For my birthday last June, I was treated to a trip to the observation deck on the top of the Shard, currently the tallest building in Europe. The Shard towers over the other buildings in London and is one of the few tall buildings on the south bank of the Thames; it stands 310 metres tall and has 72 floors. The observation deck is located just under the topmost floor and is open to the public. The Shard was completed in the summer of 2012 and before the Olympics.
Tower Bridge with Canary Wharf in the distance
The Shard
We arrived in the evening when it was still daylight, and we stayed and watched the sunset and watched the darkness settle over the city and watched as the lights started to twinkle. There are some great views of the City, Canary Wharf, and Tower Bridge. The Olympic Park could be seen to the east. Big Ben, BT Tower, and Bickingham Palace could also be seen, but these were further away.
Tower Bridge and City Hall
The Gherkin and east London. You can see the spire of Spitalfields (church) and the Truman Brewery smoke stack (next to where I work)
The Olympic stadium and sculpture
The Shard observation decks contain several interactive screens which show you real-time views of London. Visitors can zoom in and out of objects in the distance. In addition, visitors can view the same picture at night, sunrise, sunset, or during the day to see the difference in the view over time. I loved playing with this and looking at the different views at different times of the day.
Visitors in the observation deck
For those wishing to admire views from a lower level, there are now restaurants open on the lower floors. These are still high enough to appreciate the view but not as high as this. In some ways, I felt that the Shard was too high to appreciate some of London's beauty, and I am not the best with heights.
Borough Market below the rail lines and part of Southwark Cathedral
The lift (elevator) up to the top went very quickly and was very smooth, and you can appreciate how quickly it ascends.
The City: Tower 42, Walkie Talkie tower (being built), Gherkin. (A large part of 'the square mile')
The City and London Bridge. You can make out the gold point on Monument
Looking west. BT Tower in the haze, the Millennium Bridge and Blackfriar's Bridge
St. Paul's Cathedral
St. Paul's, Southwark and Millennium Bridges
London Eye and Big Ben (in distance)
The City
Zoom-in of Big Ben and London Eye and Waterloo Station
The City
Canary Wharf
Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf
St. Paul's
Blackfriar's, Millennium, Southwark and Cannon Street Bridges
Tower Bridge and London glowing at dark
Have you been up the Shard?
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