A Warm Welcome, Motivation and an Amazing Experience at the Shard (Rafidah Bahari, ITP 2018, Malaysia)

Hello! I’m Rafidah Bahari, 2018 ITPer and Senior Conservator from Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia. My ITP departmental time is spent with the Middle East Department and the Conservation Department. This is my first time visiting London, a top world city, and it is an amazing experience to explore the city, architecture and tourist places.

Three big things occurred yesterday: my partner for the ITP Object in Focus exhibition proposal project arrived, I met Dr Duygu Camurcuoglu from the British Museum’s Conservation Department, and we had an evening trip.

I would like to welcome Solomy Nabukalu (Conservator, Kabale Museum, Uganda) who is finally with us! Hopefully she was not in a jet-lag mood because she joined the afternoon programme with the spirit of a true ITPer.

I was very excited to listen to the presentation about conservation yesterday from Dr Duygu Camurcuoglu: preparing for a new permanent gallery and objects on permanent display. Today (Thursday 12 July) will be my department time with her. There were a lot of questions in my mind to ask her and I can’t wait to do some practical training and preventive conservation with the conservation team. This will give me more motivation, opportunities to learn and also explore collaboration in the future.

Let’s continue to the evening trip! It was a fantastic and amazing view of the city from The Shard. This 95-story skyscraper was designed by the Italian architect Renzo Piano and is in Southwark, London. It stands at 306.9 metres above ground and comprises of private residences, offices, restaurants, a 5-star hotel and a viewing platform on the 72^nd floor with a 360-degree view of London. This is London’s highest viewing platform and it is Western Europe’s tallest building.

Of course some ITPers have a passion for tall buildings and breathtaking views, so there was time for us to explore the open-air sky deck, which looks like a garden, and enjoy the 360-degree view. From there you can spot London’s famous landmarks like Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament, among others. We spent a lot of time at the top taking photos and admiring the view and fresh air.

I totally recommend it to anyone who wants to visit London: you must get the amazing experience of looking down at London from the Shard. Enjoy the view for as long as you want!

Rafidah