Today, I wanted to try something other than the canal path for my run.  So, I got on Google Maps and looked for directions and how far it is to a place called “Olympic Park”.  It worked great on the first try, but the output looked like this.  That wasn’t much help to me and there were too many turns to memorize the map, so I did the canal path again.

 

After lunch, we went to the Bird’s Nest, Water Cube, and other Olympic sites.  The water cube has been turned into a place to sell Olympic memorabilia.  There is a concert planned for the Bird’s Nest, but not much else going on.  They are looking for a company to buy the Bird’s Nest and maintain it.  For now, it still looks fine, but no one is taking care of maintenance.  Notice how there are no shadows?  The forecast was for clear skies and it was 3:00 pm.  The shadows don’t exist due to the pollution.  You can look right at the sun and all you can see is a fuzzy circle with a glow around it.  I loved seeing the sites.  There is still a feeling of amazement remembering all that went on there.  The pool was fun to see.  I kept remembering the relay where Phelps just outreached the other team for the gold.  The bird’s nest is incredible.  It is so big and has so many seats.  It was fun to imagine the feelings someone would have being on the track about to compete with that view all around.  I also enjoyed looking at the tunnel the marathoners came through.  The Romanian woman that won the gold must have been so relieved to make it through the tunnel knowing she had won.

 

Now, I’m off to play table tennis with someone that is completing a master’s degree majoring in table tennis!  I didn’t know that was a possibility.  Anyway, I guess I’ll be well-trained after tonight.  I might even stay up until 9:00 pm (my latest so far is being asleep at 8:30).