Goodbye London.
I woke up to darkness today. It was 5:30am. I took that long 10.5 hour ride back from Heathrow, London to LA. I didn’t get to sleep until about 10pm (6am London time), I was a tired mess.
My last week and a half in London was the most hectic, interesting and amazing adventure all packed in to one. Last weekend, a few friends and I took a trip to Barcelona, Spain. It all seems like a blur to me now that I’m back on familiar grounds. We visited a bunch of places including Gaudi Park, the Olympic Park, Gothic Town, and Cathedral de Barcelona. Everything was so incredible and breath taking, literally and figuratively. Since we only had one full day there, we tried to pack everything into one day. It was tiring. We went to the beach the next day and I got my tan on…I closed my eyes and imagined Lanikai beach (yes, I’m dead serious) After that amazing weekend, I didn’t want to go back to London and start work on Monday morning!
But nevertheless, I was up again at 8:30am the next morning, putting on my business clothes for our last week of the trip. We went to Buro Happold, an engineering firm that was responsible for the sustainability of the Olympic buildings. Our assignment was to design a poster that educated the people about the sustainability of London’s Olympics. It’s actually really fascinating and impressive what they have done so far, and what their plan for the future is.
The Olympics. Everyone knows it’s the world coming together to participate in different sports. It’s held every 4 years, summer and winter games. But most of us, along with myself, get all hyped up for those few weeks that the games are televised, and after we count how many medals the US has successfully achieved, then that’s it. It’s over. With exactly 2 years left until the London Olympic and Paralympic games, they are working hard to make sure that these games are unlike any other. How? Their target audience and focus is on kids, not the athletes, but kids. They have chosen a color palette that appeals to kids of all ages, and have also chosen mascots to inspire kids to get out and try a sport. If you visit London2012.com, you’ll see what I mean. It doesn’t have the normal, elite Olympic feel that we’re used to. Besides focusing on kids, the Olympic Park is made out of sustainable materials. A great amount of the structures being built are going to be donated after the Olympic games. They are using old materials such as cobblestone, pipes, wood and rubble to create the buildings where thousands of people will enjoy the 2012 games. Along with creating a lasting memory, the park will be turned into a community, where the aquatic center (where Michael Phelps will be competing) is going to become a recreational pool. The Olympic housing will become apartments to help out the families who are in need. This area of London used to be a huge dump, and the homes to hundreds of families who are barely getting by. London’s hope is to restructure east London, and create a community and home for those families. They are the first games to ever put these things into consideration as well as be the greenest games ever. I’ve never known so much or cared so much about any other Olympic games in my lifetime. I am inspired by London’s efforts, and I can only hope that they will pursue their dreams.
After being in London for 3 weeks and working with 3 different offices who are working for the Olympics, I feel a sense of connection to these games, as well as London as a whole. Stepping foot on American soil was so weird to me. I got used to the ways of living in London. I got used to catching the tube everywhere, using public transportation, the British accent, the food, and the busy streets. I could never live there, but I definitely miss it. This was, like I said, one of the most amazing experiences I have, and probably ever will have. If you ever have the chance to visit London, do it. It’s expensive, but worth every penny.
-Keri
