Leicester - The Multicultural Capital of the Midlands

Leicester is one of the largest cities in the United Kingdom in terms of its urban sprawl, and it enjoys a fantastic location in the east midlands close to some of the most beautiful parts of the country, and is also within easy reach of a number of other towns and cities, making it the ideal place from which to explore this historic part of the country.

One of the most remarkable things about Leicester is the astonishing breadth of different cultures that are represented within its comparatively small population/. Like many cities in the midlands, Leicester attracted a large number of immigrants from the Caribbean and India during the 1950s and 1960s, but in recent years, this has spread, and the city now has people from more than 100 different countries around the world represented within it. This has led to Leicester developing into a city where it is possible to get a taste of almost any cuisine that you care to try, and Eastern European dishes have become particularly popular in the last few years thanks to the number of people who have moved there from Poland and Bulgaria, and who work in the agricultural industry close by.

Leicester has a reputation for being a fairly dour place, but this is not the case any longer, and the recent redevelopment of the city center has led to a number of impressive new buildings being put in place, including a particularly colorful skyscraper that defies easy description.

Within an hour of Leicester, you are able to visit Birmingham, Nottingham, and Derby, as well as visiting a number of historic buildings such as Castle Donnington, which is a short drive up the M1 from Leicester, and which has an annual summer rock festival that attracts nearly 100,000 people from all over the world.

Leicester itself offers a number of attractions including a metropolitan museum that tells the story of the East Midlands, and provides real insight into how the region has developed over the last couple of centuries from a largely farming based economy into a modern service industry driven one. Leicester boasts a large football team in the shape of Leicester City, and the Walkers Crisp factory is one of the most popular local attractions.