Flying into London.

As many of you will know I've been in Africa for 9 weeks working on a voluntary project in Ghana and then joining a tour of West Africa. It was an amazing adventure and I feel very happy that I played my part in building a primary school in a very hands-on way! Our tour took us on the roads less travelled in Sierra Leone, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, The Gambia and Senegal and there are many stories to tell about these dusty red roads but they are for another time...

I always love flying back into London as it's one of the great sightseeing landings you'll ever experience. It was a clear and sunny day and I was lucky enough to get some photos to share with you. I had made sure I had a seat on the plane with a best views - always ask to be seated on the right side of the plane When you are landing at Heathrow, the usual route is across south England and then a left over the 02 dome, following the river Thames all the way to your landing at the world's busiest airport. It really makes me feel like I am home again as I check off all the famous landmarks of London from the Orbit, Tower Bridge, and St Pauls, along to the London Eye, Houses of Parliament and the massive expanses of London's green royal parks. 

Join me for the last 10 minutes of my flight as we head into Heathrow.

Spot the 02 dome as we take the big left turn to follow the Thames as it curves around the Docklands. 

Below us is Greenwich Park where you can stand on the Meridian line
 

The tower blocks and waterways of Canary Wharf sitting on the strangely named 'Isle of Dogs' - theories abound as to where that came from!
 

Our first sight of the iconic Tower Bridge and the Tower of London to its left
 

The new buildings of the City are clear to see - the Shard (bottom left) and the Walkie-Talkie (the dark fronted, white rimmed building to the mid left of the photo)
 

Can you make out the dome of St Paul's Cathedral? Once the tallest building, it's now dwarfed but still an incredible building 
 

Another big curve of the Thames brings us to the London Eye and the Houses of Parliament
 

Here's a great view of Buckingham Palace, set in green parkland - I wonder if the Queen was at home?
 

London is one of the world's greenest cities and in the next 2 photos you can see the huge expanse of Hyde Park which runs into Kensington Gardens which were too big to fit into one photo, even from the air!

 

The Royal Albert Hall has an unmistakable round shape with its accompanying monument, also celebrating Prince Albert's life. His death left Queen Victoria devastated and she sought many ways to keep his memory alive.

We are about to land when a final great sight comes into view - the magnificence of Osterley Park and House.

We landed safely and I was home. London kindly greeted me with sunshine and warm weather and she was looking her very best. I was good to be home....

Bye for now.
Sue
@itsyourlondon
www.itsyourlondon.co.uk 

Best view in London is from the Shard!

I've been watching the Shard grow from a hole in the ground to an amazing finished building which catches the eye where ever you are in central London.  

This week I finally got round to going up it and it certainly lived up to all the hype I'd heard since its opening in February.  I awoke on Monday nervously looking at the sky as I really wanted a fine day. Western Europe's tallest building can be hidden in or even above the clouds as I'd seen during the Jubilee river parade -  that famous day of dreadful weather when the top of the Shard disappeared into the clouds! However, it turned out to be a fine morning and I reckon having been there that a visit would be fun even in poorer weather.

Losing the top at the Jubilee River Parade

For those who like to know these things, we say it's 'the tallest building in Western Europe', because there are buildings going up in Moscow that already beat our Shard. 

Arriving at London Bridge station you can see that the whole area is being developed and the Shard is the focal point of this transformation. You turn the corner and there it is - streaking up into the sky. The entry is welcoming with a member of staff there to greet you and point the way and as I was there at 10am on a Monday morning I just walked straight through the airport style security into the first of two lifts.  

Looking up!

Lift one takes you to floor 33 and you cross over to zoom silently up to floor 68. You can chose between the covered viewing platform on floor 69 or the more open air one on floor 72 but there are still glass walls so don't worry. The top platform at 244 metres above ground is truly spectacular with 360 degree views across the rooftops of London to the distant hills and along the Thames through to the Thames Barrier and beyond. You can look directly up into the open air and see the points of the glass reaching into the sky that give the tower its name, though I must admit that made me feel a bit wobbly!  A couple of workmen were doing some repairs on the outside of the building and I could barely watch - not a job for many people....

Arriving at the top of lift two

Workman fixing his harness

Nerves of steel!

You can stay as long as you like, spotting landmarks and watching the clouds pass and even helicopters which fly across the skies at your level! On floor 69 there are great telescopes which show you the key buildings and have an info function if you want to learn more about each one. 

Here's my gallery of photos so you can enjoy the View from the Shard. Looking west you can follow the Thames and its bridges and see St Paul's, London Eye, Buckingham Palace, Wembley Stadium

Looking east you can again follow the Thames, see the Tower of London and Tower Bridge and on to Canary Wharf and the Thames Barrier:

The Thames curving east

The Tower of London

Tower Bridge

Canary Wharf through to the Thames Barrier

The platforms are spacious and have plenty of viewing spots. The telescopes are free but timed to 2 minutes to keep people moving around and not hogging them!

The platform at floor 69

One  of the many free telescopes

Extra info from the telescope

You can look into the City with new buildings going up, as always....  Beyond the City, the Olympic village comes into view as well with the stadium and Orbit bringing back great memories of London 2012.

The City

The Olympic stadium with the red of Orbit

 It can be blowy on floor 72 and here's yours truly looking a little wind swept!

I really enjoyed the View from the Shard, yes it is pricey at £24.95 for an adult and £18.95 for a child if bought in advance, but the views are extraordinary. You can easily spend several hours on the various platform looking across London, using the telescopes to find out what the buildings are, taking photos and browsing the good shopping. 

Bye for now.

Sue

www.itsyourlondon.co.uk

@itsyourlondon 

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