London is a melting pot. You've probably heard that before and its true. There is almost no place like it in the entire world. It is a minority majority city. This means that the majority of people in London come from a minority background. For over 2 thousand years this city located on the River Thames has been a major settlement and focal point of world trade and power. Today, it is one of the world's leading financial centers and one of the most visited cities on Earth as measured by international arrivals. It contains four world heritage sites including the Tower of London (Big Ben) and Westminster Abbey. Other famous landmarks are Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, the Shard, Tower Bridge, and Trafalgar Square. The city is home to numerous museums, sporting events, galleries, and theaters. And getting around to all of these things shouldn't be too much of a problem because the city is served by the oldest metro system in the world. Don't let that fool you though. It is modern, efficient, and today it is one of the most used metro systems anywhere on Earth. Get ready because these are 25 awesome things you should know before visiting London!

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The Olympics in 2012 saw the biggest military presence in London since the end of World War II

Driving in London during the day often requires you to pay a "congestion fee". Some people apparently avoid this by registering their cars as private taxis and not picking people up

During the 18th century, nearly one out of every five women in London was employed as a prostitute

London has around 20 subterranean rivers flowing beneath its streets

In 1931 the Times of London came up with the Times New Roman typeface when they were accused of using ugly and dated fonts

The scientist that designed the V2 rocket for the Germans (Wernher Von Braun) always wanted to go to space. Unfortunately, his rocket was instead used as a weapon. After the bombing of London he was famous for noting that "the rocket worked perfectly except for landing on the wrong planet"

In order to become a taxi driver in London you have to memorize every single street and pass a test called "The Knowledge". It allegedly takes several years to memorize the entire city.

The 1908 Russian Olympic team didn't get to London on time because they hadn't yet switched to using the Gregorian calendar

London is a minority majority city. This is because as of 2011 less than half of the population is white (49.9%).

In order to prevent people from texting during movies the Prince Charles Cinema hired "ninjas" that stood in the back of the theatre and scared people who were being disruptive

And more...

Outro Links:
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