The Bird’s Nest Stadium It’s only been two years, but I finally made it to see Beijing’s Olympic buildings. We weren’t the only ones there, either. The “bird’s nest,” (or the eagle’s nest, as the DH calls it), is a major tourist attraction among the many provincial Chinese visiting the capital city. I imagine it [...]
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Visible moon (a rare thing) and Olympic lanterns on the road to/from the Qingdao Airport I work at an airport. I’ve lived at an airport. I’m in the process of traveling from one airport to another. I’m not too sure how it will feel to land at Barajas Airport in Madrid tomorrow after news of [...]
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Don’t ask me what’s going on, because I don’t really know. All I know is that China is currently experiencing nuttiness, and it has nothing to do with peanuts or cashews. For quite a while now, we knew that our flight school would not be allowed to fly during the Olympics, since we are located [...]
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I don’t know why I hadn’t noticed these before. Olympic spirit is everywhere, even on the bricks of milk.
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After enduring an early morning visit from the police to our apartment to “check our papers” yesterday, we decided a celebration of our non-deportation was in order. Besides, the Olympic opening ceremonies would take place at exactly 8PM and we certainly did not want to miss an opportunity to engage in harmony & good will [...]
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The Olympics start tomorrow, but the weirdness associated with them has been building for quite a while. First there was the news that our flight school couldn’t fly during the Olympics, all because our school is located within the province of Shandong, about three hours from where the sailing events will be held. Then we [...]
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Hunger got the better of us yesterday, as we sat cooped up in our apartment. Surely there would be a way into the city and to one of our favorite restaurants. And if not, well, there is always a neighborhood joint to eat in. To our surprise, there were people meandering through the streets, but [...]
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The PRC isn’t exactly what it used to be, or what it promised to be. The Olympics are right around the corner, and so are paramilitary police, increased scrutiny and an overall sense that things have definitely gotten weird. I’m back in Linyi (more to come on that) and the Olympic spirit/nationalist fervor is as [...]
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AP Photo Algae Woes Hit China’s Olympic Sailing Host City Christopher Bodeen, Associated Press 30 June 2008 To host the Olympic sailing events, the Chinese port city of Qingdao moved a massive boat yard, relocated industries and spent about $850 million on transport links, parks, pollution controls and coastal green belts. But with little more [...]
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I'm an American expat living on the fringe of Chinese society. Thanks to a lifetime spent moving around, I often feel like an outsider. This blog explores life in Beijing, China, the occasional aviation topic, expat issues, random travel experiences and interesting things I see, read and hear. If you want to know more about my latest hobby, visit Sewing on the Fringe, where I blog about learning to sew in Beijing. And for daily documentation of Beijing's ever changing air quality, visit My Beijing Window. And, yes, I do wear my santa hat year-round. ;)
