Friday - 8.8.08
This is THE day. Opening Ceremonies tonight and you can feel and see the excitement. More on that later.
Took a bus to the Canoe/Kayak venue in Shunyi to see the team, walk the course and meet the press folks.
They said it would take an hour to get there and it sure did.
NO traffic on our way out there. I don't know whether it was just lighter traffic in the country, or if there were traffic restrictions. Really nice drive. Out in the country, very green and lots of corn, some horses and surprisingly little crepe myrtle trees planted roadside. The only difference between their crepe myrtles and mine in Charlotte is that theirs are blooming.
The Chinese have set up "Olympic Lanes" on the highways for the obvoius use. A lot like the HOV lane on 77. When I drive the HOV lane in Charlotte, I'm usually getting passed on the right, and so was the bus. The driver could have driven down the middle of the highway in reverse for all the other cars out there. It was kind of eerie. You know, like when you're driving somewhere in Eastern NC on a brand-new 4 lane divided highway going from Nowhere to Nowhere Else and all you can see is 4 cars, and one of them is broken down.
The facility at Shunyi is incredible. BIG water and BIG stands. I heard there are 27,000 seats and all sold. That's going to be quite a sight. I was doing fine until I stood still and then I thought someone threw a bucket of water on me. "It's not the heat, it's the humidity" I heard in my head. Sorry to say that I was wearing a cotton shirt and thus my sweat for the remainder of the day - ugh.
The team practiced from 10 - 11 and they seemed really loose and relaxed. They practice again on Saturday, and I'll head out there again to see them and to visit the sprint course.
Went back through the Main Press Center to get a few things done and back to BNU for a much needed shower.
In Beijing, there were definitely traffic restrictions with the pleasant result of cutting taxi fares by at least 25 percent! Less traffic, more relaxed insurance companies. See, there's something for everyone!
More later!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Thursday, August 7, 2008
It's Game Time
I had a great (looooong) flight from Charlotte to DC over Canada, the North Pole, Siberia and into Beijing. Caught a great view of the ice over the Arctic Circle and "Be Kind, Rewind" as well.
We had the treat of having both the US and Canadian baseball teams on the flight. Real gentlemen - easy to call them "Olympians".
Arrival at the airport was great - a huge throng of folks greeting the athletes. The airport is big, but not very busy. Brand new everything and really well appointed. Saw Venus, Serena and Lindsay Davenport arriving. They really drew a crowd, but if they felt like I did, I'm sure the last thing they wanted was all that attention.
I did get to throw the Immigration folks a curve, though. They don't get the whole "William" and "Bill" thing here. Don't know that they still do, but I got through.
Got to our lodging at Beijing Normal University at about 5.30p on Wednesday. I was able to stay up until 9.30 after a nice walk to the WU MART to look for a power converter.
While looking for the Wu Mart, I came to the "Duh Huh" realization that traffic is really wild. I can't imagine it while traffic restrictions are not in place. Trucks, busses, taxis (there are over 60,000 taxis), pedestrians and bicycles of all descriptions sharing the road and all uniformly taking a really casual view of traffic signals.
I must say that I think the bicycles and pedestrians have a lot of clout on the road. Honks from anything barely register or cause alarm in these folks.
Everyone has been really nice. Not hearing much English spoken by the local folks, but I've gotten a lot of head nodding and smiles.
The air is kind of thick. Poor visibility, but that's certainly not breaking news. I hope it clears up some tomorrow for the Opening Ceremonies. Which, by the way, I don't have tickets to. What's up with that?
More later - thanks for reading.
We had the treat of having both the US and Canadian baseball teams on the flight. Real gentlemen - easy to call them "Olympians".
Arrival at the airport was great - a huge throng of folks greeting the athletes. The airport is big, but not very busy. Brand new everything and really well appointed. Saw Venus, Serena and Lindsay Davenport arriving. They really drew a crowd, but if they felt like I did, I'm sure the last thing they wanted was all that attention.
I did get to throw the Immigration folks a curve, though. They don't get the whole "William" and "Bill" thing here. Don't know that they still do, but I got through.
Got to our lodging at Beijing Normal University at about 5.30p on Wednesday. I was able to stay up until 9.30 after a nice walk to the WU MART to look for a power converter.
While looking for the Wu Mart, I came to the "Duh Huh" realization that traffic is really wild. I can't imagine it while traffic restrictions are not in place. Trucks, busses, taxis (there are over 60,000 taxis), pedestrians and bicycles of all descriptions sharing the road and all uniformly taking a really casual view of traffic signals.
I must say that I think the bicycles and pedestrians have a lot of clout on the road. Honks from anything barely register or cause alarm in these folks.
Everyone has been really nice. Not hearing much English spoken by the local folks, but I've gotten a lot of head nodding and smiles.
The air is kind of thick. Poor visibility, but that's certainly not breaking news. I hope it clears up some tomorrow for the Opening Ceremonies. Which, by the way, I don't have tickets to. What's up with that?
More later - thanks for reading.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
The Final Touches are Done - I hope.
Looks like everything is is done as it's gonna be.
Had to pack 2 bags - United allows a bag to weigh 50 lbs or less for no charge. If it's over 50, there's a $50 charge. I love symmetry. However, they allow you to take 2 bags under 50 lbs (each) for free, so I'm now gonna schlep 2 bags.
I'd love suggestions on how to pack for three weeks in one bag weighing 50 pounds. I'm confident it can be done - but not by me.
Anyway, I'm off at 6am tomorrow. Next post from China.
Wish me luck -
Had to pack 2 bags - United allows a bag to weigh 50 lbs or less for no charge. If it's over 50, there's a $50 charge. I love symmetry. However, they allow you to take 2 bags under 50 lbs (each) for free, so I'm now gonna schlep 2 bags.
I'd love suggestions on how to pack for three weeks in one bag weighing 50 pounds. I'm confident it can be done - but not by me.
Anyway, I'm off at 6am tomorrow. Next post from China.
Wish me luck -
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Took a peek at the globe today and saw that Charlotte sits at approximately 35 degrees latitude. Beijing is at 39. So I got to thinking what city was close to that and lo and behold, the great city of Baltimore is also 39 degrees latitude. That'll give me - and you - a bit of reference. So, if anyone has spent a summer in the Baltimore/DC market, you'll have an idea on how hot it'll be over the next month. Urban heat dome, concrete, tall buildings, crappy baseball teams. Except they don't play much baseball in Beijing.
It's not Columbia, SC hot, but pretty durn warm nonetheless.
Not really sure what any of this means. It could draw some parallels or not. I'm no weatherman, though I have been wrong several times in my life, so we have that in common.
While I was at it, I looked at the distance between here and thar. Beijing is 7134 miles or 11,480 km away, or a convenient 15 hour plane ride. A mere pittance.
While I was at that, I figured I'd look at how one flies from there to there. According to United Airlines, DC to Beijing takes you north to Alaska (catchy) via Canada. Then we wave to the crab fishermen in the Bering Sea and voila, we're in China.
Some other ramdom thoughts:
It's not Columbia, SC hot, but pretty durn warm nonetheless.
Not really sure what any of this means. It could draw some parallels or not. I'm no weatherman, though I have been wrong several times in my life, so we have that in common.
While I was at it, I looked at the distance between here and thar. Beijing is 7134 miles or 11,480 km away, or a convenient 15 hour plane ride. A mere pittance.
While I was at that, I figured I'd look at how one flies from there to there. According to United Airlines, DC to Beijing takes you north to Alaska (catchy) via Canada. Then we wave to the crab fishermen in the Bering Sea and voila, we're in China.
Some other ramdom thoughts:
- Do the kids in China play "Marco Polo" while swimming like our kids do? Or does "IT" say "Mao" and the other kids say "Tse Tung"? Or maybe"Dick" and "Nixon"?
- Can you really call guys that sail and work on crab boats "fishermen"? Aren't they really crabbing? Surely that's so, because they only catch fish by accident. That's why John Owen and I don't calll ourselves fishermen.
- What kind of bird lives in the "Bird's Nest"? Whatever it is, I'd hate to be standing underneath when it exacuates itself. A really stinky avalanche - yikes.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Look Ma, I'm on the TV
Our great local NBC affiliate - WCNC - just did a shoot at the McMillan homestead all about me geting ready to leave. Packing, no less!
What fun people they are - we had a great time. I showed them clothes, Chinese language books, pins and yes, the Immodium.
Bewteen you and me, I really didn't actually pack. We were kinda pretending. Show Biz stuff, you know?
Looks like it'll air somewhere around the Opening Ceremonies.
This whole thing is getting weirder all the time.
What fun people they are - we had a great time. I showed them clothes, Chinese language books, pins and yes, the Immodium.
Bewteen you and me, I really didn't actually pack. We were kinda pretending. Show Biz stuff, you know?
Looks like it'll air somewhere around the Opening Ceremonies.
This whole thing is getting weirder all the time.
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Allllllrighty then.
Two weeks and counting.
My hepititis shots have sunk in.
Final touches are being made to outstanding items for both my jobs.
I'm excited!
The last conference call I had with the USOC Media folks was incredibly valuable. Those men and women are such pros. Great advice was given to all of us that included things from leaving a copy of your passport at home in case you lose yours to taking 5 minutes everyday to sit on the Olympic green and people watch.
Two weeks and counting.
Vacation is over.
Packing is almost done.My hepititis shots have sunk in.
Final touches are being made to outstanding items for both my jobs.
I'm excited!
The last conference call I had with the USOC Media folks was incredibly valuable. Those men and women are such pros. Great advice was given to all of us that included things from leaving a copy of your passport at home in case you lose yours to taking 5 minutes everyday to sit on the Olympic green and people watch.
So, to all you regular visitors to the blog (all 3 of you - thanks kids), bear with me while I struggle a bit with content until I hit the road and really have something to blog about.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Last Staff Meeting
With upcoming vacations, travel and other general mayhem, yesterday was the last day the whole CRSC staff will be together until the Tuesday following Labor Day. It's hard to believe and something I hadn't even thought about.
So, while we were having a meeting on the upcoming Countdown to Kickoff luncheon, those sneaky devils bought some cupcakes and asked the Panthers to put up a good luck message on the ribbon boards in Bank of America Stadium (see photo below). What a thrill for a dyed-in-the-wool Panther fan like me. THANKS SO MUCH TO YOU ALL!
Personally, I'm making a packing list (chewable Imodium, toilet paper and Chinese language flash cards) and tying up loose ends. Thank goodness for the CRSC staff!
Also, got a brandy new St. Christopher's medal from Dad and Gail Mooney, so we're truly covering all the bases.
On the USACK side, the team has been named, and we'll have 7 great athletes representing the US in Beijing. I don't know them all really well, but have met most of them and look forward to getting to know the rest "over there".
It's a really diverse group from the young guns Fraker, Eichfeld and Powell, to veterans like Zur, Johnson, Corrie and Parsons.
Keep an eye on USACK.ORG to check NBC's awesome coverage options - internet and all their cable platforms - to see all the action.
So, while we were having a meeting on the upcoming Countdown to Kickoff luncheon, those sneaky devils bought some cupcakes and asked the Panthers to put up a good luck message on the ribbon boards in Bank of America Stadium (see photo below). What a thrill for a dyed-in-the-wool Panther fan like me. THANKS SO MUCH TO YOU ALL!
Personally, I'm making a packing list (chewable Imodium, toilet paper and Chinese language flash cards) and tying up loose ends. Thank goodness for the CRSC staff!
Also, got a brandy new St. Christopher's medal from Dad and Gail Mooney, so we're truly covering all the bases.
On the USACK side, the team has been named, and we'll have 7 great athletes representing the US in Beijing. I don't know them all really well, but have met most of them and look forward to getting to know the rest "over there".
It's a really diverse group from the young guns Fraker, Eichfeld and Powell, to veterans like Zur, Johnson, Corrie and Parsons.
Keep an eye on USACK.ORG to check NBC's awesome coverage options - internet and all their cable platforms - to see all the action.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
