London Calling

摘要

FOR A GLIMPSE INTO HOW SUCCESSFUL CITIES EVOLVE, take in the view from the riverside office of London's mayor. High above the Thames, Ken Livingstone enjoys a panorama spanning 2,000 years of crowded history. All around, the survivors of catastrophicfires, wartime bombing and the wrecker's ball jostle for space with monuments to London's new prosperity. Just across the river, the medieval Tower of London recalls the city's past as a seat of power. To the east, the former Docklands, now home to someof Europe's grandest companies, conjures up its present as a gateway to the world. And a thicket of towers, soaring above the skyline, testifies to the status of Europe's largest and most vibrant center of world finance.