The Major Oak is a huge English oak tree near the village of Edwinstowe in the heart of Sherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire, England. According to local folklore, it was Robin Hood's shelter where he and his merry men slept.

2. Buckingham Palace

Buckingham Palace is the Queen's official and main royal London home. It has been the official London residence of Britain's monarchy since 1837. Queen Victoria was the first monarch to live there.

Buckingham Palace is not only the home of the Queen and Prince Philip but also the London residence of the Duke of York (Prince Andrew) and the Earl and Countess of Wessex (Prince Edward and his wife).

3. Whitby Abbey

The magnificent ruins of Whitby Abbey dominate the town of Whitby below. The abbey was founded in 657AD by the Saxon King of Northumbria. Lady Hilda was appointed as Abbess of the double monestry of Benedictine monks and nuns. Whitby Abbey was abandoned in 867AD after a Viking attack. The ruins which remain, are the Church of the Benedictine Abbey founded by the Normans and begun in 1220 in the Early English style of Gothic. In 1540 Whitby Abbey was destroyed by Henry VIII and the abbey buildings fell into ruins. The abbey's west front was hit by German naval shelling in 1914.

OTHER MAGICAL PLACES SEARCHED BY THE ITALIAN STUDENTS

4. Loch Ness and Nessie

Some info about the lake:

- Loch Ness is part of the Great Glen, an enormous fissure in the earth that just about splits Scotland into two. There are a series of lochs, rivers and canals that link the Atlantic with the North Sea. this is the most eastern of these.

- It is around twenty two and a half miles long and between one and one and a half miles wide, a depth of 754 feet.

- It is fed by 7 major rivers: the Oich, Tarff, Enrich, Coiltie, Moriston, Foyers and Farigaig.

- It is said that the loch never freezes and this is true.

- Because of the great amount of water in the loch a thermocline lies at around 100 feet down in the loch. The top 100 feet of water alter temperature depending on the weather conditions, but below the thermocline the temperature never alters from 44 degrees Fahrenheit.

Monster legend

Said to have started with an account of Saint Columba, in 565 A.D rescuing a swimmer from a lake creature. From then on stories of such a creature emerged periodically, but little is actually recorded until the 20th century. It was only after 1933, when a new road was built along the lake shore and people were first able to visit the area in large numbers, that reports of sightings really took off.

The latest sighting has been on June 2011 when Jan Hargreaves and her husband Simon have believed to have caught a glimpse of "Nessie".

5. Stonehenge

Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument in Wiltshire, England, about 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Amesbury and 8 miles (13 km) north of Salisbury. One of the most famous sites in the world, Stonehenge is the remains of a ring of standing stones set within earthworks. It is in the middle of the most dense complex of Neolithic and Bronze Age monuments in England. Archaeologists believe it was built from 3000 BC to 2000 BC. Radiocarbon dating in 2008 suggested that the first stones were raised between 2400 and 2200 BC, whilst another theory suggests that bluestones may have been raised at the site as early as 3000 BC.

6. Pancakes

A pancake is a flat cake, often thin, and round, prepared from a starch-based batter and cooked on a hot surface such as a griddle or frying pan. In Britain, pancakes are often unleavened, and resemble a crêpe. They may be served at any time with a variety of toppings or fillings including jam, fruit, syrup, chocolate chips, or meat. In America, they are typically considered to be a breakfast food. In Britain and the Commonwealth, they are associated with Shrove Tuesday, commonly known as Pancake Day, when perishable ingredients had to be used up before the fasting period of Lent began. Archaeological evidence suggests that pancakes are probably the earliest and most widespread cereal food eaten in prehistoric societies. (from Wikipedia)

7. English breakfast tea

English breakfast tea is a traditional blend of teas originating from Assam, Ceylon and Kenya. It is one of the most popular blended teas and the most common form of tea in British tea culture. Drinking a blend of black teas for breakfast is indeed a longstanding British custom. It has an intense and energizing flavor. (from Wikipedia)

8. Glamis Castle

Glamis Castle is the ancestral family home of the Earls of Strathmore and Kinghorne. It was the childhood home of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, who was married to King George VI, and was later known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother. Her second daughter, Princess Margaret, was born there. It is situated in the foothills of the August Glens, just 45 minutes from Perth. The castle is widely renowned as one of the most haunted locations across the British Isles. The most famous legend is that of the Monster of Glamis, a hideously deformed child born to the family. In the story, the monster was kept in the castle all his life and his suite of rooms bricked up after his death. (for other legends http://www.hauntedrooms.co.uk/glamis-castle-angus-scotland)

9. Greenwich

Greenwich is a district of the royal borough of Greenwich, located 9 km southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is known for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich Meridian (0 longitude) and Greenwich Mean Time. It is famous for its Royal Observatory, founded in 1675 by Charles II, King of England, as a centre used to find out the longitude of places for the art of navigation, then, it became a centre of astronomy and today it is best known as the location of the prime Meridian. (from Wikipedia)

10. The White Cliffs of Dover

The White Cliffs of Dover are cliffs which form part of the English coastline facing the Strait of Dover and France. The cliff face, which reaches up to 350 feet (110 m), owes its striking façade to its composition of chalk accentuated by streaks of black flint. The cliffs spread east and west from the town of Dover in the county of Kent, an ancient and still important English port. (from Wikipedia)

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