The Sinocanadian » Olympics

Olympics: For Peace, or for Safety?

Rob — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 03:16:04 +0000

Since I live really close to Yong He Gong (the Lama temple in Beijing), I went to go watch the men’s cycling road race on Saturday, and it was kinda frustrating to be cheering by the side of the road.

There was a fence along the entire part of the route that was publicly accessible, and between the fence and the audience had to be about a meter of space that was filled, literally shoulder-to-shoulder, with police, PLA members, and Olympic security volunteers.

The bigger problem was, that like everybody who is given a little bit of power, each new security-related person who arrived between me and the fence, wanted a wider and wider space (so as to express their power position?). So even though originally the space between the audience and the fence was perhaps 25 cm, it widened to 40 cm, 60 cm and finally nearly a meter as different levels of security arrived.

Secure Olympics - are those spectators amongst your security staff?

And just imagine how big their eyes got when I pulled out my Canadian flag to wave for 20 seconds as the peloton passed by. The volunteer in front of me acted as though she’d never seen the flag of another country before, and had to ask the volunteers beside me if I was allowed to hold it up. After confirming that it was, in fact, a Canadian flag, she relaxed and joked around with me, as long as I didn’t try to push into her territory.

These frustrations were later noted in the Globe and Mail Olympics blog, saying:

When informed on Sunday about the frustrated spectators amid apparent security overkill, Beijing organizers could only shrug.

“I am sorry to hear that,” spokesman Wang Wei said, “Of course, I understand their disappointment. I will look into this situation and give you an answer tomorrow.”

I didn’t care THAT much, but it was scary to feel how much security was there, and annoying to realize that each and every one of those people was on their own little power trip.

Beijing Olympic air quality – hoping for the best!

Rob — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 19:13:06 +0000

Well, this morning was not exactly the poster child for beautiful weather in Beijing. Hot, humid, and according to the Ministry of Environment – kinda polluted. Enviro-blogger Vance has been running a blog on Beijing air quality running up to the Olympics, and he noted that today barely made the “Blue Sky” standard that Beijing has set for itself. I encourage you to read his lively blog to learn all about it.

I, in the meantime, was clumsy enough to have taken a picture out my office window this morning. Yipes. Blue Skies?

Beijing's "Blue Sky" (API=95) day - T minus 1 day to Olympics

*I do note that my camera is not very good. But still, it’s kinda like this. Just imagine an API = 200 day…cough

Torch relay got the Olympic feelings going!

Rob — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 18:46:07 +0000

Well, i was on my way to work yesterday morning, when I came up to a big mob of people and police on the road. My way was blocked, so I didn’t have much to do other than find out what was going on. And there it was, these teeming tens of thousands of people including police and journalists and young not-yet-working Chinese folks were out to see the Olympic torch pass just near my apartment. So, what’s a guy to do but watch? Here’s my take on it:

So I was wrong, it wasn’t the beginning of the torch relay in Beijing, but it seemed pretty early in the morning at the time, and wasn’t I excited.

Just before the torch arrived, in rolled the corporate sponsors. Everyone seemed a little confused with this particularly North American (I think) parade-style presentation:

Anyway, just to show you how excited I was, I took a shaky video of the torch lighting. Yay! Zhongguo jia you! Beijing jia you! Au yun jia you! (Go China! Go Beijing! Go Olympics!)

Well, now I think I feel a little bit of the Olympic fever…based on the sneak peak courtesty of the Korean media, the opening ceremonies are going to be fantastic. Let the games begin!