W LIFE IN LONDON WORDS Paul V. Walters PHOTOS Various As a truly international city, London is an intoxicating mix of culture and history brought to life by the nine million people who call it home. “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.” The late Samuel Johnson’s timeless quote can, for a resident of London, ring a little hollow when enduring a long, drawn-out grey winter living in a tiny, expensive flat just off Kilburn High Road. Love it or loathe it, London is altogether an awe-inspiring city which has, over centuries, shaped itself to be a global leader embracing the arts, commerce, education, fashion, finance, healthcare, tourism and public transport. It is the centre point for much of the West’s modern history, and for those born and raised in this giant metropolis who live alongside the many thousands of migrants who make a home here amidst the city’s storied and glorious past. To get a sense of London’s grandeur, a walk through Hampstead Heath to Parliament Hill provides a view of the city laid out in all its glory. These days, the skyline is festooned with cranes helping to erect buildings that seem desperate to touch the stars. This spot affords you the best 180-degree view of the city, which stretches as far as the eye can see. It is bisected by the mighty Thames River, which weaves its way through the old and new, never pausing on its constant journey to the sea. London has been a major settlement for two millennia, founded by the Romans who named it Londinium. Its ancient core, the City Of London, largely retains its 1.12-square-mile (2.9 km2) medieval boundaries. As a city, this one has a lot to crow about given its title as the world's largest financial centre – it’s the number one Forex trading city – and has the sixth largest metropolitan GDP by area in the world. London is often regarded as a world cultural capital and, possibly because of this, is the world's most-visited city as measured by international arrivals. The visitor numbers are no doubt helped along by the world's largest airport system measured by passenger traffic. What’s not to love about London with its diverse range of people and cultures conversing in over 300 different languages? A population of over nine million makes it the largest of any city in Europe. A village city Any way you look at it, London is really a series of eclectic villages joined together by common boundaries. Each of these ‘villages’ or boroughs has a completely different feel compared to its neighbours. The respective high streets offer different cuisine, styles of dress and stores selling goods and services reflective of each area’s mix of ethnic groups. It’s a wonderful city and one of the easiest to navigate due to its ingenious public transport system. The London Underground, or the Tube as it’s affectionally known, is a public rapid transport system serving London and some parts of the adjacent counties. Opened in 1863, it was the first line to operate underground electric traction trains. In 2016–17, it carried close to 1.4 billion passengers, which equates to almost five million passengers a day. London Transport introduced its contactless payment system, known as the Oyster Card, in 2014, allowing passengers to use not only the underground but also the city’s vast bus and ferry network with a single card. Compared with numerous public transport systems around Europe, this one literally stands head and shoulders above the rest. Even in summer, when the Tube can be hot and crowded, one never has to wait more than three minutes for a train. Likewise, with the city’s buses whose services to all parts of London are never more than 10 minutes apart. DESTINATION 27