One place that has always held a special candle in my heart that no other place (save for maybe, Japan) can illuminate as strongly as, is England. Yes, I'm talking about the used to be country that America gained its independence from that drinks too much tea and gave birth to Harry Potter. Yes. The Harry Potter. I have always been enraptured by its beauty, its size (very small), the stark contrasts between the green, rolling hill countryside and the gray, smoky cities, and its history.
The area of land that we call England has been settled by people for about 35,000 years. In 927 AD, or BCE (whichever one floats your boat), England officially became a unified state and ever since the 1400's (around the Renaissance time), it started having a pretty big impact on the rest of the world--politically, economically, culturally, and socially.
England has had a long, long, long history of kings and was very strictly a monarchy for the longest time. It wasn't until recently that England became a constitutional monarchy, so that the royal family was merely a cultural symbol head.
The largest city in England is its capital: London. Some interesting things to see in London (besides watching the rain) are the London Skyline, Buckingham Palace, the Palace of Westminster, and the Royal College of Music.
Another great thing to do (if you're a huge dork, like myself) is to go and take the Harry Potter tour. Basically what you would do is go to places like King Cross Station and where they shot some Harry Potter scenes.
Very exciting stuff, I know.
So, if you're ever in England, be sure to take lots of pictures and buy me a souvenir.
Palace of Westminster photo found at flickr.com
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