If there is one thing that fascinates me about cities, it is the view from the top of a skyscraper. Nothing quite beats the moment of “Good Grief!” that hits you when you see a place from some improbably place up in the sky.

While travelling, I often take in the view whenever the opportunity presented itself.  Here are 5 of my favourite views:

London – The Shard

I’ve written about the Shard before but I have to say that this is certainly one of the prime views of London that you can get. I loved the London Eye too, but watching this buzzing metropolis transform into a toy city is incredible.

Prague – Lunch in the Sky

There aren’t that many high-rise buildings in the centre of Prague; and that’s a good thing. I think the Bohemian city would lose a lot of its charm if this ever changed. Having said that, I once got the opportunity to see Prague from a particularly unique perspective.

Prague – The City Tower

Venturing as far south as Prague 4 is met with disdain by the locals. Who would want to head that far south, they wonder. The Aureole restaurant on top of the City Tower is the main reason for this. The food is excellent, the service is top-notch and the cocktails are divine. What won me over though, was the view on Prague from the 27th floor. You can make out the bend in the river Vltava, the castles – both of them – and easily identify the landmarks.

Osaka – The Umeda Sky Building

I have to admit that I was drawn to the tower because of the cocktail bar that was highly recommended. I marvelled at how this cocktail bar squatted, suspended between the two 173m high towers. From within this floating observatory, the view of Osaka is mesmerising. It’s not like I could recognise the place well as I had only been in Osaka for a few hours. Yet the sense of being somewhere special that lets you look down on Earth is firmly there.

(Someone remarked that the sky line resembles Blade Runner’s retro-futuristic Los Angeles – thanks Sam!)

Tokyo – Roppongi Hills

What was the outskirts of Tokyo a mere 30 years ago is now a bustling hive of activity and a town in its own right. Roppongi is marked by the Roppongi Hills complex that is billed as a vertical city. Avoid the westernised shopping mall on the ground floors and take the lift to the topmost floor, to see Tokyo from its highest tower.

The weather didn’t allow for great visibility, but looking down on the clouds and on a storm raging below me more than made up for that.