xiaodi zhang
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I spent my early childhood in Northwest China, where I developed a love for lamb kabobs and Lanzhou noodles. At age 10, I moved to the US, where I longed for kabobs and noodles for the next 20 years! Now, I am back in China, and I can eat to my heart's content!

One World, One Dream, One Giant Fence
 


Unlike my local Shanghai friends, I braved the crowds, the terrorists and pollution to attend the Olympics in Beijing! I just got back, and I dont regret my decision at all. The volleyball and tennis matches I attended were amazing, and I loved exploring new/old parts of Beijing which have been either under construction or renovation in the last two years.

At the same time, we took comfort in seeing all the security check points and security guards at the Games. Given what happened to the US volleyball coach's father-in-law, we were happy to see everyone taking security so seriously. We were subjected to multiple checks at the airport, random checks at any public space, and multiple checks at the venues. We saw the rationale behind all the security measure, until we tried to visit the Olympic Greens with our Olympic tickets.

Even though we had volleyball and tennis tickets, we found out that only those with tickets to venues physically located on the Olympic Greens could enter the communal Olympic Greens area. This rule sprung up out of nowhere, since the official Olympic guidebooks specifically says all Olympic ticket holders can check out the Greens. At the same time, this particular rule appeared to change every minute, since each guard told us conflicting versions of that rule.

After an exasperating argument with several guards, we finally pushed our way into the Olympic Green (after nearly coming to blows with the guard pictured), only to find ourselves practically alone. Given its sheer size, the Beijing's Olympic Green would have been difficult to fill even without all the rules and restrictions. After the new rules, the area felt deserted. We saw as many volunteers and journalists as spectators. The mood was noticably mellow. It didn't feel festive or Olympic at all. Granted the Bird's Nest and Water Cube were amazing to see, but it was still from outside the confines of yet another fence.

On our way out of the Olympic Green, we were not greeted by the five Fuwa, the Olympic mascots, or Olympians. Instead, we walked by more guards and a tank. In its effort to block out terrorists and dissidents, Olympic organizers in BJ have effectively blocked out thousands of passionate fans and dampened the Olympic spirit.
Apparantly, Olympic sponsors have also noticed the small crowds and have applied financial pressure on BJ. So, BJ will start issuing day passes soon. Unfortunately, money speaks louder than disgrutled fans. 08/14/2008
 

Comments

Cathy Mar
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i love how one of the disappointing highlights were not being greeted by five fuwa.... haha
08/14/2008