[Tournament] 2008 Olympic Games discussion thread

So, the opening ceremony.

It was interesting for me (I just came back from China after living there for three years. Yes, I came back BEFORE the Olympics. No, it wasn't due to visa issues.) on several different levels. I'm going to start off by saying this, they waited for this day for a long, long time. On their 200<b>6</b> new years show, they had so many references to the Olympics that you would have thought it <b>was</b> 2008. I mean, they had references about it <b>everywhere</b> including signs, buildings, and products like McDonalds, Coca-Cola, etc. And my students were more than ready to tell me how this was China's "chance to show the world how it has evolved and grown". I even got that speech once to a time I <i>didn't</i> mention anything about the Olympics so I know they have been excited for a very long time and have worked hard for it. If there was one subject my students had interest it, it was the Olympics. Whether it be giving a interary with regards to how they'd get to the Olympics, where they would stay, etc, or whether they would join the Olympics and what they would do, or something else like it, they'd talk non-stop.

Even moreso, they saw the Olympics as the big one. I mean, the commentators couldn't do it justice how important they saw the Olympics. Given all that happened the last six months (the blizzard, Sichuan Earthquake, etc), students and others were giving the talk more or less as troops who kept on going, who didn't give up despite the circumstanes. They would talk about all those things as China had to overcome, all of those setbacks or such, and how they perservierd (SP?) to make it. I mean, they <b><i>really</i></b> saw this as THE biggest moment in modern if not straight-out Chinese history.

It was creative that they used the fact that they had so many people for so many things in the show. There really are a lot of people. I don't mean that as a statement, but as a way of life. While here in the States, I could go some place any not see anyone while walking there until I get into the store, there, you can't usually go one block over with seeing five people. Even when the students were gone, on the campus I lived on, I would wager I'd see at least five or six people going from my house just to the outside. Another big differences is there are so many people that there is much less space in that you don't have situations where you walk for twenty minutes before you get to a store. Stores are everywhere because people are everywhere and they need those stores. So I thought it was clever they embranced in that for the show.

To me though, it felt like it didn't have nearly the Chinese feel to it in some ways. Yes, it showed Chinese history, had Chinese actors and actresses, used Chinese characters such as peace/harmony, the counting system, etc, and SOME traditional Chinese garb, but it really wasn't how they have shows in China. Granted, I guess having some sort of Chinese play would have made little to no sense for most foreigners. They also didn't really have too many Chinese songs. Generally on their shows there are a lot of Chinese songs both current and past. I would love for Shlyph's thoughts on this and just everything overall to compare notes.

The show itself in an interesting twist though, was kinda CHinese in that it ultimately had a Western feel to it (speaking of western feel, I dunno what they were talking about with McDonalds over there. They hand it to you and smile, just like over in the States. Nothing elaborate). What I mean is, when I was in China there, there <i>are</i> times and places you can feel and see traditional aspects of China but a lot of it is slowly disappearing into a Western-ish style of things.

The fireworks were nice although I have seen so many fireworks while in China (they use them for anything and everything and 100X of that for Spring Festival) that it just didn't have the impact. That's not China's fault though. Interestingly enough, the colors were red (if you noticed red as a common theme, good for you. It's their lucky color/color used for stamps that they use for just about any document to show it's official among other things), or yellow and orange which I think together make red too.

Overall a nice show, and it was fun to kinda look at some of the cultural things, and even just look at a few characters and say "Hey, I know that one!".

Jam it back in, in the dark.