BANKSIDE WALK - London 2015 - page 475

• The small griffin statues (winged lions holding shields) at the south end of London
Bridge guard the entrance to The City. They marked the jurisdiction of The City to include
both sides of the all-important river. For centuries, they said, “Neener neener” to late-night
partiers who got locked out of town when the gates shut tight at curfew.
• The Shard, one of London's newer skyscrapers. At 1,020 feet, it's the tallest building in
Western Europe. It looks unfinished, but that's art. (For details on the building—including
the observation deck at its tip, see here . )
• The best view of London Bridge is not from the bridge itself, but from the riverbank.
Retrace your steps back to the south end of the bridge and hang a right at the ice-cream
stand. Find the staircase next to the southwest griffin, by the building marked Two Lon-
don Bridge . These stairs will impress fans of Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist —they're the
setting of the infamous “Meeting on the Bridge.”