A Tour of the Olympic Park

Like many of those who applied, we're currently waiting to find out whether our bid for Olympic tickets was successful. We only applied for four events and so far no money has been taken from our account so the waiting goes on.

In the meantime, I had the opportunity to go on a tour of the Olympic Park this morning. Security is very tight - you have to show photo ID to be allowed on the tour - and you are taken round by bus which you can't get off. So although you are allowed to take pictures you have to snatch a photo from the moving bus when you can. It's still interesting to see the buildings taking shape and the amount of work that is going in to creating the Park.

This was the best shot I managed to get of the Olympic Stadium. As you can see the landscaping for the Park is now going in although there is clearly still alot of work to do.

Olympic Stadium

I also managed to get reasonably good shots of the Velodrome and the Aquatics Centre. The latter looks a lot less finished than some of the other main venues but apparently the internal fittings are pretty much complete to the extent that there is already water in the pools.

The Velodrome

The Aquatics Centre

The bus took us all round the site, through the Athletes Village and past the new Stratford International Station which according to news reports last year may not now be international after all.

Finally we got to see The Orbit, the twisted tower designed by Anish Kapoor, which is currently under construction. The finished structure will include viewing platforms and restaurants and will be taller than the Statute of Liberty. There's been some debate as to whether the Orbit will become London's Eiffel Tower and I'm still undecided on it's architectural merits. However, given the success of the London Eye, it seems there is a ready market for attractions that allow people to view London from above so it should be a commercial success (assuming people are as keen to see East London once the Games have finished).

 

The Orbit under construction

To book a place on the free bus tours operated by the Olympic Delivery Authority phone 0300 2012 001. Apparently there is currently a three month waiting list.