Square Mile Landmarks

Yesterday a mate and I went for a stroll to see some nearby landmark office towers over lunch. Along the walk we saw something that made both of us stop in our tracks and say "Whoa". I'll reveal that later, but the point is, we both vowed to bring our cameras to work today and come back to capture some of these buildings.

We'll start our tour with the new building at Bishopsgate, almost on top of Liverpool Street station.



There are several interesting towers going up nearby. It seems you're never far from a construction crane in London.

Looking up the street, also named Bishopsgate, gives a good view of our next tower, the Swiss Reinsurance building, known as "The Gherkin".





Just down the street from there is a first look at the Lloyds building. I've learned that the architect designed this famously "inside-out" for maximum flexibility of the interior space. So, for instance, parts of the plumbing could be replaced without refactoring interior plans.



And now for the subject of our previous day's astonishment.



What is the story of this, I wonder? How have the bottom stories been removed - were they just dropped down when no one was around? And how come no one was around? I'd expect demolition crews or something. Why start at the bottom? Why not just bring the whole thing down? It's like some half-alien artifact. You wonder how it came to be.

Anyway, we took time to take some more detailed shots.







Around the corner is a fine view of Tower 42, which before Canary Wharf was the tallest building in London. If you view it from any other angle, you lose the symmetry. This is deliberate, I've noticed. Many buildings present their finest front directly to a certain street, where the most viewers will be.





And I've been waiting months to write this caption: What a magnificent erection. (The crane does spoil the view a bit; I swear it wasn't there a week ago.) I assure you, the view from other angles is much more conservative.