Today we checked out Tower Bridge and the surrounding area for an architectural tour.
We took a walk on Tower Bridge, a landmark which crosses River Thames. The appearance of the bridge looks like something from Disney. Is it because of the color scheme? Anyway, those famous buildings are all in plain view.
In the picture above, that is Tower of London, a historic castle, in the front. The oval thing that looks like a dildo behind Tower of London is called 30 St Mary Axe, also known as the Gherkin.
In this picture above, the pointy building is called the Shard. It was designed by the Italian architect Renzo Piano who also designed Centre Pompidou in Paris. The appearance of the Shard is supposed to change according to the weather and seasons because the angled glass panes reflect sunlight and the sky above. The helmet looking thing on the left is the City Hall. It looks very dusty up close and desperately needs power wash. The former mayor Ken Livingstone called it "glass testicle". I am under the impression that it's a sport to ridicule these contemporary glass buildings and give them funny nicknames in London.
Prince Charles was very vocal about how much he deplores these tall buildings in London. Here is his full speech about why he is against skyscrapers intrude the historic city skyline. It's an interesting read. I think he has a point.
Some people say these contemporary skyscrapers have no characters, you could be in Singapore or Dubai with them in the background. That's an interesting debate. But try to find another dildo or helmet looking building around the world?
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