Long Due Update!
at 6:41 pm on Saturday, 27 September 2008
Hello readers!
I know it has been a while, and there are good reasons for it. Over the past couple of weeks, I have done the following:
- moved into a new apartment (not just a friend’s place)
- had to go to Hong Kong and Macau because of a visa issue
- continued the job hunt
- been recruited to write a blog about learning Chinese
I will make the blog address public once things are all set, but it should be an interesting blog containing elements of life in China as well as vocaulary and instruction of usage in Chinese. In other words, whether you read Chinese or not it’ll be cool.
-Andrew
Moved Downtown
Greetings readers!
Following the racing, I have moved downtown to seek employment here in Beijing. My apologies for the lack of recent updates, but the job of an interpreter is never done. Over the past few days, I have seen Evander Holyfield at the Budweiser Club (might be called Club Bud), watched US Women’s single sculler Michelle Guerette defeat reigning world champion and presumed Olympic victor Ekaterina Karsten to grab an Olympic silver medal, and hung out with rowers from the US and Canada downtown. Pictures will follow as I grab them from my camera, so subscribe now to make sure you don’t miss any!
Media Coverage of Beijing
Hello readers!
Media consumers worldwide are about to be inundated with fluff served Beijing style. Examples of the types of stories you’ll encounter may be found below:
A blog entry.
Lure of the Great Cliche of China
A Financial Times article.
A reporter’s guide to covering the Olympics
A tongue-in-cheek blog from Time magazine.
After reading the above, you can sit back and follow just the news on the athletes’ performances. You won’t miss much, I promise it.
Tickets
at 11:14 am on Tuesday, 5 August 2008
As far as I can tell, most Olympic tickets are sold out, making the market ripe for scalpers. Tickets that may have gone for 60RMB (about USD 8.75) are now going for about 5x that on the Beijing craigslist, and even more on other websites. eBay even has a listing for about 100USD for the finals! Anyway, this is what the tickets look like.
Summer Palace
Yesterday, some members of the delegation went to the Summer Palace. Any holder of an Olympic credential in Beijing seems to be able to get into any famous landmarks without paying for admission. Here’s a picture I took while there.
I may write more about this in a separate post, but there have been numerous concerns about the air quality in Beijing. To address said concerns, the government is throwing the kitchen sink -and launching silver iodide missiles- to make it rain/not rain, all the while waiting for a nice wind to come through and blow the pollution away. If you ask me, the measures seem to be working. For example, take a look at the Hall of Dispelling Clouds.
A New Snack
One of the hotel managers here said that there are few things better than cold beers, good company, and plenty of duck necks to go around. After the other night, I’d have to agree. Like most cities in China, Beijing has a few signature dishes as well as an abundance of snacks. Now I’ve eaten Peking Duck before, but I never knew what happened to the duck’s neck. As it happens, duck necks are spiced and eaten as a snack not unlike beef jerky.
The Volunteers
at 10:43 am on Saturday, 2 August 2008
From every impression I have and every report I’ve read, Beijing has spared no expense for this Olympiad. Not only did China spend more money on the Olympics than has ever been spent before, but it also has the highest number of volunteers of any Olympics to date. The volunteers help with everything from helping register visitors with security to helping translate documents. Although some start earlier than others, there are always volunteers on hand from 6AM-11PM every day at our hotel, other hotels, and everywhere else in Beijing.
Here’s a picture of us one night just before the end of the shift:
Related links:
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-07/31/content_8879729.htm - Article about Olympic Volunteers
In Beijing for Several Days Now
at 1:37 am on Friday, 1 August 2008
Hello readers!
It’s the 5th day in Beijing now, and it’s been quite the trip so far. On the flight over here, there were Olympians from weightlifting (I recognized a couple from the NBC programs), taekwondo, some other sports, and rowing. Before pulling away from the gate, one of the stewardesses got on the mic to congratulate all of the athletes. Upon arriving at the hotel, there was a welcoming ceremony, and volunteers were already on hand to help with everything. Updates and pictures to follow.