Geograph - photograph every grid square

The new Giant's Causeway Visitor Centre at the entrance to the causeway itself. The building has been shortlisted for the RIBA Stirling Prize and the following is taken from their website at Link (Archive Link ) :

"This elegant, powerful visitor centre appears to be born of its place; the irregular lines of basalt columns grow and recede into the landscape to form the building edges, with the building roof a part of the dramatic landscape. Visitor centres are hard to do; this one serves as shop, café and exhibition without any one function overpowering what is a simple, telling piece of architecture.

Visitor centres are normally self-effacing buildings, fulfilling the needs of visitors while being careful not to draw the limelight away from their main attraction. This one pulls of that difficult trick of being a destination venue in its own right without upstaging the principal event – the centre is invisible from the causeway, which is set one kilometre apart.

The internal space is made from a large concrete soffit with slices of roof lights and slots between the basalt allowing natural light deep into the centre."

So there you go. I think it looks like a futuristic prison from the outside and the National Trust wanted £8.50 from me just to walk in the door, a request I politely declined. (Access to the causeway itself remains free).