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3rd October 2007

Blue skies in Beijing

Yesterday was a beautiful autumn day in Beijing. I you read any western newspapers they invariably write about how bad the pollution is in Beijing In a recent video I took of Beijing Stadium, the sky was incredibly hazy. This could be due all of the construction work going on in the area.

Beijing does have a problem with pollution, but it is not necessarily as bad as what some journalists make out. The Xinhua news agency reported that Beijing had up until the end of September, 186 registered “blue sky” days this year - one day more than the same period last year.

China burns coal for much of its electricity production and the government reported that it will be closing down 1000 coal mines before the start of the Beijing Olympics. A new subway line, line 10 is also due to open next week which should help reduce congestion on the streets.

Beijing’s newly opened National Theater

Beijing National Theater

1st October 2007

World’s second largest TV screen

Wow. This is biggest TV screen I have ever seen. It is on a freestanding roof which is surrounded by the Place Shopping Center in Beijing. It is reportedly the second biggest in the world in surface area, the biggest in Asia and the longest in the world.

I am starting to get the feeling that when it comes to buildings, the Chinese thinking is “the bigger the better”.

China’s National holiday 1 reply

China celebrated its National holiday today with 120,000 witnessing the flag raising ceremony people in Tiananmen Square at six a.m. It rained much of last night and early this morning, but it didn’t stop some people from waiting all night to witness the ceremony.

Chinese people appeared on tonight’s CCTV news saying how proud they were as to how much China has progressed, to the point where they are now hosting the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Today’s holiday marks the start of the Golden Week holiday with millions of people traveling around the country.

Tianamen Square Beijing

Beijing National Stadium video - just less than one year to go 1 reply

I took a look at the Beijing National Stadium yesterday. The subway line (line 10) is still under construction, so I had to take a taxi. The stadium is just north of central Beijing.

The stadium itself looks fairly complete, but they are still have plenty of work to do on the area surrounding it. There are quite a few hotels still being built around the stadium. The design itself if very impressive and unlike anything else I have seen. I think it is going to look great lit up at night.

It was very dusty, which can probably be attributed to all of the construction going on. Just along side the stadium is a massive highway which divides the national stadium with the Olympic Sports Center where the gymnastics events will be held. At the moment it is difficult to walk around the different venues, but I am sure they will be building better access routes as the games approach.

The aquatic center is a big rectangular building, painted blue with bubbles coming out the side. Unfortunately it was difficult to get close to the building to take a good shot.

29th September 2007

Golden Week Holiday

This week marks the start of the Golden Week holiday in China. With China’s new found wealth it citizens have discovered travel. I was planning to travel to Qingdao this week to check out the site of the sailing events for the 2008 Beijing Games, but it was impossible to book a train ticket - for the whole week.

Since Qingdao is a popular sea-side resort for Chinese I decided to skip the city and head straight up to Beijing. Fortunately, I could still get a plane ticket for a slightly premium price. Nearly 3.5 million Chinese will fly this week, an increase of 15 per cent from last year.

I better be heading off to the airport.

Beijing airport Olympics

28th September 2007

Definition of irony - Chinese monopoly game 1 reply

Walking along Fuzhou-Lu in Shanghai, I was a little surprised to see Monopoly being sold by the side of the street. The street vendors had a bit of a chuckle seeing me taking a picture of the game.

For people visiting China during the Olympic Games, I am sure they will be surprised at the development of the economy and the wealth of some Chinese. Poverty still exists of course and the gap between the rich and poor is possibly one of the most extreme cases in the world.

Chinese Monopoly Game

Some habits die hard

Beijing Olympic Organizers are doing their best to present a respectable image to the world. In Beijing they are trying to ban people from spitting in public.

Whether is the dust blown in from the Gobi desert, the pollution, or for whatever reason, Chinese people seem to love a good clearing of the throat.

27th September 2007

My first Beijing Olympic merchandise purchase

Tsingdao beer are a domestic sponsor of the Beijing Olympic Games. The city Qingdao (same pronunciation) is where Tsingdao beer is made. I will be reporting more on Qingdao in a couple of days time. Tsingdao beer is China’s export quality beer, like Foster’s is to Australia. Most big cities have their own local beer, which most locals drink. Beijing’s local beer is Yanjing beer and it is one of the tastier beers in China.

Beijing Olympic sponsor Tsingtao beer


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