Aug. 12, 2008

Some thoughts on our day . . .

Chinese people continue to be great hosts but they definitely have the home court advantage as they bring in large groups of children to fill the venues. I would guess that their was no cost for the many groups that they bring in and also it makes finding tickets impossible unless you know someone with in the Olympics.

We will see Nedim tomorrow at the Olympic Village and he will swim on Thursday. The Americans are starting to roll now in swimming with some excellent performances.

We also saw Beach Volleyball and it is amazing to see the USA cultural influence not just on that event but in all of China. The oldie songs, the bikini clad Chinese woman and crazy circus atmosphere around Beach Volleyball is amazing.

The subway system has TV's to watch the Olympics and all communication is in English. The transportation on the bus and subway systems is free! Since the rain the pollution has been negligible, you could actually see blue sky. They have virtually eliminated traffic problems by prohibiting cars other than taxis, etc.

I'll check in later.

Wally