London Photos: London life in images by Kim Gilmour

Somerset House in the late afternoon. They’re getting the ice rink ready – this is always a popular attraction and slots get booked out really quickly (think Rockerfeller Ice Rink in New York, and you’ll get the idea of what this place is like).

Woman taking photos atop the erotic gherkin, which won a major architectual prize this weekend.

A ladder sits within the as yet unfurbished office blocks located on one of the higher levels of the Swiss Re (gherkin) building.

Thousands of people (me included) at the domed part of the Gherkin, looking at the spectacular views.

Criss-Cross windows from atop the Gherkin (aka 30 St Mary Axe, aka the Swiss Re tower)

The interior of London City Hall. This spiral doesn’t actually go around the edges of the entire building. Wrapped around three quarters of the spiral are where you’ll see the building’s actual offices. These are a far cry from the almost sterile modern offices you’ll see nowadays — they’re packed full of archival boxes, tonnes of paper and a general mess. One could say this could metaphorically reflect the general Mayoral administration, but seeing as most places I’ve worked have desks that are even worse than this (including mine) and things seem to run OK, whereas the opposite could be said for pristine, clean buildings, I don’t think desks are necessarily a reflection of the greater company. Below are images of some of the desks – you’ll notice plenty of reflections and glare looking into these awkwardly-laid out offices.

A look from the bottom of the ‘Erotic Gherkin’, formally known as the ‘Swiss Re’ tower. We lined up for four hours last Sunday on Open House Day in order to get a better look at it from the inside! Check out Rob’s weblog for more posts soon.

Cyclists and pedestrians cross the Thames via thr Greenwich Foot Tunnel.

On the Piccadilly Line, en route to an Easter lunch at Southgate (zone 4). For once, the entire carriage was empty (except for us!).

Art Deco? Certainly always eye catching to go up the escalator at Swiss Cottage Tube. Go out the back way and then wander around the corner to 83 Fairfax Road if you ever get a chance — there you’ll find the best Oriental resturant in north west London; Singapore Garden. As vegetarians we can’t eat much of the menu but the tofu in black bean sauce is divine, as are the seasonal greens and Chinese mushrooms.

An image off the Camvista Trafalgar Square Webcam as of 17.40 this afternoon. Thousands of people are out to protest against George Bush and Tony Blair’s policies, but of course, neither are anywhere near the place to hear their cries. Rob is out there taking photos – he has an interest in taking “portraits of dissent”, wherever they may be. He just called me but we could hardly hear each other. I couldn’t hear him, what with all the whistles, shouting and other assorted noise from the Square. I did manage to hear how the effigy of GWB has just been pulled down and “it looked like Michael Jackson”. I actually held the phone waaaay away from my ear, and Tim (who sits next to me) could hear all the ruckus!

Post script! Rob now has several photos of the protest on his weblog.

Anyone walking into the British Museum Great Court for the first time is blown away. The shoddy camera phone used to take this doesn’t do it justice!