England by Rosemary Barrass

A flight from Paris will take you to London, England. Flying with British Airways, nonstop, will take about 1 and 1/2 hours and will cost 277.91€. Once you get to the airport, your euros will not be of use. The exchange rate as of 1/9/09 is $1000 to £659.20. You can rent a car for £90.61 to cover the whole trip. The first two nights, you will be staying at the Milennium Bailey's Hotel London Kensington, which will be about £118 in total. The last night you will stay in the Radisson SAS Hotel Birmingham which will be about £110 for the night.

The first place you will visit in London is Big Ben. This cliched London landmark is beautiful and is a must-see for any passing tourist. The magnificent clock tower is especially great to see on the hour, when the famous bells of the clock will sound.

After Big Ben, it's off to see one of the less talked about historic places. Gray's Inn, one of four ancient Inns of Court still in operation. On the late-Georgian terrace you can see a line of many buildings used for homes and offices. The Inn contains a rebuilt Tudor Hall and many beautiful lawns and gardens. The square still emanates a 17th century feel.

While in London, you must go on one of the boat tours. We recommend the Thames River boat tour that will take you to Greenwich, which is a 50 minute ride. On the tour, you will have a great view of the most magnificent parts of London that you could never see otherwise. All 50 minutes will be spent on the scenic Thames river, which travels straight through London. You will be able to see much of London that would otherwise take a whole lifetime to explore. The one-way trip to Greenwich will cost a total of £14.

In Greenwich, which is a small village on the outskirts of London. Greenwich has been the zero point of used in reckoning the longitudes of earth since the late 1800s. It was also the site of Britain's Millennium Dome, which is a multimedia extravaganza of education and entertainment. This project was unsuccessful and has become a national joke. Prince Charles once described it as a milky gelatin dessert, and it then finally closed. It reopened as "The 02" in 2007, with an 11-screen cinema, a live music venue, exhibition spaces, theaters, bars, and restaurants. Sports evenings of the 2012 Olympics will be hosted in "The 02".

The next day, you will visit the Southwark Cathedral. There has been a cathedral in this same sight for over a thousand years. The present one is from the 15th century, but was partially rebuilt in 1890. There is a wooden effigy of a knight that has stood in the same spot since the late 1200s. Shakespeare and Chaucer used to worship in this very cathedral. Although the admission is free, but they suggest a donation of 4£.

For dinner, you will go to Kensington Place. The cuisine in this wonderful restaurant is wonderful and continues to bring in more and more customers. With meals like grouse, venison, roast partridge, grilled wild boar chops, and chicken with goat-cheese mouse, this bistro is a popular place for locals and pop stars alike. The average main course is £14-£32.

The next morning you will travel to the city of Birmingham. Birmingham isn't a very famous place, but you will enjoy getting away from all the hustle and bustle of tourists and locals of London. There are just few places to visit here, but you will most definately be able to see everything you would want to here.

First, you will go to the Barber Institute of Fine Arts. Though it looks a bit bland on the outside, but it is equal to any of the museums in England outside of London. They have works from great artists like Bellini, Botticelli, Brueghel, Canaletto, Delacroix, Gainsborough, Gauguin, Guardi, Murillo, Renoir, Rubens, Turner, van Gogh, and Whistler. Admission is free and you will be able to tackle all the exhibits before the day is up.

You will have plenty of time for shopping in Birmingham. This city is definately a great place to find all the things that you wanted to buy whilst in London. There are many top-designers along the lengthy shopping centers. You can find everything from department stores such as Harvey Nichols to salons and the upscale Malmaison hotel.

To finish off your trip to England, you will go to the Midlands Art Centre in Cannon Hill Park. There are three areas where they perform drama, dance, musical performances, and sometimes even show films. You can see what performances will be taking place at the box office that is open daily.