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[Updated] Xinjiang riot leaves scores dead
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Luigi Di Serio is an "entrepreneur" who does "ad hoc writing, website development and theorizing." He also has a degree in Urban Planning, which, we suppose, makes him vaguely qualified to rank the world's top skylines. Regardless, his list can serve as a good conversation starter. Four of his top 18 (and two of his top three) are in China:
1. Hong Kong, China
2. Chicago, USA
3. Shanghai, China
Not to be mistaken for a space station, Shanghai is a real city! China's biggest and most advanced city, Shanghai was said to be the most cosmopolitan city in the beginning of the 20th century, but lost its glory during the “Mao era”. It is now quickly regaining its position as one of the biggest economic powerhouses in the world as well as a showcase of modern architecture. In Shanghai you’ll find 25 structures that are over 200 metres tall, one of which is the insanely tall, the 468m downtown Oriental Pearl TV Tower.
4. New York City, USA
5. Tokyo, Japan
6. Singapore
7. Toronto, Canada
8. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
9. Shenzhen, China
10. Seoul, South Korea
11. Sao Paolo, Brazil
12. Sydney, Australia
13. Frankfurt, Germany
14. Dubai, United Arab Emirates
15. Seattle, USA
16. Pittsburgh, USA
17. Guangzhou, China
18. Dallas, USA
Shanghaiist, who has visited eight of the cities listed above, wonders whether any of the other top skylines in the world represent a section of a city as devoid of life as Lujiazui.
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This guy's on crack. Where's San Francisco? And Tokyo? Tokyo has NO skyline.
Shanghai's skyline is cool, but no way it beats NYC.
High doesn't mean best
Other best, but low, skylines:
-Cuenca (Spain)
-Sana (Yemen)
-Paris from Montmartre
-Barcelona from Tibidabo
Hong Kong definitely has the best skyline. How about Dubai?
I'm quite partial to NY myself. I mean, this dude thinks that a skyline punctuated by an pointed phallic symbol beats the NY skyline? Certainly on crack. Maybe LSD.
I would definitely put Istanbul on that list. It gets top points for originality, as in it doesn't offer the usual clutter of ugly, generic globo-buildings. Similarly, older American cities are doing much better than their Asian counterparts, because their skyscrapers actually have style and weren't all built within 3 years of each other.
Come to think of it, I also have an 'urban' degree (well, Masters in Urbanisation and Development). And I think a lot of this skyline comparison stuff is nonsense.
In fact, I wrote my dissertation on Lujiazui and how it exists pretty much just as a skyline to impress people- making it, as Dan says, one of the dullest freakin' places on earth. There's nothing there! If you want to enjoy Pudong, do what you are supposed to: look at it from across the river and marvel like a good little tourist at China's rise.
And they say there is no Disneyland on the mainland. Looking at some of those buildings, I beg to differ.
I'm surprised at how much traffic this guy's getting ... I've had several people (not shanghaiist users) show me his list. What's the big deal, really...