My London Olympic Games 2012 - continued

A week or so on into the Olympic Games and I decided to focus on the commercial side a little...

It all started by reading an article dedicated to the official tableware for the occasion. Designed by Nick Munro, this silver-plated metalware was inspired by a poster from the 1948 Olympics depicting a man throwing the discus. John Lewis then enthusiastically picked the idea and made sure to use purely British manufactures to produce this rather stylish and certainly unique design. I used the word 'unique' since there is a limited edition of each of the pieces: the teapot and sugar & milk set are both the edition of 200, their gold-plated version is the edition of only 20, the salad tongs (not pictured) are of 500 and the spoons are unlimited.

It is the spoons that I find quite witty; their handles are shaped to demonstrate the long jump, javelin, archery and weightlifting.

Those who are looking for commemorative souvenirs might appreciate the engraving reading 'Games of the XXX Olympiad' on the discus-shaped items and the Olympic logo that is stamped on the bottom of each piece might make this collectable items. And so, after reading this article, no wonder that my curiosity kept nagging. I decided to go to John Lewis, that offers the Games official merchandise, and see it all for myself.

Approaching the store, I must say I did not recognise it. The building was all covered by this pink, blue and white sheet, keeping to the colours of the Olympic logo, leaving only the name visible. Yes, I would say that John Lewis is playing its part well.

Making my way from the basement to the top I was bombarded by olympic-themed items. Mugs, badges, towels, bed linen, luggage, perfumes, toys, all scattered among all the usual items. The topping waited for me on the fifth floor where a whole section is dedicated to only the olympic-themed merchandise; this was the busiest place of the store adding clothes, bags, key-rings and other items to the lines. Among all this madness I found what I came for, the Nick Munro's stylish silverware placed in a glass cabinet. To be honest, I did not expect to be able to touch it (the spoons cost £20 each, the silver-plated teapot £200 to give you an idea). I only wanted to see it with my own eyes. And it is as delicate and classy as on the image.

What I also noticed was the packaging made out of recycled and recyclable and biodegradable card. When you read into the design you realise that there is more to it. It is all produced in England (Sheffield and around to be precise) from the initial idea, through casting and polishing, to packaging and promotion. I would say that this is a fitting approach to a design for the Olympic Games 2012 in London. Kx

My London Olympic Games 2012 - continued

Waking up to sunny Sunday, I felt full of energy that I just wanted to put on my skates and go out exploring some local venues. First friend I called actually had exactly the same idea and so we met up on skates and set off on our adventure...

Starting at the Royal Albert Hall, I fell in love with these graphics. So simple yet describing the disciplines so clearly.

There I decided that these figures would be the focus of the day.



As we were passing through Hyde Park, I spotted this image of a cyclist and the iconic 'Boris' bike (named after the London mayor who introduced them to the public) leaning against a wall next to the graphic.

What a fitting image for the cycling olympic discipline that was about to start at the Mall (Buckingham Palace). This is exactly where we were heading...

We got to the Buckingham Palace on time to secure ourselves a great spot to see it all (and hopefully take some great pictures).

It all started so well. Every now and than, bikes would go past to the cheer of the growing audience.

The sun was shining.

The atmosphere was magical.

It is hard to believe (or not since we are in England), that within the space of half an hour, the weather would take such a turn.

To cut the story short, the sky turned from a lovely sunny blue to atmospheric grey. Yes, the rain was coming...

Such scary was the atmosphere that even Queen Victoria frowned and a girl cried.

However, luckily for us, the rain went past reasonably quickly just in time for the race to start. Do you know what 'Sod's law' means? It means that if something can go wrong, it will (usually at the least appropriate time). And that is what happened to me with my camera.

As the race was approaching our spot, my camera decided to misbehave and all I actually captured was this little snipped of the entire peleton.

I kept the picture for you to see showing the few girls in cololur on the left. And our spot was so good...

Well, at least I can say that I was there. If it continues like this my memories will be with a twist. K-)