What's happening at Tiananmen?

[cdn_in_bj]

Drove past Tiananmen this weekend and noticed that there was a lot of what appeared to be concert scaffolding and staging set up in the square. Does anyone know what the special event could be?

[gougou]

Tomorrow it's exactly one year till the opening of the Olympics, would guess it is connected to that.

[bloove]

That's true!

Tomorrow there is a concert will be hold for the countdown of one whole year Olympic Games.

Time: 17:55 -- 21:10

Traffic will be control: 16:10 -- 21:10

[bloove]

Aug 8 19:00-21:10, Beijing 2008 Olympic Games One-year Countdown Celebration

Nation celebrates one-year countdown to the 2008 Games

http://en.beijing2008.cn/news/official/preparation/n214118349.shtml

[cdn_in_bj]

Ah, that's pretty cool. I'm thinking of heading there after work, but I bet it's going to be nuts (very crowded).

[adrianlondon]

That place gets crowded when they do somethign as simple as lower or raise the flag, which they do every day. It'll be mental.

Get there early and have fun! Being in crowds enjoying what the government wants you to enjoy is part of the China experience. It's actually quite uplifting (going to a big event, not the flag raising/lowering thing which just makes you want to slit your wrists while rolling your eyes at the locals. God, us Brits are so cynical).

[Rincewind]

Get there early and have fun! Being in crowds enjoying what the government wants you to enjoy is part of the China experience. It's actually quite uplifting (going to a big event, not the flag raising/lowering thing which just makes you want to slit your wrists while rolling your eyes at the locals. God, us Brits are so cynical).

Yes but then us Brits turn out in our droves every day in London to watch a few horses ride through he gates of Buckingham Palace. The changing of the guards in London lasts all of 10 seconds and hardly worth the bother.

And it gets worse. We all turn up at the Palace gates to watch when the actual change of guards is a mile down the Mall at Horseguards or half a mile south at Wellington barracks. So not only do we watch a boring ceremony, but we watch it form the wrong place. It's like trying to watch the flag raising form Zhengyangmen gate.

[adrianlondon]

Brits turn out in our droves every day in London to watch a few horses ride through he gates of Buckingham Palace

Tourists only, surely? Well, I've never been. Maybe it's just me ;)

[cdn_in_bj]

Ah, I just remembered I'll be working late tomorrow, so I won't be able to make it to the pre-8/8/08 celebrations.

[WangYuHong]

I went to Tiananmen on the 3rd... I couldn't tell if they were putting it up or taking it down... I thought it was in connection with the 8/1 holiday though.

Do any of you guys living in Beijing feel inundated with the Olympics? I mean, I was only there for a couple weeks this summer and felt like it was too much... They completely ruined the Great Wall experience for me... I'm surprised they haven't painted those 5 Olympic mascots next to Chairman Mao's portrait at Tiananmen.