London's South Bank began to be developed in the 1950's, while the massive Canary Wharf business district, which replaced the old commercial entrepots along the Thames, started rising in the late 1980's.
On we went, taking in the sights: the full-beamed Thames swirling next to us past the Eye, Tower Bridge, Greenwich, the warehouses and massive working wharves.
In London they've also bought up much of the skyline, from the towering Shard to Harrods, to No. 1 Hyde Park, to a massive swathe of Canary Wharf, not to mention 20percentt of the London Stock Exchange, and 10percentt of the company that owns British Air.
"Look at Canary Wharf, built on massive amounts of transport spending, and yet we haven't seen that wealth trickle down to the areas next door; they are among the poorest in the UK".
It may not be anatomically exact, and it may have more in common with the classic bus shelter scrawl, but without a doubt the Curlicue is a massive set of genitals standing opposite Canary Wharf, celebrating the London Docklands Development Corporation.
Iron staircases in the interior and the cellhouse door near the barber's shop at the end of A-Block were retained from the old citadel and massive granite blocks originally used as gun mounts were reused as the wharf's bulkheads and retaining walls.
On a recent Saturday morning two massive white cruise ships, stacked and gleaming like wedding cakes, disgorged passengers at the wharves, then loaded up the next batch and headed out again.
You can fish for octopuses in Sydney harbour, where work has started on the massive and highly controversial $6bn [Australian] Barangaroo development on the site of former container wharves.
