LONDON – The roughly 23,000-seat venue for Olympic equestrian events is still under construction with only about 45 days remaining before the opening ceremonies. Crews working in the royal village of Greenwhich on London's outskirts can be seen assembling the field from atop the Royal Observatory.

Greenwich is home to the Meridian Line, the point marking the very center of global time and from where Greenwich Mean Time is derived. Students lining up to have their photos taken standing on the line between two time zones peered down from atop the hill to see the Olympic building take shape.

The primary Olympic Park is in Stratford on London's East End. The site was chosen in an effort to revitalize the area's economic conditions. Unemployment on the East End has reportedly reached nearly 12 percent, well above the United Kingdom's 8.2 percent rate.

The proposal to use Greenwich Park for Olympic events met with opposition from advocacy groups against using the historic area to host the games.

There are plans to restore Greenwich back to its original state after the games are finished.