Saw this in the Fuxingmen subway station.

Look at the bottom, though. Looks like little JingJing’s shooting his co-mascot, doesn’t he? Just can’t trust those pandas!

The Beijing 2008 Olympic torch - Cloud of Promise (绁ヤ簯) has been going around in China to let every citizen in the country to catch a glimpse of the sacred torch which is designed by Lenovo (鑱旀兂), an international PC products company based in China.

In the video, a group of college undergrads are taking the chance to get close to the torch. The video looks like Blair Witch Project but you have to appreciate the effort as the camera girl was running after the runners at that very moment.

Via 鎵�璋撲紛浜猴紝鍦ㄦ按涔嬫箘

One sad thing about life in Beijing is missing American food. My boyfriend is sick of me hearing me tell him how much I miss milkshakes and bread. There is are a number of Western-themed eateries, Dairy Queen, a Sizzler (or two), Pizza Huts and of course ubiquitious McDonalds, in the city. And if you want coffee, there are a surprising number of Starbucks in the city.

While I’m always excited when we come upon a Western franchise in our travels (yeah, yeah, globalization, but on the other hand, Outback!), blogger Wang Jian Shou set out on a mission to visit every Starbucks in Beijing.

Chinese Starbucks are even more expensive than in the US, but is there a price too high for the taste of home? Just in case you need to convince your signifigant other or traveling companions of the value of visiting Starbucks, Wang Jian Shou has a pretty convincing argument.

The reason I wanted to visit every store is, I want to see this city. Starbucks helped me to choose the best place in the city. Their market research is good. If there is a Starbucks store, it at least gives two hints:

There are good customer base there (white collar, or tourists)

The place has good view

It is not 100% but pretty likely to be true.

By putting all the Starbucks store onto a route and you will find a very good route to see the best the city has to offer. It is the case in Shanghai and I believe it is true in Beijing. Just look at the map and you know it is true.

Via WangJianShou’s Blog

Jim Lefebvre’s challenge is to shape up the China baseball team ahead of the Beijing Olympics.

After a respectable 9-5 loss Thursday to Taiwan in the Asia Series, the China Stars were trounced 13-0 by South Korea’s SK Wyverns in seven innings under the mercy rule.

“Today was an ugly day,” said Lefebvre, a former major league player and manager. “But you’ve got to put it behind you. That’s the toughest thing to teach your players.”

Baseball just isn’t a big deal in China. My students recognize a bat and ball, the way an American kid might recognize mah jong tiles without being able to play the game.

If the highlight of this article is a “respectable loss” versus a mercy ruling, Lefebvre has his work cut out for him. But with Olympic fever at such a height in China, he just may do it!

Via YahooSports

We all know Michael Scofield’s famous tattoo in Prison Break but tattooing The Great Wall of China, dragons, Olympic rings, symbols of Olympic sports and Fuwa? on your body sure comes close in some way.

More Beijing 2008 tattoos after the jump.

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China’s sports authority says that over five hundred Chinese athletes have already qualified for next year’s Beijing Olympics.

“514 athletes of 26 sports including 211 events have qualified for the competitions in the Olympic Games,” said Cui Dalin, vice president of China’s General Administration of Sport and vice president of the Chinese Olympic Committee at the press briefing about the preparations of the Chinese athletes.

“Team China is expected to field 550 to 570 athletes in the 2008 Oympic Games, representing the largest group of Chinese athletes to attend any Olympic Games,” Cui added.

More athletes can still qualify for next year’s game.

Via People’s Daily Online

Pictures from “The Olympic Adventures of Fuwa” (銆婄�忓▋濂ヨ繍婕�娓歌�般��), China’s cartoon of paying tribute to the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

The Fuwa Olympic adventure series is a product of the combined effort of numerous mainland and Hong Kong Chinese artists involved in everything from writing the script, to providing the voices for the characters, to creating the cartoon’s music.

You can see more Fuwa’s actions after the jump.

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Bibles are not banned in the Beijing Olympics after all as the Beijing Organising Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) has never considered any ban on bibles or other religious literature at all. This means that The Italian daily La Gazzetta dello Sport report is totally distorted.

Religious services will be available in the Olympic Village next summer for Catholics, Protestants, Muslims, Jews, Hindus and Buddhists, he said. Religious texts like the Bible and Koran should be available.

“Even if there aren’t, the athletes can bring the texts themselves, there’s no restriction,” said Li Zhanjun, the Director of the Beijing Olympics media center.

However, the official Beijing 2008 website recommends each visitor not to bring more than one bible into China.

Everyone must show repect to each other religion.

Via Sporting News

I got this one from the AP, naturally it’s not on CCTV9 here.

BEIJING, Nov. 8 (Kyodo) - A 42-year-old man who had resisted eviction for the Beijing Olympics in the historic neighborhood of Qianmen was forcibly removed from his home Thursday, becoming the last person to leave the area that will be rebuilt for next year’s Summer Games.

Several dozen policemen arrived at the man’s house in the morning, removing him and about a dozen of his supporters from the house before demolition workers destroyed the house.

He was the last person to leave the area so it could be demolished and rebuilt for the Olympics. I’m sad that people had to leave their homes, although I’ve heard that they were compensated for it. I’m also sad that the old hutongs are disappearing, but space in Beijing is so limited. Old buildings have to come down to make room for Olympic structure, and also to make more housing, which is at such a premium in the city.

Via AOL news

I saw these at a little gift shop the other day. Aww, the cute little Fuwa, on a cute little purse…

Wait, what’s that cute little panda doing?

Jingjing’s got a gun…