At Samphire Beach, a Japanese woman stands in front of Dover's white cliffs. It is 10 past seven on a Tuesday morning. Most people will be having breakfast or getting ready for a day at the office. Miyuki Fijita is swimming to France.
On the morning of the first game I heard a familiar voice in the breakfast room. "I'd like a cheese omelette and a rooibos tea." It is the BBC's Jonathan Agnew.
It may look like a sewage works on a choppy day but in the glorious jargon of London 2012 this is an "early legacy".
Only when his jab connects with my left cheek do I start to understand boxing.
Ever since its non-league football team was drawn against Manchester United in the third round of the FA Cup back in December, this sleepy town where nothing ever happens has been temporarily roused. And it all comes down to identity.
Sheffield United's Peter Ndlovu is uncomfortable talking about Zimbabwe's politics. But many back home blame Leo Mugabe, the president's nephew, for the crisis engulfing Zimbabwean football.
Eight months after Heath Streak's controversial departure as captain provoked a boycott by white players, only half a dozen rebels remain.
It takes a rare man to make Alex Ferguson cry.
With only two months before the team arrives in Australia, Kevin Pietersen is all washed up.
Why do the English fool themselves, again and again, into believing they can win? Might they actually enjoy it?