Day 27 [11 Days To Go] - Sniffing

Hey Everyone!

Instead of heading to a church Sunday, I worked again. I can't describe how weird it feels to never have off on the weekend. Our work schedule has us working weekends. We have a day of work and then a day off. We are all on our new set of work rotations so now I work one day and then have two days off. We returned to work after the lockdown to find an army of dogs outside the NIS. They had gone inside and smelled all of our lockers the day before. The day consisted of a lecture in the morning and flash quote simulations in the afternoon. Our supervisors pretended to be famous athletes and tried to trip us up with mixed zone scenarios. We took quotes and asked questions and then went through the procedure to get them into the computer system.

Many people have asked whether China will be ready for the Olympics and whether they can pull it off. Within the past few weeks, it's been interesting to see how the city has transformed itself. Security has increased. Police officers at the entrance gate to Renmin (the university where we are housed) have begun requiring ID to get inside. Posters and placards are everywhere in the city promoting the Games. For me, the atmosphere is electric with anticipation of things to come. Everyone can see the Games in the distance, and it's almost too hard to wait. City volunteers are everywhere - in the subway helping people get to their destinations and on the city streets giving out Olympic information.

I see the volunteers in the blue uniform almost everywhere I go. We are an army of workers all with the same goal. Every time I wear my credentials, people stare. It's a great conversation starter and the Chinese are always fascinated to see an Olympic worker. I feel like everyone in the city is proud that Beijing is hosting the Games. On the flip side, the government has set up places around the city, mainly in parks away from the venues, where people can come and freely protest. Many are saying it's a way the government is showing it's not-so-strict control.

Here's video of "We Are Ready", a theme song of the preparation for the Olympic Games. (marking the 1 year countdown) It can be heard everywhere...and is a bit cheesy. Almost everyone you meet has said this phrase. I believe the hard work and dedication to the Games will make Beijing 2008 a complete success!

Ted