Let the Games Begin!
Trip Start
Jul 21, 2008
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2
22
Trip End
Aug 28, 2008
Beijing,
China
Friday, August 8, 2008
Well, I FINALLY got around to...no, I finally sat down...and am creating the first entry of Chris and Gregg (Chregg) in China! I have had so little time, but will try to go back and jot down, in separate entries, some thoughts from the time since we arrived in July...
It is hard to believe it has been 18 days since we landed here. It as gone by amazingly quickly, and we have been very busy with work, putting in Olympic-sized days!
It is even harder to believe that the countdown clocks all over town read in hours instead of days! China's big moment has arrived and you can sense that it is going to be HUGE!
Since our arrival, they have been hard at work sprucing up, dressing up, polishing, planting, painting, building, cleaning, decorating, lighting...even changing into Olympic-themed uniforms in our hotel. You can tell that the Chinese people have worked and waited so long for this, and Beijingers seem so proud to have the world arriving in their hometown. It looks really great!
Two days ago, the city changed overnight. It seems like we woke up one morning to find groups of Westerners wandering around with maps. The Olympic visitors have most definitely arrived. Two weeks ago, it was us doing that, but now we are getting around like natives!
Almost everywhere you see all the different uniforms of the various sponsor hospitality programs, delegations, and athletes. This is one of the signs that the games have arrived and it makes the Olympics such a colorful place to be. The colorful uniforms compliment the red eyes...I would love to know how much sleep has been lost collectively all over town. To get more than four hours of sleep in this run-up week would be, well...a "dream".
According to what we are hearing, this will be the largest event ever staged. As big and flashy and exciting as the Olympic Games always are, there has never been, nor ever will be again, an Olympics of this size and scope, with so many sponsors, so much media coverage and focus as this one. Beginning with London 2012, the Olympic Games will be scaled back due to expense and manageability concerns. But for now, the Chinese are ready to welcome the world and stage a games like no other, as only a county as massive as China can!
Hopefully, all of the hard work from so many people will pay off, so that China and the world can celebrate in peace and friendship.
Let the Games Begin!
