In my entry yesterday I mentioned that I was looking at my posts from February 2012. To be honest I was curious to see what I was thinking back then, and to remind myself how I felt. London was about to host it’s third Olympic Games, and I had suddenly found myself living in a city about to become the centre of the world’s attention.

I can’t help wondering whether I would get the same feeling if I was in Paris right now: the same sensation of almost visceral excitement as the city prepared to host the world. There is no denying that there was a degree of apprehension in London in the spring of 2012; yet everyone here knew that we would probably never experience a summer like that again. Truth be told I can’t help envying Parisians that sensation, and can only urge them to relish it while it lasts.