Olympics, Ahoy !

Google Reminded me on the morning that Beijing '08 is just hours away..The most auspiciously oriented Olympics of all time, (how else do you define an Olympics which starts on 08.08.08 with the opening ceremony scheduled at 08:08:08?) may also turn out to be the best organized ever.

A lot of column inches are already dedicated on the great stadiums, china's human rights, pollution, torch relays and now on the great organization. I am not intending to bore you with any of these. Instead I will bore you with some other stuff.

It's when we visited the Olympics Museum In Lausanne last year that we got the initial glimpse of Beijing 2008. It's narthana who pointed to us the five Olympic Mascots for Beijing : Beibei (blue Fish), Jingjing (black Panda), Huanhuan (red Flame), Yingying (yellow Antelope) and Nini (green Swallow). First part of Their five names together - "Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni" - translates as 'Welcome to Beijing'. Just shows the meticulous planning that has gone in..

As I write these, Chinese are producing a truly colourful opening ceremony. Though I liked the initial part, didn't quite appreciate the air run to lit the flame. looked ordinary to me. Barcelona, anyone?.

For an Indian, proud Olympics memories are hard to come by. In fact India didn't win a even a single medal in the first three Olympics I have witnessed.

My most colourful memory of tha Olympics is that of a TV. The first TV I was allowed to touch and operate. Year was 1984, Los Angeles Olympics. Though I remember nothing of watching that Olympics as a 5 year old, I remember the pride I felt when Vanajammayi tole me that my grand father has bought a TV in my mothers ancestral home in Vengoala.

Television was indeed a rare commodity back then, In Pulluvazhy, where I was born and bought up, I remember seeing TV only in two houses. understandably, children were never allowed to go too close to these 'complicate' machines let alone operate them. So when I was turning the Nob and changing channels, it felt the equivalent flying a plane. Thanks to Olympics !.

Times Indeed have changed, TV is so common these days and,I have decided against it in my home as it becomes an addiction & waste of time. talk about the full circle of life Huh?.

That's for the past bit but in the present, I look forward to China overtaking USA in the medal talley, India winning more than one medal, Great Britan Beating Australia on the medal talley and Roger Fedrer clinching the Olympics gold. How many of that will happen?. Well, We will wait and see.