LONDON (Reuters) - Fresh from her starring role in the opening ceremony, Britain's Queen Elizabeth explored the Olympic Park on Saturday, bringing extra magic to the experience of visitors from around the world checking out the venues for the first time.
While workers dismantled the set from Danny Boyle's triumphant opening ceremony in the Olympic stadium, the queen surprised park visitors by riding the lift to the top of the tangled red Orbit Tower and giving a wave to roaring fans in the Aquatics Centre as she appeared on the results screen.
Richard Hewitt and his family joined a crowd of people lining the royal route from the Orbit to the Aquatics Centre to see the British monarch, dressed in blue, and the Duke of Edinburgh sail past in the royal car.
"I was very surprised because she was jumping out of a helicopter last night," said Hewitt in a reference to Friday night's opening ceremony in which a stuntman dressed as the queen leapt from a helicopter in a James Bond vignette.
Spectators at the Aquatics Centre cheered the queen as she took in a bit of the swimming. The smartphones were out almost instantaneously, underlining the breath-taking speed and breadth of individual communications in the first summer Games to truly harness the power of social media.
"I just posted it on Facebook," Stephanie Ellis as she sat with her family in the tiered seats overlooking the swimming competition with her husband and two children.
Smartphones, cameras and videocameras were in the hands of most visitors to a park that has been so wired up for video, sound and communications that telephone company BT estimates it has laid enough cable to reach from London to New York.
From the Stratford Gate to the Street Market outside the basketball stadium, along London Way and down Britannia Row, people from around the world strolled the 2.5 square km park, hit the sports venues that were open, ate the food, took pictures, cheered the athletes, picnicked and revelled in an enthusiastic atmosphere that has been seven years in the making.
BASKETBALL "KISS-CAM"
Visitors from Britain to Belgium and Canada to Argentina said queues were surprisingly short to get into the park, get food, drinks and into venues to watch the basketball, handball and swimming on offer in the Olympic Park on Saturday.
At the Basketball Arena, where Russia's women defeated Canada and China beat the Czech Republic, first time basketball fans and long-time aficionados gushed over the fast-paced games and the atmosphere inside.
During lulls in the action, the big screen's cameras are turned on the audience and a video host sitting in the stands demanded they clap, cheer, do the Mexican wave and kiss each other live on the big screen for the delight of fellow spectators - a regular feature of games in the United States but something of a revelation for the normally reserved British.
"The last quarter of the games are very good," said Helen Anning, a 31-year-old Londoner at the Games with her partner Tom Jones. Both are seeing basketball live for the first time.
"The guy getting everyone to do the Mexican wave is very good," Jones said.
Down around the rear of the basketball stadium, where Olympic volunteers were getting lunch, one told Reuters anonymously that the volunteer job on day one has been a bit of a breeze, because of the smiling enthusiasm of the visitors.
"They're just cock-a-hoop to be here," he said.
BIG SPENDERS
Lunchtime queues for McDonald's, the fish and chips, deli sandwiches, salads and cornish pasties on offer at the catering villages dotted across the park were manageable with an "express order" queue at McDonald's which only took 4 minutes from the back of the queue to retrieving a meal.
Prices were similar to the high street with a Big Mac on its own costing 2.69 pounds ($4.23) and 4.29 pounds with fries and a drink as a meal. Pasties cost 4.50 and a salad around 6 pounds.
A cold shellfish platter with lobster and a bottle of Grand marque Champagne for two at the Champagne & Seafood restaurants will set the big spenders back 152 pounds.
Some of the most popular places in the park were the grassy knolls of the Live Park East and Live Park West on either side of the River Lea, which cuts through the park. In the centre of the river a three-sided giant TV screen with a stage showed live sports going on at the various venues around the country.
A busy line of pedestrians strolled the switch-back pathway to the top of the grassy incline at Live East on a pilgrimage to have their photographs taken with the giant Olympic rings standing proudly against the skyline.
While New Zealand sculler Mahe Drysdale cruised to a win in his first heat over Norwegian rival Olaf Tufte on the big screen, Rick Kess, his wife Janine and nine-year-old daughter Rebecca lounged on the grass, surrounded by wildflower meadows.
"It's lovely to be able to sit here away from the crowds," Rick Kess said.
The busier venues tended to be the Panasonic 3-D cinema and the Coca-Cola Beat Box, a chaotic riot of criss-crossed red and white rectangular plastic cladding which make sounds from sports and music when pressed. Visitors walk along a spiral ramp in between the frame and the cladding.
At another riverside open stage, featuring live music from the David Sinclair Trio, a visit from Olympic mascot Wenlock and the Romford Drum and Trumpet Corps, families lolled on the grass, children ran in the open space and danced, while parents Will and Emma Campbell praised the park's thoughtful design.
"We paid only 10 pounds for a park ticket and there is plenty to see and plenty to do," Will Campbell said.
($1 = 0.6364 British pounds)
(Editing by Alison Williams)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/queen-drops-rapturous-reception-park-opener-201415032--spt.html
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