The day of glory has arrived
By Hou Xiaoying
The big day for China has finally come – the Opening Ceremony of The Olympics. Most people have been given the day off work. The streets are still and offices in Beijing are half empty on this August 8, 2008. Things begin to change later in the afternoon.
One thing is clear: the Opening Ceremony is definitely the most exciting moment of the whole games. It's a thought-provoking moment of mystic performance and fireworks. Most people can't be there to watch it on the spot. But they needn't despair. The Beijing government has installed plenty of huge screens in public areas for the people to watch.
The one in Xicheng District is at the Millennium Monument. People started gathering there around 13:00. Over 100 people are still waiting outside when we arrive, and security tells us it's already full. The whole venue can hold about 300-400, and it's all full tonight.
Here and there are lines of security; many are volunteers from colleges. Besides security staff and employees of the site, there are also policemen sent by Haidian Station there to keep order. Most of them will work from 08:00 am to midnight.
"We only want to make sure that people here can enjoy the ceremony without problems," says a policeman who prefers not to give his name. The Deputy Curator of the Millennium Monument, Mr. Jiao, is also on the spot supervising things in person.
It transpires that there are three ways to get into the monument tonight: getting into the queue early, having a Press Card, or with a Work Card for certain authorities. Mr. Wu is one of the beneficiaries of method three. He works as a photographer for the Cultural Museum of Haidian District. Together with several other colleagues they are here to take photos and preserve them as museum exhibits. They have lots of worthwhile material from different Olympic venues, and he believes that today at this location they will get the best of the lot.
Young and old, singles and couples are gathered for the party. A man of sixty-plus tells us that he had been looking forward to the Olympics for such a long time, and it's his first opportunity to celebrate such a grand event with so many new friends in public.
