London's Olympic Park

Kevin here.  With the London Olympics only a few months away, one thing we wanted to do while in London is take a trip out to see the Olympic Park.  So, we hopped on the tube and the DLR (Docklands Light Rail -- a slower light rail system) to make our way out to the east side of the city.  We were hoping to see some of the sights and buildings that we might see on TV (ahem.. the telly) when we watch it.   You know.. "look kids!  We saw that stadium while we were in London!" Heh.

Obviously, the Olympics are big, big news here.  And, like in most host cities, somewhat controversial.  People fear the traffic, are worried about the cost to the city, etc.  It's a political football, especially in the upcoming election of the Mayor of London.  But, in general, people seem excited to welcome the world and London Olympic souvenirs can be found almost everywhere.   On a recent taxi ride in London, the driver was looking forward to it, but was unsure of what to expect.  The last Olympics in London was in 1948 shortly after the war, so the current residents have nothing to gauge the impact to the city by.

But one clear impact is construction:  we saw very few of London's sights that were not under some kind of construction:  Covent Garden, Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, near Parliament, etc.  You name it, and it's being torn up, torn down, rebuilt, cleaned, etc.  So, with the possible exception of Buckingham Palace and the London eye... well, the city is a bit of a mess right now.

And Olympic coverage is extensive in the papers.  One reason is that the Olympics is being sold as a giant revitalization program for the east side of the city.  Billions of dollars are being spent to build the Olympic Park there, replacing what was apparently an area of old warehouses and toxic canals.  Besides the Olympic village where the athletes stay, the main stadium will be there, along with a huge green space, a velodrome, basketball arena, and aquatics center.  There is also one monster-sized mall there.  Wimbledon will still host tennis, and beach volleyball will be close to 10 Downing Street (at the Horse Guards Parade), but it's shaping up to be a compact Olympics out on the east side.  They even have a bullet train (called the Javelin) to whisk people from the center of London to the Park in 7 minutes.

When we got to Stratford (the sight of the Olympic Park, not to be confused with Stratford-Upon-Avon of Shakespeare fame), we found that you really can't get too close to the park and facilities just yet.  Instead, they have a "Olympic View Tube" which is really little more than a platform (with a cafe, of course) from which you can look out over the park and see many of the facilities, including the Olympic Stadium.

The kids in front of London's Olympic Stadium

We also found... well a whole lot of stuff still under construction.  Like, below -- cranes and equipment and supplies still surround the Aquatics Center (which has a "wave"-like roof):

The Olympics Aquatic Center

The Olympic Stadium itself is complete. But, frankly, due to it's design it's hard to tell.  The top section is, in fact, made of surplus gas pipes (in a nod themes such as reusability and sustainability):

Olympic Stadium (behind the overhead lines for train tracks)

The View Tube does have a large guide that you can look at to help identify the various venues located throughout the park.

Kelly and the kids check out a guide to the visible Olympic venues.

We study the wall that shows the plans for the park.

One of the more interesting features of the park that I had not heard about is the Orbit Tower.  Rising about 350 feet high, it looks like a cross between the Seattle Space Needle and a roller coaster.  At first we thought it might hold the Olympic flame.  But, it turns out that it's an observation deck that hopes to see 5000 visitors a day during the Olympics.

Justin & Kelly check out the Orbit Tower, located just to the right of the Olympic Stadium.

A close-up of the Orbit Tower.  Funky.

We were disappointed that the Orbit Tower was closed to the public too.  That would have been a great  thing to do.  Regardless, I think the kids are excited to see the Olympics on TV from the comfort of home this summer, knowing that it's in a city that they got to experience first-hand.