The Body Zone is bound to be the most popular when it opens, if only because it's the most prominent, and first one you come to. But when I was there, these were the top five attractions in the Dome -or at any rate the ones with the longest queues. First, "Timekeepers of the Millennium" - the place you fire those rubber balls. Second, "Living Island" with its seaside-pier theme. Third, "Home Planet" - the only "dark ride" in the place. Fourth, "Play", which has loads of giant interactive video games which appear to work; equal fifth, "Journey", which covers transport, and "Mind", where sculptor Ron Mueck's hyper-realistic "Giant Boy" was the most photographed object in the place.

Least popular is the cardboard-tube spiral of "Shared Ground" which has no real reason for existing other than a vague notion of community. The Faith Zone does pretty well in comparison - about the same, in fact, as the "Self Portrait" zone, which is all about the British character. As for "Work and Learning" - well, go if you must - it does have that mega table football set, and a symbolic enchanted forest - but if you miss it, you've not missed much.

Did I mention queues? The Dome was meant to be designed in such a way that queuing would be unnecessary. The big central show and the Blackadder film outside are meant to relieve pressure on the Zones. Perhaps they do, but even when only half-full, there was plenty of queuing in the Dome - not least for the film, where actors are employed to entertain the punters as they wait.

But this is what we British expect. Everyone must go to the Dome and form queues, necessary or not. You will get very tired and irritable. Sometimes it will be too hot, sometimes too cold. You won't see the point of some bits, and there are bits you won't see at all. At intervals it will be too noisy. But you can sit down easily enough, eat at prices pegged to the High Street, and even enjoy the superb new underground line which takes you straight there. You will find one or two things quite fun.

Me? I'm going again. With the family. We bought a real ticket with our own money. And then, later in life, we'll be able to tell everyone how we went to the Dome in 2000. They will ask us what was inside, exactly. We won't really remember. But we'll never lose the sweet aftertaste of the meringue.