When I talk to friends and family back home, usually the first question they ask is how is the weather or pollution now in Beijing. Last it was spectacular and the best I had seen it in three months. It was as many athletes, officials and journalists were arriving so news got back to home home that all was good.

Today started off a little hazy, but it seems to have gotten worse this afternoon. I go to a gym which is air-conditioned and seems to have good air filtering. When I came out of the gym, I was still breathing a little heavy and the thick fog like pollution hit me. You can taste the dust in your mouth. Fortunately, rain is predicted for Wednesday and Thursday ahead of the opening ceremony on Friday evening.

Here is a shot of Beijing’s sky today:

Here is how it looked on Friday: