Being In Beijing

It's beginning to get scary now. We've got flight details and found out what events we'll be working at. I've been assigned to the rowing, canoeing and kayaking events. To be honest, I didn't even know that kayaking was an olympic sport, but there you go.

There's a chance that Britain could pick up the gold in the rowing events, so that'll add to a bit of excitement. The events run every day throughout the Olympics, and will be taking place at the Olympics Rowing-Canoeing Park. Should provide some relief from the heat of Central Asia in the middle of August though, which will be a welcome relief.

The flights meanwhile, involve a 13-hour trip (assuming I've worked out the time difference correctly), with a stop-over in Munich. Assuming I can get a laptop sorted and working, it seems like a good excuse to play Football Manager for 30 minutes, and then sulk for the remaining 12 and a half hours.

I seem to be circling the globe this year. Despite the fact the furthest abroad I've been is Italy, I'm flying to China later on, and then I've a trip to New York booked upon my return. You can't accuse me of letting my fear of flying rule my life.

Just Weeks To Go!

When I started this blog, I set myself three tasks. I wanted to develop a basic grasp of Mandarin before my trip, a working knowledge of shorthand writing, and to learn some of the names of the British rowing team. With a month to go, have I been able to do any of the following? Well, I know how to call someone mad in Mandarin (Sung Ching Ping), but that's about it.