Competitions in the Bird's Nest

I'm back on U.S. soil! I'm blogging this post from the San Francisco airport as I'm waiting for my connecting flight to San Diego. I'm actually feeling pretty good relative to my previous return flights from Beijing.

I figured that since I was at the Paralympic Games that I should do at least one post with pictures from a competition venue! This first picture is of the wheelchair 5K. For those of you who have been following my blog for a while, you know that I don't post much about work. It's a TRAVEL blog after all, not a WORK blog!

Even though I don't like being in large crowds, I accepted the ticket given to me to attend a Track & Field event. It was pretty cool to be in the National Stadium (AKA Bird's Nest) to see our athletes compete. It was awesome to see a packed stadium for just about every session. Some of the races have gone our way and some haven't, but that's the nature of the beast. There may be favorites and underdogs going into each event, but you never know what the outcome will be once the drama has unfolded. Some dreams fulfilled, some dashed. Some will be back to try again, others won't. It's all part of the big show.

I had been running around so much since I got to Beijing, I hadn't taken the time to take pictures of the Bird's Nest and the "Cube", so I caught these pictures before I left. We could actually see the Bird's Nest from our hotel room we were so close. As the old saying goes "beauty is in the eye of the beholder." I can appreciate the architectural marvel that the Bird's Nest represents and it is impressive all lit up at night, but I personally don't find the structure aesthetically appealing. To me, it just seems out of place in a city full of ancient and historical designs. I understand that it's meant to represent the modernization of Beijing, but when it blends in with the ever present pollution, it seems to represent the harmful consequences of China's economic growth instead of the benefits. Again, just my opinion.


It's hard to believe that all the planning and preparations for the Beijing Games are behind us and that I'm already scheduled for meetings to continue the Vancouver 2010 and London 2012 planning. The Olympic calendar continues to progress, always moving towards the next Games.

Although this wasn't a particularly arduous trip, I'm looking forward to a few days off to catch up on laundry and household tasks before jumping back in full force at work. Although I'll be heading out to Colorado Springs next week to discuss plans for the next couple of Games, the Paralympics are still in full swing and I'll be following coverage on the internet. How big are the Paralympic Games in comparison to the Olympics? Well, it's all a matter of perspective. I heard the Olympics referred to as the "warm up" Games several times from Paralympic athletes, coaches and staff! The Paralympic Games will be televised in the U.S. sometime in October, so I hope you'll tune in!