Archive for the 'Olympics' Category

Olympic Toilet Trouble…

Published by
Steve
at March 19, 2008 in China, Culture and Olympics. 10 Comments

As many of you already know, Asians possess the valuable skill of ’squatting.’  You may be thinking, “I can squat too, and I’m not Asian!”  But, there is a big difference between the “Asian Squat” and the “Western Squat.”

2008 LogoNormally, this is just one of those interesting cultural differences that tourists and Western expats like me notice and talk about.  However, due to decisions made by those who have designed and built the venues for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, it’s looking like it’s going to be a real issue for the tens of thousands of non-Chinese who are going to show up in August with no experience using a “squatty.”

Beijing is expecting about 500,000 foreigners to attend the Aug. 8-24 games.

At the more than 30 test events held by organizers, the presence of squat toilets at many of the new and renovated venues has drawn frequent complaints.

“Most of the Chinese people are used to the squat toilet, but nowadays more and more people demand sit-down toilets,” Yao said. “However, it will take some time for this transition.”

Beijing is reported to be spending at least $40 billion on the venues and related infrastructure, all designed to feature a modern country that has grown in three decades to a political and economic powerhouse.

Having experienced the reactions of dozens of Western tourists who come to China and encounter a ’squatty potty’ for the very first time, I think the designers of the Beijing Olympic venues have made a serious miscalculation, based on cultural ignorance, by ommitting ‘western toilets’ in the bathrooms of these multi-million dollar venues!  The stories that will result will be interesting…

2008 Beijing Olympic Emblem

Published by
Steve
at November 20, 2007 in China and Olympics. 0 Comments
2008 LogoEvery emblem of the Olympics tells a story. The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games emblem “Chinese Seal, Dancing Beijing” is filled with Beijing’s hospitality and hopes, and carries the city’s commitment to the world.

The seven themes that the 2008 Beijing Olympic emblem portrays are;

Milestone

Commitment

Image

Beauty

Hero

Spirit

Invitation

The emblem is supposed to “…attract more and more people from around the world to Beijing and China to join the great celebration with the Chinese people.”

I’m not sure that an emblem will accomplish this lofty goal, but it is a nice logo!

Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2007-03/26/content_5897986.htm

Nearly 3,500 Chinese Named ‘Olympics’ (奥运)

Published by
Steve
at November 4, 2007 in China, Olympics and funny. 0 Comments

Does anyone doubt that the Chinese are excited about the 2008 Olympics? I’m pretty sure that Erica will NOT be agreeing to naming our soon-to-be-born son ‘Ao Yun’!

BEIJING — The upcoming Beijing Olympics is more than just a point of pride for China — it’s such an important part of the national consciousness that nearly 3,500 children have been named for the event, a newspaper reported Sunday.

Most of the 3,491 people with the name “Aoyun,” meaning Olympics, were born around the year 2000, as Beijing was bidding to host the 2008 Summer Games, the Beijing Daily reported, citing information from China’s national identity card database.

Names related to the Olympics don’t just stop with “Olympics.” More than 4,000 Chinese share their names with the Beijing Games mascots, the “Five Friendlies.”

The names are Bei Bei (880 people), Jing Jing (1,240), Huan Huan (1,063), Ying Ying (624) and Ni Ni (642). When put together, the phrase translates to “Beijing welcomes you!”

Beijing to put 50,000 bicycles for rent ahead of Olympics

Published by
Steve
at September 24, 2007 in China and Olympics. 1 Comment

BEIJING, (Xinhua) — Wanna tour Beijing? Rent a bike. The Olympic city plans to put 50,000 bicycles for rent across the city ahead of the Games to curb pollution and ease congestion.

Brand new bikes will be available at 230 outlets close to subway stations, commercial districts, Olympic venues, hotels and office buildings as well as in big communities, according to a “rent a bike” program carried out by Beijing Bicycle Rental Services, a Beijing-based company.

BikesThe company has so far put 5,000 bikes for rent at 30 franchise outlets close to the Beijing Workers Stadium, the Drum Tower, the Forbidden City and the Xidan commercial street, according to the company’s website.

Before next August, the network will be expanded to cover major communities and all the Olympic venues, said Wang Yong, general manager of Beijing Bicycle Rental Services. “Organizations and individuals are welcome to join our service network for free, as long as they can provide an area about the size of one parking space.”

Wang said his company would provide all the bikes for rent, and franchise outlets would get 1 Yuan a day for each bike they operate as running costs.

“The outlets will also get profit sharing at the end of each month, based on their own business incomes,” he said. “Not every outlet can make a profit, as people can rent a bike at one outlet and drop it somewhere else close to their destinations.”

The bicycle rental program is also sponsored by the Beijing Environment Protection Bureau as well as the anti-theft arm of the municipal public security bureau, because bicycles are frequently stolen in the city.

“This is like a centralized management of bicycles so that citizens won’t have to worry about thefts,” said police officer Wang Xiaobing.

To embrace next year’s Olympic Games, Beijing, a city with 3 million motor vehicles and more than 4 million drivers, is working all-out to ease congestion and curb pollution.

Monday is the last day of Beijing’s four-day experiment to test whether pulling 1.3 million cars off its roads each day would prove effective in reducing air pollution during the Games.

Drivers with even-numbered license plates, excluding taxis, buses and emergency vehicles, were told to stay off the roads on Friday and Sunday or face fines. Odd-numbered cars were banned on Saturday and Monday.

Experts say pulling 1.3 million motor vehicles off the roads in Beijing each day can reduce exhaust emissions by 40 percent.

Though Beijing’s sky remained mostly gray and misty as a result of stuffy, humid late summer weather, nearly everyone felt the roads were smoother. “Going to work by bus took me only 15 minutes,” said Zhang Jianguo, a government employee. “Driving took almost the same time.”

Officials hail improved air quality during car ban

Published by
Steve
at August 20, 2007 in China, Olympics and thoughts. 2 Comments

This would NEVER fly in America… What has happened is the Beijing City Government Leaders decided to do an ‘experiment’ to see the effects of and to test the logistics of a driving ban for over a million vehicles per day. This is part of Beijing’s preparations for the 2008 Olympics.

Beijing Car Ban

A police officer stops a car with an even-numbered license plate on a main thoroughfare in Beijing during the first of a four-day air quality experiment for the Olympics, August 17, 2007.

Beijing’s overall air quality improved during the four-day test period ahead of next August’s Olympic Games in which more than a million cars each day were barred from the roads, according to the Beijing Environment Protection Monitoring Center.

This definitely falls into the category of ‘only in China’!