Sumbitted for Stephen Lauer . . . our University of Maryland student.

Today, I visited a friend on the other side of the city, where she promised to show me the “real China.”  After an hour and a half of travel, I left the Subway #1 line and transferred onto the Ba Tong line, where, for the first time since the start of the Olympics, I remained as the only foreigner on the train.

Leaving the train station, we walk down a few fairly empty roads before coming to a large intersection.  One side of the road is lined with rubble, after asking I learn that a couple years ago they were restaurants and small businesses that were torn down to widen the road, but with all the construction for the Olympics, more urgent projects took priority.  “This part of Beijing has been forgotten,” she says, “foreigners don’t come here, so China doesn’t care about it.”

We stop in a small noodle restaurant.  I mean really small.  I can see inside the kitchen to the left, next to the wall is a table with bowls full of noodles and sauces, four tables take up the rest of the space.  The noodles are served cold and are delicious, they are a little spicy and there is bread and vegetables mixed in to add more flavor.  The waiter and the owner of the restaurant sit at another table talking, one third of the seats are now taken.

As we head towards her university, we turn down an alley called a hutong.  Hutongs are neighborhoods that house families in very small quarters, some of which are connected to whichever small business that family owns.  This particular hutong is fairly recent, each house is separate and some have an upper floor.  In other parts of Beijing, there are hutongs that have housed families for as long as 700 years.

After touring the university campus, which was pretty and fairly normal, we headed into Wangfujing to see some more hutongs.  Getting off the train again, I ask if we got off at the wrong stop, “this is the Oriental Plaza,” nope we’re at the right place.  Weaving through crowds of tourists, kids playing games, and street performers, we come to a large beautiful hotel.  Turning the corner, directly behind the hotel, there are many cinder block-esque looking buildings that seemingly house people.  On the wall, a sign reads, “a new neighborhood, for the Olympics.”

A couple turns later and we are surrounded by hutongs.  These are from the communist era, each hutong houses four families, each with equal sized living areas and a shared open air kitchen/common area in the middle.  The people seem to be rather content, sitting on steps in front of their house or business and biking through the narrow alleys with large loads.  On a wall there is Chinese letters sprayed onto the wall by the government.  My friend translates them for me, “the faster you leave, the faster you receive money,” “leave for better health and a better society,” “thank you for your sacrifice for the Olympics,” and “remodel the neighborhood for the good of the Olympics.”  One of the two Chinese letters that make the word remodel literally means “destroy.”

We poke our heads into hutong after hutong to see what they look like on the inside.  On the way out of one, a Chinese man says “hello” and approaches on his bike.  We apologize for entering his house, but he says it is no problem and asks for us to come in.  There are four buildings on each wall of the house, but they are very small compared to the wide open area in the middle.  There are four or five birds in cages and tomato plants springing forth from the ground, the place has a very peasant feel to it.  But the man seems very modern, he wears a clean white shirt and nice shorts, he speaks very expressively using gestures and animated facial expressions that help me try to understand.  My friend chuckles early on but says “oh-no” a couple times and holds her face is obvious disappointment.  She summarizes her conversation, “the government wants him to move out of his home.  He doesn’t want to leave, he’s lived there for 23 years with his mother and he is bringing his daughter up here.  The money they’re offering him isn’t enough for him to pay for another house in Beijing.  He says ‘I’m not going to leave until they give me enough money to live here.’”  At that point he speaks directly to me for the first time, he smiles and laughs during his comment, but I hear “megua” a few times and its hard for me to look him in the eye.  “He asked if you are American, ‘you look American.’”

It’s hard to believe that I have been here for a month now. It feels so far away from the day we arrived in the near empty airport, filled mostly with tourists, national guards, and Olympic officials.  My fellow classmates and I have indulged in some of the finest restaurants, tourist sites and cultural venues that Beijing has to offer. We have completed our training as flash quote reporters and are well acquainted with our individual venue sites, and fellow colleagues among the Olympic News Service. I was assigned to handball. After a long day of mix zones, rushed interviews, and press conferences, with only a brief rest in between I was only too happy to have the day off today. I slept in and then picked up my final gifts at Wafujing (a shopping area very close in appearance to NY's Times Square) for family and loved ones back at home. It is not clear if my busy schedule will permit me to do so in the future.

I have decided to end the night by watching the much anticipated, CHINA vs. USA Basketball game. Upon the arrival of the opening ceremony Beijing has endured countless criticisms of being the hosting country for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. Many of these criticisms include human rights issues, safety, and mainly air quality.  Prior to watching the game, CCTV (Beijing's television network) aired a segment on the measures that China has been taking towards making Beijing into the kind of city that meets the standards of the world.  During this segment CCTV stated that capital owned iron and steel (as well as other companies) moved to the suburbs in 2002. Furthermore the reporter leading the segment stated that the move of these companies has resulted in a drastic improvement in the city’s air quality. Now that the games have actually begun, Beijing still remains under close surveillance. As I watch the basketball game, I noticed that that the USA, (though still in the lead during the third quarter) faces a lot of pressure in doing so. As a spectator one could assume that close ups of star players such as Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard, missing several free throws in a row, is the result of the stress that comes from playing against the hosting country. However as a spectator one can also assume that the stress that team China might be feeling may come from more than possibly losing their chance at a gold Medal.

Tonight’s basketball game as does the entire Olympic games, seems to be more of China’s opportunity to display itself to the world as a country that is improving itself in many elements, hopefully to a level equal of the United States. As a student who has been practically living here (or as close as a student can get as a participant in a study abroad program) for the past month, I have noticed various advertisements that have served as promotions of Chinese products and campaigns to encourage western companies to continue alliances with China after the Olympics have ended. These advertisemens among other things have further confirmed this notion.  Even the new station that Beijing has opened to create easy access to the Olympic venues is said to be the beginning of what by the next decade, China hopes to be the largest transit system in the world.  Now nearing the end of the fourth quarter with the USA national team is maintaining an astounding thirty five point lead, the crowd continues to encourage the home team, and fans hope for a miracle.  But hey I’m no political analyst, I’m not even economist, I am simply a spectator watching the most anticipated basketball game of the preliminaries from the comfort of my dorm, so what would I know  Perhaps it is all just a game.

With the help of Michelle from ONS, Professor Annemarie Farrell and Dr. Guan got us tickets to watch the Beach Volleyball competitions today. I've never seen the sport, or even knew that it was an olympic sport until I started to research more about the Olympics before going on this trip. According to NBC's Olympics 2008 web page, the sport is one of the most popular sport events at the Olympics. 

So I do know very little about this sport. The Olympics gave me my first exposure to this sport. I must admit that I actually thought the sport was similar to regular volleyball in that there was a larger team of players. Much to my surprise, a beach volleyball team is composed of only two members. 

It is located at the National Indoor Stadium venue. Despite the fact that our start of the day was cloudy mixed in with a few rain showers, the stadium was packed with spectators. I felt that much like water polo, this sport's matches went by really fast. Finally, by the afternoon, the sun came out and helped create an even greater Beach Volleyball atmosphere.  A sunny, clear day with sand always helps! 

We watched many matches, including a men's match between Angola and Australia. I thoroughly enjoyed watching every match and was so happy I got a ticket. If I had to decide on my favorite match, it would have to be the China vs. Belgium women's match. Sure, I'm working as a flash quotes reporter at the Olympics but I still try to find the time to watch and catch a few games live. 

As a result, I've run into a minor problem these days. I always have a hard time figuring out if I should cheer for the USA or China. Being Chinese-American, it can be hard to decide. This was the case for yesterday's terrific, exciting Olympics basketball game between USA and China. It felt like the entire Beijing Sport University campus (where Ithaca College is staying) was watching every minute of the game. 

I could hear Chinese people repeatedly chanting, "Jia you! Jia you! Zhong Guo jia you!". Translated in English, this Chinese phrase literally means "Add oil, add oil, China keep adding oil!". This popular phrase used in sports games essentially means for a team or athlete to do better and to keep going for a victorious result.  

At today's beach volleyball match between China and Belgium, Chinese spectators were loudly chanting this very phrase and encouraging the two Chinese women to win the match, which they did. China, much like America, is a proud and patriotic nation. It is very interesting to exhibit the undeniable happiness and pride that Chinese citizens have for their nation hosting the Olympics. From the Olympics 08 face paint to the enthusiastic claps and cheers for athletes, China is constantly supporting their athletes. It is something I highly admire about this nation. I've been clapping and cheering too! 

So last night was 08.08.08, which meant that the Beijing 2008 Olympics Games have finally commenced.  And what a night it was! Cory and I decided that we wanted to go to the Olympic Green and hopefully try to witness this historic event! We decided to take Line 13 starting at Shangdi Station just to transfer at Zhichinlu to get on Line 10 that would take us right around the Olympic Green.  We got off at Beitucheng and were we surprised with what we saw as we exited the station.  Policemen, army patrol officers, and other security personnel greeted us in full force.  We asked the first military officer as to if our credentials would be sufficient into getting us onto the Olympic Green.  He said they would be, but he led us in the completely opposite direction of the National Stadium.  So then, we decided to ask the next military officer and he allowed to cross the roped off street.  We saw hundreds of people just waiting patiently for the abundance of fireworks that were going to be launched from the National Stadium.  We got to the main road, where yet again we met with another military officer and we thought our night was done.  He would not allow us to continue our journey to the Olympic Green even though we had our upgrade card.  We told us flat out "NO" and told us to walk to the side of the street.  We were then greeted by volunteers to go through the security tent to get to Line 8 which is just for the Olympic Green.  We passed through security and rode the subway right to just about the National Stadium.  It was about 8:00 pm and the Opening Ceremonies was going to start at 8:08 pm for very obvious reasons! We were stunned that we made it through.  There were basically just volunteers on the Olympic Green for they had access just like we did.  Fireworks started shooting up out of the Bird's Nest!  It was the most amazing sight I have ever seen.  I took so many pictures!  Then the countries lined up for a parade to go to National Stadium starting from the National Indoor Stadium, where gymnastics and the handball finals are being held.  Greece started the procession because of their connection to the starting of the Olympics many years ago.  Then, every country had their athletes proceed into the stadium.  There were around 200 countries present!  We saw every athlete possible with the exception of the football players and equestrian riders because their events do not take place in Beijing until much later in the Olympics.  Then, we saw Dr. Guan marching with Team USA basketball!  We were in much disbelief because we had no idea how he got there and still don't.  After that, we decided to gamble to see if we could get into the National Indoor Stadium with our passes.  We ran as fast as we could and were granted immediate access.  We rushed up the stairs and to our delight Mr. Yao Ming was in front of Team China's procession.  We spoke to him briefly before he exited with the People's Republic of China's flag!  We even received official Team China pins from their delegation! Unbelievable!  We also met briefly other Chinese basketball superstar Yi Jianlian!  We were just steps away from these athletes.  What a night to remember!

We spent a majority of the past couple days in training with the BOCOG, but I will leave this to the handball, fencing and water polo “bloggers.”

The most exciting part of this week, of course aside from the long lectures we had to sit through for our training, has been the time we spent at the pearl market.  In case you have never heard of a pearl market, its name naturally comes from the extensive selection of pearls that are traded within this giant market place.  Although this is what the market is known for, a majority of it is occupied by a myriad of salespeople selling all kinds of goods from watches and cell phones to sneakers and suits and much more.

What makes this experience so exciting is the haggling that you must perform in order to get what you want at the cheapest possible price.  This was nothing I have ever experienced before because of how ruthless and argumentative some of these merchants can be.  Multiple times I had my arm grabbed and squeezed tightly by a random lady trying to pressure me into purchasing a wallet or a pair of shoes.  Deciding that I could not come to this market without working on my bartering skills, I bought a Rolex watch by talking the woman down from 400Yuan to 100Yuan.  Now if you do the math, you would be able to tell that I bought this Rolex, or “folex” as most of you may call it since its authenticity is definitely compromised, for a mere $15.

As someone who has never spent more than a half hour shopping at one time, I could not be more excited to check out one of the other pearl markets in Beijing for the entertainment of haggling and intense atmosphere.