Women's Volleyball Medal Games

Unfortunately since I work at night, I wasn't able to see the Chinese women's team beat Cuba 3-1 for the Bronze medal this morning. However, reading flash quotes and press conference highlights that my colleagues have collected, I realize that I missed out on something special.

Cheng Zhonghe, the head coach of the Chinese team is usually a mild-mannered guy, someone who rarely ever shows emotion win or loss was reported to have been sobbing uncontrollably after China won the match.

When asked why he was crying, he was quoted to have said:

"It was such a tough game. Many of our players have injries, especially the old players. They have experienced a lot of setbacks. Unfortunately we didn't realise my goal - to get into the final. But I know that it's really not easy for the players, so I'm very proud of them."

It just shows how special these games actually are. When a team can still be excited and giddy about winning a Bronze medal, after being the previous Gold medal team, you know how much it means to these athletes and coaches.

The USA women played valiantly against Brazil tonight, but they lost 3-1. Brazil has been especially impressive as they haven't dropped a single set comming into this match. So as a consolation prize, the US women are the first team to win a set against Brazil. Even with the silver medal, I believe the team surpassed their expectations and while they aren't Gold medalists, I still think they're quite satisfied with their result.

Second to last day

Tomorrow will be the final time I put on the blue Adidas volunteer uniform that can be seen quite readily everywhere. It will definitely be a bittersweet moment, as this entire experience could quite possibly be the wildest thing I've ever done. It's been nearly three months since I've been home (had a foot on US soil), and I think I'm finally starting to feel homesick. This in no way takes away from anything that has happened in my time in Beijing.

I've been a part of something so special, so unique and so exhilarating, that while I do feel this urge to finally return home, a very large part of me wishes I could continue working.

I remember the first few days, where as a whole us Purdue students bonded through four hour long bus rides to the Great Wall and sewage treatment plants. The next few weeks included excursions to different places of interest in Beijing, which included a lot of bar searching and hazy taxi rides back to the CUC. When work finally started, I was with nine other classmates learning about the differences between the sprint, keirin and madison events of cycling track. I remember wanting to try my best as we feverishly jotted down quotes and prepared intelligent questions to ask the athletes.

I still recall the confusion that came with being switched out of cycling to volleyball. The disappointment of not being with my friends, but the excitement of working at a new venue with a new sport. I remember my first interview with an Olympian, a twenty-five year old Egyptian setter who was practically just as excited as I was for the games.

I remember sitting in my bed watching the opening ceremony, with my mouth gaping with awe as somehow thousands of performers managed to move in-sync to create some of the most visually impressive sights ever.

I remember arriving back at the dorm at two or three in the morning everyday due to the working the night shift. I remember the craziness of the crowd when the Chinese teams introduced prior to every match.

Tomorrow will be the the gold medal game for the USA women, and it'll be the last day for me to create some final memories.

USA JIA YOU! 中国加油！

When I finally decided to spend some money on some Olympic memorabilia, I realized shopping isn't that easy, especially when you're holding a blue t-shirt that says USA in one hand and a white t-shirt that says China in the other.

There are a few questions that I've had to answer many times since my arrival in Beijing. One of the most common questions is: "If the US plays China, who do you cheer for?" I usually respond with whoever is the underdog, just to simplify matters. But honestly, I've never really sat down and though about my answers. When the US men's basketball team played China, I really did cheer for China, since I knew that they were going to be blown out anyways. However, when the two women's volleyball teams played, I was cheering for China as well. I could just be trying to adapt, as most of the people I'm working with are Chinese, but it seems to me that I rarely ever cheer for the US team when they're facing a Chinese team head-on. To top it off, I seem to be rooting for China to win the medal count as well. So am I really a patriotic Chinese? I'm not sure if I have the answer to that.

I have always seen myself as an American. When I was younger, I would do everything I could to prove to others that I was "made in the USA". I even refused to learn mandarin because I thought that would tarnish my American image. Since being at these games, I've realized how lucky I actually am to have two countries to call my own. Not only do I get to cheer and root for twice the number of athletes, I feel a lot more diverse than everyone else. I can't be disappointed either way if the US and China go head to head, my favorite team is going to win either way.

I walked out of that Nike store with a white t-shirt that had CHINA inked onto the front. Sure I hold a USA passport, but does that even matter?

Tickets Tickets Tickets!

If you haven't noticed, I'm a bit of a basketball nut. I love playing the sport, I love watching the sport, and I love just talking about the sport, but for all my passion for the game, I have never watched a single basketball game live. Sorry, but the Purdue men's and women's team don't count for this purpose.

Imagine my suprise when I was told a few days ago that my aunt had a ticket to the men's basketball finals on the last day of the Olympics. The story gets even sweeter as I realized that I would be able to watch both the bronze medal game and the final itself. If for whatever freak reason the US team were to lose in the semifinals, I would still be able to see them. It's three days away from those games and I can barely control my excitement. I had to ask for the last day off, switch a plane ticket and find some some extreme measures of transportation to make it to those games, but I know it will be well worth it.

Expect a post about the experience when the time comes.

Goofing off (kinda)

While we turn on the seriousness when work needs to be done, there is a lot of downtime while we're at work. We've all found creative ways to pass the time while having a few good laughs. Personally, I love the fact that we have three televisions in our office, hooked up to live feeds from all the different venues. Not only have I been able to watch some intense volleyball matches (mainly the Chinese teams going into fifth-set games), but I was also able to watch some very exciting basketball games on TV as well.

The venue offers a lot of entertainment, provided you spend a little time and effort to go look for it. One form of entertainment is trying on Fuwa heads. They're quite bulky, and you really do look absolutely ridiculous.

Home stretch (part duex)

My previous post listed the things I've been yearning for, and this post will compliment that by talking about the things I will miss most when I leave Beijing.

The Olympic experience

I don't think I really need to explain why this is the first thing on my mind, but I will talk about what makes this trip so special. When I go to work everyday, I look around and I see thousands of people crowding around. Many times I see a sea of blue Adidas volunteer uniforms and I recognize that I'm part of something that only happens every four years. It still hasn't hit me, but I am starting to come to the realization that I've talked to athletes that some people would die to just see in person. It's completely insane, and I can't wait to get the opportunity to sit back and just immerse myself in thought as to how crazy everything has been.

The prices of things

I usually always miss the prices of stuff in China everytime I have to fly back to the States. While I have splurged a bit on some items, I realized that I've spent less here in my two months then what I would usually spend in the States, even being conservative and all.

The people I've met and worked with

They weren't joking when they told us that if we didn't work as a team, our time here as FQRs would be very difficult. Every person is important, and everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. My colleagues have been instrumental in making things happen when I'm in a tough spot, and hopefully I've done the same for them. I would like to say thanks to my manager Joy (Zhang Jia Ning) for allowing me to not only learn about what it takes to work in a high pressure environment but to make our time as enjoyable as possible.

Home stretch

As my time in Beijing as a volunteer is winding down, I've started to think about what I miss most from home, and what I will most from my stay in Beijing. It's interesting to see how the most mundane things become so important when you aren't able to have them everyday.

Here's the list for things I miss most about home.

Texas Roadhouse, Olive Garden (especially Steak Gorgonzola Alfredo)

I miss the good 'ol extra large portions of American food. When you've taken a bite out of a twelve ounce medium rare filet mignon, a bowl of white rice and some bok-choy just does not compare at all.

Midnight trips to Walmart/McDonalds/IHOP, being able to drive to places whenever you want

Having your own car, and being able to control where you want to go whenever you want is such a luxury. Sans the almost impossible Beijing traffic, the size of the city makes it extremely difficult to satisfy needs on a whim.

Watching movies when they first come out

No complaints about less than a dollar DVDs, but I miss the aspect of standing in line waiting for the premiere of a movie. Ironman, Transformers and Harold and Kumar come into mind, but I've been suffering as I haven't been able to lay my eyes on this year's summer hit; The Dark Knight.

Uncensored internet

I didn't think this would affect me as much as it did, because I had lived in China before. While I can understand blocking porn and some other questionable material, when I can't read a friend's blog, or *gasp* get on Facebook it does tend to irk you.

The Media Mecca

So I visited my future office as I was very graciously granted a tour of the MPC (Main Press Center) of the Beijing Olympics by my volleyball manager. It was pretty much an entire building composed of offices and amenities for those of the media and media affiliated.

I’ve been to quite a few busy office buildings, including companies with prime real estate in midtown Manhattan, but nothing even comes close to the hustle and bustle that the MPC housed. There’s a laundry list of amenities, but those that I saw and those that come to mind at first include a barbershop, a massage parlor and last but not least a McDonalds.

An Olympic First

As part of a trial for the Beijing Olympic Broadcasting and the Olympic News Service, I was the first ever video flash quote interviewer. This was definitely one of those, “Wow, cool!” after the fact moments, but it was still a very fun experience nonetheless. I was told only twenty minutes prior to the game that I would actually be participating in this event and there definitely was some apprehension. I have had experience with a microphone, a camera and an extremely tall athlete before but this was definitely on a different level. Thankfully I was the anonymous hand holding an obnoxious green microphone, but the mere knowledge of the fact that I could have a lot of people listen and “watch” me ask a stupid question to an athlete was mind-blowing.

The humor of it all is probably that the one thing I jokingly requested beforehand, a box to stand on so I could be more in-line with the height of the extremely tall players ended up being somewhat of an issue. The summary from whichever headquarter in charge of this trial commented on the soft volume of the interview/flash quote itself. A very large part of that was my fault, as I was intimated of placing a microphone right up against an athlete’s mouth, much less one who has the comfort of the locker room just mere minutes away.

Spare box anyone?

The Return of a Legend

‘Jenny’ Lang Ping is probably the most decorated volleyball player to come out of China. Nicknamed the ‘Iron Hammer’, her ferocious serve and precision spiking led China to their first Olympic volleyball gold medal in the 1984 Los Angeles games. An ironic twist is that Jenny is now the head coach of the US women’s team, a rival to the favored Chinese team. A week ago while I was watching Jenny run her team through practice, I couldn’t help but to stare in awe as she still was able to spike extremely efficiently as many of her current players were not able to successfully defend her spikes. Every player from 1 to 12 had their fair share of embarrassing moments as a nearly 50 year old woman was toying with them. I remembered jokingly making a comment to our ONS manager that Jenny could probably still play at an effective level.

The point of the Lang Ping introduction is the fact that the Chinese women played the US team tonight. I was extremely curious as to what kind of the reception Jenny would receive as the opposing head coach. While I can’t say I was entirely surprised that Jenny received the loudest cheer, far surpassing any individual or team for that matter of the tournament so far. China didn’t just merely welcome Jenny back; they still remembered her accomplishments and gave her all the love in the world for them. Want to know how important she is? Chinese President Hu Jingtao was in attendance.

In another nail biting game, the US team edged the Chinese in a five set match. While the crowd stayed behind to cheer their home team for a very valiant effort, the noise was definitely on a completely different level as Jenny walked through the mixed-zone and raised her hand in acknowledgement of the crowd’s appreciation. It didn’t matter that she was an enemy, an obstacle in the way of the beloved Chinese team, Jenny was and still is a Chinese legend.

The Home Crowd

I might have witnessed the greatest display of patriotism ever tonight. Qualifying by default of being the host country, the Chinese men’s volleyball team played their second match of the 2008 Olympic Games. China has not qualified for the Olympics in twenty-four years and the men’s team has not enjoyed much success in recent years. Almost always overshadowed by the dominant women’s team, one that took home the gold medal in the 2004 Athens games, the Chinese men are relatively unknown to most mainland Chinese, let alone the international community.

Their relative obscurity did not diminish the amount of support they received one bit. The stadium was packed to the brim with the 18,000 seat stadium filled with almost entirely of Chinese fans expressing their unrelenting support. The noise, the energy and the emotion was unparallel to anything I’ve ever been a part of. The Chinese team was facing a young Venezuelan squad which included a lot of talent, but not nearly enough experience to make a serious push for the quarter finals. As one of the few teams that the Chinese had a decent shot of beating, the anticipation and expectation was oozing through the crowd. Every point won by the Chinese resulted in a thunderous cheer and every Venezuelan serve was greeted by a chorus of booing. The match definitely lived up to anyone’s wildest expectations as it was only decided by the fifth set tiebreaker. The entire Capital Stadium was rocking when the home team prevailed 16 to 14.

As a supposedly unbiased member of the media, I even couldn’t help but to cheer.

USA vs China Men's Basketball

With an estimated one billion viewers, this game will go down as one of the most watched sporting events ever. Political implications aside, I find it fantastic as a Chinese-American to watch something this special mainly because I've proved myself on courts everywhere I played that I could hold my own. I remember when I first played at Purdue, I would rarely get the ball passed to me but after awhile I was able to play just as well if not better than some of the other guys.

China was blown out at the end of the game 101-70, but one only has to look at the standing ovation Yao got when he left the court with around four minutes left to understand how important sports can be regardless of nationality. Yao was injured for the majority of the season playing in the NBA and he still isn't near 100% now, but in an interview earlier this summer he did state that if he was unable to play in this year's Olympic games, it would be the biggest disappointment in his career.

There was an obvious difference in skill level between the two teams, but I'm extremely proud to root for both teams and to see how much appreciation basketball recieves in China.

First Real Day at Volleyball

The games are now very much underway and I've just finished my first day as an ONS Flash Quote Reporter. All the work and trouble that we've gone through since last October has now finally accumulated into this. It was worth every second.

My day started off with the host country China playing against an obviously outmatched Venezuelan women's team. Just a few days ago we were able to interview the Venezuelan squad and the scary thing was the fact that most of the athletes on that team were quite a few years younger than us. There are at least four members of the team who are under 18 and the oldest player is 25.

China was able to save most of its energy, as they played the entire match with mainly an even mixture of starters and second-string players. Post-game mixed zone was quite possibly the most chaotic thing I've witnessed in my life. Chinese media mobbed each and every player that walked through the zone and hearing the soft-spoken Chinese girls was like listening for a single raindrop in a thunderstorm. I was quite disappointed as I wasn't able to get the quality quotes that I was used to getting in the much less frantic training sessions. I did managed to redeem myself by being a useful copy-taker.

The second game of the evening was a much more evenly matched USA versus Japan. The US women were heavily favored to win the game, but it was common knowledge that Japan wasn't just a pushover. It was obvious that this was going to be a game where every point counted as neither team managed to push their lead to over five points throughout the first-set. Halfway through the second set, which Japan managed to win, we learned of the news that Todd Bachman father-in-law of the USA Men's Volleyball head coach was brutally murded earlier that evening. The news is a complete shock, and it completely undermines that purpose of the Olympic games.

The rest of the evening was extremely frantic as we ran back and forth from mixed zones, ONS offices and Press Conference room. It ended up being a late night but it was worth it.

Opening Ceremony

First off I have to say, there probably wasn't a better way to spend three hours in Beijing than to watch one of the most extravagant shows on earth. The Chinese government was not joking when they said they utilized nearly ten thousand people for the various acts. The final figure would end up being nearly fifteen thousand performers with nearly five thousand members of the army and military sector.

My aunt and uncle were able to obtain tickets to the actual event, but from what I've heard from them afterward, they ended up watching the jumbotron more than the actual performers. These sort of grand scale events are made for TV. To emphasize that fact even more, the director of the entire ceremony is a renowned Chinese/HK action movie director Zhang Yi Mo, who is known for his attention to detail, which is much better suited on a television screen anyways.

I spent my opening ceremony in my dorm with the company of a fellow ONS volunteer. Her dorm on campus does not have a TV so she came to watch it in my room instead. It was a very interesting experience as her knowledge of Chinese customs and cultures and my love for sports and athletes in general made for some interesting home commentary.

The ceremony was absolutely fantastic in all of its aspects, but the drummers at the begginning blew me away. The coordination required to successfully pull off something like that is just mind-boggling. Congratulations to China on an amazing job and good luck to London to create its own legacy.

First day at Volleyball

I just finished my first day at volleyball and it was fantastic. Volleyball is a much higher profile sport than cycling, mainly due to the fact that the Chinese women's team are heavy favorites to defend their gold medal. There are a lot more volunteers at the Capital Indoor Stadium (CAS), and the amenities are much more bountiful at the venue. There are media lounges stocked with an assortment of food and beverages and the entire area have volunteers stationed to help you find your way around.

One of the coolest parts of being switched is the oh-so elusive upgrade card. Not only am I granted clearance into the CAS, I have also been given clearance to the BIT Gymnasium where many of the preliminary matches will be held. Although I highly doubt I will get a chance to visit the other stadium, the fact that I have the ability should I want to is pretty cool.


What I would describe to be the best part of being switched, is the fact that I get to meet new volunteers and managers. Everyone is extremely friendly and I quickly made friends with both the local Chinese volunteers and the two Australian volunteers as well. We bonded quite quickly and it couldn't have been sooner as we were thrust into our first "real" assignment at the games. The Egyptian men's volleyball team was engaged in their first practice/training session of the games, when we were assigned to interview and take flash quotes. We watched the athletes practice for an hour or so, and then had the amazing opportunity to talk to them face to face. The athletes were just as excited to be a part of the games as we were, and the entire experience is mind-blowing. I look forward to speaking with more athletes as the games progress.

Ballin

After a long week of work, the guys and I decided it was time to head back to the courts to get some run in. The seven or so games that we played were quite possibly the most competitive so far. Guys were getting knocked to the ground and jewelery was broken (Thanks to Chad, he did however apologize). We even managed to get some of our local volunteer counterparts to come out and play as well.

We ended the day going 6 and 2, with our losses occurring right as we got on and the last game we played. It's apparent that we don't nearly have the same stamina for Beijing heat as the locals do, as we were thirsting for water after every single game we played. Even as we lost the last game and were in the motions to leave, we were asked to stay and continue to play. The local guys at the court really enjoy the tougher competition that we bring, and it's extremely refreshing to have some competitive fun.

A final note: "Way to use your head there Chad." said Leroy Bridges.

Volleyball-Again?

Hopefully the final chapter of this on and off saga has been written. When I went into work on Thursday, I was told by one of the managers that whatever security clearances I required to work at volleyball had been completed. Even though the option to either stay with cycling or go to volleyball was entirely "my decision", I was put in a position that would've placed both volleyball and cycling managers in a tough spot. I'm extremely saddened that I have to leave Krystyna, Amy and Ernst, who are the wonderful cycling managers and experts that have guided me through mock mixed zones and press conferences, but I now have a new challenge to take on.

While on a a base level I understand volleyball quite a bit more than I understood cycling, I'm still not very familiar with the sport. The impression I seem to be getting is that I'll be used at volleyball mainly for my bilingual abilities. The Chinese women are heavy favorites to medal at the very least, and the volleyball manager would like me to translate their quotes in real-time to English. I guess get rid of the translator middleman.

I've been reading up on the rules and history of volleyball lately and hopefully I've built up a sufficient enough knowledge base to perform my job well. Volleyball is more of a high profile sport than cycling, and I believe there will be a lot more pressure at the National Indoor Stadium. I'm slated to start work August 9th and work from 6pm-12am every night until the 24th, which is when the games finish. The good news? I get to take a shuttle everyday instead of the subway. Heh.

Mock This

As the days leading to the opening ceremony dwindle down, our training has picked up and our skills as flash quote reporters are visibly increasing. Our ONS managers have put us through multiple rounds of mock mixed-zones and press conferences in preparation for us.

Nothing about the "mock" is relaxed though. Our experienced managers understand the fact that anything can happen when interacting with athletes, and have created various different scenarios for us to run through. One such situation included an upset athlete who wouldn't stop to talk to us, leading to a couple of reporters learning to quickly adapt to the situation. With one athlete unwilling to stop and talk, those reporters raced back to the other side of the mixed zone to pick a new athlete to take quotes from. These exercises were performed with deadlines. If you weren't able to complete the task in the time required, you understood the resulting consequences.

Everyone took to these exercises with full effort as many of us could be seen sprinting from mixed zones to offices and back. We completed around four exercises in total, and we received criticisms and suggestions after each mock event. Our performances improved each time, as we familiarized ourselves with the process more and more. As the day drew to a close, we all were exhausted from the intensity that was applied, but we were extremely grateful for the invaluable experience.

Our managers might not be real athletes, but not for a second did we question how realistic and how quite possibly our real Olympic experiences could mimic what we had just done. Hats off to our brilliant managers who had set up this wonderful experience, and I hope our confidence in our abilities to perform have risen.

Uniforms

Previously this week we all received our long awaited uniforms. Placed in a large Adidas bag, we received one pair of sneakers, two pairs of adjustable pants (they zip off to become shorts), three polo-shirts, one fanny-pack, one water bottle, three pairs of socks and a baseball cap for the guys (fisherman's hat for the girls).

A game that was played after receiving our uniforms became; How much did this all cost? Using standard retail prices for all the items, one calculation that was derived was around 300 dollars. Not bad considering we got this all for "free". The uniforms aren't the sexiest things I've worn in a while, but they are presentable and now all of us feel like a part of the great blue army that is the Beijing Volunteer Corps.

Gift of Family

As the last couple free days were winding down, my aunt who was visiting from Hong Kong to see the games took me out around the city. Our handy media accreditation passes allowed a free trip nearly halfway around the city as I arrived at her apartment.

I haven't seen my aunt in about two or so years, and over the course of that time she's given birth to one my cousin of mine. My meeting up with my aunt allowed me to not only see my other two cousins in the two year span but meet my newest family member as well. This is baby Lillian.



My aunt and her family are in Beijing for the next three weeks as they plan on attending the opening ceremony and a few other events. They're filled with Olympic pride as well.


So our day started with a delicious lunch at a Japanese restaurant at the China World Hotel, followed by a trip back to her apartment here in Beijing. Then the most glorious thing happened. I was able to take a steaming hot shower for the first time in nearly two weeks. The simple things in life.

The 1=1 theory.

Ever since I moved to China at the end of sixth grade, I've always wondered why at times spending 1 RMB is almost equivalent to spending 1 USD. So the purpose of this blog post is to list approximate prices of daily items in both currencies, and see where the exchange rate really lies.

Food Items:

McD Burgers Fried Rice

3-5 USD 10-21 RMB 5-7 USD 5-20 RMB

Bottled Water

1-2 USD 2-5 RMB

Services:

Massage 1(Hr)

30-70 USD 50-100 RMB

Hair Cut

10-25 USD 20-50 RMB

So as you can see, there are quite a few things where the RMB is nearly one for one with the Dollar in. Services is especially true, as the large amount of obtainable labor allows for very cheap prices in manual labor. One dollar, or 6.9 RMB can go a long way here.

That first real meal.

After living on crackers and water for the past three days, I decided to venture out and eat something substantial. Our good friend Paul, from his Steak and Eggs restaurant was the chosen destination of edibles.

Cold ginger ale, minestrone soup and half a New York strip steak later, I left Paul's feeling more satisfied then I had been in nearly a week. I'm pleased to say I'm about one day away from putting the illness behind me and get ready for training.

On a unrelated note, several Purdue students who were assigned to photography have received their uniform and I am excited to receive mine.Thanks Alysha for the wonderful picture.

Hospital(ity)

Sorry for the slow updates, but I was overcome with a stomach virus at the beginning of the week and have been bedridden since. Good news is that I am gradually feeling better and I hope to be able to report to my first day of training by Monday.

Tuesday this week, I had already begun to fever amongst an assortment of other maladies and was at breaking point. I called my parents to see if they could arrange for someone to take me to a hospital to get a diagnosis. Little did I know at the time, Beijing had long made plans for easily accessible health care for the Olympics, and the hospital I was taken to had been designated as the official Olympic hospital for all tourists. There were quite a few foreigners there when I arrived, and the hospital worked in an extremely efficient manner. You start off by taking a ticket and waiting for your turn to be called. I barely waited ten minutes before a doctor opened her door to me, and asked me to explain to her what was wrong. A temperature reading, blood and a stool sample later I was prescribed three medications that would neutralize whatever bacteria living in my stomach and I would be on my way to fair health again.

Thanks doc.

Media Accreditation

Over our two day training session, the cycling venue manager provided us with our media passes.
While I'm still waiting on my pass to provide me access to the volleyball venue, these passes have given us nearly free reign while traveling up and about Beijing. It feels good to have "VIP" service, as we will not have to pay for another subway pass provided we show these passes when purchasing tickets. But on the same note, the severity of security at the Olympics have been very apparent as our passes specifically state not only what venues we have access to, but also what areas in each place we're allowed to be in. Understandably, security at a large event such as the Olympics would be extra tight, but China has taken a step beyond normal security and has put measures into place to have everything under control.

http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2008/07/antiterrorism_exercises_in_chi.html

I wonder if I'm getting frisked every time I'm going to get a flash quote.

Grass is greener

The old adage: "The grass is greener on the other side" can not be more true for the culinary aspects of living in a foreign country. While I do believe I am more accustomed to the different food items that Beijing offers, than my fellow classmates, there are times where I would do almost anything to find an Olive Garden and order a medium rare steak gorgonzola alfredo. Conversations about food with Leroy, Chad and Chris usually are forced to end as we all reminisce about our favorite eateries back in Indiana. While we might not be able to find an authentic burrito or a warm plate of pasta cooked to perfection, we have been making do with what is available.

Our unanimously favorite place to eat in Beijing would have to be Paul's Steak and Eggs. With an amazing location in the embassy district of Beijing, Paul's restaurant has provided us with the most authentic "American" food to date. I have sampled both his pastas and his steak and egg namesake, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every tiny bite I've taken. Thanks Paul for bringing home to Beijing.

Other safe choices would have to be the more established franchises. McDonald's, KFC and Pizza Hut are in abundance, and all of those places have served pretty good food. Those restaurants for the most part have stuck to their international counterparts menus, but there are a select few items that seem to have a local twist to them. The McDonald's fish fillet apparently includes a generous serving of Wasabi sauce, rather than the mayo that we're used to. I'd stay away from it.

Markets!

As shopping goes, I've only actually spent meaningful time in two different areas. The first one being the Silk Market, which is more of a five story building with hundreds of different vendors set up selling everything imaginable in the clothing industry. As one browses through the rows of nearly identical stalls, which often result in multiple occurrences of deja vu, as many of the stalls sell identical articles of clothing.

Entering the market from the Yonganli subway station, places you into footwear haven as vendors attempt to convince you to buy from a nearly endless selection of Nike, Adidas and various other brands. Each floor caters to a different selection of clothing, with purses and wallets rounding up the first floor and shirts, pants and jackets claiming most of the stall space on the others. The top floor of the building is entirely made up of jewelry and pearl sellers.

The Buynow department store, which is the second large shopping venue that I have made a return trip to, is an electronic silk market. Haggling is completely permitted and even necessary as one browses through vendors that sell anything from computers to video monitoring systems. This market is a mecca for any technological junkie, as they sell nearly everything imaginable that relates to electronics. For example, after breaking my power adapater for my laptop, I was able to bring the unusable unit, and procure myself a brand new one for three American dollars. Amazing.

Volleyball

As our training started, Christina who is the cycling manager told us that a few of the Purdue students were to switched either full-time or part-time to the volleyball venue. Without any other way to determine who was to go, we drew names out of a hat and now I will be covering volleyball at the games instead of cycling. I'm definitely excited with my new "beat", as volleyball is a sport that I am more familiar with.

I met my volleyball manager and in our brief conversation, it appears that they will put to use my bilingual skills, and have me interview specifically the Chinese teams, and translate their quotes back to English.

I am somewhat disappointed that I will not be able to work with my fellow students, but I realize that the Olympics is just such a unique opportunity and that any little thing us volunteers can do is just a small part of this great event. I'm hoping that I will meet different people at whatever venues I will be working at, and that those relationships will last past these games.

Better start learning those volleyball terms now. In both Mandarin and English.

TV Show

As one of the more interesting experiences of my life, Purdue along with a group of Australian students were invited onto a Chinese talk show. We were ushered ushered onto a small stage where an elaborate set was in place. The talk show started with the introduction of an eighty-eight year old gentleman who aspired to take part of the Olympic volunteer program, and another man who was a supervisor for the volunteers.

The host of the show, along with the pianist were great at setting different moods for the show. The show had several different turns with either humorous portions, such as asking the audience to conduct interviews, to serious ones where students with disabilities provided the audience with small gifts.

After the show was over, the majority of the audience rushed onto stage to take a picture and greet the host and his guests. To our surprise, the elderly gentleman was actually a University of Michigan alum, and it was an incredible experience talking to him about going to a Big-Ten school back in the 40s.

Quack Quack

World famous Peking Duck. It took awhile, but after a unique tour of a sewage processing facility and of a rural village on the outskirts of Beijing, we finally made it to Peking Duck. Our trip started at 8:30 am as a collection of students from Purdue, Emerson and Queensland University of Technology gathered at the lobby of our host university, CUC (Communication University of China). We were greeted by two massive busses as we arrived at the south gate of campus. Our enthusiastic tour guide, known to us as Henry, provided a constant stream of dialogue as we braved the Beijing rush hour traffic to our first stop, the sewage processing plant. An hour later we arrived to an unknown location where we were greeted by employees of the plant. Walking across metal grating over bubbling dark water definitely was a first for me, but I'm sure the experience was definitely new to quite of few of us. With the help of Henry's translation, we learned what the different processes occurred in order for the brown sludge to refine itself into clear usable water.

After touring the plant, we stopped at a restaurant for lunch, and then headed out for a rural village on the edges of Beijing. The village consisted of a temple and a retirement home. While I'm sure there were many other parts of the village, it seemed our tour was composed of mainly those two parts.

Peking Duck was our next stop, and the two and a half hour bus ride definitely built up the anticipation. The bus ride itself was a great bonding experience for all of us, as it allowed us to really get to know each other. One common point of discussion was the ridiculous driving and traffic that compromised nearly every single Beijing road. We came to the conclusion that for our trip, we spent more time sitting on a bus than any other activity.

The restaurant did not disappoint. We were ushered onto the third floor, where an entire ballroom was dedicated for us Olympic volunteers. There aren’t many words that can be used to describe the sensations one feels when warm roasted duck enters a mouth devoid of nutrition for nearly seven treacherous hours, but needless to say this was culinary perfection. The ducks were brought out onto carts located in between tables and we salivated as chefs masterfully sliced the duck into thin pieces that fit perfectly in our wraps and buns. Add some great side dishes and it made for one amazing dinner. While we were told our ducks might have been raised in some questionable ways, the end result was without a doubt one of the best meals of my life.

Handsome man, we have your size

Day two of Beijing consisted of a quick tour of the host university by some of the local college students. It was a lot of fun being able to meet people of our age, studying in similar educational fields as us. The most shocking revelation was probably when I met a local student who attended the same high school I did in Shanghai. The high school in question is called Shanghai Middle School, and it has two different divisions. There is a local division and an international division. I was in the international division the same time as this student was in the local division. Small world.

The tour consisted of mainly locating and explaining many of the different facilities within campus. We visited banks, cafeterias and small supermarkets. After absorbing all this information, the option was presented to us to go to the Silk Market. From living in Beijing previously, I remember the Silk Market to be a busy street with hundreds of small vendors selling knockoffs of everything imaginable to man. While the location has changed to a building connected to a subway station, the concept has remained the same. Store clerks are almost vulture-like as they try to drag you into small shops that aren't more than ten feet by ten feet. The greatest thing about the whole experience was the fact that, as the only Asian surrounded by many Caucasians, I was left unscathed as my fellow classmate were unmercifully dragged and shoved into these stores. Leroy, another Purdue student, mentioned something of a death grip as he was being pulled into a store. Aside from the physical hazards of navigating the Silk Market, we also encountered different phrases of English being yelled in an attempt to funnel us into these stores. Chad, another student was warmly welcomed by phrases such as "We have your size" and "You so handsome".

As part of the small group of students that banded together to navigate the obstacles of the market, we finally found our sanctuary with a foot massage parlor. The wear and tear of navigating subways and streets took their toll on us, and the feeling of your heel being kneaded and your calves being squeezed is something out of this world. After our half hour massage, none of us had any desire to leave the chairs that we had been sitting in. This definitely capped off our trip the Silk Market with a bang.

Beijing Take 2

After spending a day and a half in Beijing, I have come to the not-so unexpected, but still quite pleasing conclusion that Beijing has modernized herself for these Olympic games. Many new buildings have been constructed, and at least two new subway lines have been built to accommodate the surge of traffic that is surely to come.

Six or seven years ago, which is around the last time I was in Beijing, the city was much different. It wasn't as English friendly as it is now, and many facilities appeared be to outdated and in extreme need of renovations. This is definitely not the case now.

So for our first day in Beijing, a couple of the guys and I decided to head down to the outdoor basketball courts adjacent to our dorm. We were greeted at first with stares and quizzical looks, but finally a couple of local players accepted our challenge to play a pick up game of four on four. Our team definitely had a size advantage, but the locals had experience on their side. While we were able to have our way the first few games, our lack of being in shape showed up quickly and we finally lost. It was a great time regardless of winning or losing, and this is something that I'd definitely love to do again.

Day before

Unlike most of my fellow classmates who will be undertaking their half-way around the world 14+ hour trip, I will be waking up around 7:00am tomorrow morning to take a relatively painless two hour flight from Shanghai to Beijing.

All I can stay is that I'm stoked to start working at the Olympics. It's not very often that one has the opportunity to just visit an Olympic host city, but to actually contribute is one giant step beyond that exciting prospect. I've lived in Beijing for two years, albeit being around fourteen at the time, and I am excited to see how much Beijing has changed to evolve and adapt itself into a city worthy of housing the world's best athletes. My family resides in Shanghai, and I return once a year on average. Each trip back is almost a different experience in itself. Shanghai has been leading China with its expansion and modernization and I don't believe Beijing is far behind. The new "Bird's Nest" sporting complex and Aquatic center "Water Cube" are architectural marvels. Don't believe me? Take a look for yourselves.



Since we will be assigned to cover cycling, our primary daytime residence will most likely be the Laoshan Velodrome. While not as unique and otherworldly as the nest and the cube, it still is pretty impressive looking.



Anyways, off to finish packing. I'll be posting from Beijing soon.

Welcome!

First and foremost, I would like to welcome my readers to this blog. Before you all immerse yourself into this wonderful reading experience, I would like to tell you a little bit about me, and what content you might expect to find over the course of the next two months.

Who am I?

My name is Patrick Qi and I'm a junior at Purdue University, located in West Lafayette, Indiana. I study professional writing and mass communications, basically journalistic type stuff. I also write sports for Purdue's independent newspaper, The Exponent.

Other things of possible interest include the fact that I am Asian-American. I was born in New York, but I have split my entire life living in China or Stateside. I am bilingual, and I have experience with the lifestyle and cultural aspects of China.

What am I going to be writing about?

Well, hopefully the title of the blog is pretty self explanatory. I've been very fortunate, along with a few of my classmates to be invited to volunteer as apprentice members of the media for the 2008 summer Olympic games. Our main focus will be covering events related to cycling, however our stay at Beijing should allow for insight into many other events as well.

As to the specifics of our duties, the majority of the volunteers from Purdue will be designated as flash quote reporters. This means we're the first wave of media to interview athletes, usually right after they finish their event. Our quotes and notes will be used by other journalists for their own articles.

What else am I going to be writing about?

Seeing as how I am the only member of the Purdue delegation with the ability to speak fluent Mandarin, I will also be writing about my experiences as I guide my fellow classmates and friends around the hustle and bustle known as Beijing. Hopefully my comrades will be adventurous enough to enjoy Beijing for more than what it can offer tourists, but for all the small things that make China unique.

Seeing as how this is my first post, I will stop here in an effort to not overwhelm you. I'm extremely ecstatic and grateful for this wonderful opportunity, and I hope my writings will provide a similar experience for you. Thanks for reading!