London – Sunrise at Westminster and the Sky Garden
On our last morning in London we got up early and headed to Westminster Abbey and Big Ben to photograph the sunrise – and once again the light played along. Afterwards we went on towards Hyde Park, which didn’t really grab us. We had been looking forward much more to the Sky Garden: a huge building with great architecture and a fantastic view over the whole London skyline. The Sky Garden sits at the top of the 160-metre skyscraper at 20 Fenchurch Street, nicknamed the “Walkie-Talkie” because of its shape; it was designed by Rafael Viñoly, and the three-storey garden opened in January 2015. Back to the financial district for breakfast, then sadly already heading home. The journey back turned out more complicated than expected: after several technical problems we landed in Stuttgart more than three hours late. For anyone who doesn’t know yet: from three hours’ delay the airline has to pay compensation. For us it went through an online form from easyJet – and in the end it was a pretty cheap weekend in London. Maybe the tip helps one of you.
The Tube pulls in: green tiles, an emergency exit sign and a red streak in motion.A yellow bike outside a coffee shop – everyday London in the early morning.A red double-decker streaks past while Big Ben stands still – sunrise in Westminster.A long exposure: the bus a blur, the clock tower above it sharp in the first light.Big Ben from below – early in the morning, before we moved on towards Hyde Park.“Way Out” in green and white tiles: a sign with history in the London Underground.Crinolines and top hats: a tile mural shows life in Hyde Park around 1850.“A Summer’s Day in Hyde Park”, circa 1850 – the caption beneath the tile mural.Bare trees, a fountain with a statue – Hyde Park didn’t really grab us.Camera moved, trunks blurred: an attempt to get something out of Hyde Park after all.A wide lawn, trees in the haze – a grey morning in Hyde Park.“No Cycling” on the tarmac: in London the rule is written right on the path.An old brick house with chimneys, half hidden behind a tree trunk.Reading on the Tube: passengers travelling beneath the streets of London.From the Sky Garden the view stretches along the Thames to Tower Bridge and Canary Wharf.Plants, tables, floor-to-ceiling windows: the three-storey garden at the top of the “Walkie-Talkie”.Sunbeams break through the clouds above Tower Bridge – the view from the Sky Garden.Like a model: rooftops and office towers of the City of London far below the Sky Garden.Dark clouds over London, the towers of Canary Wharf on the horizon.A glass tower in the City rises into the grey sky, seen from the Sky Garden.The Gherkin, London’s glass “cucumber”, among the towers of the City of London.The dome of St Paul’s rises from a sea of rooftops – looking west from the Sky Garden.The Thames, its bridges and the dome of St Paul’s under grey clouds.From above, St Paul’s Cathedral slots into the streets of the City like a building block.The Thames and its bridges all the way to the London Eye – from the Sky Garden the whole skyline lies open.The glass front of the Sky Garden sweeps upwards – great architecture, inside as well.Behind the glass: towers of the City and the tip of the Gherkin.Light falls through the clouds onto the Thames, the towers of Canary Wharf behind.The window frames turn London into a row of pictures.Through the tall window: plenty of sky, a thin strip of city at the very bottom.Coffee with a view: visitors at the glass front, The Shard rising opposite.The curved struts of the Sky Garden, the tip of The Shard right in the middle.Backpack on, at the window: a visitor looks out over the towers of the City.Glass arches over the City: the “Walkie-Talkie” frames its neighbours, the Gherkin among them.From the garden’s upper level: tables, visitors and the reflected glass arches.Against the light: visitors as silhouettes in front of the Sky Garden windows.Back down in the financial district: a glass facade curves over the street.Steel pipes and glass: the Lloyd’s Building among the towers of the financial district.The Gherkin from below: the diamond-shaped steel lattice at the foot of the tower.Cranes and towers: the City of London keeps building upwards.
