今年兔

农历新年快乐...

Happy Chinese New Year!!
Year of the Rabbit

Bye Bye Brijing

The Olympics are over, and now I can start getting
things done again; at least for four more years,
or two if you count the Winter Olympics...


In memory of all we saw in the last 17 days,
take a look at this amazing gymnast...

3.08.24

French swimmer Alain Bernard:

The Americans...
We're going to smash them.
That's what we came here for.

To watch the U.S. win the
men's 4x100 swimming relay
click on the big picture below...

Opening Ceremonies

click on any picture to see up close and personal...

Olympic Mascots

Like the five Olympic rings from which they draw their color and inspiration, Fuwa will serve as official mascots of the Beijing 2008 Olympic games carrying a message of friendship, peace, and good wishes from China to children all over the world...

Fuwa have the natural characteristics of China's most popular animals, and the five elements of nature are depicted in their headpieces: the fish/water, the panda/forest, the tibetan antelope/earth, the swallow/sky, plus the olympic flame/fire.

Each Fuwa has a rhyming two-syllable name: Beibei is the fish, Jinjing is the panda, Huanhuan is the Olympic flame, Yingying is the antelope, and Nini is the swallow. When you put their names together, they say: Bei jing huan ying ni: Welcome to Beijing.

The fish and water designs are symbols of prosperity and harvest. Beibei is known to be gentle, pure, and strong in water sports.

Pandas bring smiles of joy to people everywhere and represent preserving the beauty of nature for all generations. Jingjing is charmingly naive, optimistic. and athletically strong.

The Olympic flame symbolizes the passion of sport and Olympic spirit. Huanhuan is outgoing, enthusiastic, and excels in ball games.

Tibetan antelopes can swiftly cover great stretches of land as they race across the earth, and they represent health, strength, and harmony with nature. Yingying is quick-witted, agile, and strong in track and field events.

The swallow is a beautiful design used on the kites flown on the currents of wind in China. Nini is innocent, joyful, and strong in gymnastics.

Harbin Ice Festival

The temperature in Harbin, China reaches forty below zero in both Fahrenheit and Celsius and stays below freezing nearly half the year. The city is actually further north than notoriously cold

Vladivostok, Russia, just 300 miles away. So what does one do here every winter? Hold an outdoor festival, of course!! Rather than suffer the cold, the residents of Harbin celebrate it with an annual festival of snow and ice sculpture competitions.

Info and photos from Tiffany via email...