A couple of weeks ago eldest son and I took a trip to London to visit the Shard. I've been wanting to go since it opened and it was amazing, maybe even better than we expected.
It was a bright sunny day, the horizon was a little misty but we could see all the immediate sights of London.
The London Eye and the Houses of Parliament,
St Paul's Cathedral
Tower Bridge and the Thames snaking down past Canary Wharf. The red colour surrounding the Tower of London is the poppies
- here is a closer shot. Thousands of poppies, this was two weeks ago and since more will be added right up until the eleventh of November, the area will be even greater now.
I took many many photographs in every direction, looking down at the Thames
and up at the sky. We were on floor 72 which is the highest floor open to the public but we weren't near to the top.
There was artificial grass on the floor and deck chairs, not sure if this is just for the summer or a permanent fixture.
This is one of my favourite shots, I like the way there are buildings built over centuries all tucked together between railways and roads - so interesting to look down at all the different styles of architecture.
Back down to earth we walked over Tower Bridge
pausing to look back at the Shard
and then to the Tower of London to take a closer look at the poppies.
By the eleventh of November there will be 888,246 ceramic poppies, one for each British or Colonial military fatality during the First World War.
A stunning and sobering display.
2 comments:
Wonderful pictures. I had no idea you could go up the
Shard that views look amazing from up there. You picked a good day for it! I have seen those poppies on other blogs they are incredible, very sobering I wonder how long they will be left in place?
Apparently the poppies are being "planted" by volunteers up until November 11th when they will reach the total number. After that they are being sold individually to raise money for charity. I don't know how long they will remain - it would seem a shame to dismantle it too soon after all the effort that has gone into creating it. Although maybe that is the idea, an appropriate way perhaps to remember lives cut short by war.
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