As most of you know, Alex and I were lucky enough to go to Beijing for the 2008 Olympic Games. I must say, there was more to it than luck, though. Just getting our visas took more perseverance and determination than you can imagine. Between Alex and myself, we went to the Chinese consulate here in Dubai a grand total of NINE times in order to finally be approved! We had to submit applications, letters of permission from everyone you can think of, bank statements (yes, the government of China now has our bank account numbers!), hotel and flight reservations, proof of olympic event tickets, letter from hotel confirming our stay, I could go on and on, but you get the point. You would have thought we were seeking permission to take over the country! Alex's application was approved before mine. Mine was turned down as they asked for further paperwork more than 4 times. I actually had to have Alex write a letter for me (since I am in the UAE under his visa) stating that I had his permission to go to China and "guaranteeing" that I would abide by all Chinese laws while there! Yep, I had to get a permission slip from my husband! He will not likely let me forget this one for a while!I flew to Beijing from Portland, Oregon (via Vancouver) with my friend Kelly (college roomie) and her boyfriend EJ. We came from the wedding of another one of our college roommates. Since the wedding was the night before we left for our long trip to Beijing, we ended up staying out ALL night and heading straight to the airport with no sleep. Alex flew from Dubai and met us in Beijing. We planned it well enough that our planes landed within 10 minutes of each other! Upon arriving in Beijing, we headed to the hotel to drop our bags and then went straight to a women's semi-final football game (aka: soccer). Although we did get some sleep on the flight over (thanks to EJ's prescription assistance!), I had been on the go for more than 48 hours. The only thing that kept me awake during the football game was the amusement of watching Kelly and EJ's heads bounce as they kept nodding off! We were just exhausted. I can assure you I am too old for these kind of marathon all-nighter antics! However, our very first olympic event was more fun than I could have imagined and very memorable. The next day we headed to the Olympic Green for a day of watching athletics (track and field events) at the newly built Bird's Nest.
Kelly's mom, Eileen, had been in Beijing since the opening ceremonies and was a fantastic tour guide! She had already scoped everything out and took us around the Olympic Green to see the many exhibits and displays. At one of the exhibit tents, they invited Kelly and me to sit down for a traditional tea ceremony. They were always so excited to see blonde haired people! We ended up all having tea as a group and then they asked us to autograph their sign and take photos with us. Everyone was so gracious and happy to have us as visitors to their country.
Also on the Olympic Green are the new buildings for the events including "The Bubble" in which all aquatic events were held and a building that we called "the torch building" due to it's shape. The TV screen on the side showed views of current events taking place and re-runs of past events.
That evening we headed out to meet some of Kelly's friends from Singapore who were also in town. We went to a bar that was absolutely packed with soccer fans who had just been to the Brazil vs. Argentina match. Much to Alex's chagrin, we ended up staying out late. He was tired and wanted to go back to the hotel. However, once he saw that it was nearing 2:00AM, he decided that we should all just stay up and go with Priscilla to see the flag raising ceremony at Tianamen Square at sunrise. Sooooo, at about 4:15 in the morning we left the bar (which was still wall to wall people), caught a taxi, and headed to Tianamen Square. It was humbling to be at the site of what all of us know to be a horrible moment in history where many student protesters lost their lives to violence. Needless to say, there are many guards here. Some are in uniform, but we were aware of many who were dressed in plain clothes as well. We decided this would not be the place to wear your Free Tibet t-shirt.
We look just a wee bit tired in the photo below...
One of the highlights of the trip was of course, The Great Wall of China. The pictures speak for themselves. Although I don't think they show you just how many and how steep the stairs are!
We toured the Forbidden City, also known as the Former Imperial Palace. This is where the emperor lived along with the princesses, concubines, etc. This is the walled city where the entire ruling family lived. It is called the Forbidden City since no "commoners" were allowed inside. The size of this place is gargantuan. There are still areas where the public is not allowed to go. The middle photo below gives you an idea of the size of this city and the opulence in which the ruling family lived.
We went to the Temple of Heaven during the evening, so not many of my pictures turned out. This temple is in a HUGE, beautiful park. It's an amazing getaway from the noise and bustle of the city and is located right in the middle of Beijing!
We had lots of great traditional Chinese food, spent quality time with good friends, and enjoyed the amazing sites Beijing had to offer. A HUGE thank you again to the Sonnack family, we would not have been able to do half the things we did without their assistance and generosity! Xie Xie!
