Why did we choose these cities

New York City and London are the capitals of the world. New York is the most important city in the United States and London in Europe. The official language in both of them is english (american in NY and british in London). The fact that the two cities share the language is very important, because this factor influences enormously in people from London or New York to travel to this cities. There they will feel more comfortable and sure with themselves.

Both of them come from anglo-saxon cultures and are the biggest financial districts in the United States and Europe (Wall street in NY and The city in London). They are also very important in art ( Metropolitan and MOMA museums in NY and the national gallery or the british museum in London). Therefore a lover of art can find in both cities what he or she wants. The same thing happens with the fashion or music culture, in both cities you will be able to go to the gigs that you most like or the events and shops.

New York City and London are sister cities since 2001.
Both are amazing cities that everybody should visit. I do not have nearly any complaint about these cities, except the  large distances that separates nearly everything, but these are the only grievances that you can find in these fantastic cities.

Hope you delight this Blog! 

What can you find out in this Blog?

Hey, bloggers! I'm Rachel, from the north of England. I've been travelling all around the world since I was 5 years old. I've visited almost all Europe. However, I spent all my young life living in Picadilly, London. I studied International Relations and now I live in Manhattan, New York with my family.

I know a lot about London and New York so that's why I've decided to write this blog. If you are interested in these two awesome cities, this blog is perfect for you. Enjoy it!

 

        
Me at the Rockerfeller in New York.

    
My children in London.                                                           

Culture of New York.

Hi mates! How are you? Today I'm writing about the special cultur that New York have! I added some videos to learn more about it and see it with more reality. Enjoy and add some comments If you have something to tell me!

REGIONAL DISHES OF NEW YORK CITY

There are various ethnics groups that lives in New York, because of this, is difficult to describe the typical food. So we will focus in the origin New York food.

Hot dog: Served with sauerkraut, sweet relish, onion sauce, or mustard; Manhattan clam chowder, New York-style cheesecake, pizza, bagel and pastrami, Baked pretzels, Knish, eggs Benedict, Knish, Lobster Newberg, Waldorf Salad, Delmonico steak and Black and white cookie.

WHAT CAN YOU VISIT ON NEW YORK CITY?

5ft Avenue: It is located in Manhattan and is one of the most important commercial streets in New York City. There you can found all the most important shops around the world like Cartier, Tiffany’s and Fao Swarz.

Empire State Building: is also located in Manhattan, it has been the most higher build around the world since 1931 to 1972, nowadays since the drumbeat of the Twins Towels is the higher in New York. It has 102 floors and 443 m. It is one of the emblems in the City.

Times Square: Times Square has a recently history, because since the ends of 90s it was just a place for crime and drugs. It doesn’t need a presentation, everybody have ever heard about it.

Central Park: is the biggest park in New York City, inside it you can also found The Central Park Zoo. It has been the setting of many films like “Barefoot in the Park” or “Breakfast at Tiffany´s”.

Broadway: is the street of the musicals and theatres in Manhattan.

Including other places like: World Trade Center, Wall street,  The liberty statue, Chrysler building, Rockefeller centre, Grand Central Terminal, Saint Patrick´s Cathedral.

  

MUSIC

There are not a folkloric music of this City, but ,for example ,in the Bronx and the poor and rough neighborhood the music is the Rap, in Broadway the musicals and in the rest of the city a mix of the different cultures that lives there: south american music, Caribbean, chine’s, oriental…

In NYC you can listen any kind of music, if you want listen classical music you should go to the Avery Fisher Hall or Carnegie Hall, If you want to listen jazz you should goBlue Note,The Village Vanguard or Jazz at Lincoln Center, and if you want to assist to a concert of Rock, Pop, Hip-Hop and Rap you should be attempt to the Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, stadium of the Giants, Yankees and Mets, Roseland Ballroom, Beacon Theatre o Hammerstein Ballroom, calendar. In all this places have played artist like Bon Jovi, Bruce Springsteen, Pink, Eminem, U2, Jay-Z or Lady Gaga.

This is one of the cities that every artist around the world wants to play in. if any NYC radio plays your music your exit is ensured.

           

PEOPLE

As we say before in New York coexist a lot of different cultures and they live in big communities like Chinatown and Little Italy. There are also other cultures that they don’t live in a community but they are the majority from latin America, european people and asian. It is the city from multicultural.

NY FASHION

NYC is one of the cities around the world where you can see all the fashion trends. 

History of New York.

Hey bloggers! How is the day? I saw this information on the Internet about the history of NYC and I found it amazing. Hope you like it.

The first documented visit by a European was in 1524 by Giovanni da Verrazzano, a Florentine explorer in the service of the French crown, who sailed his ship into New York Harbor. He claimed the area for France and named it New Angoulême. In 1609 English explorer Henry Hudson re-discovered the region when he sailed his ship into New York Harbor.

He made a ten-day exploration of the area and claimed the region for the Netherlands. It was later called New Amsterdam in 1625. In 1626, the Dutch purchased Manhattan Island from the Native Americans for 60 guilders (about $1000).

The city grew so fast, increasing the number of immigrants, first from Germany and Ireland during the 1840s and 50s and then from southern and eastern Europe, changing the face of the city. New York became the most populous urbanized area in the world in early 1920s, overtaking London. The metropolitan area surpassed the 10 million mark in early 1930s, becoming the first megacity in human history.

General Information about New York.

Hey guys! Today I start writing about New York City, tomorrow you will have the history so, follow me!!

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. The city is referred to as New York City or the City of New York to distinguish it from the State of New York, of which it is a part.

Population: 8,244,910

Climate: New York City experiences a humid subtropical climate. The average temperature on the warm months is 17.1ºC and the average on the cold months is 8.8 ºC.

Religion: Catholic (62%) Protestant (10.7%) Jewish (22%) Muslim (2%).

Ethnic group: white (44%) Hispanic (28.8%)  black (25.5%) Asian (12.7%).

Language: English (72%) Spanish (13.6%) Chinese (2.1%) Italian (1.7%) Russian (1.2%) other (9.4%).

Currency: the official currency in New York City is the US dollar.

National flower: the national flower is the rose.

National stone:  the national stone is the red wine garnet.

Anything to add? Write a coment :)

Culture of London.

Hi bloggers! Welcome to the giant world of the culture of London. If you want more information contact me by email (on my profile) or just add a coment!

Here are 6 of the many reasons why London is one of the most culturally vibrant cities in the world.

                                           

1. Three of the top ten museums and galleries in the world are in London and 857 art galleries in total. London has over 170 museums with 11 national museums including the British Museum (home to thousands of years of culture including the Rosetta Stone)

The British Museum 

• Located right around the corner from the Academic Centre in Bloomsbury.
• Over 13 million collections making it one of the largest in the world.
• Has 9 departments with subjects including Greek and Roman Antiques to Ancient Egypt and the Sudan to the Middle East.

                               

The National Gallery

• Houses over 2300 paintings from the 1300s-1900s.
• Located in the picturesque Trafalgar Square.
• Has important works from the different art periods, from Early Renaissance to Post- Impressionism.
                            

2. London has four UNESCO world heritage sites: 
                                    

                                  

Westminster Palace which includes Westminster Abbey and  Saint Margaret's Church

                                    

  Kew’s Royal Botanic Gardens. 

                                                            

3.  There are more Languages spoken in London than in any other city in the world.

4. Around 250 festivals take place in London every year including London’s largest free festival - The Mayor’s Thames Festival and Europe's biggest street festival- The Notting Hill Carnival which attracts near one million people.          

5. London Fashion Week 2012 generated over £100m of orders, saw the return of Philip Treacy and was the most socially savvy yet with over 2 million viewers tuning in from more than 100 countries to the live-streamed of Topshop's latest collection.                     

                                                           
6. Parks in London: There are many famous parks in London, but you can't leave London without having visited the London's Lungs:

Hyde Park

• Famous for its Speakers’ Corner where public speaking is allowed.
• Serpentine River divides Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens.
• Hyde Park Corner is located just south east of Hyde Park and features the famous Wellington Arch and World War I and II memorials.

                                                                     

Hampstead Heath

• Is a large ancient London park covering 320 hectares.
• This grassy public space sits astride a sandy ridge. 
• One of the highest points in London.

                                                      

ARCHITECTURE AND PLACES TO VISIT

30 St Mary Axe (formerly the Swiss Re Building, and informally also known as "the Gherkin") is a skyscraper in London's financial district, the City of London, completed in December 2003 and opened at the end of May 2004.

The building has become an iconic symbol of London and is one of the city's most widely recognised examples of modern architecture. Architect: Foster and Partner. 

Buckingham Palace

Is the official London residence and principal workplace of the British monarch. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is a setting for state occasions and royal hospitality. It has been a focus for the British people at times of national rejoicing and crisis.If you are trying to attend a Changing of the Guard ceremony, arrive early. Architectual style: Classicism, Neoclassicism and Gregorian. 

The London Eye



It is the world’s largest big wheel. 32 glass-enclosed gondolas glide slowly and gracefully. The entire journey takes about 30 minutes. Both daytime and nighttime views are breathtaking. This big wheel is the best option to have a panoramic view of London. I encourage you to go!!

DRESS AND FOOD

Although England is a country rich in folklore and traditions, has no defined costume. The best known folk costumes are those of Morris dancers. They can be seen in many locations during the summer months performing folk dances.
The outfits consist of white trousers, a white shirt, bell pads placed around the calf, and a hat made of felt or straw, decorated with ribbons and flowers.

TYPICAL DISHES

FISH & CHIPS   
                                         
This dish is a battered and fried hake grilled with potatoes fries seasoned with salt and vinegar.       

   

                      

ROAST BEEF

Another dish is the famous "roast beef" beef grilled. The accompaniment of this dish is usually the horseradish sauce or mustard and steamed vegetables or boiled vegetables to finish filling the plate.

MUSIC

London has historically been a centre for world famous music for centuries. In the past one hundred years alone London has produced some of the world’s most loved and highly regarded musicians and is at the very epicentre of Britain’s lucrative record industry.
 

The rock and roll phenomenon that took the world by storm had a particularly strong impact in London. The Beatles spent a lot of time in the nation’s capital, and The Rollingstones are from London. In the following years, other bands made their mark on the city such as Cream, The Who, The Kinks, and the Jimi Hendrix.

In the seventies and eighties, musicians like David Bowie, Elvis Costello and Cat Stevens made their fame and fortune using London as a base. Bands such as The Clash, Fleetwood Mac, Iron Maiden, Led Zepplin, Wham!, T.Rex, The Police and The Sex Pistols made the streets and rhythms vibrating through London. 

In recent years London has given birth to more amazing artists and bands such as Coldplay or Jamiroquai. The perfect place in London to make gigs is The Wembley Stadium with 90,000 capacity venue. In Wembley, fantastic artists such as George Michael, Bon Jovi, Coldplay, Green Day, Metallica, Madonna, Foo Fighters, The Killers or Robbie Williams has performed their music.

     

History of London.

Hi bloggers! Sorry for the delay of uploading the history of London. Now you can know more abour this awesome city :)

Despite the origin of London is not completely known, it is said that there existed a Celt area called Llyn-din, in whose vicinities, the Romans created a city called Londinium, principal politic, military and commercial nucleus of the Romans. Londinium declined in the 5th century. However, in the 6th century, Canuto Hardeknut turned into as the capital of the Saxon Empire. Londinium started to grow rapidly and it reached the population of 15,000 inhabitants. London's port has always been its basis of prosperity as a commercial city. In the 15th century, the textile industry became one of the most important activities in this city.

After the monasteries dissolution by Henry VIII, the wealth started to raise in the high classes of London. Newcastle and London became the core idea of the Industrial Revolution during Isabel I reign. In 1529, London became the head office of the Government when the Court moved to Whitehall Palace. During the Second World War, London was bombard by german attacks.

General Information about London.

Hey mates! Here you have the general information about London. I added the city districts because usually people are lost because of the dimensions of the city.

London is the capital city of Great Britain. London is the largest city of Europe.The area of London is almost 1500 square kilometers. It has 7.19 millions residents. Its currency is the British Pound. Prices at Christmas are quite high in restaurants. Since the value of the pound has fallen in 2008 prices must be better now for foreigners. If you want to call someone living there you must use the prefix 44.

City districts:

The centre of the city consists of the following districts:

St.-James's, Mayfair and Piccadilly: This area between Buckingham Palace and Trafalgar Square is a well known part of London.

The London City: the commercial heart of the town, is one of the world's major financial centres in the world and there are many architectonic masterpieces. 

Westminster and Bankside: This area is dominated by the Thames River with its many bridges between the northern and southern banks.

Knightsbridge, Kensington and Chelsea: Nowadays classy residential areas, but they used to be green villages faraway from the polluted city.

Covent Garden, Bloomsbury and Soho: These areas are more to the northeast and offer very varied environments: vivid shopping streets alternated with quiet neighbourhoods and an attractive Chinatown.

Write you soon!