

A Very Brief (Indeed) History of London

• London has been a major settlement for nearly 2,000 years. Its ancient core and financial centre, the City of London, was founded by the Romans, as Londinium.
• The City of Westminster developed as the centuries-long host of the national government and parliament.
• London grew rapidly in the nineteenth century, becoming the world's largest city at the time. Since that time, the name 'London' has referred to the metropolis around the City of London, historically split between the counties of Middlesex, Essex, Surrey, Kent, and Hertfordshire,
• The first Greater London-wide directly elected local government was the London County Council, established in 1889, which covered the core of the urban area.
• In 1965 the county was abolished and replaced by Greater London, a two-tier administrative area governed by the Greater London Council, thirty-two London boroughs, and the City of London Corporation.
• The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986, and its responsibilities largely taken over by the boroughs.
• The Greater London Authority was formed in 2000, to focus on strategic direction. It's led by the Mayor of London.

Thames Festival

The Thames Festival, held annually in September, celebrates the waterway on its journey through London. You can get a carnival and firework experience, alongside an ever increasing number of street performances and other events.

Leaving London ...For Now

As Samuel Johnson, the author of the first-ever dictionary, wrote:

When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.