The Shard

“The skyline of London has been redrawn by this building. It has awoken the enthusiasm for European architectural innovation.”
- Nengjun Luo, CTBUH 2013 Awards Juror, CITIC Heye Investment 

This week I want to take you far from american buildings I wrote about in past two weeks. Actually around 7 hours by plane and 5900 km from the white house. I am talking of course about the incredible and beautiful Shard, the skyscraper standing in London. It is as high as 306 metres and it is in fact the tallest building in the UK, 4th in the Europe and 96th in the entire world. Even though it isn't the tallest or the biggest it is very unique with its design. Unlike no other building it's made to look like a shard of glass what makes it very futuristic and impressive. It owns this to a man named Renzo Piano who was the design architect working to create its unusual form and shape. It is located in the super modern part of London. The construction ended in July 2012 but It was officially opened in 2013. The iconic tower has redefined the London skyline and is already an international symbol for London. 

The shard has total of 95 floors with 72 floors habitable and The total floor space of 11 hectares. The area of the glass façade that covers whole exterior of the building is 56,000 sq metres, which is as much as eight football pitches. Now after I talked about some of the technical aspects of it I want to present to you some of the cool features that may interest you. First of all it has 44 lifts which is really mind blowing. Another and yet incredible thing is the fact that over 90% of the materials used are recycled. It houses a few restaurants and a luxurious hotel and spa. Of course it has the viewing platform which actually occupies three floors(68, 69 and 72). If you want to appreciate a view of London from high above the ground it's the best place to go. I personally saw this building while being in London and I have to say it was the most magnificent building I have ever seen In my entire life. I strongly recommend taking time and visiting it if you're in London.

sources:
https://www.visitbritainshop.com/world/articles/10-facts-you-didnt-know-about-the-shard/

http://www.ctbuh.org/TallBuildings/FeaturedTallBuildings/FeaturedTallBuildingArchive2013/TheShardLondon/tabid/6020/language/en-US/Default.aspx

https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2012/jul/05/23-facts-about-the-shard

http://www.designbookmag.com/theshard.htm