The Tower of London is a misnomer, it isn’t a “tower”, it is a vast, ancient fortress, so when you visit it, pack a picnic because it will take you all day to fully explore every part open to the public. Gazing at the Crown Jewels is only a small part of the attraction of this magnificent bastion.

The original building was constructed on the orders of William the Conqueror in 1070 as a temporary wooden building. Later a stone tower was added and by the 13th century it had become the fortress you can visit today, with several towers, all with their own history.

These towers are: the White Tower, built in 1097 and white-washed by Henry II (hence its name); the Bloody Tower where Richard III supposedly had his nephews murdered so that he could take the throne after the death of his brother, Edward IV; St Thomas Tower where political prisoners were brought to by way of the Traitor’s Gate; Beauchamp Tower where Lady Jane Grey (the Nine Day Queen) was guarded before her execution; the Bell Tower where Thomas More was kept before his execution.

Visits are commented by the Yeoman Warders, known as Beefeaters. This name came perhaps from their salary, which included sides of beef . Lower servants of the Crown received bread as part of their pay. Yeoman Warders today still wear traditional costume and are as much a part of the Tower as are the ravens.

According to legend, the ravens first settled on the walls during the reign of Charles II. They were probably attracted there in the first place because of all the executions that took place on the grounds. Charles feared that if they left, the monarchy would be doomed, so he appointed a Raven Master to care for them. The birds have had their flight feathers cut, so that they can’t fly away and thus fulfil the legend.

Charles II was so concerned about the wellbeing of the ravens that he had the Royal Observatory moved away from the fortress when his astronomers complained that the birds were a nuisance. Many ghosts haunt the Tower; the most famous is that of Anne Boleyn, who wanders around with her head under her arm.

St Mary Axe? Never heard of it! The Swiss Re Building? Oh, I might have heard of it! These are typical replies to tourists’ questions. Now if you say the “Gherkin” or the “Egg” everyone will know what you are talking about.

This amazing building is to be found in the City of London. The City, as it is usually called, is the tiny one square mile area that houses the main financial establishments in London, and is, in fact the only remnant of the original city founded by the Romans.

The “Gherkin” is also called the “Crystal Phallus” – a pun based on its glass-and-steel construction, like the famous Crystal Palace, and its rather phallic shape. Both of these appellations infuriate its designer Norman Foster, who would rather people admire its aesthetic form, its elegant energy-saving structure that uses steel and glass in a 5° rotation from floor to floor to capture light and to cut down on the wind chill factor, meaning that the building uses less than half the energy that surrounding buildings use.

The building was put up on the site of the former Baltic Exchange Building that was almost entirely destroyed by a bomb in 1992. It was opened in 2004 and respects the “Sight Lines” rule which states that no building must obstruct or detract from the view of St Paul’s Dome. Therefore the 40 storey, 180 metre high tower just passes “skyscraper” status.

If you want to visit it or have a meal in the restaurant on the top floor, you must be invited; free entry is impossible, so it’s best just to take photos from the plaza outside the building to avoid having to give proof of identity and DNA samples before you are allowed in through the front door.

Many people think that Lloyds of London is an insurance company, but it isn’t. It is the British Insurance Marketplace, consisting of members, and in truth insurance in Britain could not exist without this remarkable institution.

The idea of an insurance market began in around 1688 and started in, of all places, a coffee house. Lloyds Coffee House was frequented by merchants, ship owners and sailors, all worried about finding insurance for their goods and transport. The idea grew to invite a body of (rich) people to become members of an insurance market and pledge to underwrite policies. The idea was popular and became formalised in 1774. The market is made up of Members who provide the capital and agents and brokers who support the members, underwrite the policies and represent outside customers.

The “market” is housed in the 14 storey Lloyds Building in Lime Street in the City. It is a truly amazing building consisting of six towers – three main ones and three service ones – around a central rectangular space. It is often referred to as the “Inside Out Building” because the stairways, power conduits, water pipes and 12 glass-fronted lifts are on the outside, giving maximum space to the interior of the building.

On the ground floor is the Underwriting Room with its barrel-vaulted glass roof and the famous Lutine Bell, which used to be struck to warn that a ship was either late or lost at sea. While most of the building has a futuristic look about it, the 11th floor is a total surprise. It is where you will find the Committee Room – a dining room designed in the 18th century by Adams ; it was dismantled from the old Lloyds building and rebuilt here piece by piece.

Some insurance policies that Lloyds underwrites include Celine Dion’s and Bruce Springsteen’s vocal cords; a comedy theatre group against a member of the audience dying of laughter and the development of the New World Trade Centre.

Ludgate Hill, one of three ancient hills in London, has been the site of a place of worship since 604 AD. The present building on the hill is St Paul’s Cathedral, and it is quite rightly the most famous of London’s landmarks and the most visited cathedral in the world, after St Peter’s Basilica in Rome.

Between 604 and the Great Fire of 1666, there had been several churches on the hill, and after the last one was destroyed in the Great Fire, Sir Christopher Wren was commissioned to build a new, bigger one. He had to make five different designs of the building before one was finally chosen; work began in 1675 and the cathedral was officially opened in 1711.

The interior of the cathedral is very beautiful with the inner dome painted with 8 monochromes by Sir James Thornhill, depicting the life of St Paul. The inner dome holds three galleries: the internal Whispering Gallery takes its name from the unique acoustics – a whisper against the wall on one side of the gallery can be heard on the other side. Above this is the external Stone Gallery and above that is the external Golden Gallery.

In the Nave there are three chapels: on the North aisle are the All Souls Chapel and the St Dunstan’s Chapel; on the South aisle is the St George and St Michael Chapel. The Knights Bachelor Chapel and the OBE Chapel are to be found in the crypt.

The tombs of Lord Nelson, the Duke of Wellington and Sir Christopher Wren are also in the crypt, along with tombs and memorials to many others who have made a great contribution to the nation, including artist and musicians. Sir Winston Churchill’s funeral was held here, and of course the marriage of Prince Charles to Lady Diana was celebrated in the cathedral.

You really shouldn’t miss a visit to Somerset House, which you can entre either via the Victoria Embankment or by the Strand.

The original “house” was actually a pretty sumptuous Gothic style castle built in 1550 for Edward Seymour, (the uncle of the future King Edward VI), who named himself Protector of the Realm and Lord Somerset. Edward VI was too young to rule when he ascended the throne at the age of nine, so a Regency Council was formed with Lord Somerset at its head. The 1st Lord Somerset never lived in his  house. He was arrested for treason and executed in 1551 and the castle became the property of the Crown.

Between its completion in 1553 and its demolition in 1775, many kings and queen lived there for short periods of time, and visiting heads of state were housed there. After its demolition another house was built on the site by William Chambers, the Surveyor General. The new building was constructed in the Neo-Classical style you can see today, around a central courtyard with a separate north tower. A statue of King George III was erected in the courtyard in 1881.

The building has had many uses over the centuries: it was the home of the Royal Society, the Royal Navy, the Inland Revenue and until 1975 it housed the General Register of births, marriages and deaths. Today it serves as offices, contemporary art and design galleries and a museum. You will find here the Courtauld Gallery, the Gilbert Gallery of Decorative Art and the Rizzoli Bookshop where you can buy signed and limited editions of books that aren’t easily available in usual book stores.

It is the venue of Fashion Week every September and many rooms are for hire for parties, weddings and are also used by film making companies. In the winter the courtyard hosts a popular ice-staking rink. In the summer you can admire the 51 fountains in the courtyard which is also the venue for open-air concerts.

The British Museum is a museum of human history and culture in London. Its collections, which number more than seven million objects, are amongst the largest and most comprehensive in the world and originate from all continents, illustrating and documenting the story of human culture from its beginning to the present. The British Museum was established in 1753, largely based on the collections of the physician and scientist Sir Hans Sloane. The museum was first opened to the public on 15 January 1759 in Montagu House in Bloomsbury, on the site of the current museum building. Its expansion over the following two and a half centuries has resulted in the creation of several branch institutions, the first being the British Museum (Natural History) in South Kensington in 1887. Some objects in the collection, most notably the Elgin Marbles from the Parthenon, are the objects of intense controversy and calls for restitution to their countries of origin.

A visit to the National Gallery on Trafalgar Square shouldn’t be missed if you a lover of Western European paintings from the 13th to the 19th centuries.

The gallery was formed by the British Government in 1824 when they bought over 30 paintings from the estate of a merchant and collector of fine arts, J.J. Angerstein. Two thirds of the collection in the gallery has been given by private donation. The rest has been bought by the government using monetary donations, such as a £50 million endowment from Sir Paul Getty. Other donations have enabled the expanding of the building, including the Sainsbury Wing which was added in 1985.

The gallery houses over 2500 paintings, arranged in chronological order in four wings on the main floor: 1250 to 1500; 1500 to 1600; 1600 to 1700 and 1700 to 1900. You can admire works by great artists such as Duccio, Renoir and Picasso. The gallery is also the home of Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers”, Leonardo Da Vinci’s “The Virgin of the Rocks” and Michelangelo’s “The Entombment”.

There are specially designed trails for children, leading them, among other rooms, to the Picture Puzzle, where enigmas and clues are hidden in various paintings that teach them about the History of Art. If you want to stay for a meal, the National’s dining rooms aren’t very expensive; there is also a café and an espresso bar. All in all it’s a great afternoon out for adults and children alike.

Admiralty Arch is one of the most photographed buildings in London. It stands between Trafalgar Square and the Mall – the long road to Buckingham Palace.

The Arch was commissioned by King Edward VII in memory of his mother Queen Victoria, but sadly the king died before the building, designed by Sir Aston Web, was completed in 1911. The magnificent building with its five arches adjoins the Old Admiralty Building from which it takes its name. Originally it housed the offices and residences of the Sea Lords – the leaders of the Royal Navy and was also a hostel for homeless people; today it is used as the offices of various governmental departments.

The five arches consist of three large and two small ones. The central arch is only passed through during official ceremonies; the two large arches on the right and left are used daily by traffic to and from the Mall; the two small outer arches are for pedestrian use. Along the top of the arch is a Latin inscription that reads, in English: “In the tenth year of the reign of King Edward VII, to Queen Victoria, from most grateful citizens, 1910”.

An unusual object that you will find high on the inside wall on the left-hand side of the northernmost arch is “the Nose” – a stone protrusion the size and shape of a man’s nose. No-one really knows why it was put there, or whose nose it represents. Some say that it is a tribute to the Duke of Wellington, who had a large nose, but there’s no written proof of this. The mounted soldiers of the Royal Guard used to rub the nose for luck when they passed it.