Thursday night outing

Events:
We missed the Olympics because they were sold out.
We missed the Paralympics because I didn't make it over to the ticket sales bank.
Despite this sad inability to participate in the Beijing Olympic madness, we did get to see one even here in Beijing so far.

The China Open:
It's not the Olympics, nor was it a huge deal, but our friend here in Beijing brought us along with her to the Thursday evening China open match. I don't watch sports on TV, but the chance to see any event live is something that I don't like to pass up.

It has been quite a while since I played tennis, so it took me a few sets to remember what the scoring was all about. All the sixes and 30's and A's can throw you off.

So before the match started they laid down the rules... which no one really seemed to follow... things like...don't walk around during the match. There were at least 3 times the ref. had to ask people to sit down in the audience. I don't know how common that is, but it was a bit of a bother. There was also the don't enter or leave the stadium until the break... Don't use cell phones... Don't talk in loud voices... Every one of these rules was broken enough times to aggravate... but the match was worth it.

It started out pretty slow. The usual domination by one player in the beginning... then they get worked up and they start playing for real. That's when the ball really starts volleying back and forth, bouncing and causing the referee's calls to be questioned... The match was a beautiful dance of mechanical and technical grace. One where the players knew each move before it happened. They measured each other and forced the edges of their boundaries time and time again, stretching out to stop the other and balancing precariously on the edge of error, sometimes slipping into an occasional fault, but typically just daring the other to miss.

The wind continued to blow across the stadium seats, and chilled us as the night moved on. We could stand the cold no longer, and after the match we left, content and chilled. It was a game well played.

A trip to no-where:
Today we confirmed that we will have to leave China before October 25th. Our visas are only good for one 90 day entry at a time.

We haven't decided where we will go yet for this mini-vacation, but we know we need to plan it soon. Our time to decide is running out.

We are both excited about the prospect of another long train ride, and this time we are prepared! Deluxe Soft Sleeper, here we come!