Carrying the Torch

After class yesterday, we went on our first side-tour to Bromley-by-Bow to see the Olympic Park! The area is part of a "rejuvenation" effort on London's part to help revive the east side. Though not the most picturesque area of all time, there were some nice sights here and there!

A waterbus on the canal system

3 Mills Studios! Tim Burton has filmed here, and the Opening Ceremonies is holding rehearsals here right now!

Outdoor table tennis! Our guide says people like to play in perpetration for watching the games!

More water buses!

After our little tour of the area, our first view of the Olympic constructions came into view!

A replica of the torch where the flame will take up residence during the games!

A bridge they built that gains you access directly into the park!

A distant view of the Olympic Ceremony arena and the Orbit viewing platform

A building nearby the sight, right across from the Orbit

Closer to the Orbit

As we rounded a bridge, we got a great view of the Aquatics Center! The dip in the middle is supposed to represent a wave. Our tour guide had a very British way of saying "aquatic" and it made me laugh.

The Aquatic Center

We also got to see the main shopping center that spectators will pass though (spend all their money in) when they enter the park for the Games! It was huge, and even more upscale than Fashion Square! We got a lot of great views of the arena from different department store windows, and we even saw the Olympic Village from a distant.

The Olympic Village

There was a Mini store in the mall. Just waiting for me.

The London Olympic Mascot! Dr. Foy was in our tour group, saw these, and said, "That's disturbing!" before taking a picture in front of them.

Overall, a very exciting day! It will be cool to see it on television and find all of the places I walked! Londoners are either very excited or extremely apprehensive of the Olympics... It's going to get busy. I can already tell that the Tubes are going to be an absolute nightmare. But I would love to see the Olympics at least once in my life! This is as close as I will get for now!