When you want to give your children a treat while you are visiting London – or if you want to treat yourself for that matter, you couldn’t do better than to spend an afternoon, a day, or even a night on the Golden Hinde, berthed in St Mary Overie Dock.

The ship is a replica of Sir Francis Drake’s famous warship, in which he sailed round the world. The Golden Hinde you will visit today was launched in Devon in 1973 and circumnavigated the world many more times than its namesake, before being opened to the public for guided visits or for private hire – the Pirate Birthday Parties are especially popular.

Costumed educators will tell you the history of the original ship, about Sir Francis Drake and all about life onboard for both officers and crew in the 16th century. There are several themes to make sure that everyone has a great time while learning about Elizabethan weaponry and warfare.

The Maritime Workshop arranges hands-on activities where children (or adults) will learn how to measure time and speed aboard a sail-rigged war boat. You can handle navigational instruments used by Drake to plot his voyage round the world.

The Day or Overnight Living History themes allow children to dress up as crew members in Tudor sailors’ costumes. There are workshops on navigation and barber surgery; in the afternoon there are mock battles and gun-drill. The children are served biscuits and grog (apple juice).

The overnight version includes a Tudor dinner (vegetable soup and bread), sleeping on the gun-deck and a Tudor breakfast (bread and cheese). Whether you chose the paying themes or just an afternoon’s self guided visit, don’t miss the souvenir shop, where you can stock up on postcards, t-shirts and other gift items.

Southwark Cathedral or The Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Saviour and St Mary Overie, Southwark, London, lies on the south bank of the River Thames close to London Bridge. It is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Southwark. It has been a place of Christian worship for over 1,000 years, but a cathedral only since 1905. The present building is mainly Gothic, from 1220 to 1420. The main railway line from London Bridge station to Cannon Street station passes close to the cathedral, blocking the view from the south side. Borough Market and the Hall of the Worshipful Company of Glaziers and Painters of Glass by the river are in the immediate vicinity.

Borough Market is a wholesale and retail food market in Southwark, South East London, England. It is one of the largest food markets in the world, and is regarded by some as one of the highest quality markets in the United Kingdom, selling a large variety of foods from all around the world. The wholesale market operates on all weekday mornings from 2 a.m. to 8 a.m., but the retail market operates only on Thursdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Fridays from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The market, which has focused historically on fruits and vegetables, has, in recent years, added stalls dealing with the fine food retail market. Since the beginning of 2000, some of the market's most famous traders include Artisan Bakers DeGustibus, Furness Fish & Game Supplies, Peter Gott and Sillfield Farm, and the Spanish company Brindisa.

Magdalen is a beacon of class in an otherwise dowdy area. Here you can try out new British cuisine with French sensibilities — venison and trotter pie or snails with bone marrow. Have a plate of English asparagus accompanied by morels, poached duck egg and Parmesan in a smooth ensemble of earthy, crunchy, salty and soft. Also, make sure to leave some room for a gutsy stuffed and braised veal breast, complete with creamy white polenta, beetroot and chard.

Some buildings in London will surprise you by their startling modernity. Sometimes it seems that architects go out of their way to make sure that visitors to the city realize that although it is steeped in ancient history, the capital and its people live in the 21st century. The City Hall is just one of these buildings, and once you have got used to its odd shape, you will appreciate the beauty of this futuristic structure.

The building is a 10 storey glass-and-steel office block that leans to one side. It was designed by Norman Foster in 2002 and won the competition to find the best design and location for the new home of the London Assembly. It is 45 metres high and takes up less space than a traditional cubed building of the same volume. It is filled with energy-saving features and uses less than a quarter of the energy of the surrounding buildings.

For the first time, the public was invited to help with the choice during the competition, and the 9th floor is open to visitors. There is a balcony that goes almost all the way around the building on this level and it’s probably one of the best places to take great photos of Tower Bridge and the Tower of London on the opposite bank of the Thames.

On the lower ground floor you will find a cafeteria, but if you have brought a picnic lunch with you, you can eat it on the west side of the building, where there is a sunken area, a bit like an arena with stone steps/benches. It is called the Scoop and lots of office workers eat their lunch there in fine weather.

Tower Bridge is a combined bascule and suspension bridge in London, England, over the River Thames. It is close to the Tower of London, which gives it its name. The bridge was officially opened on 30 June 1894 by The Prince of Wales (the future King Edward VII), and his wife, The Princess of Wales (Alexandra of Denmark). The bridge is 800 feet (244 m) in length with two towers each 213 feet (65 m) high, built on piers. The central span of 200 feet (61 m) between the towers is split into two equal bascules or leaves, which can be raised to an angle of 83 degrees to allow river traffic to pass. The bascules, weighing over 1,000 tons each, are counterbalanced to minimize the force required and allow raising in five minutes. The pedestrian walkways are 143 feet (44 m) above the river at high tide. It has become an iconic symbol of London.

If you are a lover of advertising, industrial, graphic, fashion and architectural design, you will love the Design Museum, which you will find in a converted banana warehouse on the South Bank not far from Tower Bridge.

The museum was opened in 1989 and is the first of its kind in London. Entry isn’t free, because it isn’t subsidized by the government as other museums are.

On the ground floor you will find the admissions desk, the museum shop, the café and the toilets. These last were designed by the Australian product designer Marc Newton and they are so ultramodern that a lot of visitors think that they are part of the exhibition and take photos of them.

Leaving the photogenic loos behind, you climb to the 1st floor where temporary exhibitions are held. These are really very good and educative, such as the History of Video Games Exposition, which is very popular and comes back quite often.

On the 2nd floor there are two sections: one for semi-permanent exhibitions about the History of Design and the other is the Educational Centre where the Education Department of the museum teaches school-children in design workshops.

On the top of the museum, you will find the famous Blueprint Café, where you can enjoy splendid views of Tower Bridge, the Tower of London and the Canary Wharf. A pair of small blue binoculars is placed on each table to enhance viewing. If you are really brave you can sample a warm smoked eel and red onion pickle sandwich which is one of the specialties of the café.