Beijing: new buildings

After a 4 month period of being in Beijing for 3 days out of every seven, it's strange to think that I've not been back to the City for a couple of weeks now. Although I find the place dirty; dusty and not very welcoming, the article I posted below about queing has made me feel vaguely homesick about it!

A mad-house it certainly is, but the vibrancy and energy is very addictive -- they know they're "going places" (as headline I read in nearly every Western paper).

It's certainly interesting to see a country change so much - akin to how I felt visiting Berlin a few months after The Wall came down. (NB Roger Waters is playing Hong Kong on Thurs -- have tickets natch!).

And, reading about the UK Govt considering placing Mandarin on the National Curriculum is a really wise move I think. It's great to know the boys are getting a head start - their Manadarin is coming on apace.

The 'N' shaped builing in one of the pictures above is the new HQ for CCTV (Chinese State TV). It's a building I can see from the hotel I normally stay in - it's a mind-boggling design - imagine the two feet of the N firmly rooted in the ground - then the rest looks like a huge giant has twisted the rest of it through forty five degrees - hard to see how it all stands up. This was designed by Herzog etc .. people who designed the German world cup stand and the Tate Modern conversion.

This company were also behind the design of the new swimming pool ("Beijing Water Cube"). I posted a pic before, but it is fascinating to see .. it's constructed in a physical shape similar to soap bubble design ... and it's meant to be v. strong and v. efficient in terms of insulation.

Finally check out the "Beijing Bird's Nest" (Norman Foster design - they're also behind the design of the new terminals @ Beijing. I thought this terminal loooked similar to the new Hong Kong airport - designed by the same folks) .... ultra coool!

Hoping to get tickets to the games next year.

M