Soho

Soho is known for the hippie movement in the 60's, but even now it is the most interesting area in the centre of London. Theatres, musicals, pubs, clubs, shops and restaurants. Soho has it all. Even though Soho is very touristy, it can entertain the locals as well. you have to be prepared for crowded places and waiting though. Soho has an interesting history as the centre for bohemian artistic people in the first half of the 20th century. This used to host Little France and Little Italy and there are still some visible remains of that era. It was also one of the busiest red light districts back in the day and the current sex shops are a remainder from that era.

Sights: 

• Trafalgar Square is considered the very centre of London. Massive column with Admiral Nelson and giant lions tells about the greatness of old. There is also the National Gallery, where you can enjoy watching a massive collection of old paintings.
• Piccadilly Circus is the centre for the hippie movement. Really crowded all the time, but it's quite legendary.
• Leicester Square hosts massive movie premiers and you can buy tickets for theatres and musicals. If you buy the same day as you go, you can get cheap tickets. There's also a ridiculous and massive M&M store.
• China Town in London is very small and clean, but you can find some good and authentic Chinese restaurants here.

Shopping:

• Fopp is one of the cheapest places in London to buy records, films and books. The selection is pretty good as well. 
• Reckless Records is a place to buy second hand vinyl records. In the window is Oasis' (What's the Story) Morning Glory with a tag saying "You are here", since the cover picture is taken on the same street. You may want to check the condition of the albums you buy, since some of them are quite scratched. Then again, you get some bargains here.
• Right next to Reckless records, there is Sister Ray, where you have a great selection of indie albums on both vinyl and CD. They also have all the latest releases.
• Lillywhites on Piccadilly Circus is a huge sports shop where you can find everything you need for sports for fairly cheap prices.
• If you need musical instruments in London, Denmark street is full of music stores. Instruments in the windows are fairly expenive, but you can make really good deals with some second hand instruments.
• Soho is full of great large and small bookshops. Blackwell's is one of the big ones It's got great collection of non-fiction books, especially in social sciences. Another one is Foyles. 
• Harold Moore Music sells mainly classical music on vinyl, but they also have some jazz.
• Sounds of the Universe is probably not a record store with my favourite music, but if you're into electronic, reggae, bass, jazz, house, disco, funk & soul music, this is a record store for you. A lot of vinyl, but also CD.

Eating: 

• Vitao serves healthy vegetarian foods. With buffet table you can make a good deal if you're really hungry. The atmosphere is great! 
• Naru is the best Korean restaurant I've come across in London. Bibinbab Dolsot is really good here. There are a lot of other Korean restaurants nearby, but this is the best, so far at least. The atmosphere in this small and cozy restaurant is fantastic.
• China Town is undoubtedly full of great Chinese restaurants. Just take your pick.
• If you want fantastic, and not too pricey, dim sums, head down to Plum Valley at the heart of China Town. The place looks really classy and in addition to great taste, the food looks brilliant!
• Maoz is a good fast food joint, where you can have good falafel in pita and you can choose rest of the fillings yourself.
  
• If you're in the vicinity of China Town, but don't feel like having Chinese food, There's a great Japanese joint, Tokyo Diner, where you can have authentic sushi, noodles and other Japanese treats. It's not the cheapest place around, but you get some good eats there. 
• There aren't that many places in London to get Russian food with affordable prices, but Zima is one of them. They claim that their food is street food, which can be understood in the size of the portions. I suggest taking a couple of courses if you're hungry, but don't worry, the price is still alright.

Drinking: 

• Soho is full of nice pubs and not so nice clubs. The Three Grayhounds is a nice old and small pub in a Tudor-style house. 
• If you like heavy music (or let's face it, this is more hard rock) The Crobar is the place for you. Another perk of this place is that it is open until late unlike most pubs around.
• The Glasshouse Stores is a true find in the middle of Soho, where almost every pub is always crammed. This dark wood-panelled Samuel Smith pub has a nice cellar bad with good beer and available seats most of the time. Upstairs there is a beautiful Victorian pub with decorated mirrors and windows.
• De Hems is a great Dutch bar with a variety of Belgian beers on tap. They also show old football matches where the Netherlands have been victorious. Amazingly the upstairs bar usually has room despite of such a central location. 
• The Lyric is usually quite crowded because of such a central location, but it's a great alternative for the close by chain pubs, providing a great selection of craft beers and real ales.

Cinema:

• One of the nicest movie theatres in town is Prince Charles Cinema that has cheap classics and only fairly new films. Also a lot of sing-a-long and quote-a-long shows. Theatre itself is beautiful. 
• Picturehouse Central is a part of the chain of independent cinemas around London, who show both blockbusters and art house cinema. It's located in a beautiful building with bars and cafes.
  

Entertainment:

• Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club is one of the most legendary London jazz haunts. It's been there since the late 50's and the atmosphere is quite amazing with red lights and past performers in pictures on the walls. It's a tad expensive, but if you want a classy night out, it's a good choice and the acts playing there are world class.

Cafés:

• For you Nordic people who have a home sickness, Nordic Bakery serves all kinds of rye bread (even sometimes filled with salmon), Kerelian pasties (a Finnish savoury delicacy) and cinnamon buns!
  

 Areas around Soho: Covent Garden, Bloomsbury, Mayfair, Westminster