Time Out Beijing editor Tom Pattinson reports on a city’s radical transformation

In the build-up to the 2008 Summer Olympics, Beijing has undergone a facelift on a scale not seen since the Yuan Dynasty of the 13th century. Skyscrapers, hotels, apartment buildings and, of course, stadiums have sprung up under the ever-present blanket of smog. It feels almost like residents beneath the haze will shortly whisk away the sheet with a huge ‘Ta-da!’, revealing the new China to the outside world. But will we even recognise it?

The sporting arena
The Wall Street Journal calculated that the total outlay on infrastructure – including futuristic stadiums with nicknames like ‘Bird’s Nest’ and ‘Water Cube’ – is in the region of ‘$40 billion… as much as 43 per cent of total spending on all summer Games since Montreal in 1976’. Granted, it’s something the country can afford, with a trillion dollars in reserve. But it does raise the question of whether it’s money rightly spent, since 48 million of its people live below the poverty line.


The human cost
The cost of building is not just monetary. Hundreds of thousands of migrant workers who have come to be part of the Olympic building campaign work in terrible conditions for as little as RMB8 (S$1.60) a day. Slogans posted at the venues read ‘Quality of work is more important than life’, though numerous injuries have occurred during the continuous 24-hour building. Some 500,000 people have been uprooted from their homes – 300,000 alone to make way for the largest urban green space in Asia, the Olympic Park.

A nation awaits
You still won’t find anyone who’d say the Games are anything but the best thing that’s happened to Beijing. The Olympics are everywhere: from radio broadcasts teaching ‘Olympic English’ to TV cartoons of the five Fuwa, or mascots. The 11th day of every month has been dedicated to learning ‘how to queue’, and spitting in public now incurs a RMB50 (S$10) fine.


Room for everyone?
Hotels that had only just finished laying foundations were already booked up for August. Many local people are being encouraged to leave Beijing for the month, and additional public holidays have been created. This is primarily to ease congestion but also to free up space for visitors. Tenants are living in fear that they may be turfed out for the Games’ duration as clued-up landlords realise they can get from ten to 100 times the rent for that month. Websites have been established to sublet flats and many young professionals are planning on ‘house-pooling’ – several people sleeping on one person’s floor, renting out the other homes and splitting the proceeds.

A sporting chance?
If the Chinese want to come out on top of the medal table in the Games on their home turf, they’ll have to work for it. Children as young as six are living in special sports schools so they can train for more than 12 hours a day. Many youngsters are plucked from schools for their physique rather than any desire to be an athlete. But with stars such as hurdler Liu Xiang being made into national heroes, they still think it is worth risking everything for – even their lives. Last year, two Olympic hopefuls broke their necks in separate training incidents, one fatally.

The big day
At 8.08pm on 08.08.08, everything will be ready to go. One million cars will be removed from the streets and migrant workers will be sent packing as per the country’s promise to the IOC. China has so far run the Olympics like it runs the country: efficiently but with a firm hand. And at the biggest party in the world, you can guarantee China won’t tolerate mistakes.

Winging it
Lucky enough to get tickets to the Olympics? At press time, there were direct flights in August from Singapore to Beijing from $1,450 on Air China (www.airchina.com.cn). Check Wego.com or Zuji.com to compare prices.

For more information, go to www.timeout.com/beijing.

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The people’s games
Beijing, up close and personal. As told to Flora Bagenal

Multilingual policeman Liu Wenli
I have lived in Beijing all my life and have never travelled out of the area, but it is my dream to communicate with the foreigners who visit our city. I bought books and tapes and films in English, and spent all my spare time trying to learn new words. I can now introduce myself and say ‘hello’ in 13 languages, as well as impersonate many accents like French, or a New York accent. Ten years ago it was illegal for police to even speak to foreigners but now there are people like me. I hope I can help people understand that Chinese police are good people.



Tattoo man
I’m 25 years old and I’m unemployed. I’ve been friends with the people who run this little tattoo parlour for a while. One day we were talking about the Olympics and I told them I wanted to get ‘Beijing 2008’ inked on my forehead. I didn’t really think about it for very long, it wasn’t a hard decision to make. I love my country and I am very proud of the fact Beijing is hosting the Olympic Games. First I had the Olympic mascots done ’round my neck and then the Great Wall across my face. Afterwards my other friend drew the words on my forehead. It hurt, but no more than my other tattoos did. It doesn’t bother me that the government has banned people with tattoos from being part of the opening ceremony, because I wouldn’t do that anyway. I know that in the old days tattoos used to be given to murderers and rapists as a punishment, but things have changed now.