Stevenson-Flom: How many are here?
I am curious as to how many people are or have been in Stratford during the last four weeks. Well, I'll take that one step further and wonder about the crowds in London as a whole.
I imagine that when the Games are all said and done that LOCOG will have ticket sale numbers. Add to that the approximately 120,000 Games Maker Volunteers, four official security companies, a police presence like none other ever seen, 20,000 plus athletes, team coaches, trainers and support staff. Add in the catering companies, Olympic venue employees, reporters and camera people. Then there are the Presidents, Prime Ministers and dignitaries and the list goes on and on.
It will be very interesting to see if an official number is ever published.
But until an official list surfaces, I am here to tell you, unofficially of course, that there are millions of people here. How does a city, a country, prepare for an influx of humanity of these unimaginable proportions? Well, by all accounts, the process began seven years ago when London was awarded the 2012 Olympic bid. Whole infrastructures were revamped or redesigned.
In spite of widely publicized dire warnings and concerns, the public transportation system seems to have fared pretty well. It has, with only a hiccup here and there, run efficiently. Staff are numerous, moving the herds in and out, constantly giving directions of where to go and how to get there. London transit is a spiderweb of lines and colors, with each stop getting you closer to where you need to be. It is not uncommon to have to switch to several different lines to get you near to where you are going.
Speaking of the trains and buses, picture sardines in a can. At times, doors can't be closed because there are so many bodies squeezed in. The greasiness and aroma of the sardine can in my analogy can't be lost either but I won't go there! Heck, When in London, Do as a Londoner!
And that's exactly what I'm off to do now, as I need to get to Athlete's Village. Wish me luck!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Laura Stevenson-Flom is a nationally certified, state-licensed massage therapist with a specialty in sports massage and a private practice in her Colchester home. She will be serving as a volunteer massage therapist at the Summer Olympics, helping assist athletes from around the world. She's been assigned to Athletes' Village, one of seven Olympic Park venues.Find more from Laura at
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