Winner Winner Chicken Dinner? I think NOT.

August 18th, 2008

Let me tell about my day.

It all started when I woke up. My eyes popped open and the terrible "HolycrapI'mreallylate" feeling washed over me...after a few seconds I also realized that the entire rest of the family was not awake, what was I to do? So I rolled over, checked the time and it was 7:15...shoot, were we supposed to be leaving at 7:15, or was it 8:15? Oh gosh...I don't know...so naturally, I just rolled over and went back to sleep.

7:25, I wake up again. HOLY CRAP IT'S 7:25. WE WERE SUPPOSED TO LEAVE TEN MINUTES AGO. Nope, you're crazy. Fall back asleep. Finally the Faj comes in at about 7:40...oh, so it was 8:15. I'm officially crazy.

Then the day really gets started. We make the usual morning trek out to the street to start the good ol' Taxi Cab Wars. Also known as battling other asians on the street (who are probably trying to get to work) to get a cab and jet off to a venue. Now. This proves to be very difficult for me and the Faj. On many occasions. We tend to ride together, while the boys go with the Maj...I don't know...it just seems to happen that way. So of course, they post up on their corner and get a cab pretty darn quick...it was rather amazing. We posted up on ours, andddd no such luck. Quite a few empty cabs passed by...or picked up the asian man instead of us. Apparently every day we try and get a cab, it's Don't Pick Up an American Day in Taxi World. We took over their spot on the median for about ten minutes. Then we moved to standing basically in the middle of the road for maybe another ten minutes. Then back to the popular corner....after THIRTY FIVE MINUTES (no, we're not trying to get to track and field that starts at 9:00 or anything...) at the crack of 8:55...we land our first lady cab driver of the trip. Show her the ticket...and she doesn't know where the National Stadium is (since the formal name is the one that is listed on the ticket in Chinese)...so we whip out a picture of the Bird's Nest and it dawns on her. It was almost like magic.

After a solid half hour cab ride (unnecessary...we went all over the place) that should really only take maybe 15 minutes, but there was traffic too...we arrive at our destination. Also, THE craziest entrance to the place. We join the crowd. Yes. The crowd. Not a LINE to get in. Heaven forbid they create a line to get in somewhere...but we join the mob. There we go, mob is a better word for it. The volunteers in their cute little blue shirts let the mob in in small groups, so naturally, everyone feels the need to push, shove, and elbow their way to ensure that they are closer to the tiny gate in the chain link fence. Now...I guess if you have a baby...in a stroller...that is a few months old...that you MUST bring to this atmosphere...then you have the right to move people out of the way and shove your way through the line. I was LITERALLY lifted BY THE BUTT CHEEKS and relocated in the crowd in order for THIS woman and her TINY BABY CHILD to get through the mob and through the gate. Of course I was also thrown a few elbows to the back and shoved from the front by the other part of the crowd who didn't like the fact that I was being relocated (and I wasn't able to do a thing about it).

But, after awhile, we were all herded through the tiny gate and everyone RAN to get in line for security checks. Yes, I kid you not. Everyone ran. We just picked a line and attempted not to get cut. Of course some lady slipped in while our tickets were being checked and then some other stupid teenaged boy felt the need to just sneak around my dad and get in front of us...but that was the end of that. The girls that were getting too close? Yeah, I took care of it by widening my stance and sticking out my elbows. I'm beginning to learn the ways.

We made it through security...and surprisingly, we weren't arrested. I figured something bad would have to happen with the way the morning had gone...sheesh!

The ticket says Sector M. The sign points us to the right. Really though, we could have gone either way, because hey, we were on the exact opposite side of the huge stadium...and we were late, which meant hustle hustle! Slight jog to keep up with the Faj (I'm at a slight disadvantage with the short leg thing goin' on) and we finally get there only to climb eight thousand steps to our seats...three rows from the top. Shade. Thank GOODNESS. And a pretty good view because you could see everything! Heck, I wasn't complaining. It's the Olympics, LIVE. :) So we watch that and then it is time for McDonalds...

This was the moment I had been waiting for. Good ol' American food. Straight up McDonalds. YUM. We walk all the way down in the hot hot heat to get there...find our way to the entrance (amid all of the Subway confusion) and then try to find a line. Right after we got in, they shut the doors...and the line started forming. I have pictures of that...but I'll put em' up later! We got our order, and Brad, Brian, and I just removed ourselves from the crazefest and waited for Faj to come out with the food.

We ate. I took care of the trash. I guess it was "my day"...woohoo!

Then we headed to the Olympic Superstore! YAYYY! This meant FUWA!!! But of course, we had to wait in line again. People cutting all over the place. I took up my stance, with the elbows, plopped out the fan and got ready to wait for a bit in the direct sunlight (at least the sun was out though, right?). We got in...waited in another line...got in for REAL this time...stood in front of the air conditioner for a bit...and then split up to get what we wanted/needed. I of course got a complete set of the cutest Olympic mascots ever...so did Maj (for the kids at Emerson...psh), Brad picked up some Nini business...Faj got a hat and a polo, Brain got a complete mini set...it was great.

Then we perused the area. Walking to the different centers I sort of intentionally hit some people that we walked by, just because I felt the need to return the favor...Went to the Johnson and Johnson center...saw a Terracotta Soldier (and got reallll excited for Xi'an!), popped in the Adidas place and the Samsung place. Hung out under the trees and checked out the sculptures. Allllll was going well...then came time for dinner.

So the fad of the Olympic Green seemed to be these box meals. I mean everywhere you turned you saw at least three box meals. Why not? For 20 yuan you get this fancy little self heating box of rice, chicken, and vegetables. Oh no, that's not a very complete description in my book though. So Faj ordered up five chicken box meals and we started putting them together. It was quite a process. There were about six steps to getting it set up with the whole set-up of the water pack and the heating pack, the rice, the veggie pack (also known as the dish pack...?), sealing the lid...pulling the string. Anyhooo. You pull the string, the water pack bursts (inside this little white box...see the beautiful picture of excited me, below) it activates the heating pack, and the thing flips out. Steam goes everywhere (it's really pretty cool) and you wait eight minutes, and then you're good to go. Open it up and it's dinner! Wahoo!

No no. The first few bites, spicy, but good. A little crunchy sometimes, but still good. That is, until I realized what was causing the crunch. Now...first I found a bone...pretty good sized chunk, but I figured it was just a mistake that it was in there. Then I found some more bones. Then I found a foot. A chicken foot. Yup. Then I found some sort of joint. Then I found a thorn. Which was when I began to realize that, oh my goodness, they basically put a chicken (and some thorns apparently) through a blender and then poured it into a package to be poured onto the rice. The crunchy things? Yeah, those were shards of bone. Chicken bone. Yummmyyyy. And of course there were tiny little shards of bone throughout the entire thing, that I had mixed up. Of course I went ballistic. I could not believe it. On the Olympic Green, at the Concession Stand, there was a CHICKEN FOOT in my dinner. Holy crap. I went crazy. Maj and I were in tears we were laughing so hard. There were tears just streaming down my face. My Sprite spilled all over the place. And someone was sent to get ice cream cones for everyone. Wow. Now that is the China I was expecting the whole time. Thank goodness it just came out to play. Eek.

Then we went to the Bubble. So darn cool looking. But we would sit in front of the smelliest people ever, and behind the most annoying kid ever. The problem with the whole one child thing here, is that the one child is like "the little emporer" as Brian says, and can get away with anything. Maj was about ready to punch this kid in the face. He had these two little flags with pointy ends that he was just flinging all over the place and nearly hitting people in the face with and the parents would just put the flag back on the stick, and hand it back to the kid. Oh my goodness. And one point, she intentionally kneed him in the head. WHOOPS. And then she was ready to hit him in the head with her empty water bottle, when I turned it around to the hard plastic cap was pointing outward, and then Faj suggested using a full one instead. Ooooh good times. Then it smelled like Bengay with some Chinese spices infused. It was NASTY. I held by breath for quite awhile and breathed through my mouth for as long as I could. It switched between that, and TERRIBLE China Breath. Dragon Breath. There we go. Awful. This man got excited and started talking and yelling, and you could practically SEE the cloud of stink rain down on our poor row. Wowzer.

After diving...we left at the conclusion of round 5 of 6 because we had had enough...we walked out to the road to get a taxi. Hmmm...impossible? I think yes! We probably walked about a mile in order to get a taxi. I was denied twice because they didn't know where the place was that we lived, and then we finally found someone (yup, me and Faj) that got us home...which wasn't very far away at all! If we kept walking...well...we would have been closer. Let's be serious. Beijing hasn't shrunk since we've been here. Still large and in charge.

But. We got home. And today was AMAZING. Thank goodness. What a game. What an atmosphere. Afterwards chanting USA until they left the deck. The smiling faces. All the hugs and high fives. All the goosebumps and I was nearly in tears. All the yelling and cheering and thunderstick banging. Then in the lobby of grand ol' Ying Dong...cheer competition with Hungary (we won) and just random outbreaks of U-S-A! SO exciting. SO loud. I could feel the noise ringing through my chest. SO cool. So. COOL.

GO ALISON! GO USA!

U-S-A! ALL THE WAY!

:) :) :) :)

I was so excited. So innocent. (Notice the uncapped Sprite) Before suffocation set in. Afterward...stuff was lookin' sweeeeeet. And the lovely dovely Bird's Nest to cap it off!

GO USA! :)