I'm kinda gonna go about posting about our trip to London in a backwards kinda way. Since the Olympics are now in full swing, I thought I'd start with some stuff on the glimpse we got of all the Olympic Games-hoopla going on in London. When I was thinking about whether or not to go to London, I had concerns about it being over-crowded. Security going through the airport was a little bit tighter than usual, but other than that, it was still an enjoyable time. Not too chaotic a crowd. On our first day, we visited the Tower of London, which is right next to the Tower Bridge. They'd suspended the Olympic rings from the bridge, which made for a fantastic photo opportunity for all.
When I first saw the bridge, I instantly thought it was the bridge we all know from our beloved childhood song, "London Bridge is Falling Down." It's actually not. That bridge is actually the next bridge upstream (along the River Thames). This bridge, however, is an iconic symbol of London and one of the most unique bridges I've ever seen (and I've seen tons of bridges in my lifetime!).
This picture of Vaiosina was taken from within the Tower of London grounds.
Vaiosina and I made the trip with some good friends--the Eichhorst/Eddy Family. What great traveling companions! There's no way I would have made it through this trip without them.
That same day, we rode a double-decker bus through the city. Among many other things we saw, we were shown the roads that were designated as Olympic lanes--roads specifically laid aside (and shut down to the general public) for members of the Olympic Committee during the Games. Considering the traffic we saw, it looks like it's going to be a rough time for drivers over the next month or so.
So, all over London, you can spot these one-eyed Olympic mascots. We spent almost the whole time trying to figure out what they actually were. We tossed around the idea that maybe they were Olympic flames with one eye, to symbolize one of the main attractions in London, called The Eye (essentially a big ferris wheel, which I'll tell you about later). Yeah...no.
They're actually two different one-eyed fellas--named Wenlock and Mandeville. Apparently, they represent two drops of steel from a steelworks in the city of Bolton (wherever that is). Wenlock is an English town that helped inspired the modern Olympic games; while Mandeville is the name of the hospital considered the birthplace of the Paralympic games. Apparently, their eyes are cameras that allow them to record everything (weird?). They wear "friendship bands" in the colors of the Olympic rings and taxi lights in the centers of their heads as a tribute to London's famous black cabs.
Depending on where you were in London, Wenlock/Mandeville are painted differently. We took a picture of one near the aquarium, so naturally it was painted blue with fish around it. I thought they were so cute!
Also, we were lucky enough to get a picture with Wenlock, whose head is round but points at the top, like this:
And Mandeville, whose head has ridges like this. Mandeville was just down the road from Big Ben and Westminster Abbey.
These guys were just about everywhere in London--in the form of these statues and on t-shirts, signs, backpacks...you name it.
By the way, while we took pictures with these guys, Olympic athletes would just pop in and out trying to take pictures with them too. We bumped into folks from Cuba and saw some other Olympians around the city too.
By the way, while we took pictures with these guys, Olympic athletes would just pop in and out trying to take pictures with them too. We bumped into folks from Cuba and saw some other Olympians around the city too.
Now, I'm not following the games too closely. I regret admitting that I didn't even get to watch the opening ceremonies. It's really hard to do with a rambunctious toddler around, but I've watched some good stuff so far! Go USA!
I can't believe that four years has gone by already and it's another Olympic year. I started this blog right around the time the last Olympic games started in Beijing (holy cow...2008!). We were in Colorado Springs at the time and my sister-in-law was living with us and training for it. She represented American Samoa in judo. This really reminds me of the good times we had with her. Funny...Malu was gone for training and getting ready to deploy then too.
Anyway, there's a little bit of London for ya. It's really cool when they show London on TV and Vaiosina yells out "The Eye!" because she's been there and absolutely loved it.
Have a great week everyone!
