China - Day 27

Today we got my suits. We also went to the Olympic Villiage (You can see the order of importance by the order in which those were stated). We actually went to the Olympic Village first. So, I’ll tell you about that first. A week ago, you had to pay in order to even get into the Olympic area. At least, that was our understanding of how to get in.

We were on the subway on our way to go pick up my suits and my mom’s stuff that she had ordered, and the line took us by line 5, the subway line that goes up into the Olympic area. We were going to go to the Olympic Village today, whether we had to pay or not. My dad said that it would be a pain to try and go tour the area while after we had picked up the cloths, which makes sense. So, we decided to see if we could ride line 5 into the village. Before, you could not even get on line 5 because it was closed off (At least, that is what we thought).

There was a guard there in front of the entrance. We asked him if you need a ticket to take that subway line, and he said no. So, we ended up just going to the village first. There are several stops on the subway line, but the first one is closets to the Water Cube and Birds Nest. Right when you exit the subway, you can see both of those buildings. It was pretty cool seeing those in person.

It was a little walk along the long pathway that extends along the entire village length. Along the area outside the actual village, there are a lot of vendors trying to sell all kinds of stuff. There are the food people who have yams, popcorn, chestnuts, and other stuff. The whole way up to the entrance of the village was just a line of vendors.

We went to the Birds Nest first. You can get really close to it without having to buy tickets. Within a hunded or so feet. There is a fence set up there though. So, in order to go into the nest you have to buy tickets. Well, we did come to tour, so we bought tickets for 50 qui each ($7.31).

Walking into the place for the first time is really cool. Just walking on ground level, you come to where the seats start, and the whole stadium slopes to the floor. The whole floor is below ground level. So, you don’t have to walk up any stairs to be able to get a good view of the place. That was a good thing to because you were not allowed to climb the stairs up. You could only stay on the ground and below.

On the stadium floor there was a whole bunch of fake grass set up, that covered most of the floor. There were four displays of the outfits used in the opening ceromonies. There were also some props that were used, like the drums and the big paddle things used in the boat act.

In the center of the place there were two big blow of friendlies. It was Huan Hua and Ni Ni, I think. It was the crazy red one and the green one. Anyhow, lots of people were getting their picture with them. Some people were just lying in the grass napping. I guess that is an experience, taking a nap on the floor of the Birds Nest.

We walked around in the place for a little bit, took some pictures, Katherine and Danny did some handstands and cartwheel, and then we left.

We did not go real close to the Water Cube, but we got a picture with it anyway. It was closed though. So, we could not have gotten inside. We walked along the long cement pathway, intending to take the subway, and then take a taxi to get our cloths. We ended up just getting a taxi to take us all the way there.

Well, there isn’t much to say about picking up my suits and my mom’s shirts. The suits do look pretty good though… So, after getting a picture with my tailor, we left to go to the Chinese Traditional Music Conservatory to see a friend of my mom’s sister.

We talked a little while there, and then went out to dinner with her. We had Peking duck for dinner. We had a few other dishes as well, but the duck is the center dish. They roast these ducks whole, and then cut them up by your table and serve them to you. At this restaurant though, they also gave you the head of the duck, split in two pieces. So, I got an oppritunity to eat a new food.

The head was split lengthwise. In one side of the head sat a little lump of stuff that bassically looks like meat, of course, you know that it is not meat. I’ve never seen a cooked brain, but I got to see one tonight. Now, I have to try everything. So, I got about half of it and put it on my plate. Seriously, it looked like meat, but it had the consistancy of a paste, which was weird. Anyway, I had my glass of tea and water ready, as well as some other food ready, lest the taste completely overwhelm me.

I popped the stuff in my mouth and smeared it around with my toungue. There is no need to chew, as it is way to soft to warrant that. It tasted fine for a second, but then I got that blood taste again, which triggers the “Get that stuff out of my mouth” reaction. Needless to say, I washed it down with tea, and ate other stuff all night. So, the new food for today is duck brain. I don’t encrouage you to eat it, save for the novelty of it.
-Aaron


The Birds Nest

From China Day 27

From China Day 27

The view down into the Nest

From China Day 27

A freindly!

From China Day 27

I don't know, just something to do on the floor of the stadium...

From China Day 27

Walking along the outer edge of the stadium

From China Day 27

The water cube

From China Day 27

Me and my tailor.

From China Day 27

Never not caution!

From Chinglish

This was in front of the Beijing Train Station

From Chinglish