My road to Beijing 2008

Week of ups and downs

2008-09-10T20:33:00.006-05:00

September 10, 2008

This week has been the week of heaven and hell to say the least (don’t worry; I’m not on my pulpit). Of course, it started with a great win by our beloved Tigers! Can I get an M-I-Z…… I did however neglect to update that blog post. While ESPN is still my savior, it really needs to work on its timing. With 3 minutes left in the game, the screen stops. No more feed. You don’t even want to know the words that came out of my mouth (let’s put it this way, it’s the alternate ending to the above chant). So, I relied on my backup savior, KFNS radio online. Always good to have two saviors, don’t you think? Hehehe. Beware of false idols, or something like that.

Anyways, off that kick. Afterward, I met up with Shawna, one of the Renmin volunteers who has been helping us through our stay. Though she’s an economics student, I think we’ll turn her into a journalist yet. She’s constantly asked to write things for her school about us, and decided the other day she’d like to write an article about how the US presidential election will affect China’s economy. I’m so proud. On a side note, I think the Obama campaign should try to get every Chinese person registered to vote. He’d win by a landslide, and the people here seem more informed about the issues that those in the States to whom it directly matters. Go figure!

We decided to head to the Fragrant Hills, a place on the northwest side of town famous for its scenic views. I knew we had chosen wisely when just the sights from the taxi were breathtaking. Hidden among the outskirts of the mountains, the small "Park of Tranquility and Pleasure" holds treasures of both the natural and manmade varieties. Magnificently decorated Buddhist and Lama temples and more modern attractions (eateries, a hotel, massage parlors, tourist shops) nestle into the mountainside and give a panoramic rivaled only by those of the Great Wall. The name can be slightly misleading, since the hills are probably less fragrant than the adjacent city. On the top of a hillside rests two stones that look like huge incense burners – hence the name "fragrant." Personally, I was just happy it didn’t have the million city smells.

We only traveled half a mile up, for we got there late and were afraid of the park closing. If we had wanted to travel another mile both ways, we probably could have seen all of Beijing from the tallest peak (or we could have paid for a sky-lift, but I wasn’t touching those). The views look out over the mountains to one side and the large city to the other. Simply awe-inspiring at sunset, though unfortunately because of the harsh shadows, I couldn’t get a clear 360 panoramic to share. It’s the kind of place to just breathe in deep and enjoy, thanking the heavens for such a wonderful gift. I definitely did.

The next day I decided to keep up my spiritual adventure and visit the Temple of Heaven. It was one of the places talked about in every book, so I figured I might as well go once. The surrounding park was full of locals exercising in unique ways, dancing, playing instruments, or just taking in the atmosphere. The temple itself is like a large rotunda, filled with furniture and icons for the emperor who built it. Dozens of stone calf sculptures line the walls, apparently a symbol of sacrifice and good fortune. While not quite as impressive as the literature made it out to be (that might be because I didn’t have a guide to tell me what things meant), I did stumble upon an amusing bit of déjà vu. My family will remember walking into the Parthenon right before a choir from Texas filled the air with glorious song. Well, after the temple, I ventured to the Echo Wall just before a community group (and anyone else who wanted to join in) crooned chants from previous dynasties. Talk about timing.

A man writing with water, good exercise and he practices his caligraphy :) -->

<-- I don't remember her in the Olympics

I was also able to go one more time to the Great Wall, this time to a lesser visited portion called Mutianyu. To get up to the base however, you can probably walk, but it’s more fun (I’m told) to take a chairlift. My fear of heights didn’t help while several hundred feet above the ground, but I survived and even got photos to prove it. hehehe. The skies weren’t quite as clear as the first day, but the haze seemed to add to the effect as we conquered the long, long pathways up and down. And, to end the trip and add a little more fun, we too sleds down the mountain. :)

<-- They neglected to tell us Number 1 before we bought the tickets.

Photos of the wall itself can be seen on the Panos page.

Work started again on the fourth. I have to admit. At first, I think most of us were a little disappointed we didn’t get to leave with the others (or rather, we were a little mad at ourselves for volunteering the extra time). It already had seemed like a long time, and we weren’t sure the benefits of our labor. Yet, after that first day back, all were completely satisfied with their choices.

It’s not that the athletes during the Olympics were rude. Just the contrary; they were always very nice. But you try having dozens of reporters hounding you after losing by two-tenths of a point. We’re like wolves sometimes, it’s true. And it always felt like they ‘had to’ give us statements instead of they ‘wanted to’. The Paralympic athletes, on the other hand, give some of the greatest quotes a reporter could ask for. Maybe it’s the difference between gymnastics (where you fail and you’re out) and wheelchair basketball (where you play several times during prelims before elimination). Maybe it’s the fact that they don’t have the entourage of journalists behind them, and relish being called by name (something we FQR try to memorize before the end of every match). Or maybe it’s just because each has such an individual drive and story behind them.

Take Sabrina Pettinicchi and David Durepos, a husband and wife pair on the Canadian basketball teams each striving for a third gold medal. Or Loraine Gonzales on the US team, who played regular ol’ basketball and dreamed of the Olympics before an accident changed her path. During rehab, she watched a past Paralympics and said, “This is what I have to do. This is what will make me an athlete again.” I talked to her after her first practice in the NIS, and she said when the curtains opened, she knew this is where the magic would happen.

Some were born to the wheelchair. Others’ lives changed toward it. But all have overcome so many hurdles and boundaries. And all have a story that I wish I could sing to the world (though you wouldn’t want me to with my bad voice, hehehe). It’s a shame the Paralympics aren’t covered more. I hear the US didn’t even get the Opening Ceremonies (I could be wrong, it could have been on some obscure channel). The acts completely rivaled August 8th and even surpassed it with emotion and feeling. Beijing doesn’t even get as much coverage as the previous events, but we still get enough to fill most of the day.

I mentioned this week was heaven and hell. The latter was due to the persistent rains and the onset of flu after our counterparts left. It was being passed around; everyone had gotten it. I just wish I could have taken a rain check. Totally not fun. Luckily Shawna came to my rescue with some amazing soup (still not sure what was in it, maybe don’t want to know all the ingredients) and in the morning I was feeling better. It’s still hanging around though, with fevers and stomach problems. Nothing I can’t work through. Hey, if this is where the magic will happen, then I’ll trust my divine trips did me some good.

Thank god for ESPN

2008-08-30T20:30:00.001-05:00

August 30, 2008

It’s a peaceful Sunday morning here in Beijing. The sky is clear and blue. The campus streets are bustling with new students and their parents preparing for the start of Monday classes. The few Christian churches in the city are filling with tourists for morning mass. And on any other Sunday, I’d be joining them. But today I have a different church.

For half a world away lies the promise land. You would not know its powers except for the large green field and booming voice from the heavens. My fellow believers are already there, dressed in the holy colors and praying the sacred hymns of our forefathers. I, myself, am at my computer – my altar – not being able to make the pilgrimage but still praising my savior. Thank god for ESPN!

My father asked me how a Tiger sports fan, like myself, could miss the football opener in St. Louis. I thought about breaking into Hooters Beijing to watch the game, but with it not opening until 11am, the timing wasn’t happening. 8:30am games really don’t work for me. ‘Tiger’ Mike Kelly is good to listen to, but I needed to see to believe. Just short of making my parents buy a webcam and pointing it toward the television, I was about to submit to the sacrifices of a foreign land when I had one more idea – ESPN360.com. The words rang from the heavens.

The Black and Gold never looked so good. With Chase Daniel presiding and JMac leading the procession, the church of football is in session in Beijing. Who would have thought that 6760 miles was only a minute delay. Laying on my bed and sporting my MIZZOU tee, the hotel staff probably thinks I’m dying with the rate I’m screaming. But I don’t care. My Tigers are on the prowl and looking for indian blood.

So, I will say my prayers and turn my rosary. And next week – Paralympics-schedule permitting – I will sit in the very front pew. But right now, the Almighty must be a Tiger fan. Miracles do happen, Mizzou. Now let’s take it to the house! M-I-Z…!

16 days, and for what?

2008-08-28T20:27:00.001-05:00

August 28, 2008

Sixteen days. That’s all it was. Well, not quite all it was.

The 2008 Beijing Olympics are the most expensive Games in history, totaling $40.9 billion US in six years on infrastructure, energy, transportation and water supply projects. There were nearly a dozen new subway lines built, 12 eye-catching venues constructed, and millions of temporary jobs created.

And for what?

For 10,500 athletes from 204 countries to come together and compete for 300 pieces of gold – or gold covered metal. For 43 new world records and 132 new Olympic records to be set, and a record 87 countries to win a medal during the Games. For two-thirds of the world population (4.4 billion) to watch the same thing, just at different times. For a thin veil of peace and harmony to cover the other world headlines of war and troubles. For China to finally have its day in the light and show the world remarkable traditions and customs – no matter what the price may be.

China will get back a little of that money. With 70,000 visitors a day to the superstore on the Olympic Green, it is estimated $70 million was spent for 5,000 different types of souvenirs. I think I commented on it before, but they had EVERYTHING except embroidered badges – sorry daddy – and books. Of course, since everything was made in china, who would want a Chinglish book anyways? And that superstore was only available to staff and people who had tickets to specific venues; 230 additional stores covered the rest of the population.

NBC also paid China for the historic Games. For a mere $894 million, they could have sole rights for the US. In return, they produced 1,400 hours of coverage on six television networks, 2,200 hours of live competition from Beijing available online. NBC averaged 27.7 million viewers a night for its prime-time coverage, and while it won't top the 33.1 million average for Atlanta, it’s not too shabby with the 12 hour time difference. I’m still not sure it’s worth it though… 16 days? That’s $55 million a day. Obama could only raise that much in the entire month of February. The Dark Knight didn’t even reached that each day in opening weekend.

So now, Misty-Mae can shake her groove-thang on Dancing with the Stars, though hopefully with a bit more clothes on. Phelps can be on SNL (although we’d like him to not put clothes on, thank you). Millions of dollars can be exchanged back in the US on endorsement deals.
And what about China?

The day after closing ceremony, although many woke up a bit later than normal, things ran as if nothing happened. Cars were back on the streets. A thick smog once again covered the city. Old men sat out on the sidewalks playing cards or Chinese Checkers while little lap dogs explored nearby and wives sat fanning themselves in the heat. The airport was undoubtedly busier than normal, but that was the only city sector bustling with activity. Even the Silk and Pearl Markets, which raised haggling prices for the influx of foreigners, were marking things back down and readjusting to lower profits.

The only thing in Beijing that screamed “Olympics,” besides the banners being torn down or swapped with Paralympics ones, was the constant replay of Chinese victories on CCTV. And they keep coming. And coming.

Now is the IPC’s turn to shine. While 52 of my Mizzou colleagues boarded a plane this afternoon for the US, 6 of us are still doing time. Parts of us wanted to depart with them. That would have been easy. But we still have three weeks to experience something new, something only 30,000 other volunteers get to do (while that sounds like a lot, there were 1.5 million volunteers for the IOC events).

It will be interesting to see how China reacts. Already, they are spotlighting athletes once kept in the dark for their disabilities. And while only 50% of the city is handicapped accessible, it’s a huge jump from the previous percentage.

Why did we stay? We get to report on sports not everyone knows about and about athletes people should! Olympics athletes have amazing stories, yes. But some of that is still fame and privilege. I want to learn the story of the wheelchair fencing champion. No one can say he/she is in it for the fame and glory. At least, I don’t think. I’m scheduled to cover wheelchair basketball for ten days, one of the premier events, and can’t wait to get started!

Wrapping up one; still a month to go

2008-08-23T20:25:00.002-05:00

August 23, 2008

(Photos to come when I can. I have many, just been busy. In the meantime, look at the panos page, there are several new ones with more of those to come as well)

So, once upon a time, there was this thing called time. And it was in the future and present tenses, not past tense as we know it today…. Where did that time go?

And where did I leave off so long ago. Oh yeah, track and field. So everyone knows Bolt (ironic name, isn’t it) broke the 100m – the night I was there. I surely hope he’s the real thing. It would be so sad if something like that is artificial. And he’s the same age as me! I can run the 100m too… in about 4 times as long. That’s not who I was watching though. I was watching Richard Thompson (unfortunately spelled with a ‘P’), who got silver. I think he’s actually gotten two of them now. Go figure: “For the silver medal, Richard Thomson” hehehe. I like the ring of that… (for those who don’t know, Richard Thomson is my fiancé, Richard Thompson is from Trinadad.)
Just a question. What is up with countries using the wrong colors? (This blog is going to jump – my mind is like that right now) The Dutch are always clad in brilliant orange. The Aussies use yellow and green. The Italians, at least this year, are dressed in blue and silver. And NONE of their flags use those colors! It’s like gymnasts’ ages; they just don’t make sense.
As far as work goes, it was busy but soooo fun. The individual events were amazing to witness in person. Even though we are supposed to be unbias, it’s really hard to do. You just want the red-white-and-blue to win. And they have, with 107 medals at this count and a few more to go tomorrow. BTW, I sing the Chinese anthem in my sleep now. That and the Fuwa song they played in between each apparatus rotation in the NIS.

Yet, gymnastics had to come to an end, and overnight the venue was transformed into reckless world of handball. Let me tell you, the difference in the crowds… wow. I didn’t realize how quiet the previous fans were, even with a Chinese gymnast due up. I also had to bid farewell to my FQR job, at least for now. Heck, I don’t know anything about handball. Let the reporters who’ve been covering it do the job. Now I’ve been working in the Press Workroom – basically doing nothing but waiting to help a journalist who may need assistance.

Before the Olympics started, the city of Beijing put up posters for their residents about questions not to ask foreigners. Among them were: don’t ask about relationship status, don’t ask about jobs, don’t ask about politics, don’t ask about salary. I have gotten all of them – multiple times even. So, next time you just meet a stranger on the street, ask their salary (or the average salary, or my parent’s salary, one guy was very persistent). Hey, it’s what the Olympics people do!

And my job title should officially be changed to ONS Flash Quote Reporter and Foreign Visitor Services. I’m not as bad as my friend Ted. He is Korean (adopted as a baby, grew up in the states), and must be approached 30 times a day by Chinese visitors needing assistance. He’s definitely a good sport about it, and sometimes is lucky to have someone also speak English. But while in uniform I too am fair game for natives and Westerners alike. My favorite comment, from an Aussie I think, was “What, you’re not Asian?” hehehe. Ummm…. Sure. Let’s go with that shall we.

I do admit, some of the genuinely need assistance. And I have noticed many of the volunteers make up answers when they don’t actually know. The Olympic Green has three parts: the North Zone, the Olympic Common Domain (the main center), and the South Group. And, unfortunately for many tourists, they have been letting all three onto the OCD even though the other two are over a mile away. NO, water polo IS NOT in the Water Cube! Read the ticket! Hehehe. They could give people maps too, that would help.

However, with two Californian’s misfortune came a good surprise for me. I always go in at least an hour early to work, just to hang out and trade pins. As I was passing the NIS, I saw two men, one of them rather elderly, arguing with the security at the staff entrance. Knowing full well they speak little English, I go up and offer to help. Sure enough, they need Handball and Water Polo (both in the South). They tell me they have been wandering for hours on bad directions, have no water, and are extremely late (like 2 hours after their first ticket started). So, I offer to take them to a cab and to the other entrances – offering my water bottle of course. Come to find out, their names are Robert and Alexander (Sandor) Tarics. That last name may not mean anything to you, but it should. Sandor turns out to be the oldest living gold medalist. And at a youthful 95-years-old, he is still pretty spry, even with heat exhaustion. He competed at the Berlin 1936 games in Water Polo for Hungary. I was unfortunately not able to set up an interview with him due to my work schedule, but it really made my day. I just wonder how much the event has changed, good or bad, in that timeframe. People have claimed both to have very political overtones. Both are during a time of uncertainty in the world. Did a gold medal mean or symbolize something different back then? There are just so many questions to think about.

All work and no play ... heck with that!

2008-08-13T20:12:00.004-05:00

August 13, 2008

When going to the Olympics, you must know a few things. First, sleep does not exist. Especially when the games are 12 hours ahead of their main audience (because even though the US is not the center of the universe – sorry to break that bubble – it is the money center). So, events that normally would be played at reasonable hours are now being played from 4 until midnight, and then picking up at 9am the next morning (basically a backwards schedule, so the finals can be shown live in eastern prime time). We were actually shocked that opening ceremony wasn’t at 8am, but I guess then the fireworks would be quite as amazing. Again, did you see that production!? We are still talking about it!

You could just feel the excitement in the air today after yesterday’s men’s gymnastics (GA) team finals (USA-USA-USA…). I admit; I watched the men in my room. On a rare day off, I wasn’t going to fight the crowds when I had AC, a "comfy" bed and a front row view on my flat screen. Plus I could root on the team with fellow countrymen online and without my supervisor correcting me – volunteers aren’t supposed to have bias.

Anyways, 5am wake-up calls are never fun, but I won’t complain when they come before Women’s GA team finals :) At least I’ve always been able to get up to the alarm *cough – roommate was late.* hehehe. Just walking into the arena before the competition, I could feel something new in the air that was absent from qualifications. There were actually people there for one; granted 3/4 of them were for the home team. Flags were dangled from balconies or clutched in anxious fans’ hands. The Aussies had their blow-up kangaroos (many jokes there, believe me) and giant '#1' fingers. The Brazilians had their crazy wigs and face paint (remember, these guys go all out with football/soccer). And the Americans, though outnumbered, had their mighty "USA" chant. Of course, as soon as they’d start that, the Chinese would counter with their own. "Zhong Guo -- Jiayou (gee-I-O)," or "China -- add oil," has actually been promoted by television programs, video presentations, commercials and official cheering squads for months. And personally, it’s getting on my nerves – but that’s not hard.

There’s no real way to describe it – you just have to go to an Olympics event. On one hand, you want to promote peace. On the other, you want to totally cream the other countries. It brings out a kind of patriotism you never knew existed. It’s not that you hope the other team falls… well… you just want them to look bad. Ok, that totally didn’t sound right, but it’s true. Not even a MU-kU game stirs that type of hunger. It comes from someplace else. Probably because we already know Kansas sucks :)

Boy, was that a long tangent… The second thing you must know when coming to the Olympics is the art of pin trading. That’s right. There are even specifics on categories and terminology. The hobby is said to have started around the 1896 Athens games (so it spans all of modern Olympics) when every judge, athlete and official was given a cardboard circle with a ribbon to designate their stature. Since then, it had grown to an obsession for some. People will travel halfway around the world with no intention to attend games; just to trade. The concept is easy enough though: take your pin and trade it for another. Lather, rinse, repeat.

Luckily, Mizzou knew this phenomenon and hooked us up. Unfortunately, the 150 pins each of us recieved say nothing about anything in Beijing. But we still have them. And they are very popular with our Chinese counterparts and McDonalds staffs. Hehehe.

The third thing to know, at least for an American, is to come prepared for Today Show sign slogans. It took us a couple days to come up with one we thought would work. Of course, in China, apparently you also have to bring your own poster board, since they sell it no where. Not even Kinkos. But we lucked out and it paid off. Did you see us Monday morning? If you think the crowds look slim behind the window, it’s because only people with a ticket for that day’s events on the Green even have a chance at being there. More room for us I guess, since we were on nearly every other commercial break and in the background of most segments. We even got Al to say "MIZZOU" after our chant. GO TIGERS!

I know. I'm a little behind everyone else. I wasn't able to get in until after the photo. Still, I'm there (with some friends we met from the US). Thanks for the photo Monica!

And the fourth and final think to know: HAVE FUN! You can definitely get frustrated when you’re so tired and caught up in everything. Going to games helps, if you got those tickets I talked about before… or these:

Yep. I scored. Twice. We went to beach volleyball the other day, and get to go to track events inside the Bird’s Nest this weekend. Now to only uncover some Water Cube seats. Heck that whole all-work-and-no-play thing is totally not for me. I’ve gotta play sometimes – in between sleep. Too bad I can’t "play" at the equestrian events. I’ve been unable to watch them before tonight, much to my dismay. But tonight I got to see dressage on tv. Yummy! Very pretty eye-candy (and not the same kind as men’s gymnastics). I’ve gotta volunteer for that next time. Of course, I might be asked to leave from petting the competitors too much. I know I’d get in trouble from too many photos. Ah well, worth the risk.

On a side note: are you tired of seeing McDonalds and Visa commercials yet? I’m not. Because the government runs the media here, we have NO ads. You heard me right. From Opening Ceremony to every competition right down to badminton, they are all completely uninterrupted. The only bad thing about that is the configuring of bathroom breaks.

Hello boys...

2008-08-09T20:10:00.002-05:00

August 9, 2008

It feels like the first day of school all over again. You go in knowing what you have to do (in this case, find an athlete and get quotes), but it never quite ends up exactly as expected. I've talked to athletes in training. I even fought reporters for quotes (here and elsewhere). And of course I've watched gymnastics before, many times. But to put everything together is a whole other ballgame. And you really take NBC's scoring totals for granted. You know how hard it is to watch 6 different events simultaneously, keep track of who did what and why (fall, shaky, whatnot) since they're all competition and still focus on the few particular men who you're going to interview?

Today I went in early. First off, I wanted to see the totally cool cauldron. It must look a lot better from the inside than out. Don’t get me wrong, it’s nice – maybe it was all the smog today – it just didn’t impress me as much as I’d have imagined. It does look very cool at night though. I’ll have to get some pictures.

Because I went in early, the first subdivision was still progressing (I was to work the second of three). While watching it in our little office, my manager came in and said one of the individual athletes had finished and was already in the Mixed Zone – and I needed to quote him. At first I’m like “ok, who the heck is it!?” since I hadn’t done much studying of the other subdivisions. But with a 2-second rundown I was out, acted like I knew everything about him and was published as the first official flash quotes of the gymnastics competition! Woohoo! He was really nice, too, and talkative for only speaking English as a second language. Seems to be my specialty.

I technically worked all three subdivisions, voluntarily staying late to help with the last one too. I don’t think my feet or back can take that kind of schedule again tomorrow, but I was happy to help where needed. It’s a real rush to be in the thick of things – journalists from 5+ countries all crammed in trying to get the best quotes possible from their chosen spokesmen. I did screw up once – pretty big in my mind – but I think my overall work made up for it and they didn’t yell at me too much. It’s the first true day of competition, for them and me. I’ll blame it on that. That and the chaos that defines the press Mixed Zone.

Sorry for not being more specific – I'm super tired from 12 hours on my feet. You’ll just have to watch and see…

Green does not mean go

2008-08-08T20:08:00.002-05:00

August 8, 2008

Green definitely does NOT mean go! So I started writing this blog at exactly 8pm, on 8/8/08. Yep, it’s Olympic time! Over 91 thousand people are packed into the Bird’s Nest. I’ll guess that over 1.5 million are packed onto the Olympic Green, or OCD (Olympic Common Domain), to see the fireworks. Where am I? In my hotel room waiting for a pizza and watching the ceremony on tv…

Five hours ago, I thought it might be fun to get onto the Green to watch the ceremony. Not into the stadium of course, but the Green at least. Five hours would be enough, right? My sticker to designate permission was accidently given to another student, but I thought I’d try. All the other volunteers for NIS were on the Green. Well, after standing in line for 90 minutes at security, I had moved a foot (I’m still 50 ft away from the first checkpoint). And that was the line “for staff”. There were dozens of other lines for ticket holders. And, right when I was questioning whether I wanted to continue standing in the heat and humidity, they decide the line behind us is too long and split it, moving the people behind us next to us. We of course are still filing into the same little gate, but now there’s twice as many people in front of me.

It wasn’t a total waste of time though. Since I was wearing my fashionable blue volunteer uniform, I had probably a dozen westerners come up to me needing assistance. “How do I get to the Green,” they would ask in the slowest voice possible, like I didn’t look American or something. Some were obviously from Europe, so I understand, but someone from Boston should know better… “Well, you have three options: wait in these lines, which will probably take 3 hours or more, ride a bus and wait in another security line, or walk the 2 miles and wait in another security line.” They didn’t seem happy. I guess they assumed the same as I did: five hours would be enough, and Green would mean go. Hehehe.

Oh well. TV is better anyways… more close-ups, and I have air conditioning :) Wait till you see this production. If there were any unemployed people in China before, there wasn’t any tonight. The theatrics of it all! I won’t spoil anything, but if you were questioning whether to watch it or not, there should be no option now! I only wish I had NBC to translate it all :)

So, on to tomorrow. Work is amazing. Yesterday we saw podium training, and got our first taste of what it’s like in the Mixed Zone with other journalists. And our first shot of actually wrangling athletes. I still mainly interviewed people of other languages, so I’ll have no clue if they’re used except for maybe like the British. But that’s ok. It’s my job, and I’m loving it! Tomorrow starts men’s followed by women’s qualifications, so every gymnastics star (minus the Hamms of course) will be walking past me. YUM! Hehehe.

Green night

2008-08-03T20:00:00.002-05:00

Temperature outside: 75, but it’s early, just wait. It is “blue sky” though. We’ll see how the forecast is over the Green
Words I know in Chinese: 28, learned one yesterday, though now I have to remember what is it...
Gymnasts we hope show up today: the USA women’s team. Woohoo!

Ok, so I HAD to write. Yesterday started out not a good day for me. I think I got whatever stomach thing is going around. Icky! So when Ted called after work to say he had good news, I was expecting him to say he’d found another NBC place (he’s been stalking them, hehehe, I’m only partly kidding).

To my surprise and joy, he pulled out a pass saying “Rehearsal” on it. Ok, so it wasn’t actually a pass into the Bird’s Nest for the opening ceremony rehearsal, but it was a pass onto the Green. As Richard put it, it was a pass to stand around outside. But it was MY pass! Hehehe.

We got there kinda late, since we waited for people, so the good spots I wanted were taken. But we set up just south of the Nest over the pond and waited. Luckily, they didn’t disappoint us. Not only was everything lit up last night, but they shot off fireworks several times throughout the practice. Now, if I had my tripod and wide angle lens, these would be awesome, but they’ll do :)

As people were swarming out, one of our Chinese colleagues mentioned her friend getting inside after the last rehearsal. Yeah, right. I was very skeptical. But, sure enough, no one stopped us.

It is completely amazing. Walking between the huge pillars that make up the outside of the nest, you can only see a little sliver of what’s inside the stands. But, as you approach, it just opens up into an amazingly huge stadium. Everything circles around unobstructed to the very top. While not as decorated from the inside as I’d have imagined (maybe they’ll do that before the 8th), it is something to behold.
Check out my panos

What we have here is a failure to communicate

2008-08-01T19:48:00.003-05:00

Temperature outside: 82. Sunny and “blue” sky. Why couldn’t it be like this yesterday for the eclipse?
Words I know in Chinese: 27, we’ll get to one of the new ones later.
What I was watching when I started this blog: Chinese version of the Price is Right.

I know, I know. I need to post more. It’s been crazy busy, and things won’t be getting any less calm. This week starts “podium training” for the gymnasts. Nope, it’s not showing them what it’s like to win a medal, though that would be kinda cool. Athletes get to train and work out on the equipment in the FOP (field of play), which then journalists and FQRs can watch and ask questions.

I finally got my first true Olympic interview. Granted, it was 2 questions because the athlete was in a hurry, but it still counts! INFO ‘08 published it! I haven’t talked about INFO, have I? Well, we as Flash Quotes Reporters do an interview with an athlete, and then run it back to the office where we take a copytaker takes it down and sends it off to the editors. Then, if it’s approved, it gets published on INFO 2008, which is the internet one-stop-shop for accredited journalists. Complete with everything from daily weather and traffic to full coverage of past tournaments and biographies, it makes research soooo much easier. That’s actually the center of my masters research, but that’s boring stuff.

This interview also was my first use of an interpreter, since she was a Japanese gymnast and spoke no English. You really take language for granted, and I’m sure this won’t be the last time I would be lost in translation without them. It went well though. I got the quotes, and printed them out to prove it, hehehe. Now I just need to learn Japanese to see if any newspapers use them.

So, what else has been happening? Two nights ago we ventured to an amazing dumplings restaurant across town. Think pot-stickers or ravioli from the US, but ten-times better. Another Mizzou student found it first, so we can't take credit. First off, they have dozens of fillings and combinations to choose from. Lamb, pork, leek, fennel, egg, etc. And then, you can pick colors. Eating a bright eggplant-purple dumpling definitely takes some getting used to. But it’s tasty :)

As we were finishing, one of our friends wanted to bring some back for her roommate. So, we ordered another 2 helpings (12 dumplings in all), and tried to figure out how to get it to go. “Not a plate. A box”, gesturing with our hands. “Box to go? Box… to go?” It took a second, but she seemed to understand, repeated it to us, wrote something down and left. We should have known that she didn’t speak English and probably didn’t get it. So, we paid and waited. Sure enough, 12 dumplings come out on a plate. “Can we have a box to go?” She nodded, said something like “just a minute” and ran off. We saw them stacked near us, and 5 minutes later when she still didn’t bring out something, we got it ourselves. So, we get up to leave. “No, no, no…!” We are completely confused now, wondering if we need to pay for the box or something (since we pay for plastic bags at stores). By now four other servers and workers come over, everyone’s staring and we’re trying to figure out what they want. What we have here is definitely a failure to communicate. Another diner said some about us ordering more, but we motion that we just wanted a box. Box to go, right?

Long story short (too late), sure enough they bring out a large plate with potatoes and sugar syrup. The waitress brings the menu out and points to an item on the back page (all in Chinese characters, we have no clue). “Boc-su-ta-go.” It’s very good. Tastes just like the ingredients: white potatoes cooked lightly with a sugar syrup coating. I’m sure they were laughing at us the rest of the night. We were. I’d highly recommend getting a box-to-go next time you’re in Beijing. If it’s on the menu of course.

Line 8 subway finally opened. Except, it actually makes commute more troublesome. You can’t just transfer from 10 to 8 like you do the other lines. Because they built it underneath the Olympic Green, we must exit the subway line 10, go around the block, through 2 security tents, back down and around to where we started so THEN we can ride the line. Efficiency anyone? At least going home is easy – only staff can ride it right now, so there’s no one on the trains. We used it to take nighttime pictures the other night. Someone should have told us it closes at 10pm though, since we were stuck on the Green at 10:30 not knowing how to get back. Oh well. Got good pictures (and eventually found our way to line 10).

<-- Official BOCOG photo released the first day Line 8 was working. It was used in a newspaper, I just don't know which one :) Ok, I have three other posts in the works right now, so I should get more than ONE next week. I have Panos too, so be on the lookout for them in a few.

The Green is just as stunning at night. Runway-style lights line the huge plaza as each building is lit to emphasize its unique grandeur. The Bird's Nest and NIS were dark when we got there, but the Cube and tower were both in full splendor. I'm sure as soon as the tourists arrive, the scene will feel like a wonderland. We saw stages and screens set up everywhere. I can't wait for the Games to start.

Ticket parade

2008-07-25T16:52:00.002-05:00

Temperature outside: 90s and up, hellishly humid and smoggy.
Words I know in Chinese: 25, woohoo! I'm getting there (now I might be able to get some food)
Times I've been to the Olympics Flagship store: 5, but who's counting. The real scariness would be the money spent... no comment

So you are still looking for tickets to the Olympics? You have a few options: 1) Be an elementary school student. About 1 million seats are set aside for them in Beijing. And they are only 5 to 10 RMB. If I’m not smarter than a 5th grader, does that count?

2) Buy them off internet sources. A swimming-finals ticket will run you about $1200 on most online sites, while opening ceremony has been seen around $25,000. Remember, many of these tickets started at around 50 RMB – or just under $10.

3) Fight the stampede at a ticket counter on Friday as the fourth phase of ticket sales opened at 9am. Organizers announced Tuesday that 820,000 tickets were to be sold starting then, with around 250,000 for Beijing events and the rest at 4 other cities (football/soccer games mainly).
I unfortunately have work to do with training for ONS, but I decided to check out the scene for nostalgia (and blogging) purposes. This had to be the mother-of-all queues. From now on, I vow not to complain at amusement park lines or waiting for Busch Stadium tickets. Just don’t let them be like today.

Equipped with everything from folding chairs and foam boards to beach umbrellas and beer coolers, people waited. And waited. The official number from Xinhua News said there were 30,000 people in line. I’m wondering where and when they showed up. The line was literally miles long (condensed slightly with winding barricades, but not by much) as it wound across streets and through nearby parks. And, when police opened an entrance, the mob plowed anything in its path. The wake was bent steel gates and several ambulances.

The man holding them back in the front? 25-year-old Xu Yong camped out for 45 hours to hold that privilege. I guess he called in sick from his job. Never did hear if he got his tickets :)

So is it worth it for a $10 Olympics ticket? Pan Hai Zhen, thought so. “I’ll have stood in line for 2 days and a night, but I think it’s worth it. I really like football and to see it in the Olympics would be a dream.” Unfortunately, when she finally got through at 10:30, that dream didn’t quite pan out. “I got some swimming [diving actually] and I think that’s ok. I also get to see closing ceremony. I hope to invite my parents from my hometown to come in for it. That’s why I waited in line.”

Three American students studying in Beijing thought differently. Arriving just before 11am on Friday, they saw the line (they obviously hadn’t expected) and decided to head back home.

BTW, this is not Pan Hai Zhen - just thought I should say that :)

Tickets for the Bird’s Nest (National Stadium), Water Cube (National Aquatics Center) and National Indoor Stadium were all sold at the central ticket office just south of the Green. Now, I may have missed some people, but in the 2 hours I stuck around the exit, I saw ONE non-Asian looking person walk through those gates. And he declined to talk to press.

Sales were beginning to die down at the main ticket office as I was leaving at 11, and the crowd was still anxious for more. At 4 p.m., pretty much all venues were completely out. Even Rhythmic Gymnastics, Shooting and Badminton. Tickets in May (all 1.38 million of them) sold out in 2 days with 27 million hits on the website just in the first hour. In all, 6.8 million tickets have been available. And I still don’t have any. I could have gotten some though, for a nice scalped fee of 3500 RMB ($500) each for syncronized swimming. Athorities have arrested 60 people in the last 2 months for scalping on the streets, but I guess they were busy mugging uncooperative reporters to the ground (they are serious about the off-limits areas).

Training in the NIS

2008-07-22T16:39:00.000-05:00

Temperature outside: I don't know, 95 maybe, it was hot and humid whatever it was.
Words I know in Chinese: 14. I learned “I Miss You” :)
Current Olympic athletes I can identify by looks alone: In gymnastics – 3 (do the Hamm brothers count as one or two?) Other Olympians – 25 (do horses count? If so, then 35, hehehe)
Favorite quote so far: "I am a beautiful melon person" - Ted trying to say, "I am an American" in Chinese, but he apparently got it a bit mixed up.

Yes, I’m sorry for the delayed post. Since the last update (not the traffic report), we’ve begun training, and it takes up a good portion of our time. The rest has been spent trying to work on my project, which I’ve been falling a bit behind on, and working on some panoramas, which can be seen here.

Last Tuesday, the first day of official ONS training. By the way, if you’re good at spelling, try to keep up with these acronyms. There must be at least 2 dozen for the Olympics committees/groups, like ONS (Olympic News Service) and ISS (Infostrada Sports, the online technology and data supplier). Then you have the venue names (NIS is the National Indoor Stadium, where I work). Then you have job titles (FQR, Flash Quotes Reporter and SIS, Sports Information Specialist). Then the country names (RSA: South Africa, PRK: North Korea, etc). Then, finally I hope, are the events (GA: Artistic Gynmastics). Hehehe. I’ll be using some of these as I go along, so if you get lost and I forget to put what they mean, just ask me for a glossary or something :)

Ok, where was I? Oh, venue. While the NIS may not be quite as cool as the Water Cube or the Bird’s Nest, it’s still pretty spiffy. Plus, we got to take photos for ourselves, something the other venues can’t necessarily say (security risks or something). The Chinese are definitely taking the Olympics seriously. We have to pass so many detectors and gates just to get into work. And next week we’ll have yet another notch up with actual x-ray machines and pat-downs, hehehe. Even to get into the Green (main Olympics area), you must either have accreditation or a ticket. And you can’t go into any venue otherwise. Like, I can’t go into the Cube. Ever! At least I work near it though. People who are volunteers at venues outside the Green can’t even come past the first gates. I do feel a little safer I guess.

Home of the NBC Today Show, once finished. They have a great view. You'll see. -->

It’s an amazing area (check out the pano if you don’t believe me). I can’t wait to see it full of people. They really outdid themselves with artwork and architecture. Sometime this week we’re hoping to stay past dark and see everything lit up. Even inside NIS though, with the sunlight streaking through lights in the ceiling, it’s amazing at first glance.

As far as training, the Chinese have a different philosophy than the west. We believe that you get in, get out, and get to work. They feel that it’s better to be there 8 hours a day, whether you need to be or not. They also believe in 3 hour lunches with naps, and in lots of "morale boosting" games. So, we volunteers have begun bringing books and cards with us. Not that the job or training is boring. Believe me, we have our work cut out for us. But still, 1 hour is all you need for lunch, hehehe.

My official job title will likely be a FQR. We will be taking a typing test tomorrow to select a few volunteers to be copytakers (after an FQR gets a quote from an athlete in the MZ – Mixed Zone – they run it back and tell it to a copytaker to type out). If I’m a FQR, I’ll either be working in the broadcast MZ or press MZ. They have their advantages. In the BOB (Broadcast area), I can’t ask any questions. And if you see me on TV, I’ll get fired, hehehe. You think I’m kidding. In the press area, it’s a scrum to get to the athletes, with 100 reporters and FQRs in a tiny itty bitty area (photo below). But I do sometimes get to ask my own questions, and it’s closer to my real line of work. We’ll see. I’ll probably switch between all areas.

<--The print Mixed Zone (MZ), called that because the press and athletes "mix" together, only separated by the gates of course.

Other than that, I don't know if I can tell too much about training. We’ve been told we can’t talk much about specifics of the job, at least during the Olympics. Don’t know what "details" I’d want to share anyways. You’d just get bored, and it’s going into my masters project anyways. Read that if you want to know more – whenever I get it done.

Oh, we did get our uniforms, and starting today, we must wear them EVERYDAY we are in training or work. They’re ok I guess. They don’t breath as well as you’d expect, but they are noticeable. And I love the shoes. Whatever adidas did in them, I want another pair! My roommate and I joked that I could probably write a whole blog about just the amazing-ness of the shoes. The opposite could be said about the bucket hat the girls get, but I don’t have to wear that (it’s too small anyways).

Anyways, training starts again early tomorrow, so I’ll sign off here. Let me know if you want to know about anything specific. Never know what exactly people want to hear about. :)

Transportation yins and yangs

2008-07-21T16:33:00.004-05:00

Temperature outside: 90, blue-ish sky, and breezy. Pretty nice in the shade.
Words I know in Chinese: 13 or so. I know, I’m slow.
Days until the Olympics: 18
Here’s one for you: Number of feet between Beituchen Station on Subway Line 10 to the National Indoor Stadium: 9500 (or 1.8 miles), give or take a good 100 feet. How do I know that? Because I had to walk it!

Everyone knows yin and yang. Light and dark, good and evil, happy and sad. Everything in the universe can be connected to one of the two, and they keep each other in check. Well, I’ve had both when it comes to Beijing transportation.

I mentioned in my very first post that China’s speed limit is legendary because no one ever gets close to it. It’s always rush hour. So, we’ve been figuring out other ways to get around. Riding a bike here can be considered the equivalent to wrestling a tiger (either real or Ben Askren, you’re gonna lose), so that’s out of the question. With walking, you have three problems. 1) It’s slow. 2) It’s problematic to your health (smog). And 3) It’s a BIG city, so it’s slow.

Taxis are nice. They’re clean. A ride across town is usually about 50 RMB total ($7), and you can split that between as many as four people. You still have to put up with traffic, but depending on the driver, you get where you need to go without too much motion sickness. Make sure you bring a map/book with Chinese characters on it or have someone who can speak the language.

Did I mention yin and yang? A few days ago, we wanted to go to Wangfujing (shopping area surrounding the Olympics Flagship store). So, we set out in a taxi. We’re on one of the ring roads, which are about 5 roads equivalent to highways that circle the city, and all of a sudden a van to our right is trying to merge onto the road. We don’t move over because there should be no need; but he’s honking and trying to get where we are. Ok, first off, honking here isn’t like in the states. You can honk here at anything, and they do. But mainly a honk is because you want the adjacent lane to know you’re there and they shouldn’t come over. Makes sense, right. This guy is pissed for some reason. And he won’t slow down! He merges in behind us finally, and we think all is ok. As soon as a lane to the right opens, he zips out (we think cursing at us, but we don’t know the language), pulls ahead of us, and cuts us off. Actually slams his breaks on the highway! The four of us in the car are like What The! Our driver, getting a little flustered, goes to pull around him. He cuts us off again. And again. Finally, he parks his van sideways, gets out pointing and yelling, and goes to get our driver out of the taxi. On the highway remember. We’re freaked and looking for both an exit and hopefully not a gun in the pocket he’s reaching into. Eventually he lets our driver go, but we still don’t know what happened. And we didn’t even get a free taxi ride off of it! Hehehe

So that night, we’re not liking taxis, but we need to go home so we get into one just past rush hour. This guy immediately knows where we’re going (unlike some) and tries to tell jokes to us even though we don’t understand him. So, he turns on the radio to an American pop station. Cool! Then he proceeds to dance to the music. Just imagine your dad dancing to your favorite song at age 13 and you’ll picture what this guy was doing. We’re all laughing with him and in a good mood. Then he tries to sing (he doesn’t know English, but he has obviously heard the songs before), and motions for us to do the same. Why not, right? "There Can Be Miracles" (Prince of Egypt song, this time by some guy) and Michael Buble’s "Home" never sounded worse, but he sure turned yin into yang.

I don’t like buses, but for a couple days this week, they looked like the best way to get to the Olympic Green. With our accreditations for being part of ONS, we can ride them and the metro (subway) for free. But since line 10 wasn’t open – and it’s the only way to get to the Olympic line 8 – the bus was it. Let’s just leave it at I’m not doing that again, ok!? It’s not bad, it’s just not for me.

Finally Line 10 opened this weekend. YAY! Fireworks should have gone off or something. We rode it the first night to dinner. Soooo nice! Very smooth and clean and fast and a perfect straight line. So Sunday, after being told that "All remaining lines have opened," we attempt to go to the Green. Wrong! At the transfer between 10 and 8, we’re blocked by gates. "Line 8 is open, but we can’t ride it." HUH!? I still need someone to explain that one to me! So, there’s supposed to be a bus for Olympics staff and volunteers. If there was, we didn’t find it. We saw a group of about 100 people waiting in a bundle, but no buses. That’s where the 9500 feet come in. Yep, we arrived half an hour late, 3 water bottles less and drenched. Going home we found the Olympic bus. Sure, now they tell us.

In conclusion: Transportation is not our friend. Subways are still the best. Leaving an hour early for a 15 minute ride is never enough time (we learned that one when sightseeing, but thought we were clear). And always make triple sure you know how to get someplace before setting out. Oh well, yin has had his fun … now yang can guide us the rest of the way.

Tours before training

2008-07-15T16:07:00.000-05:00

Temperature outside: 76 (night right now) and "clear" (though not blue sky). Amazingly, it didn't feel like a sauna today. YAY!
Words I know in Chinese: 10 I think... still working on some. I know numbers up to three (yi, er, san). Why? Because that’s what you say when you take a picture, hehehe.
Food I’m craving most: Spaghetti with vinaigrette, a whole chicken breast and a HUGE helping of cheese! Actually, I’d take just the cheese right now – they don’t eat it here.
What I was watching when I started this post: Disney’s Little Mermaid in Chinese. It’s even more amusing than when I saw it in French, and Ariel’s name is pronounced Ahrl-eel. Now it’s March of the Penguins …

The sights. The sounds. The size. Everything Beijing does is impressive and on a scale seldom seen in the Western world. And for the past four days or so, we’ve experienced a bunch of them. For the weekend, we went on tours set up by BOCOG. It was a chance for them to show off, for us to see things before they get crowded with tourists (like the weren’t already) and for us to get our sightseeing out of the way and get down to business today. First on the agenda was the Water Treatment Plant. As we all said, WOOHOO! Hehehe. But it actually did have a reason, since China’s clean water supply is becoming scarce and plants like this are needed more and more. Apparently while there is super strict regulation coming into the plant, whether it be water or people, once the water leaves it isn’t regulated. So, while it might be clean leaving the plant, we still can’t drink it from the faucet. That didn’t help much… :)

<-- Doesn't Ted look happy to be standing over thousands of gallons of waste water!?

With only a small grating between. Not fun! -->

Following that we were shipped an hour outside the city to a “village” set up by the city for people whose land was bought in 2002 (kind of like an eminent domain type of thing, but they give you a new home and furnishings). They were nice, but it was weird – don’t know how to explain the feeling. There was even a temple (called the 500 year old temple because the previous one was that old), senior citizens home with a 102 year old woman, and several entertainment courtyards. We tried our hands at calligraphy, which mine was one of the best in the groups (I’m not bias), and tai chi. It’s really hard when you have no clue what to do next, but it was sooo much fun.

I must say, if our luck for the rest of the trip is as good as it was on Saturday, I’ll be happy. We had our second blue-sky day of the whole trip the same day as the Great Wall trip. There was one small glitch though… we arrived mid-morning and were told that they are limiting access because a VIP was there. Turns out the President of Mexico (whom none of us could remember his name – some journalists we are). They closed half of the Wall for him! And weren’t letting anyone else on the other portion since it was already packed. So, we wait in the sun. And wait. About 20 minutes later, they take the road block and we can go to the front gaits, but they’re still not letting anyone in (and actually we were closed off from the other side too, we were stuck).

Twenty more minutes go by in the stockade and we were almost fed up. We had other stuff scheduled and were running out of time. But, officials finally opened a small portal and the stampede inside was treacherous, but survivable. Especially for Tigers! MIZ -

There is a good reason why the Great Wall is listed among the New Seven Wonders of the World. Land rises up in every direction and then this man-made snake barrier stretchs and winds with it. There’s no way to see it all (partly because some of it is rubble, or the government hasn’t opened it). It’s just that big. As our fearless professor put it so nicely: The experience is similar to standing on the beach at sunrise or sunset and feeling the waves stretch into the distance and knowing you’ll never be able to fully grasp the magnitude. And knowing that they did this all with very basic tools is even more. The pyramids are similar in a way, but they aren’t on mountain cliffs.

To get the full effect, one must climb. Not a stroll up, but a 50-degree incline separated every 200 or 300 meters by platforms and a few stairs. Gripping tennis shoes are a minimum. Breathing is labored whether the sky is blue or smoggy. Water, though heated from the sun above, is most welcome. And the experience. Oh, the experience. Though mocked by the “I climbed the Great Wall” t-shirts, it is certainly a bragging point if you can get to the top. I settled for halfway up our section, since the royal visit cut our trip to only an hour of freedom (1/2 hr up, 1/2 hour back). And while my panoramas don’t quite show the intensity, hopefully you can get the sensation. For more, visit my photobucket or ask me for them (I have much larger versions and a lot of them).

Nothing else we did quite compares to the Wall, but a Ming Tomb (note: not the terracotta warrior tomb), Summer and Winter Palace are all worthy of a visit if ever in the area. Again, nothing in China is ever done small. The Summer Palace, a “gift for the emperor’s mother,” is over 200 hectares – about 1 square mile. Just for a palace, gardens, and a lake (and a Budha Temple, I believe). The following pictures are assorted from the rest of our tours, and more can be seen in my photobucket (link on the left).

Western people funny!

2008-07-11T15:56:00.000-05:00

Temperature outside: High today in the 80s, hopefully less humid since it rained yesterday.
Words I know in Chinese: 7! I learned to say “I love u” awwww….
Times I’ve eaten at a US restaurant: Twice. Pizza Hut the other day was a much needed break from rice and Chinese sauces, for all of us.
Fortune Cookies I’ve seen: zero, zilch, nadda, none. Seriously.

Photos are still to come, sorry, ran out of time

Ok, so I give them credit. We are a group of 60 Americans. We’re loud, and sometimes a few of us are a little inconsiderate. We don’t wear the same clothes (fashion here … well, I’ll try to touch on that later). And, we look funny with chopsticks, even though I was complimented on my abilities yesterday by a BOCOG (Beijing Organizing Committee) member.

But does that really merit the stopping and staring and even pointing by everyone we pass? Apparently the King and I song is true: Western people are funny – looking at least. I’ll admit, cultures are different here. Perhaps mothers don’t teach their kids it’s not polite to point. Even when a group of us five girls breaks off to go to dinner or something, we have old men stopping in the tracks, and women looking at us over their shoulders. I’m always tempted to go up to them and say, “Look. I’m sorry. They let us out of the Zou. But we’ll be back in the [Lee] Hills soon. Don’t worry.” Hehehe.

The attention our professor and one of the girls get is even more amusing. They are both very dark skinned, and I guess the people here think he’s Michael Jordan or something. They always want to take pictures with him and his son (who’s made the trip with us until the Olympics). Aja thinks she’s a movie star. They’ll pull her and a bunch of the blond girls (who eagerly oblige) and take pictures with them. I’m just a brunette; they just stare at me, hehehe.

The media isn’t helping the curious onlookers. They have been following us the minute we’ve arrived. Yesterday both CCTV (the large government station here with over 10 channels) and another paper I always mistype the name to followed us to the Water Treatment plant and a new commune – sorry, “village.” Fun! What are people supposed to think with three large cameras and two photographers hovering around. It’s like we really are movie stars. Can someone get Britney Spears over here as a buffer? We have had several stories done on us, and I’m sure there are more we don’t know about:

http://www.cctv.com/video/xinwenlianbo/2008/07/xinwenlianbo_300_20080709_1.shtml

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2008-07/04/content_6818182.htm

Other than that, and a few cabbies not wanting to drive us to our destination (some laugh when we show them our handy card printed with the hotel and a map), people here are very friendly. One night we were trying to find the Foreign Student Dinning Hall (someone did tell us the name at least), and a girl abandoned her boyfriend to lead us to it. She actually got lost twice, but wouldn’t give up until we were there. Another time we were eating there, a Chinese guy turned to us and said with very good English that he had studied at Oklahoma. We talked to him a bit, but didn’t even get his name. So, he finished his meal just as we were getting ours, and got up to leave. Well, a minute later, the waitress came over with 4 milk teas and a note saying “Hope you’ll enjoy your study in Renmin. I am quite appreciate of the kind treatment when I was in the states.” We all of course swooned, but he had already disappeared.

Oh, btw, milk tea is good – basically how it sounds – especially served cold with boba, but I’ll stick to soda and water myself :)

One courteous thing I keep forgetting is to use two hands. As a sign of respect, when someone hands you something (say, change for a purchase or a business card), they will use both hands on either side of the item and bow slightly. The Vice Chancellor did it when he handed us our stamps. Basically everyone has done it to us, and yet I keep forgetting, or will have something in one hand. Hey, I’m a rude American, hehehe, we already knew that.

And finally, on this brief and lacking incite into Chinese people, I leave you with this thought. Perhaps I will lose weight on this trip after all. At least I will if I join hundred of walkers and runners on the track at all hours of the day. The tracks in CoMo are busy, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen less than 100 people out there. Running. Roller skating. Tai chi. Using one of the many outdoor gyms (they’re like playgrounds for adults, seriously). I tried the tai chi yesterday,; it’s very fun even though I had no clue what I was doing.

The good, the bad, and the very ugly at the zoo

2008-07-09T12:15:00.000-05:00

Temperature outside: 85, humid and smoggy. Really starting to notice it more, especially when you’ve been out in it for a while and your throat is getting sore.
Words I know in Chinese: still
Times I’ve already felt completely lost in translation: too many, but really the people here are nice and very understanding
Times I’ve eaten at a US restaurant: just 1!

The Beijing Zoo has a long history. It covers an area of around 86 hectares (or over 212 acres – it is huge) and is home to roughly 6,000 animals – the majority that we saw were birds of all shapes and sizes. First to breed giant pandas successfully in captivity in 1963, it also was the first to successfully use artificial insemination with them in 1978. It sits just outside of town (actually, it’s inside compared to where the university is, not a bad taxi though – 20 RMB or $3). Though not free like the St. Louis Zoo, it’s not a bad price to get in (20 yuan again if you want to see the pandas too), and there are estimated to be around 200,000 people trekking to see them daily. It has two Giant Panda buildings that we could find, with 5 or 6 outside enclosures attached, and both were extremely full at the moment.

The largest panda breeding center in China, Bifengxia at the Wolong Nature Reserve, was adjacent to the epicenter of May’s earthquake. Since it sustained heavy damage, killing one panda and leaving another missing to this day, many animals were sent to other centers or to the Beijing Zoo. Lucky us!

Ok, Aerie doesn’t have quite as big a butt as PanPan, the mascot of the Asian Games, but it’s pretty close.

The Panda House of course was the first place we went, since we’ve been told by numerous sources that the black and white teddies are most active in the morning. And who wouldn’t be, with the Beijing summer heat and humidity. We were dead by 1 p.m., and didn’t get there until 10:30 a.m.

They are simply amazing creatures. Almost human-like, they will sit up and use their front paws to hold sticks of bamboo or tear off limbs, then use their extended belly as a plate for leaves as they chomp away. It seems the pandas have a grin while eating. And with all the bamboo I could eat (there were piles of it), I’d be a happy camper too.

Sorry, I took about 120 photos of just the pandas; more can be seen on my photobucket with the link to the left or by email request.

Only about 1,600 pandas live in the wild according to a 2006 study, mostly in Sichuan (the province destroyed by the earthquake). Today, with all the devastation, it is unclear exactly how many survived. An additional 180 have been bred in captivity, many of them at Wolong, and others have been loaned or given to zoos abroad like the San Diego Zoo, with the revenues helping fund conservation programs.

IF YOU ARE AN ANIMAL LOVER, YOU MAY NOT LIKE WHAT’S TO COME!

Unfortunately, the Beijing Zoo knows who their stars are, and while the panda conditions aren’t quite to par with those at American giant panda exhibits, they are luxury suits compared to the rest of the zoo. We did not travel into the Aquarium at the zoo, since it cost around 120 RMB and that was more than we cared to see for fish and dolphins (so no swimming with them, unfortunately… oh well).

One of my books mentioned that Beijing Zoo does not care for their animals well. This was realized as soon as we stepped out of the panda exhibit. ANY zoo in the US is a Hilton compared to what these animals have. Cement slabs. No water. No shade. If they get a toy or living companion, they are lucky.

Bear Hill is a joke. Himalayan Black Bears, endangered in status and recognized by their characteristic V-shape on their chests, get a rubble pit for a habitat. Not even a tree. What’s worse is the begging. With just a drop-off between visitors and the bears underneath, people throw bread and other senseless things to the animals, which have learned to beg for attention. They even sell the bread at the gift shops.

The Grizzlies, about half the size of a healthy bear in the wild and matted hair everywhere, have learned the same. One even holds its hind legs to look cute for onlookers, while another stands on its hind legs and looks backward to amuse.

Lion and Tiger Hill is a little better. Still with cement underneath, there is foliage to cover them outside – though no water could be seen in any of the exterior enclosures. Yet, nothing could explain our thoughts as we walked into the den house.

Their cages were smaller than our hotel room, and completely barren. These are extremely endangered species! There are less than 5,000 tigers left in the wild, and yet they get this as a living space. For shame China! One cage housed a Liger even – lion/tiger cross frowned upon by zoological society but enjoyed at places like Siegfried and Roy– and another two extremely rare white Kruger Lions. There are probably less than 1000 white Krugers ever recorded in zoos. Although I could keep writing, I feel pictures speak for themselves.

I took more pictures of other exhibits, but there was too much to think about. The elephants had an indoor area about half that of the old St. Louis Zoo Elephant House, if you can believe it. Sorry for the treehugger rant. It just really hits a nerve when the Beijing Zoo can make you pay to attend and constructs something like the following inside the zoo but cannot care for its animals:

And yes, sorry. It’s not Phil the Gorilla from the St. Louis Zoo, but I just had to join the kids and ride an elephant.

That's too much!

2008-07-08T12:08:00.000-05:00

Temperature outside: who knows, it rained all day, or was humid
Words I know in Chinese: still 6
Times I’ve already felt completely lost in translation: too many, I should learn more Chinese Favorite meal so far: Peking Duck

Ever seen the Price Is Right and their game “That’s too much!”? You raise the price and raise the price until you think it is over the actual price, and then the contestant yells as enthusiastically as they can, THAT’S TOO MUCH! Well, that phrase took on a whole new meaning the last couple of days.

First, last night we had a very special dinner with the President of Renmin University and the newly-arrived students from U of North Carolina who will be joining us for the Olympics. They began the meal with speeches from each of the dignified guests, and then began to bring out the food. Now, the normal Chinese dinner is a family style, where you are at a round table with a huge lazy susan in the middle. All the bowls and plates are in the center, and then you take from each whatever you want. So they bring some cold zucchini sticks, and some gelatin sticks, and some kind of nuts, and beef braised in soy sauce, and chicken soup with cabbage (with bone still in it), and peanut chicken with legs and such included…Peking duck. Spicy chicken with thin green peppers that look like green beans (not good surprise). Stuffed green peppers on a bed of sunny-side eggs. Flat fish with veggies. Whole shrimp with the antennas still on. Some kind of corned-like beef with a lot of fat. Rice of course, though at the end of the meal. Fried bread knots with green onions and oil. Summer squash. Sprouts and greens. Ummm… like 5 other dishes, and finally for dessert, watermelons and grape tomatoes (how those work together I’m not sure). THAT’S TOO MUCH FOOD! One of our Chinese friends said that if we were 6-8 Chinese people, the food wouldn’t have piled up in the middle as it did (we only ate about half the food). Instead, it looked like this even after taking away some of the platters:

Then, today after classes and getting soaked in the rain, we had a free afternoon. What to do, what to do? So, we decided to brave the elements and Beijing traffic and went to the Hong Qiao Pearl Market. It sells a lot more than pearls, if you were wondering, those are a good two floors out of five. Many people have heard of the Silk Market of Beijing. This is smaller and a little less variety, but it’s also less tourist-y and pushy and you can usually talk them down a little more.

Haggling is very fun. Strategy going in:

Don’t show emotion, especially if you really want it

Don’t make it personal. They will act all sad or mad or say you’re stealing from them. It’s all an act

And three, when they give a price, you tell them THAT’S TOO MUCH, and give them back 10-20% of what they said. Yep, you heard me right. 10%. Why? Because they inflate it sooo much for tourists, and once you say a price, you can’t go under it. Plus, once you say a price, they take it as a huge insult if you walk away.

So, we go into a shop that sells traditional looking dresses, and each want to buy something. The original cost, 900 RMB each (about $140 US) for a dress and 600 RMB (about $90 give or take) for a shirt. Our starting price, 100 RMB. “Oh, no, that’s too little…. You buy so many [we had about 4 dresses and 4 shirts altogether], I say 650 yuan.” Back, forth, back forth. Luckily we had a girl on our side who would not budge too much on price. She knew what she wanted to pay. End results: 235 RMB for the dresses and 150 for the shirts. We probably still got stolen on them, but it was a decent result. You’ve just gotta learn, “THAT’S TOO MUCH!”

The first of many adventures

2008-07-07T12:25:00.000-05:00

Temperature outside: high 80s F and sunny blue sky for the first time. Oooooooooooo….
Words I know in Chinese: 5 (6 if you count a curse word, hehehe)
Times I’ve already felt completely lost in translation: 50-ish
Where I’ve been: People’s Daily and Beijing Youth Daily headquarters. Forbidden City. Tian’an Man Square. The Hutongs in Old China.

Wow, I’ve been busy. Ok, so Thursday after I posted, we had a mixer with the Vice Chancellor and volunteers from Renmin. It was nice, and the little foods were interesting. At the end, he gave each of us a little stamp with our names on it in Chinese characters (soooo cute). Of course, since there are several Lauras and Sarahs and such, he put our last names. Granted, I’ll only be able to use mine for the next couple of months, but it’s still very nice of him .

Friday the 4th (HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA! I had fireworks on my computer just for you) we went on media visits, which was kinda cool. Didn’t get to see much, but we got to talk to the managing editor (I think) of the People Daily online edition. Man, does he have a big job. I’d have loved to sit down and just have a one on one with him. Rack his brain. That is, if we got over the language barrier. I mean, 2 million hits a day! And they put breaking news up 24/7. They have a huge convergence portion too, with web communities and videos and the like. No wonder it’s 2,000 staffers strong. Maybe I could get a blog up for them…. They do have sites in 11 languages…

Gifts from our visits. That’s a year-of-the-mouse backpack and a pen that is also a calendar.

Then between that and the Beijing Youth Daily we had a super fancy lunch at a nearby hotel. I mean, wowza. Not even mentioning the price. One of the things was an ice cream stand. Now, they had the usual vanilla (which actually tasted more like white cake and icing), strawberry (which apparently tasted like Nesquik), and chocolate (which was very very strong). Then there was the green tea ice cream. Yep, bright green, and the taste was, well, tea-like. I thought it was a bit strong, but another girl felt it refreshing after the chocolate. And finally, a purple ice cream. Grape? No. Carrot! Hehehe. Did it taste like carrot? No, it tasted like really bad movie theater buttered popcorn.

Nothing happened that night, as sleep finally caught up with me and I zonked out (technical term there). Some others went to karaoke bars and such. I’ll probably join them soon. Gotta practice my tunes first.

I can finally start checking things off my list of must-sees. Tian’an Men Square and Forbidden City = check! Yesterday was our first of many sightseeing days, and the rain couldn’t dampen our experience. Sure, I would have rather seen them without the rush of a tour guide, but it was nice to have someone let us know what we’re seeing. I didn’t realize Tian’an Men Square was so big! Unfortunately the guide didn’t mention much of the history that happened there. Oh well. I’ll be getting some panoramas up soon, so stay tuned for that. Until then, you’ll have to settle for these pictures:

That is a statue depicting the rising of the People’s Republic, in front of ongoing construction for the history museum.

<--One of two lions standing guard outside the Forbidden City Gates. You can tell the two apart two ways. The male lion, always on the left, holds a ball under his paw. The female, who’s always right, holds her cub. Chairman Mao’s picture in the background is surrounded by two says wishing long life to China and peace to the world. The city itself (Forbidden City that is) is so gorgeous. Everything is painted or covered in metals or carved to the finest detail. Rooftops are adorned with protectors (the more there are, the more important the building) and it’s amazing to think the entire thing was just for the emperor and his however-many wives.

And finally yesterday we went to the Hutongs, a special portion of central Beijing that consists of old-China buildings and ways of life. Yes, it’s a tourist trap, but it was kinda neat. The houses of course seen small to ours, but really the extended family of five brothers owned quite a bit of land. The buildings and alleys were just small. And the room we visited still had computers and AC and such. That’s some kind of Old-China they had there… At least they are preserving it among the high-rises and clutter. Compared to the rest of city life, I’d rather live there – a hint of simple life and easier ways.

The Rickshaw we took to the Hutongs -->

And so today is our “off” day, finally blue skies, and I’m determined to get at least something done on my work. I know, I should get out more, hehehe. But there will be time for that. Perhaps on our days off this week I’ll venture to the zoo or Silk Market.

I did meet a very nice guy at lunch today. With my roommate out, I went to the cantina next door by myself, and a Chinese student by the American name of Jim decided to join me and test his English. He said he wasn’t very good at it, but he’s sure better than my Chinese. Another check of my list: meet some locals.

Size does matter in China

2008-07-07T11:19:00.000-05:00

Let’s put it right out there: the media in China is HUGE! Seriously, AARP magazine – said to be the world’s largest magazine at over 22.5 million circulation – still probably reigns supreme. But Sports Illustrated and Cosmo at 3 million each would just be a walk in the park for these people. There are nearly 9400 different print magazines in China (including many of our well known titles from America redone Asian-style), not to mention the 4000 online-only publications.

And USA Today, America’s largest daily at 2.2 million circulation, doesn’t even come close to China’s People’s Daily at 3 million prints every day. Can anyone say deforestation? Someone get a tree-hugger over here pronto!

<--People's Daily

China and America rival each other in the number of internet users, at over 210 million each. Talk about your world-wide web. The major difference is that the US has pretty much reached its plateau at just over 70% usage in the country. China is still growing by 72 million users a year. To put that is perspective, that’s an average of 200,000 new internet users (or the city of St. Louis) every day.

For online editions, I guess they’re not that different. The People’s Daily and USA Today Online both have about 2 million unique visitors daily to their homepage. But the People’s Daily also comes in 10 different languages. Yep, 10. I feel so unilingual. Just the community section of People’s Daily is larger than the whole Missourian Building, and there are 80 other sections to put online. Can you imagine the type of editing that must go on in these publications? One thing the US tops China on is advertising revenue (beating them at about $1 billion). But the majority of Chinese papers have a lower ad ratio, giving more editorial content to the reader. Not a fair fight.

Oh, I almost forgot. How do you get the news to reach so many people spread out so wide? It’s not by TV like the US, although they do have a massive CCTV network. Nope, it’s by cell phone. Some US papers are starting to go this route with flash updates. But with a monthly mobile increase of 7.2 billion, Chinese media has seen the light. And they like it, with the revenue from mobile news reaching 805 billion RMB in 2007. I’m just awestruck at the size of things over here.

Anyways, more to come on what we’ve done.

More photos

2008-07-03T11:16:00.000-05:00

I almost forgot. More of my amazing photography (yeah... right) can be seen in my photobucket album at . There's some nice ones, I just can't fit everything here. Check them out!

And they're off!

2008-07-03T10:50:00.000-05:00

July 3 blog:

Temperature outside: 90+ F (and more humid than a sauna)
Words I know in Chinese: 2
Times I’ve already felt completely lost in translation: 30
What I’ve eaten: No idea. It had pork, rice, something green like squash, very dark mushrooms and bamboo in a light sauce. Also Bok Choy.

I feel like such a tourist. I guess having the journalist label gives me a bit of an excuse to have my camera out at all times. But taking pictures of the airplane or my first meal probably negates that alibi.

So, where do I begin? Apologies upfront for this first rambling mind-emptying. I promise (with fingers crossed behind my back) that subsequent posts will be shorter.

The plane ride was, in a word, long. But you knew that. 13+ hours of sitting, moving a little, sitting some more… at least the company was good since we knew each other. I was waiting for a chorus of “M-I-Z” to break out, but alas, we must be saving it for the ride home. I’ll not indulge on my state of wellness after such a turbulent trip, but I was definitely shades of green before all was done.

Just before leaving, a report was published stating the north pole may completely melt before winter arrives. While I don’t know that, I was shocked on the state of the north cap.

This was snapped on the farthest north we got, according to the flight screen onboard. At 30,000 ft, those holes looked bigger than the entire St. Louis metro area.

And no, I did not see any elves or reindeer.

Upon arrival, it was amazing to see the diverse sceneries of Beijing. Around the airport was very open, with farm lands and even a shepherd tending his flock along the highway. But as soon as you hit “downtown,” the buildings rise 30 stories and the traffic makes New York City rushhour look like a nice weekend drive. I know the majority of the country has only been driving for 2 years, but are there any regulations? The other bus went in reverse on the highway after missing the exit. Bigger is definitely better there.

<-- Traffic in the city

First look at the bird's nest and the Olympic Green -->

Am I homesick yet? No, but give me a day! The first thing we did, after a scavenger hunt of our room to find out what exactly we were dealing with, was turn on my laptop. Missing a day on the plane was definitely interesting. And I know many people back home were awaiting my safe arrival. I’m still learning where to draw the line. On one hand, this is an entirely new place and I want to become accustomed to the area. On the other, I want to call home and tell everyone how it is. Where is the line between cutting off the home front and keeping in touch?

I seriously need to learn more of the language. Last night for our first meal, we ventured to a campus cantina. It, of course, had no clue 60 Americans were headed that way (the deer-in-the-headlights look was evident). It also had no English (spoken or written) and no photos for food. Thank goodness for the volunteers from Renmin who are with us. Still not sure what I exactly ordered, but it was good and I kept the receipt to help out on future orders. Bamboo is an acquired taste I think, but the pork and other ingredients were very nice on my ill stomach.

Today we tried on our uniforms for volunteers. I must say, we will be noticed. Bright blue shirts, zip off pants, and even shoes that say “Beijing 2008” that I’ll probably wear out at home since they are totally cool. It was a humbling experience to say the least. In the US, I wear a size 8 or so and am pleased if I fit into my 6 skinny-jeans. Here, I was lucky fitting into the larges and for my uniform ordered an XL! At least the shirt was still a medium. I don’t think they realized we Westerners have big feet either. The boxes were from 3.5 to 6 UK (so going up to about size 8 US).My 9 ½ feet weren’t going to be happy with that, and my roommate’s 11s were hopeless. They eventually got larger sizes in to try (I think from the guy’s room).

The main notice in our new home is definitely the language difference. In Spain or France, we could at least stumble along and do decently well. Here, we’ve become mimes. Charades has nothing on us. At least for lunch at a buffet we could point at what we wanted. But I feel like the naive tourists who expects everyone to speak their language. Hopefully I can bug our volunteer friends some more and get at least a little lesson (counting to ten would help). Until then, smiles and a clueless look go a long way.