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“London,” so a local saying goes “will be nice when it’s finished.” You’ll soon get the joke— it’s hard to turn a corner in the city center without finding some work-in-progress crater so vast you can only imagine what was there before. This latest wave of development started in the 1990s and was accelerated by the 2012 Olympics. Meanwhile, new neighborhoods are brought into the limelight—currently, a visit to Hoxton or Shoreditch should provide you with your quotient of London hipness—and the creative fervor that has always swirled through London like fog shows up in art galleries, designer boutiques, and theaters.
Ask any time-pressed, phlegmatic, but savvy local and they’ll tell you that today’s London.
… is heading skyward.
London seized upon the occasion of the 2012 Olympics to showcase some sparkling new architecture. With the exceptions of Canary Wharf, the Swiss Re Headquarters (“the Gherkin”), the Lloyd’s of London building, and the London Eye, London’s skyline has traditionally been low-key, with little of the brash swagger of, say, Shanghai or Manhattan. But a spectacular crop of new architecture—the 945-foot “Helter-Skelter” Bishopsgate Tower, 740-foot Leadenhall Building “Cheese Grater,” and 1,020-foot Shard—is injecting fresh adrenaline into London’s otherwise staid streetscapes and revitalizing its skyline.
Some new skyscrapers, such as “The Quill” in Southwark, and the funky “Walkie-Talkie” and the “Cheese Grater” in The City, have gotten very mixed reviews. The verdict is still out on the Shard at London Bridge—designed by Enzo Piano, this irregular triangle of glass (how can such a tall building look so squat and graceless?) is the tallest building in Europe. Whatever critics and those who must look at these structures every day may say, London will never be quite the same again.
… is more global.
The nationalities keep on coming, and London now swipes the crown as one of the most cosmopolitan cities on earth. White Britons are in the minority for the first time (according to the 2011 Census), representing 45% of London’s burgeoning 8.2 million population, while Asians make up 18%, Black Londoners 13%, European “White Others” 13%, and with a growing 5% of mixed-race residents adding spice to the pot, too. Now that the British Empire has come home to roost, large factions of former subjects have relocated to London, and the presence of so many international influences is changing the very essence of what it is to be British.
… is more happening.
Have you picked up a free Evening Standard or Time Out London arts-listing magazine recently? They’re stuffed with an ever-groovy, bleeding-edge, and endlessly delectable smorgasbord of world-class London shows, plays, performances, recitals, readings, concerts, fashion follies, happenings, poetry slams, talks, debates, auctions, cabaret, burlesque, and esoteric or blockbuster art exhibitions. Whether it’s contemporary art at the Frieze London art fair or experimental performances at Yellow Lounge classical music “club nights” at the Old Vic Tunnels in Waterloo, London is one of the more happening places on the planet.
… is better connected.
Finally, while you buzz around town, you’ll notice that the public transportation has gotten better, more frequent, more reliable, and generally more integrated—thanks, in large part, to the 2012 Olympics. Remember that although London’s traffic can often seem more chaotic than New York City’s, the Congestion Charge—the £10-per-day fee imposed on vehicles entering central London—has reduced both traffic and pollution.
Massive tunneling and investment continue apace on building London’s flagship, high-speed, east–west Cross Rail underground railway line, which includes new interchanges at Paddington, Tottenham Court Road, and Farringdon stations, with all slated to open in 2018. In the meantime, don’t miss out on a ride on one of London’s smash-hit and distinctive sky-blue hire bikes—known formally as Barclay’s Cycle Hire scheme—and locally as “Boris Bikes,” after Boris Johnson, the mayor of London. With 8,333 bikes available at 587 docking stations around town—which now extends from East India DLR in Blackwall in the east to Shepherd’s Bush in the west—you’ll find (after laying out £45 for an annual pass) that the first half hour is free, an hour’s a pound, and two hours is only £6.