United Kingdom |
| Tuesday, 19 August 2008 00:00 |
 The United Kingdom is supposedly a country with a sheer, inexhaustible supply of tourist attractions. It seems that every city, even village has a significant tourist attraction, wether it is a historic site, a special architectural style, or a legend or crime story associated with it. The United Kingdom consits of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales, and together with Northern Ireland forms the United Kingdom. The tourist attractions that are spread all over the island are just as diverse as its regions and citizens. In Scotland, for example, the capital of Edinburgh was admitted to the prestigious UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites for its contribution to human cultural heritage. Loch Ness on the other hand has yet to produce a material contribution to collective human memory, though its supposed inhabitant Nessie is a world-famous legend. Great Britain is ideal for a vacation by car, since there are only few public roads that you will be charged for. Tourists do not only have to mind the left-hand traffic but also the rough street surfaces that cause increased tire wear. The AA Big Road Atlas will provide you with many useful suggestions as well as detailed road and town maps. The Lake District might just be the most gorgeous region to drive through. The scenery is simply awesome. On the southern edge you will find Muncaster Castle and its famous park. The castle hosts the World Owl Center which introduces the visitor to more than 100 different breeds of owl. From the park you can take England’s oldest narrow gauge railway down to the coast of the Irish Sea. Otherwise you can simply take your car a few miles to Halker Hall castle which has a magnificent park, containing a 400 year-old linden tree. The area around Woodstock in Oxfordshire has a number of fantastic attractions. Winston Churchill was born in Blenheim Palace, a huge, monumental palace now home to an excellent exhibition on the Prime Minister’s life. The beautiful baroque museum was once a gift from Queen Anne of England and contains precious paintings, china, and ancient furniture. The palace is set in a beautiful park with fountains, small streams, a maze and a butterfly house. London, the British capital, is always worth a visit. If you wish to relax after the hustle and bustle of the big city, take your rental car to Stratford-upon-Avon, a romantic town with timber frame houses, and where Shakespeare was born. Southern England is a popular holiday destination among English nobility and the upper society, though the rest of the population has long found out about the charming little bathing towns along the coast, like Plymouth or St. Ives. |
Top