Olympic Size Experience!

Saturday, July 28, was Olympics day. I wound up getting behind with this blog since we had much to do and prepare for the Rome leg of our vacation. But I get ahead of myself, Rome is the next blog. Today, I share our Olympic experience. In summary -- what fun!

We started the day lingering around Westminster Abbey, Big Ben, and the London Eye in our matching US flagged Old Navy T-shirts. A traditional English breakfast was served and hungrily consumed at a restaurant within a stone's throw from the London Eye. Of course I gained a stone (14 lbs) with my Super English Breakfast but "when in London"...oh...again I get ahead of myself...not in Rome yet. Scratch that. "Super" only because that was the only dish that offerred Black Pudding. It of course wouldn't be an English breakfast without Black Pudding which consists of a bunch of things that includes pork fat, onions, other stuff (you don't want to know), and blood. You didn't misread that...yes blood...boiled over and over until it is black. Yum. Hope you are not preparing to eat a meal. Really it is good but perhaps an acquired taste or maybe acquired courage. Fully loaded with protein, we were prepared to tackle the throngs going to Earls Court where all the volleyball games are played.

Here is the crowd going from Earls Court to the volleyball stadium.

Our Olympic tickets! We had tickets for the women's Great Britain vs Russian and Italy vs Dominican Republic matches. The thumb I believe belongs to Elena who is badly in need of a manicure. I'm sure that is a Rome foreshadow.

Here is the view from our seats...

Of course, every thing is about precision and practice at the Olympics -- even how they sweep and mop the court at every timeout. Look at these gals...

The Great Britain vs Russia match was exciting only because the home team crowd energized the games. The GB team itself didn't play all too well -- afterall it was their inaugural volleyball event. We had a deja vu moment with Elena and Kelsey's high school volleyball experience when the Russian's walk in...they almost had to duck when they went under the Jumbo Tron in the middle of the court. These ladies were TALL! It also was reminiscent of the East Germany women athletes back in the day -- I know a few of you gray hairs remember that! Recall the fun trying to figure out if the East Germans were men or women? Now we have relegated this fun but cruel game for only the Chinese. The cold war did have its moments...

The several 6' 5" plus Russians quickly dispatched the herioc attempt by the Great Britain team who in comparison could probably walk under the net without ducking. I jest but you get the picture. It was interesting shouting the same things volleyball parents shout at their kids. You volleyball parents will know these..."close the block", "cover the block", "up on it", "just serve it in the court", and "come on ref...you are missing a great game". For you uninitiated, many on the GB side made similar unforced mistakes you see during high school volleyball. I am not implying the GB team was equivalent to high school skill...on the other hand they have amazing skill. The GB setter was just brilliant with jump sets going backwards across the entire court. Skill at this level has to be admired. But unforced errors are frustrating for all -- at one point, GB missed five or six straight serves. But hey, the wave was fun and the crowd, including us, cheered them on. The match was unfortunately won by the Russians in straight sets...on to the Italians and Domincan's. For what its worth, the GB players were prettier.

The Italian vs Dominican Republic game by comparison was amazing volleyball. The offense and defense was great and many volleys went on for what it seemed hours. The Dominican's had 80 mph serves, but as my girls reminded me, they were are the easiest to dig because they have a predictable trajectory. Once you lock in on one of these serves, it is supposedly easy to pass them to the setter. Supposedly because I don't want to be on the receiving end of anything going 80 mph! By comparison, the Italians (and Russians) had float serves that literally seem to shift laterally a foot as it approaches the defensive player. Those by contrast are hard to pass to the setter. The Italians won in four sets but each set was hard fought. It was also fun to be a few rows up from the family of one of the Italian players, #13 Valentina Arrighetti. You can see her at:

http://www.london2012.com/athlete/arrighetti-valentina-1081583/

When we arrived at the stadium, we heard a rumour that tickets were still available for the later matches. That, combined with the fact there were empty seats for the games we watched, encouraged us to attempt the evening game. Afterall, the US and Brazil, amongst others, were going to play in the evening. If you are wondering why we didn't have tickets to watch the US play, it is a result of the lottery system that was used to allocate tickets. When we, mostly Ella, purchased the tickets, all we knew was that it will be first round games and we'll watch two matches. With the rumour freshly in our mind, we attempted to buy tickets for the later matches but were rebuffed. I swear the person in the kiosk giggled and said something like "those silly Americans." The entire stadium was solded out for the evening matches! Annoyed that we didn't act sooner we hustled back home on the Jubiliee line to Edgware to watch the remaining Olympic events on TV. However, we were glad we experienced the event...and that I can share it with you.

Next stop Rome...

Let the Games Begin!

What a uniquely British opening ceremony! Now we see why Slum Dog Millionaire was such a great movie, Danny Boyle is that good. The projection of a host country's image during the Olympics opening ceremony is always interesting. China projected their very controlled society when it was revealed that the tiles of the flooring during their ceremony was controlled by 897 humans when it was assumed it was computer controlled. Great Britain projected the many wonderful instititions and contributions to modern society that enables the country to earn the first word of its chosen name.

Ok, hang on, I have to get something off my chest. Why are Olympic announcements spoken in French before English? Hellllloooo - opening ceremonies are in ENGLAND. Besides, about a quarter of the globe speak or understand English whereas French is 11th on the list of most spoken languages and comprises a very small percentage. If anything Mandarin or Spanish should be used given they have more speakers than any other language! I can even understand if it is in Greek -- after all they started the Olympics.

Ok, off the rant...

Any Olympic ceremony that plays Pink Floyd has my vote! It was truly an awesome spectacle starting with a rapid skim over the Thames across scenic southern England to Olympic park. The Red Arrows flying BAE Systems Hawk T1s flew over each of the capitals of the United Kingdom with the final leg over the park -- I always get goose bumps over flyovers. These ceremonies had it all -- from the Queen "jumping" out of helicopter with James Bond to the comical facial expressions of Mr. Bean.

The stroll through British history with the transformation from agrarian to industrial society was spectacular. Who can argue over the influence of British rock? In this day and age, it was also refreshingly bold to proudly raise smoke stacks while symbolically destroying the country side all while chomping a cigar in front of a global audience. All of the industrialism leading to the forging of the Olympic rings -- absolutely brilliant. I found myself cheering inside for the display of capitalism and industry that resulted in Great Britain's power and influence over most of the world. Only to be brought down by the subtle portrayal of the suit wearing capitalists succeeding over the toil and labor of the common man. But sprinkle in Voldemort, Mary Poppins, Paul McCartney, and David Beckham and I have to say it was all well done.

But really? National Health Service (NHS) in the Olympic ceremony? Looks good in lights but really, if you have used the system, you truly can't be proud of this British institution. Of all the greatness displayed during the ceremony it was an odd choice. It would be something I supposed if Danny Boyle, the Royals, athletes, and other celebrities actually used the NHS. Oh well, even the little boy fell in poop in the outhouse in Slum Dog Millionaire.

Torture and Twitter at the Tower!

Clever alliteration, no?

Plyometrics in the backyard, masala Chai, and off to London, determined to stay out most of the day. I was in full tourist mode with backpack, bottle of water, and 35mm around my neck. Don't worry no Hawaiian shirt or fanny pack...

The feature of the day as you can guess is the Tower of London. Despite having visited many times, I can't get enough of the 1,000's of years of history of this place. There is also something comically sad yet irresistible of all the be-headings, blood, torture, and human turmoil these stones have witnessed. We lined up or as the British say, queued, for a very informative tour with Beefeater Chris Skaife, yeoman.  Chris very eloquently described the many hangings and be-headings of 75 high born lords, ladies, and queens at the Tower of London.  That number seemed eerily low but I wasn't about to become part of another show so I kept silent.

Interestingly, Yeoman Chris is the raven keeper of the Tower which by the way was a neat little tidbit I didn't recall. King Charles II originally had the ravens released from the Tower only to realize later the monarchical superstition that without ravens in the Tower of London, the monarchy will fall and eventually, Britain. Needless to say they rushed in ravens -- six ravens are kept in cages with two in "reserve". The wings are also clipped to avoid flight. The actual history and myth of the ravens is a disputed historical item but interesting and fun nonetheless. Ravens have a special historical role in not only inspiring Edgar Allan Poe but pecking the eyes out of the heads spiked on London Bridge until the heads fell into the Thames. Not sure if there are any more heads in the Thames but the look and smell of it makes me wonder.

Here is Chris Skaife, Beefeater.

Below is a view of the Tower Bridge from the Tower of London grounds.  This picture was taken very close to where Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII's other queens were be-headed.  They do have Olympic rings hanging from the Tower Bridge but they are folded up in this shot since the bridge was being opened for a boat to pass through.

The depressing but again interesting close of the tour was in the Chapel of St Peter da Vincula in the Tower of London.  Imagine the sadness of being killed and buried, with no friends at the funeral, no presence of a priest, and no tombstone to mark your place in history. In this little, deceptively peaceful, chapel they found over 1,500 bodies, many stacked up in the stone walls. Only the passing of time lightens the human turmoil and misery. Even this story was woven in a light-hearted and humorous manner -- with a plug for Twitter to boot. The Twitter craze has even cracked this historical site!

Chris, the raven keeper, has a Twitter feed -- follow him at @ravenmaster1! I smiled inwardly wondering what the prisoners in this Tower would have tweeted and what social media policies would be in play if the technology was around then.  Tweets such as "#kingcharles sucks", "Enjoying the dungeon! #wheresthefood", "@colonelblood...enjoying the crown bling?" come to mind. You'll understand this last fictitious tweet in a moment...

We enjoyed seeing the crown jewels, viewing the torture contraptions (no evidence of water boarding), and touring the weaponry displayed in the White Tower. We were also treated to a reenactment of Colonel Thomas Blood's theft of the crown jewels in 1671. It was a humorous and historically accurate portrayal of the brazen scheme by the Irishman. Long story short, he befriended the Master of the Jewel House, Talbot Edwards and his wife, gagged them, stole the jewels, and got busted.  Given that the last be-heading at the Tower of London would not be until 1745 and this period was the prime time of capital murder punishment, he did amazingly well by not only being released but given land in Ireland by King Charles II.  Talk about the gift of gab!  His release and grant of land happened after a supposed one hour conversation with King Charles and no one knows what was said!  If only the stones retained sounds like they retain blood.

We topped off the day by strolling along the Thames and enjoying the river activities.  Ice cream (made from Cornish dairy cream!) and Cadbury Flake sweetened the walk to the Underground. I took lots of landscape black and white pictures -- hopefully at least one will be good enough to enlarge into a poster and frame.

Bracing for a turn of the weather -- glad I packed an umbrella!

Magical World of Harry Potter!

Sprung out of bed this morning with an excitement reminiscent of the first amusement park trip oh so many years ago. It is Harry Potter Studio day -- re-living childhood is so much fun! No breakfast, no work out, no need.

Camera charged -- check
Useless (in England) iPhone in hand -- check
Transportation card in hand -- check
Kids in tow -- check

The adventure begins as we hurriedly try to catch the 142 bus to Watford Junction from Edgware Station. A detour through Marks and Spencer filled the backpack with cold sandwiches -- egg and water crest, smoked ham mayo and mustard, salmon and soft cheese, and tuna with cucumbers -- very English. We almost wanted to picnic at the bus station!  But then we may have had to share with the little old ladies that are always waiting for a bus and that ain't happenin'.

From Watford Junction we spent 15 minutes on a Warner Brothers double decker tour bus to the studio in Leavesden.  We entered through the Great Hall and that was truly magical. We imagined we were Harry Potter walking into the Great Hall to be sorted that very first year at Hogwarts. The Great Hall was smaller then you see in the movies (as is everything) but complete. They fit 400 students in the hall for the wonderful food scenes. The floor is real stone because they anticipated wear and tear over the ten years of filming.  Imagine that, the actors and actresses spent ten years of their lives at this studio - that included going to school here! We enjoy the awesome results on screen, but the hard work it took to make this all happen was evident everywhere.

Overall the whole studio experience was very neat.  It was cool to imagine the movie scenes that we have seen over and over again as we viewed each set.  They pretty much had everything available to the public -- lots of props, clothing, wigs, make up, wands, and brooms.  You really appreciate the minute level of detail that went into each film  There were four directors that brought the eight films and 1,000's of people that worked on all aspects.  They even had kids make bulletin board posters and pin ups like you see at all schools for the Gryffindor common room.  You never see the posters in any of the movies but they added them for realism.   Here are a few pictures...

The girls in Mr. Weasley's Ford Anglia!

We had lunch at Privet Drive -- literally.

The set below was perhaps the most impressive part of the tour. It is the full Hogwarts Castle where they shot the aerial castle scenes.  It is amazing how cameras make things look so real. But every brick of this scale model was hand placed.  You can compare the size of this set with the person in the very right side -- it took up a very large room  The entire room had green screen walls so they can overlay the castle on English country side.

We all enjoyed this tour very much and it has a 4-0 vote over the Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Florida.  That was fun too but learning all about the making of the movies was much more thrilling.  They have Butterbeer here too -- although we did not partake this time.  If you are into the movies -- this is the place to visit.

One aside -- I believe the Gulf Stream not only warms the British isles but it keeps ice from forming in ice trays.  I have been absolutely dying for an ice cold Diet Coke in a tall glass filled with ice cubes.  Getting thirsty just writing this blog entry. But no joy. Every Diet Coke I have order is at best slightly chilled.  They just don't like extremes it seems. On the other end of the spectrum, even the Starbucks Chai Latte Soy Extra Hot was warm to hot.  They forgot the "extra".  Oh well, at least the Guinness is best the way it is served here...very English....cheers...

My International Debut...

Here is Arizona Jones a street performer setting up for his show.  He mimics Indiana Jones -- has a whip and everything.  

The crowd around Covent Garden in an unusually nice day in London.

Drum roll please...taking a bow after being picked out by Arizona to help him with his act.  Not sure if there were any agents in the audience. Two days later...no phone calls to join other performers so the answer is a resounding "no".  Grin.

Here is one of the acts I had to perform.  Couldn't quite belch the Tarzan scream that Arizona wanted me to do but mimed it...grin...

Success.  Arizona climbed up using Paul and I.  Paul is the guy who replaced Brian who refused to dance and silly things to mimic Arizona.  Paul was a good sport.

Ella and Elena enjoying the sun after my performance!

Kelsey and I doing the same!

The market...practicing black and white....

Enjoying another treat...ice cream with Cadbury Flake...Flake is gone...

Wicked!

The beginning of a rather bland day ended deliciously Wicked!

Ella spent the day "taking one for the team" and securing Olympic tickets. The tickets were purchased a LONNGGG time ago and today is the first day for pickup -- will call of sorts. Five and a half hours later, tickets were in hand. Apparently the problems with management of people exist everywhere. The company that sorted the tickets the night before in anticipation of us commoners screwed up royally. Oops, didn't mean to bring the royals into this...but it was a frustrating day, particularly for Ella, but for all of us as it ruined the trip to Wembley for Indian food and people watching.

In the mean time, the girls and I gingerly finished a work out. Gingerly due to mild shin splints from I don't know what...greater gravity from a few degrees in latitudes? harder concrete? harder workout in anticipation of higher food volume? Who knows?

Given that Wembley was out of the equation, the girls and I decided to eat the original British delicacy, Fish and Chips. Mr. Chippy's has been in Edgware selling Fish and Chips for a long time albeit under changing management. The original Mr. Chippy was a guy that looked remarkably like Homer Simpon's boss, Mr. Burns. But years blur on and Mr. Burns is no longer and today the store is manned by a punk teenager. The Fish and Chips, drenched with salt and vinegar, didn't last long as we sat outside and watched interesting people. We observed silly teenage girls laughing and screaming too loudly in an attempt to attract boys, a rather non-athletic looking boy skateboarding awkwardly, and other random Edgware locals going about their business. Speaking of Edgware locals, according to my father-in-law, this town has taken a turn for the worse. The window in time observing during Fish and Chips seemingly confirm his rants.

Later in the day, the girls and I joined Ella at Victoria Station in time to have a bite before going into the Apollo Victoria Theater to watch Wicked. Amazing how Hokies travel. Once again, as we were sitting down at a Cafe, a lady gets up and asked my girls, "are you guys from Virginia Tech?" She was eating with her son and unconfirmed family members. Her son, Taneel, a rising Chemical Engineering sophmore had recognized Elena and Kelsey from Virginia Tech. He was too shy to make first contact but a good Indian mom is always ready to meet girls for her boy. Sangita, the mom, seemed nice enough. They are British ex-patriates living in Atlanta for the past 10 years. Go figure.

The play, Wicked, was very entertaining. If you don't know the story, I will try not to ruin it for you -- the wicked witch of the west dies when some kid throws water on her. Oops, I gave it away. It is a fun parallel story to the Wizard of Oz and a must see.

Wicked indeed. There were many neat insights into people and what drives them and how your whole life can change by just meeting someone...

This is England...

The clouds over England have parted rather nicely to a warm 28 C. The vacation begins. I landed at Heathrow at 11 am having left the States at 11 pm. My eyes red from being awoken for breakfast and to a British voice yelling too excitedly that he had landing cards. In reality you don't need them to land but if one wants to see the rest of Britain you must comply -- a precursor to a rather regimented and bureaucratic society.

I met my mini cab driver, Ahmad Sultan, at Costa Coffee in the newly redone Terminal 5. I felt important as I picked him out from a throng of drivers holding names of other no doubt important feeling people. Having been to London many times the windshield tour from Heathrow to Edgware was not a priority so I attempted a nap. Until Ahmad droned on about petrol prices and the upcoming election in America (as they call it here). A conversation about petrol prices and a gas / petrol price comparison truly depressed poor Ahmad. In the US, we pay about $3.70 per gallon in the America and in UK they pay about £1.35 per liter. At current exchange rates that is $8.00 per gallon...wow. About 47p is the real price per liter; the rest is a petrol tax and the VAT. Ahmad also commiserated that they pay some £2,000 per year in car insurance. And the mini cab swayed on smoothly through roundabouts...

One thing you must understand is that there is some pride held by mini cab drivers. Mini cabs are an alternative taxi service to the famous Black Cabs. The source of this pride? Unknown. They seem to despise Black Cab drivers and the perceived arrogance held by the Knowledge achievers. The Knowledge Test takes years to achieve because they have to memorize 25,000 streets and 20,000 landmarks within a six mile radius of Charing Cross in London. Ahmad giggled when he said he saw a Black Cab with a Tom Tom. He says in an Indian accent, "you tell me, why he need Tom Tom if he has Knowledge?" Perhaps not pride but envy?

On and on it went sprinkled with an occasional "really?", "wow", and "uh huh" from my tired brain. Wonderfully thought provoking topics included why people are gay in Hollywood and handling traffic in roundabouts - a skill that is proudly British.

After Ahmad disposed of me at my in-laws, day one was largely spent at my in-laws reunited with my girls. Later, shopping at Sainsburys in Edgware yielded 50 pounds of English chocolates -- weight not currency! The India vs Sri Lanka cricket ODI capped the day with an Indian victory.

The second day started with a brisk speed walk through Canons Park (a 25 year routine) and the P90x Ab Ripper X exercise. During breakfast I recieved a lecture on Unit Trusts (an investment strategy) from my father-in-law. It was a common tactic when I first got married but twenty-six years later he still doubts my ability to financially support his princess! I didn't brag about my ability to generate 18% out of dog stocks collared with options.

Then it was off to Covent Garden and Piccadilly Square. I made my international debut as an assistant street performer for Arizona Jones. Yes, he looked like Indiana Jones. He broke dried spaghetti from my hands with a whip and I held a pole while he climbed up to juggle swords and break more spaghetti! You had to be there and yes there are pictures. The Hokie Nation is everywhere! A fellow pole holder, Brian from New Zealand, was a 1983 graduate in Materials Engineering from Virginia Tech. Brian refused to do silly things for the act and was promptly replaced with Paul. Game on. Paul and I were made to perform silly things and hopefully the video won't make You Tube.

Window shopping followed and followed -- sorry but men's feet are not made for it. I perked up as we approached a store called "United Nude" but alas, sorry boys it was only a shoe store. Moving along with nothing to report. The sidewalk cafe sandwiches punctuated with vanilla ice cream and Cadbury Flake made a nice treat. We also purchased tickets for Wicked at the Apollo Victoria Theater for Monday night! It was neat watching live statues and one of them was a knight that pretended to kill Kelsey when photographed. So much for knights and princesses...chivalry is truly dead. It was fun walking through China Town and laughing at store names like Wong Kie.

Beer with Umesh the cousin at a local pub will cap the night. That is profoundly England...