During the school October half-term I took my two daughters and another two teenagers on a trip to the much-maligned and criticised Millennium Dome. This was at a time when the railway system itself was much- troubled following the regrettable Hatfield accident, and although the journey took longer than usual the important thing was that we all arrived safely.

(The journey was indeed an experience in itself – sitting across the aisle from a young blind woman, was a very humbling occasion, watching her locating a suitable place for her luggage, visiting the buffet car (unaided) and returning to her seat with her purchases, which she opened skilfully and far more easily than I can. She telephoned her colleagues on her mobile phone, instantly recognising tunnels by the lack of signal in her phone! I was captivated by her sense of acceptance and her competence in all things. She was in no way "disabled". She was blind, but I suspect her vision was much more penetrating than anyone with sight. A valuable lesson in patience and humility.)

On arrival at the Dome (which is very easily reached by the Jubilee Line) it is an amazing sight – an enormous creation of modern architectural design and complex and imaginative building. And so we passed through the entry gate and travelled through a maze of tunnels and exhibitions, up and down escalators, ramps and walkways and found ourselves watching the "Show", which I will tell you about later…………

We visited some of the exhibitions, but knew that we were never going to be able to visit all of them in the time available. For the next 5 hours we listened, looked, talked and learned in just a few –

"Shared Ground" – the imaginative and interactive exhibition highlighting our common interests and responses to questions, such as "Do you watch television whilst ironing?", "Who would you cook a special meal for?" and much, much more. The results were compiled electronically and constantly updated and displayed for you to see. The whole area had been built from recycled material, which was in itself an amazing sight.

"Self Portrait" was a display of thousands of photographs depicting two incredible profiles of Britain, one was of individual portraits and the other one showed cities and towns (including a famous shot of Chester Rows) merged together into one continuous picture. In the gallery were some very provocative "sculptures", including one of a suited business man, who appeared "normal" from the front, but as the sculpture rotated you saw the hidden monster of racism in the form of a very aggressive head with its mouth open. Other "sculptures" depicted British humour, politics, Britain and violence – all brilliant in their own right and very thought-provoking.

"Journeys" is the exhibition depicting transport of the past and how we could change our travelling habits in the future – by walking whenever possible, using public transport, more eco-friendly vehicles etc. This was another excellent display with so much to see and learn.

"Money" – showing the structure of local and world economy and how it could change so dramatically and the effects of stock market crashes etc! Very frightening!

"Rest" – a peaceful haven in a very busy building. The "concrete igloo" that you enter has music playing which has been specially written to last for 1000 years without any repetition of parts played! That was mind-blowing enough, but as you sit/lie in this strange place listening to the music (a strange combination of Japanese/modern styles) the room keeps gently changing colour with images depicted on the ceiling – earth/sun/moon etc! Quite something.

"Faith" –a display showing different faiths and an opportunity to write a "message for the Millennium". There is a small "temple" (similar to the room in Rest without music or colour), but in order to cross all the religious boundaries, the room is empty and neutral in appearance.

And so to - "The Show", which takes place in the middle section of the Dome and is beyond description, but here goes….
The story is a sort of "Romeo and Juliet", with the King of the Air falling in love with the Queen of the Earth and how the ecology was disrupted, but finally united. As usual all ended happily ever after with much activity in portraying the story.
There is music playing throughout the 40 minute performance and the lights constantly change the appearance and mood of the story. There are dozens of young people participating in this event, which is full of vitality and energy. There are acrobats, some on trapeze wires, gymnasts and dancers who never seem to stop! and a brilliant team of stage managers/props people. The finale includes fireworks and the most amazing acrobatic, mid-air weaving of ribbons to create a "tent". The colour and spectacle of this is so incredible I did not know where to look – up into the 100 feet high dome where men and women on stilts floated down to earth on wires, a central stage which rose into the air and out into the main arena at various times; graffiti-covered sheeting hung from the sides of the "tower" in the centre, which eventually turned into a forest! A young man in a wheelchair participated in this show and again I was reminded that he was not "disabled", merely using his wheels to move him around the stage with more skill than many who, like me, are "able". This was an invigorating and stimulating spectacle, which showed the enthusiasm, energy and commitment that so many of our young people do have. I was truly entertained and felt very happy with all that I had witnessed that day, just sorry that I could not stay for longer.

To finish the day, unbelievably, we bumped into our friends, Richard, Pat, Sarah and Tom Fitton. This was the perfect end to a long, tiring, but brilliant day.

If you did not get the opportunity to visit the Dome, or felt deterred by the media’s portrayal of how awful it was, then all I can say is you missed out! It is good to experience things first-hand and form your own opinion. The Dome closes on 31 December 2000 and I await with interest its final destiny, glad in the knowledge that I was able to see it for myself.