Until eight weeks ago, the word “China” evoked images in my mind of something huge, shrouded in mystery and looming eerily on the horizon. Before I flew into Beijing to report for the Olympic News Service, I knew only the barest of facts about the country and its people. They are the world’s most populous country. They have the world�... Read More (0 Comments)

Every four years, history repeats itself. A city that spent seven years preparing for two weeks in the world’s spotlight comes down from its Olympic high.

Beijing is like that now. The Birds Nest, the Water Cube and the dozens of other sparkling, new venues are empty. The flame has been put out (and passed on to London) and al... Read More (1 Comments)

According to XE.com, today’s exchange rate from the US Dollar to China’s Renminbi (also known as “yuan” or “kuai”) is 1 to 6.82. That makes travel pretty easy and, honestly, is one of my favorite things about China. You need to spend very little to live very well here.

I don’t want to run th... Read More (0 Comments)

Check out some of the shots I just uploaded in my “Olympics” album. The Birds Nest, Water Cube and more… hope you like ‘em!

We’re not going to win the medal count.
It’s a fact, USA, our domination of the Summer Games has come to a close. China already has twice the golds we have and are halfway to its goal of 119 medals. We’re gonna lose. And it sucks.

But at least we have someone to cheer against.
... Read More (0 Comments)

Hello, world. Beijing is ready.

Seven years, $40 billion dollars and one fantastic show later, the Beijing Games have officially opened. I hope the Opening Ceremony made you all sit up a little straighter on the sofa and take note: the Olympics have arrived.

It was impossible not to notice. Some highlights: the 2008 drummer... Read More (0 Comments)

I’ve been on crowded trains before, don’t get me wrong.

When I lived in London, my daily commute involved taking an overland train from Clapham Junction (Britain’s busiest rail station) to Waterloo and then switching to the subway during rush hour. If I had enough room to hold a paperback in front of my face Read More (0 Comments)

(See accompanying shots in the “Hutong” photo album)

I love her / she loves me
But I don’t fit in her society
Lord, have mercy on a boy from down in the hutong.

Hutongs are the narrow, winding alleys that spiderweb across Beijing. They are the traditional neighborhoods of often-ancient stone ho... Read More (1 Comments)

Some musings on Beijing’s famous smog… (see “Smog Shots” album for pics)

When you tell people you’re preparing for a trip, you generally get warnings based on where you’re going.

“Watch out for pickpockets!”

“Get a malaria shot!”

“Bring Am... Read More (0 Comments)

Qinghe Water Reclamation Plant – this is, you guessed it, a waste water treatment plant. Or, more specifically, they clean sewage so the water can be used in car washes, to provide irrigation and the like (thankfully, not drink). The city is definitely proud of this plant and the 12 others just like them it built for the Olympics. Ther... Read More (1 Comments)