Can you keep a secret guys?? Not many people seem to have noticed it yet, but a year and a half…read moreafter the Olympics there's some exciting stuff going on in Stratford again... Yep living near the Park is paying off nicely at the moment - my new local council swimming pool is none other than the Aquatics Centre! It's been open to the public for the last few weeks and I have to say it's a pretty special venue - I still get tingles every time I walk in. It's £4.50 per swim session for an adult and there's an easy peasy online system to book in advance. There are 2 full size pools inside - the Competition Pool for the hardcore swimmers and the Training Pool where they separate the lengths into two 25m sections. Personally I found a 50m pool to be ridiculously long in real life (my superwoman stamina is a err work in progress) so I tend to do laps in the 25m lanes. You choose a pool and a start time online but it's pretty lax once you're in, and you can stay as long as you like. The water is a nice slightly warm temperature and it's usually a uniform 1.2m depth all the way along (though somehow they can change the depth of different sections - the mind boggles!). It's not all lanes - there are also sections of the pool roped off for 'fun' as well as swimming lessons. Also saw signs for a total wipeout stylee 'Splash Time' for kiddies at weekends that sounded like great fun if anyone wants to lend me a child?! The reason it misses a 5th star is that the changing rooms and shower facilities are just not that great. It's spacious yes and there are plenty of cubicles, hairdryers and lockers, but the layout is a little confusing (quite a wander from the lockers to the female showers), they seem to have too many staff/cleaners milling around not doing much, and the showers themselves seem temperamental and need you to wave a hand past every 3 seconds. Is this how Michael Phelps showered?! (*pauses to enjoy the mental picture*) Ahem. Yeah I expected better. So remember to bring your own towel+toiletries, a plastic bag for your wet cozzie (I haven't spotted a drying machine yet) and a £1 coin for the lockers. And please only tell your special friends - the nicest thing at the moment is that it isn't too busy on weeknights! See you there :)

The swimming pool itself is great, most of the time quiet, you can choose your line depending on…read morehow fast you want to swim so that you don't get disturb by other people while swimming. The changing space however is really poor for this kind of aquatics centre - you can really tell you're just meant to come, quickly change, swim and leave. There are few showers and they are quite temperamental. The lockers and cubicles are just not that comfortable to use. So it's a very good pool, but come there for exercise only and not hoping for a full spa experience!

Quaint, local part of London. Definitely a local feel for a club that has greatly fallen from grace…read moreplaying in the third tier of English football- they should be pushing for premier league promotion/ football in an alternate universe Came for a weekday game between Charlton and Chelsea u-21 for the cup tie and was pretty disappointed in the turnout. I understand it's not a league one match but the stadium atmosphere was completely silent. The folks working the booth and serving concessions were nice enough and the stadium is beautiful but was just an OK experience

If you want to visit the Valley, I'll have a word with my gf and we'll see what she can do. It's a…read morepretty spectacular Valley I have to say, and can accommodate thousands. 27,000 to be exact, actually. Once upon a time, 75k could squeeze in here and it was Europe's biggest league stadium, but Charlton underachieved so it fell into disrepair. Charlton even had to share Selhurst Park for ages while the Valley was renovated. Luckily three sides of it are complete now and it's an absolutely magnificent venue in the heart of SE London. It just needs one more stand to be "done up" and then it'll be finished, and one of the best grounds in London and the country. But it's already pretty fantastic. First-Hand Experience: Yelp asked me to include more information about my personal experience at this stadium, so here it is. I've been to the Valley twice (I think), once on my 2014 stadium tour of England (and I took pix), and once to watch a game when I was younger (Oxford United away). Lovely stadium indeed. I've been to virtually every significant stadium in the UK & US, due to a lifelong obsession with travel, sport & especially footy (soccer to Americans). Born and raised in England, I followed Oxford United (my hometown team) to many stadiums all over the country at away games, and later followed Liverpool (my fave team) around. Every stadium review - like all my reviews - are from personal experience at these stadiums from multiple visits. In 2011, I was on music tour in the UK, and visited these stadiums then, also. As recently as Fall 2014, when I was "stuck" in the UK for 3 months, I visited all of the stadiums as I travelled around the country. I have pictures of many of them which I will post in future. Also, when I'm back in the UK I plan to take more pictures, and add more stadiums too! So watch this space! *** return to regular review *** There is a very romantic story about how the stadium was built: The club found an abandoned sand and chalk pit in Charlton, but did not have sufficient funds to fully develop the site. An army of volunteer Charlton supporters dug out a massive pit for the pitch, and used the soil from the excavation to build up the sides. The ground's name most likely comes from its original valley-like appearance. The club played its first game at the ground before any seats, or even terraces, were installed; there was simply a roped-off pitch with the crowd standing or sitting on the adjoining earthworks. The unique circumstances of the ground's initial construction led to an unusually intense bond between the club's supporters and the site that exists to this day. How romantic is that?

Quality/Quantity - This place is HUGE! And so beautiful,…read moreclean, safe, etc. Central park in NY or Golden Gate Park in SF got nothing on this place. See pictures. When we visited, they were hosting the London Youth games. Atmosphere - On top of being a huge beautiful park... Abba Arena, Copper Box Arena, London Aquatics Center, ArcelorMittal Orbit, world's longest tunnel slide, restaurants, cafes, boat and swan pedalo on the river, London Stadium, Tumbling bay for the kids, Lee Valley hockey and tennis centre, gardens, art and cultural events, Hackney Bridge, etc. See all my pictures for all the other things and places I missed. Sadly, I am not confident that all my pictures got uploaded again... Open 24 hours, how are many parks open 24 hours? And still safe? 2012 Bike Olympics hosted here. Nearby garden bars (20% off Yelp check-in) and breweries, see other reviews. Events - See their website. Next to major shopping centers. Lastly, the East Bank is coming, see pictures. This is another major development. Service - Self service. Price - FREE!! Owner Comment - Thank you for such a wonderful place to visit!

I am a huge Olympics fan and history buff. So when I found out that this was nearby (relatively…read morespeaking) where I was staying I decided this would be the last thing I saw the last night I was in London. I hopped on the tube and made my way up the line. Once off I b-lined it over this way with the little remaining light the day had. To say that it is massive is an understatement. I was in awe of the size of the footprint overall and the stadium itself. To think that so many countries gathered here just a few short years ago is amazing. To me, it was beautiful. I strolled the area without any agenda. I just wanted to walk around the massive area, I honestly have no idea if I walked where I was allowed or not, I wasn't paying attention much as I was staring upwards almost the whole time. I went just about everywhere that I could. Up and down stairs, over bridges, around buildings until I think I covered it all. I would have loved to go down the slide at The ArcelorMittal, but I had gotten there too late in the day and they were already closed. It looks massive and definitely a one of a kind thing to do while here. Another thing I did while here was find the Since 9/11 WTC artwork (thanks Google Maps). I was unaware that there was a memorial of sorts to the victims of 9/11 in London. Being close to the anniversary of that day I felt as if I should visit here. It is a reminder of what happened that day and an educational tool. Tastefully done.

I attended London Stadium for the first time on the opening day of the season to watch Manchester…read moreCity defeat West Ham United 5-0 - as a Manchester City fan I was delighted with this win, however, I was also impressed by the stadium its-self. Located in Stratford, it's probably one of the easier stadiums to get too in London especially considering the nightmare I had earlier on in 2019 at the Tottenham Hotspur Station, Stratford Station which has multiple railway, tube and DLR services is not too far away and just a short walk through Westfield gets you to Queen Elizabeth Park where the stadium is located in. - Do bear in mind however that this cut-through is closed after the game for away fans, which meant it doubled the length of time it took me to get to the stadium, to get out - but with a capacity of 60,000 when the match is even close to sold-out, they do need to do something even if it does bring inconvenience. Back to my review - This is one of the newer stadiums in English football which was built for the London Olympics of 2012 with West Ham moving in for 2016, there has been some debate for whether the stadium is built for football however I really did like my view from the away end but people who weren't as lucky as me and were sat far back were so far away from the pitch - it was ridiculous. It would be a lie to say this stadium was built with football in mind as it was originally for the Olympic games, but surely more planning on what would happen to the stadium would have been better - just look at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, despite being built for the 2002 Commonwealth Games and also having a running track around at first, that is a beautiful, spectacular stadium which was indeed a proper football stadium of the modern era. The staff around the stadium seemed really friendly and didn't mind having a chat to me about my journey up from Manchester, the game and taking me to my seats - the bag policy here is probably the best out of any stadium in London, especially compared to Wembley who seems to hate bags of any sort with some of the most restrictive policies I've seen in a ground. I liked how they had two big screens at either end, similar to Wembley in that fashion (the shape, size, location) but they did mess up on two occasions 1. The VAR replay which disallowed a City goal actually shown a different player instead of the player who was supposed to be offside which added controversy to the whole system especially with it being the first season with VAR. 2. It just seemed like a regular game, I'm used to the Etihad making the first game a little special but here that just didn't happen. Safety could have possibly been an issue with the home and away fans being so close together - which was much worse compared to any new build football which once again could be down to it not being a football built stadium. The atmosphere of the stadium again lacked to Upton Park on that front - again it's another sad example of these modern new stadiums in many ways alienating fanbases with the atmosphere declining - but the stadium now is in a much better location and does look better. A pretty underrated stadium in my opinion and amongst the best in the Premier League for the fan experience, overall feel of the stadium and catering towards disabled supporters (located in the middle without an awful view at the back or front) - the concourse area could be better designed but still a great stadium, which I much prefer to the new, costly Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (what a waste of £1 billion pounds) 4*

The London Stadium is fine as a football stadium, but it could've been so much more as a brand new…read moreground. The biggest problem lies in the fact that the pitch is so far from the stands. This does nothing to help the atmosphere, even when the chances are flying in. Having the stands right up to the goal just makes such a difference. I really think West Ham missed out on this when it was built. On the bright side, concessions are reasonably priced by US marks at least (£10 will get you a beer and a sausage) and it was surprisingly easy to get into the stands quickly and efficiently, given the multiple entrances. It's also not the most convenient to get to. Yes there's a tube stop nearby, but it's a good 15 minute walk to the actual ground, and far longer going back as people are held back so as to not overcrowd the tube. I saw a game here and then a game at Wembley the next day, and the process was so much simpler at the latter. The stands at Wembley are also much closer to the pitch, showing that it's easily achievable for a large, bowl shaped stadium to be built in such a way. Now, this review has nothing to do with West Ham's performance, but I can't help feel that the poor home record isn't being helped by the poor atmosphere, due to poor planning.

Massive events space…read more Was here for a work conference. Rooms are big and bathrooms are clean, thats about what I expect from an events space. Excel is accesible directly from 2 train stations. However, if you get off on the wrong station, its a 15 min walk to the other side of excel complex. I got lucky on first try and it was about a 3 min walk from train to inside. Outside of the conf. space i was in, there is a huge indoor area that does seem to have shops and restaurants. It had a lot of other events going on at the same time, so seems to be a busy area. Note it takes at least 10 minutes to walk the length of the indoor space, so its huge! It's a bit out of the way from center of town, but if you are already here for an event, plenty of restaurant options inside and outside at walking distance.

Really nice convention center, huge, with plenty of space for small to large events. Been here a…read morefew times now to pick up my race bib and swag for the London Marathon. Easy to get to using the Elizabeth Line and DLR which is close by. Plenty of options to get something to eat and drink in the food court/mall area.

If I was rating pools - with the London Fields Lido at the top with York hall coming second…read more(because it has a spa!! ) I would have to put Mile end next - this is a nice clean pool with great kids classes and 2 quite large pools next to each other- one for kids one for adults.The changing area is coed and easy for kids/family. My son has classes here - he hates it - and i love it - the teacher is so strict and amazing (he trains kids to be Olympic racers) that the kids really really learn !!- This pool has the reputation among moms to be the best for kids classes. For adults the pool although clean and new is not a big - I get the impression if you are a serious swimmer you possibly go to a pool with longer lanes - but it is nice just the same.

I've only used the Athletics track here, but I was suitably impressed. For just £3.25 I could turn…read moreup and use the track. I went at about 6.30pm and there were quite a few kids clubs going on, so I'd probably go a bit later next time, but despite the large number of people using the track, there was tonnes of space and never an awkward moment.

One of the best astrologer in the city. He is very experienced in this field. I had a great…read moreexperience with him. Try his services once to know him....

From the owner: Blackmagic removal Vashikaran expert…read moreEx love back Love spell caster Lost love spells Palm readings Spiritual healings Face reading Psychic mediums Astrologer

I really like Showcase cinema in Newham. When I was a student at UEL I would pop over after class…read moreand watch a movie. The entry was reasonable for London at around £5.75 (before 4pm) and the auditoriums are large with great screens and sound. It is important to me that the popcorn, nachos and hot dogs are good quality. Showcase didn't let me down and the food was good. With small inner city cinemas popping up everywhere around London, it is great that large atmospheric theatres like Showcase in Newham are still going strong.

What I really like about this cinema: - the big comfy seats…read more(it's worth your money to pay the little extra for them) - the lack of people (many times I have sat in the theatre with only a few people) - you can book your tickets with the app (don't forget to get them printed at the cinema) - ample car park - cleanliness - drinks, food, sweets Room for improvement : - when busy (quite rare by my experience) the staff at the popcorn/ drinks station could be faster and more efficient - sometimes it stinks outside (not the cinema's fault) Overall: pretty good cinema, showing a range of films. My regular!