by SLK

Created on: November 21, 2008   Last Updated: January 10, 2009

There's nowhere quite like London: the sense of history, the beautiful buildings, and the parade of inhabitants both famous and infamous in equal measure. London is that elusive figure you meet at a party, one you will never quite understand but will want to know better. In case you do not have five years to explore the city by foot, please use this guide to give you a head start on the hidden delights of the UK's capital city.

Oxford Street Tubes: Tottenham Court Road, Oxford Circus, Bond Street, Marble Arch.

One of the first places people will tell you to visit is Oxford Street. At first glance, it is a fairly dingy, long, busy, street with little to distinguish it from any other high street in the UK. However, Oxford Street has a secret: it has four tube stations along its 1.2-mile length, none of which are called Oxford Street'. Well, no one said London was easy!

Oxford Street is an extremely popular retail street that can be divided into four sections. The divide is Oxford Circus, in the middle of Oxford Street. The section of road south of Oxford Circus is populated with retail favorites such as GAP, H&M, Zara and Mango all of whom appear, alongside tourist shops, cheap take-away food restaurants and electrical chains such as Curry's and Bennett's. North of Oxford Circus, past the five floors that make up the flagship TopShop, the atmosphere is marginally less frenetic thanks in part to the dignified array of department stores such as Selfridges, House of Fraser, Debenhams and John Lewis. Selfridges in particular has much to recommend it: it is the thinking man's department store of choice, routinely beating Harrods in terms of brands offered, customer services and that elusive cool factor. [Note: Photo of Selfridges: http://www.thelondondailynews.com/images/31_11_4-Sel fridges-Oxford-Street-London_web.jpg] It is also famous for the window-displays, often featuring the work of up and coming artists, DJs and the odd fashion designer or two. Throughout Selfridges there are a number of bars, all serving good quality fare, however the food and drink on offer takes second place to the ample people-watching opportunities. A good spot is the Champagne Bar on the mezzanine level of the ground floor, this is an ideal bar to enjoy being up close and personal with a range of celebrities from the A' D' list.

To the east and west of Oxford Street itself you will find calmer streets with an entirely different vibe. To the West of Oxford Street there is SoHo and the

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