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Beijing Games Architecture Aims To shock And Awe

reuters.com — While feats of athletic brilliance may be the main focus of cameras during the Beijing Olympics, the telegenic venues set to host the athletes will draw their own share of gasps from admiring spectators.

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  • Rizoh, on 07/20/2008, -1/+15Absolutely breathtaking.
    • Asianwaste, on 07/20/2008, -1/+2No, see that's what the commies want you to think!!!
  • Cloud7654, on 07/20/2008, -2/+6This is nowhere near what I imagined "the future" would look like as a child. I like this version better.
  • shufan, on 07/20/2008, -1/+7The satellite image in the slideshow is very cool.
  • bornahokie, on 07/20/2008, -0/+4almost makes me want to go abroad ... just to see it.
    • Regulator980, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1Yeah, almost.
    • cdigioia, on 07/20/2008, -0/+4You should then. In addition to these, the historical architecture in Beijing is amazing. The coolest I've seen thus far. You could see the Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, Five Dragon Pavilion, a 1,000 year old Mosque, and a million other things if you're so inclined.

      The Great Wall of China is a 90 minute cab ride away. Hire a cab for the day for about $85 and go see it for 2 hours. Take a ***** toboggan ride off the wall/hill the wall is one.

      Or go see Chairman Mao's pickled body. And as a bonus in this city - awe inspiring pollution! (I'm serious).

      Really though, I love traveling, and Beijing has been my favorite thus far. In particular - my god, the historic architecture is amazing. So much grander than anything I've seen elsewhere. And the city is cheap...eat at a famous restaurant with complimentary notes written by ambassadors and the King of Cambodia on the wall, to name a few, for about $12 USD/person. $12 isn't particularly cheap, but for a place like that...

      • Jess2mix, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2Chairman Mao's pickled body...WTF?
      • cdigioia, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1Yeah - in the middle-ish of Tienanmen square square is "Mao's Mausoleum".

        It's a strange schedule, but most days before noon, you can go in and see his pickled body. Same way they did Stalin, and what's-his-face from Vietnam. It was a communist thing, I guess.

        You have to leave your bags across the street & get then in line - no cameras, no talking, no hats. Then they shuffle you through & past a large glass box with him inside. Honestly, I thought it looked fake (features looked too big - maybe they only got the idea in retrospect). I don't know though.

      • cdigioia, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1I'm an idiot - just check the wikipedia article - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum_of_Mao_Zedo ...
  • mark076h, on 07/20/2008, -12/+2***** CHINA!
  • Discobiscuits, on 07/20/2008, -1/+2DGAF
  • Rawler, on 07/20/2008, -7/+4fta: "The 91,000-seat Herzog & de Meuron-designed National Stadium, known as the "Bird's Nest" for its lattice work of interwoven steel..."

    Am i the only one that believes the design, while unique, wastes steel and materials?
    • cdigioia, on 07/20/2008, -1/+10Of course it uses unnecessary materials to look nice, and why aren't you wearing a potato sack? You wasteful person you.

      Their entire nation is looking at that stadium, as well as a great deal of the rest of the world, it's worth splurging a tiny bit.
      • breadfred, on 07/20/2008, -1/+1I think potato sacks can look beautiful on a woman - but than again, I spent too much time behind my keyboard.
  • l31101, on 07/20/2008, -0/+4I'm surprised the satellite could see through the smog... i kid i kid. I've seen the National Grand Theater with my own eyes, and it's thing of beauty (though the entrance is rather small).
    • cdigioia, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1Did you see the inside? If so how was it? I just drove around it but didn't gave time to go in.
    • l31101, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1I couldn't go into the actual theater but was able to go through the entrance. The entrance, which is about 50m away from the build, is underground with glass ceilings that looks through the massive fountain surrounding the building (there is no passage leading to the building on ground level. It is surrounded by water). It quite elegant.
  • Tcasey0478, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1I hope I can see it from the airport...
    • cdigioia, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2You can't, sorry. If you're going through the new terminal 3 though, that's a small wonder in and of itself.
    • notoneofus, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2The airport is over 20 km away from the city itself.
  • antonio97b, on 07/20/2008, -0/+4excuse me from sounding stupid.

    But did they build this entire thing just for the Olympics? Does every country do this?
    • l31101, on 07/20/2008, -0/+7Yea most of the countries do this, maybe with the exception of some american cities. I live in Vancouver, where they are hosting the 2010 winter olympics. They've built/build some facilities that are big and "advanced," Now some people are complaining that these buildings will be useless after the olympics, which i agree. I believe Athens lost a lot of money with their olympics.Despite all of this, i'm still a supporter.
    • Asianwaste, on 07/20/2008, -0/+1Yea they're planning on doing some stupid ***** for Chicago, like clear out some areas for yet another stadium..
  • Draculecom, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2Last time someone tried to 'shock and awe' us it didn't work out so well.

    Mission Accomplished.
  • mrzack, on 07/20/2008, -2/+2Very good. China = POWER!!! hahahahahha
  • skyshock1, on 07/20/2008, -2/+1Go look at pics of their hole-in-the-ground toilets. Their bathrooms are definitely shocking as well.
    • notoneofus, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2That's changing -- at least in the big cities. There will be choices in parts of Beijing, where they have lots of western toilets now, specifically for the Olympics.
  • Fnkey, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2Absolutely it's even more gorgeous inside the Bird's Nest!!!
    Check this out on Yahoo! China:
    http://newspic.cn.yahoo.com/rea/article/gallery_sh ...
  • Pfkninenines, on 07/20/2008, -0/+2I just got back from a 3.5 week stay in China, ending in Beijing. The Olympic village is closed to tourists, but we ended up getting a few shots of the Birds Nest at an area we could jump out of the cab.

    Everything looks great - the CCTV building is breathtaking, the National Theatre is great both inside and out ( Note to self - next time you get tickets, learn how to read..Dad and I were front row for some show a few nights back, both of us wore shorts and tee-shirts. Oh well, the political delegates who sat 4 rows behind us didn't seem to mind much :P) and the security checks aren't *too* bad. There are tons of new buildings everywhere, and one hotel is designed to look like an olympic torch. Some other hotel is a 7-Star hotel (up till now most people would think 5-Star would be best) with rates over 1000 USD/night, though it does give a good view of the Olympic Village.

    With the new Olympic laws beginning today, I hope it gets even better. Supposing it's not overly hot, and a good rain knocks most of the pollution out of the air, it will be a great city to have the Olympics in. (On a side note - If you are going to any of the knock-off markets, don't go to the Silk Street market. Go to the Pearl Market, or the new building just behind that. Cheap prices, and the building behind the Pearl Market has tons of people begging to get a sale. Hell, I didn't even want shoes and they kept lowering the prices to 80 RMB/set, about equal to 12 USD. Believe me, you'll want to buy a new suitcase to stock up on all this stuff!)
  • evilWEED, on 07/20/2008, -2/+2"Architecture Aims To shock And Awe"

    sounds like 3rd reich :P
    (yes i know... goodwins law, i lose... :)
  • 007kz, on 07/20/2008, -1/+2Meh, it's what every industrializing contry would do, especially in this day and age. I guess it's good that China is industrializing like this, because industrialization is a good sign that democracy and capitalism is starting to grow more and more there.
  • Abomonog, on 07/20/2008, -1/+1I must admit that China has produced the most impressive Olympic compound since Hitlers creation for 1936.

    Lets not forget the years following that Olympic games session.
  • Jess2mix, on 07/20/2008, -1/+1I personally think those structures are a waste of steal and space. It all just looks a bit unnecessary. I hate buildings with a bunch of weird angles and shapes with no purpose behind them.
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