Ok, I am showing my age by the quote (did I get it right?) , but it really does look as though with a week to go until the Olympics open, the air quality isn’t going to be an issue. We Beijingers have one infallible guide to the quality of the air: whether or we [...]

You might not know it, but we at the China Blog have a deep interest in fashion. And so it was out of a sense of duty that I went to the Triumph Inspiration Award lingerie show in Beijing’s 798 art district this afternoon. The event was the finals of a global contest to design [...]

Our colleague Lin Yang went to check out Beijing’s Olympic host family program and came back with this video and report: Family lodging has never been much of a choice for those traveling to China. The government has strict rules on where foreigners can stay, the average housing space is fairly limited, and having a [...]

Commenter oohkuchi put up this little gem which he says he found “at the back of a sofa in the FCC (Foreign Correspondents Club) common room in Hong Kong.” Not sure about that, but it is pretty funny. Pretty close to the bone in some places, too. “Reporter Guidelines for Covering the Beijing Olympics. 1) [...]

Beijing has acknowledged that it will censor the Internet access of journalists at the Olympic press center. This seems like a horrible embarrassment for the International Olympic Committee. As recently as two weeks ago IOC president Jacques Rogge told AFP that Internet access would be unrestricted. For China, the decision to block access to some [...]

A South Korean television crew slipped into the Bird’s Nest stadium and came out with some footage of rehearsals for the Summer Olympics opening ceremony. You can see it here, via China Digital Times. For those of you who want to keep the surprise intact, don’t watch or keep reading. The SBS footage shows what [...]

The British women’s Olympic hockey team is training in Macau / Getty Images Beijing isn’t the only city trying to clear the skies just days before the Olympics. On Monday, the air pollution index in Hong Kong–which will host the Olympic equestrian events—hit 202, the highest level since records began in 1995. In nearby Macau, [...]

After several days of smoggy skies and widespread skepticism about whether Beijing can get air pollution under control in time for the start of the Olympics next week, the city caught a break. Last night produced thunder but little rain, but the skies finally opened up around mid-morning. The downpour was short but effective. For [...]

From Gracye Cheng, a look at the state of Beijing’s air: Beijing’s manifold approach to cut down on pollution–limiting vehicle use, suspending construction and shutting down factories in the city and across 6 provinces–has certainly prompted changes in the everyday lives of its residents, but these sweeping measures seem to have produced limited differences in [...]