The Serpentine Gallery Pavilion by Herzog & de Meuron and Ai Weiwei

Every summer one of the great London events, is the unveiling of the The Serpentine Gallery Pavilion. This year it was designed by Herzog & de Meuron and Ai Weiwei, the reknowned team responsible for designing the Beijing National Stadium for the 2008 Olympic Games.

Part of the London 2012 Festival, the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion is like a huge floating lily pad filled with water sheltering the underbelly of the structure, which houses a seating area clad in cork.

The whole structure takes you below the lawn and in to an underground world. It’s a cool place to sit and enjoy a lemonade on a hot day.

It’s open until the 14 October 2012.

aMAZEme at the Southbank Centre, London

This weekend is the last chance to see aMAZEme at the Southbank Centre Clore Ballroom. So if you are passing by check it out.

The maze created by books donated by Oxfam Books was created by Marcos Saboya and Gualter Pupo and is part of the London 2012 Festival.

You can walk through, pick a book from the top and read it or simply admire from afar. Enjoy!

Taking up Beach Volleyball

The one thing I saw in the Olympics that I really thought – I WANT to do that was the beach volleyball. Hotly tipped as one of the best tickets to get, you can see why when we arrived. If someone told me a year ago I would be watching beach volley ball on Horse Guards Parade on a hot night in London I wouldn’t believe it.

The venue was built in only a few weeks, due to the Jubilee celebrations and was a temporary structure. It was the biggest piece of scaffolding I have ever seen. Quite an achievement.

And when you got to the top, this is what you saw –  an exceptional view.

And this was the view of London. AMAZING. Another London gold.

Swimming in the Serpentine, Hyde Park, London

It’s been nearly a week since the Olympics ended and I am still talking about them. It’s been said everywhere before, but I can’t believe how inspirational the 2 week event was for everyone. So many great moments that will stay with us all forever.

Plus as a Londoner, I was so proud to see our great city do it right. I had so many fave London Olympic moments, but one of the best was watching the Men’s 10km Marathon Swim in the Serpentine, Hyde Park. I have swum in the Serpentine (on my sister’s hen night) and I can tell you it’s not pretty. Lots of brown duck poo. So hats off to the Olympians!

The Serpentine, created in 1730 by Royal Gardener Charles Bridgeman was one of the first artificial lakes to be natural in form rather than long and straight. If you fancy a swim in the lake, the Serpentine Lido is open during the summer (winter only to members) and if you become a member you can join the famous Christmas day swim. Icy!

We waited patiently to see them swim past

The view from the Serpentine Bridge

London Olympics 2012 – Tennis Semi-finals at Wimbledon

Yesterday was a super cool day at Wimbledon, to see the longest tennis match in Olympic history and also more importantly to witness Andy Murray make it to the Olympic final.

To start the day off in style, we saw the green covers being taken off the court – it’s a scene we have seen so many times before on the television and so was really exciting to see in real life! The day was about to START!

First up was Federer V’s del Potro which was a 3 set wonder AND the longest game in Olympic history. Both players just wouldn’t give up in the final set going 19-17 with Federer winning in the end. What incredible and determined tennis.

We had a bet on how high the games would end up but this result blew it all! Here they are taking a well-earned break under the hand-held sun umbrellas.

Then Serena Williams (in a very stylish outfit) easily beat Victoria Azarenka 6-1, 6-2. This was the view from Henman Hill/Murray Mound.

And FINALLY what we had all been waiting for – the big match between Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic. Murray came out on court to a massive cheer and the ‘come on Andy’ chants didn’t stop for the whole match.

Towards the end the TeamGB flags were out in force and the atmosphere in centre court was absolutely electric. And when Andy Murray won, we all went mad and jumped on our feet. And Andy even enjoyed a super jump for joy – see here! Nice one!

Then time for us all to go home and for those Wimbledon folk to tidy the court for tomorrow. Broom anyone?

London 2012 – Women’s Cycling Road Race

So I arrived back in London today ready for all the excitement of London 2012. First stop off the red eye was the Women’s Cycling Road Race viewed from near Box Hill, Surrey. A great start to the games. Nice one Lizzie Armitstead who won silver for team GB. What a great Sunday Cycle!

Weekend Plans – E4 Udderbelly Festival London

A few years ago a friend and I booked a comedy show at the E4 Udderbelly (an upside down purple cow) on the Southbank in London. We loved the first show so much (some kind of magician/comic) we ended up staying for the late show and having a fantastic night out.

So if you are looking for a fun night out with friends and want lots of laughing and beers, this is the place for you. This Friday night the Best of the Comedy Store are performing at 9.30pm.

The shows run until 8 July 2012, but just make sure you book in advance. For tickets and information visit E4 Udderbelly Festival.

Image courtesy of Udderbelly Festival