Sunday, August 10, 2008

In Beijing-

We arrived in Beijing on Friday after a two day trip (I left Wednesday at 11am!). As soon as we arrived we met a friend of a friend at the airport to head straight to pick up all of the tickets we had purchased the week before. Cindy and Ken (Mark's sister and dad) took the luggage to the hotel while Jenny, my mom, and I headed out with Jewel (our new friend) on our first Beijing adventure.

We took a taxi to the ticket office (which was much easier with traveling with someone who spoke Chinese we later learned) and then took the subway to the hotel from the ticket office. We used the restroom which was much different than in the states, to say the least.

At this point we were thrilled... we had picked up every ticket that we had ordered. We were all so relieved to have them in our hands after hearing and reading about horror stories of fake and fraudulent ticketing agencies. We were set and ready to go!!!

When we got to the hotel we were pleasantly surprised by all of the amenities and familiar things. We are staying at a Double Tree complete with chocolate chip cookies. During the opening ceremonies, we met up with all of the other USA Swimming families to watch the opening ceremonies together. It was so nice to meet and mingle with other parents, families, and friends of other USA Swimming team members.

Mark's event, thankfully, is on the first day of the Olympic Games. I say "thankfully" because I cannot imagine what it would be like to have to be nervous for many more than 24 hours before we got to Mark swim. Mark's first swim was not his best, but was good enough to get him into the semi finals ( 1:00.7- Mark's best time was posted at the US Olympic Trials at 1:00.1) With a big sigh of relief we knew that he would get at least one more swim the next morning in the semi-finals (top 16 make the semi-finals and Mark was 15th after prelims).

As a side note: I got horribly sick on this first day and it was a miracle I even got to see Mark swim. Once I was able to cleanse my system of whatever had gotten in it I started feeling much better. I immediately stopped making fun of my mother who packed 100 individual Germ-X wipes and enough over-the-counter drugs to supply all of Beijing. Each and every Germ-X wipe will be used by the end of the trip... I can guarantee you.

So, excited to watch Mark loosen up a little and swim his race like he knows how to do, we got up early this morning, ate breakfast (don't worry, I just had a piece of toast) and headed to the Water Cube on the bus organized by USA Swimming. We got to the pool and anxiously sat in our seats.

I don't know why any of us were nervous... this is Mark's job and he does it very well. Very confidently he got up on the block and swam like he needed to swim to put him into the finals (1:00.44- still not his best time, but a solid time to lock him into a finals swim tomorrow). He was so happy, he even looked up into the stands and smiled.

After swimming, my mom, Cindy and I (along with two friends of our who traveled to China to watch Mark) sat at McDonald's and ate something familiar, finally... french fries! After lunch and hanging out at the Olympic Park for a couple of hours we went to a gymnastics qualifying round (during our time in Beijing we will see gymnastics, diving, table tennis, men's soccer, and swimming, of course). One thing that is surprising to all of us is that the venues are not full. There were literally hundreds of seats open at the gymnastics session. We are shocked because the events are sold out but it seems as though people are not showing up. It is so disappointing to see people outside of the gates, desperate for tickets, and hundreds of open seats that these desperate ticket seekers could be sitting in.

Our challenges in Beijing have included transportation and getting around the city. It is incredibly difficult to hail a cab and once you get a cab to pull over, no cab drivers seem speak English and some cannot even read a map. The hotel we are staying at is very new and so many drivers don't even know that it exists! Tonight we circled Beijing in a cab for almost an hour.

I am so looking forward to tomorrow's race. Mark will swim in the finals and I've got a great feeling that it is going to be a big swim for him. I saw him tonight after his practice and he looked happy and ready; I can't wait! Tomorrow will be the day that he breaks 1:00 minute.

I will try to get back on and post again in the next few days. Please keep your fingers crossed and Mark in your thoughts... I am off to bed to dream of fast swimming and french fries!

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Several big screaming fan parties here in western NY last night.We are excited and enjoying watching it all with Corey and Matt. Alden says good luck and that we love you. It's been raining so much here, that we are going to do the breast stroke to the big party tonight.
Love you,
Aunt Judy & Uncle Ron

Anonymous said...

Way to go Mark!!! Good luck in finals ... we know that your best is yet to come. Thanks for the updates Ashley. The Havers

Kelly said...

Great job last night, Marky!!! I have a good feeling about tonight's swim (morning swim for you). See you on TV.
Kelly, Brad, & Baby Mia

Anonymous said...

Good luck Mark! We'll be cheering you on tonight!
Your neighbors from D.L.
The Marquis family

emddudley said...

I can't believe you guys went to McDonalds. You're in China--be adventurous and sample the local cuisine! Experiencing something new and different is a good thing!

What was different about the bathroom? Did they only have squat toilets?

Anonymous said...

Ash,
You have no idea how many swedish fish I have been eating for you!!! I'll be watching tonight!!

Molly O said...

We're so excited for you guys! I'm having the hardest time figuring out when things are on TV, but know we're cheering for Mark regardless!
Here's to GermX!
-The Otiende's

Unknown said...

Good Luck Mark! I am a friend of you Aunt Mary Jane out here in Lancaster. We are so excited for you. My kids are having a great time watching you and following your blog. Have FUN....

Anonymous said...

Marky,
I just got home from Aunt Sherry and Uncle Tom's big party to watch the finals. I can't sleep because I am still pumped after watching you. We are so proud of all that you have accomplished. Thank you for giving us this experience of watching you and cheering for you! You have made us all famous too (we were on the news tonight!)
Andrew asked when you were coming home and I said your home is in North Carolina not here in Buffalo. After thinking for a minute he said "North Carolina?!?! But I thought he was an American!?" It was pretty funny! Anyway - we love you and are incredibly proud of you. God Bless the rest of your trip
Love,
Jane, Matt, Andrew, Emily, and Tiffany

Anonymous said...

WOW, Mark -
What an absolute thrill to watch you at the finals tonight @ Tom and Sherry's, with Cory and Matt in town, too. I think there were about 40 of us, all so excited and screaming at the top of our lungs! Channel 2 News was there, too.
Your race time was excellent, and we are so proud of you!! Thanks for giving us so much excitement!
Ashley, thanks for keeping us updated about everything - it makes us feel almost like we're there with you. I hope that you are feeling well now (The same thing happened to me when I went to Mexico). Have a great time.
We'll be watching for word about the relay race.
We love you guys!
God Bless!
Mary Jane, Russell, Stacey and Julia

Anonymous said...

Hey Mark,

Just wanted to say how proud we are of you. The boys really enjoyed watching you and the whole olympic experience.

Anonymous said...

Hi Mark, Ashley, and Diane

We are following every minute and loving getting to see Mark on the big screen. Way to go on all of your races and of course on the Christmas shopping at the big store. I'm going to have to step mine up this year! We can't wait for the relay and to hear more from you guys. Love Betsy (and other Schreibers)

Anonymous said...

Congratulations, Mark!
Your Akron Firestone Family is so PROUD of you and your accomplishments! Gangloff Family...great job on your Channel 3 interview!!

Cindy Virdo