This week in Travel, chief sports writer David Leggat offers a list of the most striking venues of the London Games. But a non-sports lover will have a great time during the Olympics. The city always empties over summer, and visitors to the fine galleries and museums (many of which are free to enter) will find that most tourists in the town aren't scrambling to get into the Tate. Pamela Wade directs us to the resurrected Cutty Sark.
Nonetheless, it could be a testing time. By the London Underground's own measurement standard, the service has had only three entirely problem-free weekdays in the past 12 months.
Of course, there are the older hazards of London. In my seven years living there, I was the gormless victim of casual theft so often it came to be regarded as a mere inconvenience - the highlight: a courier stole an iPod he was delivering, then duped a flatmate into signing for it (or maybe it was the flatmate all along... hmm...).
Vomitorium - last word
We won't go into the details of the much-loved Kiwi broadcaster who spent a flight home from India with his trousers tucked into his socks. Instead let's close the discussion of the "flying vomitorium" with a tip from former nurse Lynne Linton for travellers who find themselves seated next to puking passengers.
"My solution from many years of nursing dealing with vomit and other undesirable odours - just breathe through your mouth," says Lynne. "Works a treat ... just as long as you remember!"
