HOT

  Beijing, China
Saturday, July 12, 2008

Bird's Nest Olympic Stadium

Saturday morning I woke up to a blue sky - so blue Andrew thought I photoshopped the photo below. The city looked incredibly different. There are huge buildings as far as you can go in any direction, but you can usually only see a block or two away. I saw the sun clearly for the first time since I got to Beijing.

Breaking the fence to take Olympic photos

Jen and I took a short break from running around trying to see our respective friends and took advantage of the blue sky day to check out the Olympic area. Flocks of Chinese tourists and some foreigners crowded around to take photos of some of the best or worst architecture they've seen. Despite this, the stadiums were fenced off from nearly a kilometer away and the subway line has yet to open. Way to take advantage of the Olympics China, good job. I nearly got heat stroke walking around this giant, spread out area.


From there, Jen and I braved the pulsating, sweaty masses at Beijing West Train Station to get our tickets for Xian. In the new Beijing, things are much more regulated so none of the cabbies would pick us up on the street near the station. We spent half an hour searching for the longest cab line you've ever seen before we could escape. Um, that's all I have to say about that.

Model of CBD

I went by myself to the Beijing City Planning Museum. Even Jen thinks I'm a nerd for that, but I think it's interesting and am about to go to grad school for it. The museum probably would be more interesting after I get that degree - or if I had better written Chinese since the translations were scarce. What I could read was mostly top-notch propaganda about the importance of preserving culture, history, and the environment and the necessity of promoting development first (get it?). The museum also had an interesting exhibit on the city's historical development, which stretches back almost 3,000 years depending on your definitions. This city has been here for millenia with different names, different layouts, and different rulers. I think it helps to put all the changes in perspective. The question shouldn't be whether this reinvention of the city should be happening but whether the way it is being done is good. The coolest (nerdiest?) thing in the museum is a giant basketball court sized scale model of the city. The model is protected by a felt rope to discourage any Godzilla fantasies, and residents run around the edges looking to spot their homes. Here is a shot of the neighborhood where I studied three years ago.



After getting my nerd on, I redeemed myself by meeting Melissa at the Ozone gym in Huamao - one of the new luxury developments in Chaoyang - where she manages the fitness classes. Melissa introduced me to her friend Rachel, a member at Ozone, and Rachel's boyfriend who is also a manager there. They're both incredibly attractive and very wealthy. I lifted for a while and then swam with Melissa and Rachel for a couple hours. Rachel lived in Switzerland for five years for college and an internship. She talked about how much better it is to live in China because there are "more opportunities." Beautiful and wealthy, she's in a good position to say something like that but with all us foreigners flocking to learn Chinese I have to admit there is some truth there.

Jianguomen at night

The four of us drove across town to a divey but incredibly good Chinese BBQ that was in a back alley hutong. We chatted and ate dozens of the spiciest barbecued wings I'd ever had. I forgot my camera in the car, but picture a wing absolutely covered in red pepper flakes - above other spices. As we drove back through the city streets at night, listening to 1930s Jazz of all things, I thought I must be dreaming.