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In 2001 when we first moved to China we celebrated the fact that China had finally gotten the Olympics.Our Chinese friends were proud and excited and we were vicariously thrilled.
None of us can imagine what the Olympics means to the average Chinese person. Especially those that have lived through the cultural revolution.
At the time we thought how neat it would be if we could attend the Olympics in Beijing. We did not even imagine that we would still live here to actually have the opportunity to attend the Olympics.
Last year tickets went on sale over the Internet, I requested tickets for the track events, basketball and swimming.
Instead I received tickets for sports that I was not interested in. I decided not to go. We also learned that the high government officials , their families and very rich business owners had the first pick of tickets.
Hearing about the high prices of hotels (prices were 10x higher than normal. We decided not to participate.
This year we were hauled into the police station for not having our passports with us. Many of our Internet connections have been cut, no one can get a visa to China unless going to the Olympics for the next 6 weeks. We cannot receive packages until after the Olympics. Our phones are often being listened into, our emails are being read.
Our clients cannot receive their furniture and other goods as the custom officials are opening every container and searching each item.
A Chinese realtor friend of ours was visited by the PBS (public security bureau) and was asked to turn in any foreigners who were doing drugs.
All this to create a safe environment for the Olympics. It seems counter intuitive. Instead of making people feel welcome they are being harassed.
A few days ago there was a very interesting article in the
Washington post instead regarding the security measures in place for the olympics
So instead of going where we are not really welcomed,we will stay home and invite a few friends to watch the opening ceremonies. We will hang out with our Chinese friends and share their pride and enthusiasm.
I quess the dictatorships are more efficient when it comes to getting things done, but no thanks.