We were up around 7.30 and set off at 8. It's only a 10min train journey into Sydney (though it was a 2km/20min walk to the station!) As we arrived at James Park there were 1000s of people, there was music playing & it was a great atmosphere. Our official start time was 9.05 but it was 9.15 as I crossed the start line. The first few hundred metres is downhill and trough a tunnel, as I came out of the tunnel David Bowies Lets Dance was playing. Then the hills...

Today I had booked lunch at Jason Athertons Kensington Street Social, and he didn't disappoint, the food was fantastic and so reasonably priced (unlike some of his London restaurants). I had smoked mushrooms with feta to start, shared a mushroom flat bread before having roast cauliflower and fennel with cauliflower cous cous. For dessert I had yogurt and basil mousse with lemon curd & meringue. After our leisurely lunch we went to Botany Bay. We walked thro...

This morning started with a divisional team meeting with the new Deputy Director General (The DG is equivalent to our Perm Sec or Sir Humphry for non civil servants) He did a bit of a getting to know each other - turns out some of my colleagues are former Olympians themselves - inc Chris Rawlinson who was from Sheffield & represented Team GB in Sydney, Athens & previous com games. (Plus I also learnt this week that members of the Legacy Advisory Committe...