Chinadaily.com.cn sharing the Olympic spirit
OLYMPICS/ Culture


Happy gathering conquers all
By Yu Nan (chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2007-08-10 14:19

 

The hazy weather didn’t hamper the enthusiasm of 10 Olympic families, who arrived in Beijing Monday for an eight-day trip to visit the cities hosting the Games, including Qingdao and Hong Kong.

One of their first sightseeing destinations was the Summer Palace in the northwestern outskirt of Beijing

“The park is amazing. It would be more beautiful on a sunny day, but I don't care. I love it,“ the husband of a couple who named themselves "Go Hong Kong" from South Africa said.

 

Olympic families from US,Argentina,South Africa, take a group photo in front of Summer Palace in Beijing, August 7, 2007. Ten families, five from China, and five from overseas, have won a 12-day tour of China from an "Olympic Families Tour Beijing" campain, organized by Beijing Olympic Committe (BOCOG), on the occasion of the one-year countdown to the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.[BOCOG]

The 10 families won a contest organized by the Bejing Olympic Organizing Committee (BOCOG). They wrote stories about themselves and the Olympics as well as post pictures of their families.

More than 12,600 other families from 62 countries and regions participated in the competition, and in the end, five families from China were chosen, as well as five from Argentina, South Africa, the United States and Germany.

For most of the foreign families, this was their first trip to China.

One of two American families, named “Gotobeijing” were thrilled to be in the host Olympic city.

“The city is so big to us,” they exclaimed.

Even though the sun didn’t come out as expected, the American father was still optimistic about the trip. “We are still happy because our dream to come to Beijing has come true.”

Following a visit to the Summer Palace, all the families took tour buses to the National Stadium, known as the Bird Nest, and the National Aquatics Center, called Water Cube.

As soon as she saw the Bird's Nest, the eldest daughter from the "Wenxinjiating" family from Jiangsu Province immediately picked up her cell phone to call her friends and tell them how excited she was to be at the Olympic venues.

The other families were also keen to capture the moment, quickly taking out their mobile phones, digital cameras, video cameras, telescopes, anything to help them get a clearer view of the construction sites.

"One World, One Dream" was frequently quoted by every family. This was because they were thrilled that their dream to come to Beijing had come true and they all cherished the chance to spend time together and share their excitement of the 2008 Olympics. As the Chinese family, “the Angels” said, “Regardless of the weather, the most important thing is that we are together meeting each other.”

The 10 Olympic Families:

 

United States: the "gotobeijing" Family and the "usa1776" Family;

Germany: the "Greenlink" family;

South Africa: the "go Hong Kong" family;

Argentina: the "BOCHAMDQ" Family;

China: Jiangsu Province: the "Wenxin Zuhe" Family; Henan Province, the "Aoyun zhi ai" Family; Beijing, the "homenice" Family, the "Tianshi zhi jia" Family, and the "Yi jia wukou kan aoyun" Family.

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