Olympic Celebrations at the British Embassy

By Punch Pulse Correspondent Lindsey Clark

I’m sure there was more than one party going on in DC on Friday to celebrate the opening of the 2012 Olympics in London, but I figured that since I couldn’t actually go to London, the British Embassy was the next best place to be. And, while parts of the ceremony itself left me wondering what exactly was going on (seriously, why were so many people dressed like Abraham Lincoln??) – the Embassy’s party, hosted by British Ambassador Peter Westmacott, did not. A very large (and, might I add, very well dressed) crowd filled the beautiful British Embassy on Friday night, where TVs were set up in several rooms as well as outside on the lawn so we didn’t miss a minute of the opening ceremony action (or any of Kenneth Branagh’s Shakespeare performance). For those who were not so focused on the ceremony, there was also an Olympic-themed photo booth and some highly sought-after prizes (I was really hoping to score the custom tailored English made sports coat, although I have no idea what I would have done with it), as well as the sheer pleasure of being in the company of so many people with accents. The Embassy itself is lovely enough on its own, but combined with the fantastic lighting (they projected images of the Olympic rings on the outside of the building in addition to all the beautiful colored lights throughout the Embassy), the bubbly, and the excitement of women’s gymnastics on prime time television (ok, maybe that excitement was just coming from me), there’s no place I would have rather been. Well, except maybe London.  But at least this way I got to skip the line at customs.

And, since I refrained from cheering it that night in a room full of Brits…GO TEAM USA!!!