Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in London

The most dynamic capital city on the planet, what London lacks in beauty it certainly makes up for in substance.

A truly international city, London crams eight million people into its vast metropolis. More than 300 languages are spoken here and 30% of its population are not British.

A Mecca for history buffs and culture vultures, London sets the international bar for what's hot and what's not in media, fashion, theatre, music and art.

In one jam-packed, wallet-sapping weekend, you could ogle the cornucopia of anthropological spoils on display at the British Museum, catch a show in the West End, have an art attack at the cutting-edge Saatchi Gallery, stand on the meridian line in Greenwich, visit Karl Marx at the wonderfully Gothic Highgate Cemetery, shop to you drop in Covent Garden, browse the colourful stalls at Camden, Spitalfields, Borough or Portobello markets, eat Bangladeshi cuisine at a restaurant on Brick Lane, rock out to a supergroup at the Brixton Academy or cut some shapes on the dancefloor at Fabric.

While London does have some architectural gems in landmarks such as Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, St Paul's Cathedral and Tower Bridge, beyond the centre of town much of London degenerates into an unsightly mess of high-rise estates and clogged streets.

In recent years however, there's been some fine attempts at urban rejuvenation. The South Bank, which follows the murky Thames river, has been given a remarkable face-lift. It is now among Londoners' favourite weekend pastimes to stroll along the promenade, taking in Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, the Tate Modern art gallery, the London Eye ferris wheel, the South Bank Centre and the Oxo Tower Wharf.

For all its pollution, London does have an extraordinary amount of green space. In the summer, many of its parks become tourist attractions in their own right, including the sprawling Kew Gardens, Hampstead Heath, Primrose Hill, Regent's Park, St James's Park, Richmond Park and Hyde Park.

While Londoners are forever grumbling about the public transport system, the Tube or "underground" train system is actually extremely efficient. It does stop running around midnight however, transforming London into the city that always sleeps.