Subglacial This halfway house, surrounded by Swiss meadows and the happy sounds of high-altitude ramblers, has little purpose but to lead the eager traveller into the cold burrow of the glacier that lies beyond.
The start of great adventures. Location: Kleine Scheidegg, Jungfrau, Switzerland.
St. Paul’s A wise old survivor of the Blitz, she commands imposing City views and submits her weary visitors to steep climbs and beguiling whispers.
He presence felt, from every viewpoint. Location: Ludgate Hill, London.
Breil Nothing but the faint rolling of the nearby river, a random screeching moped and fresh-baked treats being carried in brown paper bags.
An early cigarette, a day awaits. Location: Breil-sur-Roya, France.
Fêtes de Genève First festivities and music. Then, rising through the tide of lakeside anticipation, a colourful show erupts in synchronised splendour. Shadows watch on rooftops, drinking wine. A strange applause of whistles and laughter echoes across the valley.
And the eerie smell of gunpowder concludes the show. Location: Geneva, Switzerland.
Blackfriars Even aquatic creatures remain wary of the Thames’s murky waters, which have for centuries absorbed the excesses of a dirty, busy city. But on some clear nights, the river feigns a gentle innocence.
Illusions, served in many colours. Location: South Bank, London.
Command Post By day, a band of stripy suits commands the city from a lopsided palace, which leans back to liberate the view – in new respect, or ancient mockery?
Who knows? Location: Tower Bridge, London.
Eyes Right A celebratory carousel whirls eager sight seekers in full view of a distant people’s palace, where riverside bars crawl with tipsy makers of directives and sealers of fate.
The churning wheels of bureaucracy. Location: South Bank, London.
The Islands At this end, eager shopkeepers tailor fitted suits for bargain-hunting businessmen, and old apartment blocks are dressed in peeling paint and drying laundry.
Across the pond, a monied city gloats. Location: Kowloon, Hong Kong.
Hackneyed Some are long on opinions, and others short of change. In a time before Google maps and Blackberries, they held a monopoly on directions and regurgitated news.
The ageing lifeblood of a city’s overcrowded streets. Location: St Paul’s Cathedral, London.
Expats A neon sign affirms the city’s independence: 1997. Amidst a sea of flickering ads for draft beer and Irish whiskey, strange accents cackle in post-work comradery. Repleted drinkers stumble down the street to hail their home-bound taxis.
A handful of dollars gets you anywhere. Location: Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong.
Old Town At night, unfamiliar recruits mingle with well-versed revellers, some dressed in glitzy frocks, others in not very much at all. From bar to seedy bar the crowd flows, until the angled streets will take no more.
Morning arrives to the sound of well-nursed hangovers. Location: Eivissa, Ibiza
Découverte The city creaks under the anguished weight of open-top tours and eager collectors of pencil sketches and postcards. Dense groups of bus-bound tourists hurry to maintain their 5-night, 7-country schedules.
At night, a quiet garden breathes. Location: Jardin de Tuileries, Paris
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