So much has been going on since my last update!
I saw the Olympic Torch at North Greenwich Park. Only people with Olympic Accredidations were allowed to be inside the park for this event. After seeing the lighting, we jumped in a buggy and drove around for a tour of the park. It's so big and pretty. Equestrian events will be held there, but in order to preserve the site false grounds were put in, irrigation system and all.
I went on a tour of Winsor Castle, Bath, and Stonehenge.
I went on a private tour of the O2 Arena and got to see some male gymnasts practicing.
I went to the final dress rehearsal for the Opening Ceremony. Watched the actual one on tv at Camp.
I've been working nonstop since the Games began, but finally having the Park open and operational is so exhillarating. I finally feel like I'm at the Olympics and this is what I've been working towards for the past 6 months!
It's not all been work, though. I conveniently worked a turnover in basketball right before Team USA Men's played. I was able to find a seat and ended up watching the whole game. The night before I was going to the mall and walked past Kobe Bryant. I wished him luck and he said thanks! Then last night I went to the Aquatics Centre to watch some swimming competitions. Overall, I watched the US win 2 gold medals, 2 silver medals, and Michael Phelps win his race.
What is my life?!
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
I AM SUCH A BAD BLOGGER!
Sorry for the major lack in updating. My computer time is extremely limited since my laptop died and I've been working like crazy.
We've been inducting all of our new employees over the last few weeks and ramping up our numbers as the Games are creeping closer and closer. We're trying to fill in the gaps where we need people to work, so that means lots of phone calls! One of my main responsibilities over the last two weeks is actually working on employee rosters: fixing hours, rostering people to shifts, creating and deleting shifts. It's been pretty cool to have such an influence in that way.
Last week my friend, Kallie, and I went to see Chicago down in Leicester Square. The show was phenomenal and so funny! Way better than the movie. I'd been talking for weeks about seeing it for two reasons: 1) I really wanted to see Chicago and 2) Raza Jaffrey (Dev from Smash) was playing Billy Flynn. He was exceptional. After the show, we went to the stage door and he was there signing playbills. We got him to sign ours and got our photos with him. While we were talking with him, he asked where we were from since we're obviously not English. I told him that we go to university in South Carolina. He says that he used to spend his summers in South Carolina. On Lake Wylie. I told him that I live on Lake Wylie and when I told him which town, he knew exactly where I was talking about. Small world!
I'll try to update again at least before the Games begin. Hopefully I'll start seeing some athletes!
Cheers!
Megan
We've been inducting all of our new employees over the last few weeks and ramping up our numbers as the Games are creeping closer and closer. We're trying to fill in the gaps where we need people to work, so that means lots of phone calls! One of my main responsibilities over the last two weeks is actually working on employee rosters: fixing hours, rostering people to shifts, creating and deleting shifts. It's been pretty cool to have such an influence in that way.
Last week my friend, Kallie, and I went to see Chicago down in Leicester Square. The show was phenomenal and so funny! Way better than the movie. I'd been talking for weeks about seeing it for two reasons: 1) I really wanted to see Chicago and 2) Raza Jaffrey (Dev from Smash) was playing Billy Flynn. He was exceptional. After the show, we went to the stage door and he was there signing playbills. We got him to sign ours and got our photos with him. While we were talking with him, he asked where we were from since we're obviously not English. I told him that we go to university in South Carolina. He says that he used to spend his summers in South Carolina. On Lake Wylie. I told him that I live on Lake Wylie and when I told him which town, he knew exactly where I was talking about. Small world!
I'll try to update again at least before the Games begin. Hopefully I'll start seeing some athletes!
Cheers!
Megan
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Sorry for the lack of posts!
My computer is really messed up and is no longer useful unless I pay £400 to get it fixed, so I'm on one of the available computers here at camp.
The last week and a half have been quite fun. I went to a club in Camden called Jazz Cafe with a few of the English interns and a handful of Americans. It was a good time in Central London. The rest of that weekend was pretty laid back. Work last week kept me relatively busy. One day I had to go through all of the binders that hold timesheets for all of the venues in Olympic Park and put them in chronological order. I was also trained on inputting timesheets into the system to ensure that our employees actually get paid. All of the venues have done their preliminary scheduling for the month of July through the Games. My boss asked me to go through the roster lists for the individual venues, create a master list of employees who have already been scheduled and to which venue, and then cross-reference that list with the entite employee pool of roughly 1,300 to see who still needed to be scheduled. My boss, Kiri, and I get along very well. She's a tiny Australian, but she's basically running the show. Right now, we're in tiny storage units on site, but we'll be moving into offices in the next week or so. I'll be working not only for her, but the manager that runs all of the Park and the co-founder of the company.
This past weekend was extremely exciting. For £200 I went to Amsterdam and Brugge, which included travel by coach, a hotel for 2 nights, 2 breakfasts, 2 dinners, and an open bar after dinner. It was so much fun! I walked through downtown Amsterdam: Red Light District, CoffeeShops, and all. We went to a Cheese and Clog factory, a tour around the city, and the Heineken Experience where I got my Draugh Master certificate. The next morning we were back on the coach to Brugge, where we walked around and went to a chocolate factory! We got back to camp around 11:30 Sunday night exhausted, but having had a great time!
The last couple of days have been a bit stressful, with my computer bascially dead and camp doubling in population. It kind of feels like everything is coming at me at once, so I'm trying to stay afloat.
The last week and a half have been quite fun. I went to a club in Camden called Jazz Cafe with a few of the English interns and a handful of Americans. It was a good time in Central London. The rest of that weekend was pretty laid back. Work last week kept me relatively busy. One day I had to go through all of the binders that hold timesheets for all of the venues in Olympic Park and put them in chronological order. I was also trained on inputting timesheets into the system to ensure that our employees actually get paid. All of the venues have done their preliminary scheduling for the month of July through the Games. My boss asked me to go through the roster lists for the individual venues, create a master list of employees who have already been scheduled and to which venue, and then cross-reference that list with the entite employee pool of roughly 1,300 to see who still needed to be scheduled. My boss, Kiri, and I get along very well. She's a tiny Australian, but she's basically running the show. Right now, we're in tiny storage units on site, but we'll be moving into offices in the next week or so. I'll be working not only for her, but the manager that runs all of the Park and the co-founder of the company.
This past weekend was extremely exciting. For £200 I went to Amsterdam and Brugge, which included travel by coach, a hotel for 2 nights, 2 breakfasts, 2 dinners, and an open bar after dinner. It was so much fun! I walked through downtown Amsterdam: Red Light District, CoffeeShops, and all. We went to a Cheese and Clog factory, a tour around the city, and the Heineken Experience where I got my Draugh Master certificate. The next morning we were back on the coach to Brugge, where we walked around and went to a chocolate factory! We got back to camp around 11:30 Sunday night exhausted, but having had a great time!
The last couple of days have been a bit stressful, with my computer bascially dead and camp doubling in population. It kind of feels like everything is coming at me at once, so I'm trying to stay afloat.
Friday, June 15, 2012
The English Have Arrived!
Sorry for the lack of updates, but the Leeds students arrived on Monday so we've all been getting to know each other. We've gone out to a couple of pubs for football games, but I was more interested in socializing than in the games themselves. All of the new interns seem really cool. My roommate, Sara, and I had to switch cabins and move in with 4 other USC on Monday before the others arrived. Then we got 4 Leeds girls who are pretty awesome. On the first night, they all went to the Tesco down the road and came back with a 12 pack of beer, each. If I've learned one thing from them so far, the English can drink. Of course, I joined them with my bottle of wine and made a few friends.
Work has been minimal. Monday-Wednesday I was "Camp Intern" where I basically just stayed at Camp and did whatever was asked of me. So I took inventory of fleece jackets and track pants and laminated signs for common areas. I finally got to go back to the Park yesterday and was assigned to work in the Velodrome, where the cycling events will take place. I met Allan, the Venue Cleaning Manager, and he showed Katherine (his intern) and I around and down to the floor and the track. The incline on the track is intense! I tried walking up one of the steeper areas and only made it halfway before I decided that I would fall over if I kept going. Katherine and I did a little bit of research on the facility to be included in a newsletter for the income staff. There was an issue with my biometrics card, which gets me into the Park, in the morning so after work I had to go back to that office to reactivate it. The rest of the night was pretty laid back at Camp.
This morning, I had to collect some new arrivals and bring them to get their visitor passes and then bring them into the Park. They were very nice, 3 Irish and 1 Australian. Once we got into the Park, I was asked to go back to the Velodrome where I will be helping with preparing the rosters to go out to the staff. But I've been here for an hour and a half and Allan hasn't been in the office, so Katherine and I are just hanging out.
Apparently, people are going out tonight and I'm pumped! So ready to party with my new English friends!
Cheers!
-Megan
Work has been minimal. Monday-Wednesday I was "Camp Intern" where I basically just stayed at Camp and did whatever was asked of me. So I took inventory of fleece jackets and track pants and laminated signs for common areas. I finally got to go back to the Park yesterday and was assigned to work in the Velodrome, where the cycling events will take place. I met Allan, the Venue Cleaning Manager, and he showed Katherine (his intern) and I around and down to the floor and the track. The incline on the track is intense! I tried walking up one of the steeper areas and only made it halfway before I decided that I would fall over if I kept going. Katherine and I did a little bit of research on the facility to be included in a newsletter for the income staff. There was an issue with my biometrics card, which gets me into the Park, in the morning so after work I had to go back to that office to reactivate it. The rest of the night was pretty laid back at Camp.
This morning, I had to collect some new arrivals and bring them to get their visitor passes and then bring them into the Park. They were very nice, 3 Irish and 1 Australian. Once we got into the Park, I was asked to go back to the Velodrome where I will be helping with preparing the rosters to go out to the staff. But I've been here for an hour and a half and Allan hasn't been in the office, so Katherine and I are just hanging out.
Apparently, people are going out tonight and I'm pumped! So ready to party with my new English friends!
Cheers!
-Megan
Saturday, June 9, 2012
Is this real life?
That question was asked may times today. THE WEATHER WAS GORGEOUS TODAY!! It was sunny and cool and not rainy!! I slept in until about 10. After a shower, I got myself ready for the day and headed out with a group that was looking to get tickets for a show tonight. We headed up to Westfield where they have a discounted ticket seller. She offered us tickets for WICKED for £18! We jumped on that deal and took the tube down to Westminster. We got off near Parliament and began walking up to Trafalgar Square and then up to Leicester Square and around Piccadilly Circus. On the way, we stopped at the 4 story M&M store where I discovered CRISPY M&MS!! Why they aren't still available in the States, I have no idea. But I bought half a bag of crispy M&Ms. There is a photo of me enjoying them on Facebook. While we were walking around, a NAKED BIKE RALLY rode by us. That's right. Naked people riding bikes down the street. And not attractive naked people.
Since our show was at 7:30, we stopped for dinner around 5 at this pub called The Brewmaster in Leicester Square. I got a Rump Steak Sandwich and it was awesome. We walked by this pastry shop after dinner and everything looked amazing and sweet. I may need to go back. On our way to the theater, we walked through St. James Park and we witnessed an ATTEMPTED ROBBERY outside a restaurant. We heard a waiter yelling and running after these two guys who were running with a Louis Vuitton purse. They dropped the purse and kept running. We're not sure if they got anything, but the waiter picked up the purse and brought it back to the owner. We got to the Apollo Victoria just as doors were opening and found our seats. We sat in literally the second to last row in the upper level. We were on level with the Time Dragon. The actors were very small, but we had speakers right near us so we could hear everything well. Once the show started, I didn't care where we were sitting because I was seeing Wicked in West End. Our cast was amazing. I think this guy was the best Fiyero I've seen. Our Wizard wasn't very good at singing, but he's a relatively minor singing role. After the show, we got right on the tube and headed home. Our car was packed, so when this really attractive guy got on his only standing option was right behind me. I was more than okay with this situation. Too bad he wasn't talkative.
Now I'm back at Camp chilling in the Rec Tent and updating my social media life.
Cheers!
-Megan
Since our show was at 7:30, we stopped for dinner around 5 at this pub called The Brewmaster in Leicester Square. I got a Rump Steak Sandwich and it was awesome. We walked by this pastry shop after dinner and everything looked amazing and sweet. I may need to go back. On our way to the theater, we walked through St. James Park and we witnessed an ATTEMPTED ROBBERY outside a restaurant. We heard a waiter yelling and running after these two guys who were running with a Louis Vuitton purse. They dropped the purse and kept running. We're not sure if they got anything, but the waiter picked up the purse and brought it back to the owner. We got to the Apollo Victoria just as doors were opening and found our seats. We sat in literally the second to last row in the upper level. We were on level with the Time Dragon. The actors were very small, but we had speakers right near us so we could hear everything well. Once the show started, I didn't care where we were sitting because I was seeing Wicked in West End. Our cast was amazing. I think this guy was the best Fiyero I've seen. Our Wizard wasn't very good at singing, but he's a relatively minor singing role. After the show, we got right on the tube and headed home. Our car was packed, so when this really attractive guy got on his only standing option was right behind me. I was more than okay with this situation. Too bad he wasn't talkative.
Now I'm back at Camp chilling in the Rec Tent and updating my social media life.
Cheers!
-Megan
Friday, June 8, 2012
Nothing amazing to report at this point.
Went to a meeting at BUNAC yesterday where they told us things that we already know. They did inform us that they have travel opportunities with the organization, so that is extremely wonderful information. Once we got back to Camp, we laid low for the rest of the day.
Today we all had to be up and ready to work at 8am. I met up with my group and we went into the Park for some training. They showed us how to go through the various programs for recording clean-up calls, scheduling, and timesheets. Those of us working Help Desk will be using these programs the most. We got out around 11 and a couple of us ran some errands at Westfield. Now I'm back at Camp just hanging out and trying to figure out what to do this weekend. Blink 182 is playing at the O2 Arena tonight for £16. Some people are heading to Dublin tonight. I want to do some traveling, but it's a bit expensive so I'll have to plan for that.
Cheers!
-Megan
Today we all had to be up and ready to work at 8am. I met up with my group and we went into the Park for some training. They showed us how to go through the various programs for recording clean-up calls, scheduling, and timesheets. Those of us working Help Desk will be using these programs the most. We got out around 11 and a couple of us ran some errands at Westfield. Now I'm back at Camp just hanging out and trying to figure out what to do this weekend. Blink 182 is playing at the O2 Arena tonight for £16. Some people are heading to Dublin tonight. I want to do some traveling, but it's a bit expensive so I'll have to plan for that.
Cheers!
-Megan
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
So I walked the Olympic Park today...
Today, the interns went out to our various precincts and did different tasks. I will be working in the Olympic Park for the summer. Those of us in the Park walked around and toured some of the venues. I'm not assigned to any specific venue, but to the general CleanEvent staff in the Park. This leads me to believe that I'll be all over the place. We saw the Stadium, the Velodrome, the Aquatics Center, the Handball Arena, and the Water polo Arena. I took pictures, but I'm not allowed to post them until after the Games. We walked the Park for 8 hours, nonstop. On the way back from the Park, I picked up a couple of bottles of wine (they were 3 for 12) and made my way back to Camp for dinner. Now we're just hanging out in the Rec Tent (because it finally has internet). Sounds like tonight is going to be a laid back night!
Cheers!
-Megan
Cheers!
-Megan
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