China’s Olympics Opening Ceremonies
written by John Chow on August 8th, 2008
Has anyone watched the Olympics opening ceremonies in Beijing? Holy Crap!!! That’s the most amazing opening of a ceremony, or opening of anything, that I have ever seen! China definitely went all out for their Olympic coming out party. They’ve set the bar so high that Vancouver will look like a little side show when it does its games in 2010. Then again, China’s budget for the summer games is something like $45 billion compared to $1.6 billion for Vancouver’s winter games.
If you haven’t watched the opening ceremonies, it should be repeated tonight by the major networks. It’s well worth watching just just the wow factor alone. Here are some photos of the opening Ceremonies that was provided by Getty Images.
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- Sunday Link Love #3 | Random Blog - August 9, 2008 at 8:43 pm
- Beijing Opening Ceremony | Student Tech News - August 9, 2008 at 11:23 pm
- High T3ch » Beijing’s Opening Ceremony - If you missed it… - August 11, 2008 at 4:45 am
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Watching here in NY right now… I’m in awe, this is all beautiful! Just finished the part with the 2000 men doing Tai Chi in the circle form.
I know budgets make a huge difference, but there’s also a note of “Okay, so the world’s not exactly thrilled with us right now, so let’s show’em what we can do,” going on if you ask me.
You can’t argue beauty and technology no matter what though. This is great.
John, do you pay for Getty Images, or how did you obtain them?
John is the owner of Getty Images.
China’s bringing of the world Olympics in Beijing is really a great endeavor and they are now talk of the world. Your photos of the opening John are really awesome. What camera did you use?
It was truely spectacular wasn’t it. We can always count on the Chinese to put on a high quality show.
It is absolutely an amazing performance. I am also watching it right now. 10 mins ago just showed US with KOBE BRYANT! This is so exciting, but I can just see the serious faces on every president’s faces! GO 2008 OLYMPICS!!!! US VS CHINA basketball on SUNDAY!
Take cares everyone, Drink lots of water!
We’re watching right now too.
HEY CHINESE PEOPLE..GO BACK TO MAKING MY ELECTRONICS FOR 50 CENTS AN HOUR..
I HOPE CHINA UNBLOCKS AND UNCENSORS THE INTERNET, ENDS THEIR HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES AND ACTUALLY BECOMES A CIVILIZED NATION.
BOYCOTT THE CHINESE OLYMPICS.
I hope they unblock and uncensor the internet too. I hope they end the abuse too… seriously, from the bottom of my heart.
However, I also hope that you realize that your comment is generalized and unfair to the Olympics as a whole. By “boycotting”, you’re shaming ALL the nations, ALL the athletes, ALL the world. They’re not “the Chinese Olympics” – they’re the Olympics. And you’re coming across as nothing but ignorant. No wonder you don’t have the guts to give your name.
It is such a nice ceremony…
Cools..
This event is definitely the most memorable in historical. Well done! It showed China ancient arts, culture, creativity, innovations and technology to the world.
The number of performers on the floor is mind boggling!
They numbered over 10,000!!!
I woke up at 5 this morning to watch it, and was absolutely blown away. The actual opening ceremonies cost over $300 million compared to the previous record of $30 million in 2006.
It was an amazing hour and a half or so, after that the teams coming in got kinda boring. I find it absolutely hilarious that China’s one and only hero is Yao Ming, haha – or so it seemed. Kobe Bryant is up there as well
Anyways, awesome show. Amazing what they pulled off. It’s making me think about how shitty the Olympics are going to be here.
With so many people “enslaved”, no wonder they have those budgets, but still could be used to decrease the pollution: @
The cermony was simply superb. Nothing like it when watching it on TV. The cities in western world mumble with less than billion budgets and declare official losses with the cermonies. Now it is time to learn a lesson from China. Please don’t confuse those amazing cermonies with other issues….we all know how clean our downtowns are. They are delivering these stuff despite so much population. Well done China.
You anonymous Guy! Show yourself!
By the way John, did you go to China to support any country?? I’ve also watched the whole night from my house, it was really spectacular!! Thats is a real MAN POWER!!
I’ve watched every minute of the opening show, it was amazing! It’s hard to pick a favourite part, but the lighting of the flame was fabulous.
Great pictures you got here.
This was just amazing. Am I the only person that thought, that uniforms for Canada were kinda strange ? I live in Latvia, and mostly in most sports our nation wears a uniform that has the same color mix as the Canadians had in the ceremony. First, I was like “WTF ?, We have so many people attending Beijing 2008 ?” The red color for Canadians should be little more darker.
Agreed, they were absolutely staggering. I’m wondering if we can match it or better it in London in 2012? Will be really hard to live up to I think.
It was simply amazing!
Totally stunned by the show, not everyone with the budget can put up a show like that.
Great opening ceremony. Unfortunately I was operating yesterday so only saw bits of it.
The positive is that it gives the chinese people a bit of a breather from their usual travails and a common focus. Just for a while.
The thing that sticks in the throat is that this must have cost a ton of money. If anyone saw the BBC panorama program on China last week it just makes you wonder
I agree, impresive
THE Beijingrens out staged any past Olympic opening ceremony and even though I am one mad xilaren I have to say I was drooling over those hunks in Hanfu and the Chinese do things perfectly once they are all set. I am buying the dvd when it is out and I keep watching youtube vids of it too.
I can’t wait to save some moolah and go to China once I can get married to my Henanren.
Chinese men are really handsome and my Chinese Hero is Zhuge Liang.
It will be interesting to see how we get on in London 2012!
I hope we can actually complete the stadia in time.
Good collection of pictures…gr8 job
There’s a very proud feeling across the asian communities in US.
Those are great pictures. The opening ceramonies were awesome. Very impressive. I loved it.
http://physiquealicious.com
I am tired of seeing ignorant comments made by idiots about this topic. Before you make any comment, make sure you know what you are talking about, especially bad comments. Good comments are easy to make but bad comments require a great depth of knowledge.
If you don’t even know China and what kind of nation it is, then stop saying bad things about it. Don’t just watch CNN and think you know China.
I was born in China and came to Canada when I was very young. I still go back for vacation almost once a year and I’ve seen great improvements in almost every aspect of things.
I don’t know how much civilized Canada is compared to China. For sure, living standards are higher in Canada. Chinese people do not make as much money but they all work hard. When I go to Downtown Vancouver, the amount of drunkies and druggies I see simply disgusted me. You don’t really see that in China because even though some of them are poor, they still work hard for their kids, for their families.
In conclusion, before you say anything bad about a country, go visit it. Ask about 1000 people about their lives and if they are in disagreements with their governments. You will be amazed that, since they now have the money to buy everything they want, have the freedom to say whatever they want, most of those people will say: “Yes, I am very happy with my life.”
Visa’s commercial said it best. That we get excited seeing them win not because of the country they are from, but because they are human, and we are human, and when they succeed, we succeed.
The lights are absolutely amazing. So vibrant.
John chow,
I had watched the opening ceremony. It was really great to see how China had put in lots of efforts. We now believe that not only western countries can do it, China also can do it.
China is progressing well in most aspects, I believe they will continuously improving, well done, Beijing.
Olympics opening ceremonies in Beijing is amazing, I cannot believe what I saw in TV.
hoho..i hope my country can bring more gold medal this time.
Go and Go!!
Cool Photos…Olympics opening ceremonies was wonderful….
It was indeed gorgeous. And the theatrical set-ups were supposed to tell their own stories. I wished that the NBC “analysts” would just stop their constant talking over the beauty of it all. They were such dorks! It’s as though they were afraid of silence or thought that it all had to be “explained” for Americans at home who wouldn’t know anything about China. I found their commentary rather annoying and sometimes embarrassing. “Here’s the symbol for Harmony again”. … “in case viewers are lost at home.” They said that three times! arrgh.
No, I’m not watching the olympics in China.
I don’t sympatize with skinning live dogs or killing students writing critical opionions on chat.
Perhaps the olympics has nothing to do with politics, right, but the journalists cannot see all the homepages, they want, because the Internet is censured in China. So no – I haven’t seen the opening ceremony.
Hi Britt
I fully agree. I have stated the same on my Danish blog. I find no reason whatever to support a system that DESTROYS the Chinese people’s chances of becoming successes. Communism has many things on its conscience and the very thought that we see aggression from both China and Russia should awaken people to the fact that there ARE nations that don’t share our democratic values.
What a shame indeed.
PS: I would rather hear people call me a bad guy and being free to do so without fear of repercussions than ever have claps-on-the-back if undeserved…
Where Do I See the video?
But when Vancouver does it, at least you will have breathable air.
So sorry that i did not watch the Olympic game opening ceremony.
You can find it on you tube, for video…. It really are the best..
It’s indeed an amazingly explosive epic extravaganza of an opening ceremony!
China show the world what they are capable of! I’m so proud to be a Chinese!
Holy crap, that’s pretty amazing. I’ve boycotted the Olympics this year so I’m not watching it, but seems like it was a really cool ceremony.