29 footprints

I think I feel deeply.  I mean, I get emotional.  Watching the Opening Ceremonies of the Beijing Olympics has made me get a little choked up several times.  I think the synergy and symmetry of it all is so beautiful.  The history.  The performance.  The harmony.  Knowing that weeks and months of preparation went into this...a platform that is built on competition and unity.  (Those are, by the way, two of my favorite things.  I like to compete...and win.  But, I cherish unity.)

 Fifteen thousand performers.  That's four thousand more people than the Olympics have athletes.  And, no one was used twice.  Watching over 2,000 Tai Chi masters execute at the same time while formed in perfect circles is awe-inspiring.  The large scale, with attention to the small details.  All of it held in a place nicknamed "The Bird's Nest."  

Perhaps the coolest thing, was watching the fireworks of footprints, 29 in all, flash across the Beijing skyline and walk their way, one per second, to the Opening Ceremonies. That, and seeing the men, women and children smile and wave.  So, I'll shelve my opinions of China right now, and focus on the beauty of the Olympics.