A New City

It has been a few days since my last entry, but that is mainly because not too much has happened in the past few days. We had our first training when we were still in Beijing, which was the first team training together after a good break, and it took a few touches on the ball for everybody to get their legs back and really get going. It didn’t help that it was extremely hot and humid. We are constantly drinking water to stay hydrated because we lose so much water during training. After training, many of us submerged our legs in ice baths so that we could recover from the day of intense training and be fresh for the next weeks. Once we got back to the dorms, we had to pack up and get our bags down to the lobby, because they were not going on the train with us. Then we had lunch and a bit of time to waste, so most of us just hung out in the lobby on our floor and got in some last internet time before leaving.

We got to the train station about an hour and a half early, so we had some more time to waste. We were in a VIP lounge, so it was basically just us and some of the tournament people in the area. A large group of us passed the time by playing a highly competitive game of Phase 10. It was a lot of fun and definitely made the time pass quickly. Once the time came, we loaded up the train and were on our way before long. It took us a little bit to get situated, because initially we did not realize that other people were in our train car, and we just sat anywhere. So, we held up traffic as we rearranged ourselves in our proper assigned seats. The train itself was a bullet train, so the entire ride was only two hours, which for us is nothing. The seats were rather spacious and made for a fairly comfortable ride during which I enjoyed some TV shows on my iPod. Our General Manager gave us about a ten minute warning to gather up all of our stuff and be ready to get off the train as soon as it stopped, because there is only about a minutes time to get everybody off the train, and then the next group has about a minute to get on the train before it leaves again. We all made it off the train in time and thoroughly enjoyed the chaotic challenge of unloading the train in such a short time. We then immediately boarded a bus and went over to the soccer stadium to get our official tournament accreditations. Our last stop was our hotel, which is located right on the beaches of the Bohai Sea. Upon entering the hotel, there was a lovely welcome reception. All of the hotel staff was lined up on both sides of us and gave a warm applause when each of us walked in.

We have been training here the past few days, and the weather has been a bit cooler than what we saw in Beijing, but it is still pretty sticky and we are still sweating quite a bit. Because of the heat and humidity, our medical staff came very prepared with cooling vests. We had a scrimmage yesterday against China, and at each of the breaks, the players on the field wore these vests to try and get their core temperature back down. They look a bit like space suits to a lot of us, but we are here for the gold and going to do whatever it takes to get that edge to win. Other than that, there really has not been too much else to report on from here. We have a good bit of down time, which is spent doing various activities. I can oftentimes be found working on the World’s Largest Crossword Puzzle which was sent to us by one of our team docs, playing competitive games of Spades, or catching up on my reading. Today is a day off from training. We were originally supposed to go see the section of the Great Wall that is here, but it is raining today, so that has been postponed and instead there will be an excursion to a market.

I have included a photo from our trip to the Great Wall in Badaling (I am wearing a hat that a few of us purchased to wear on our hike up the wall) and also a photo from the balcony of a teammates room (I am unfortunately not on the water side) here in Qinhuangdao. Some days you can see nothing due to the weather and the smog and other days you can see boats and ships out in the water. It is amazing how much it changes. Enjoy.

What a 'Wonder'ful Sight

We are starting to settle in to China a little more each day. One of the biggest adjustments is of course the time change; from the east coast, there is a twelve hour difference and from the west coast it is a fifteen hour difference. It goes without saying that there are many droopy eyes by the time the early afternoon/evening approaches and the hardest part is keeping yourself awake late enough so you are not waking up at the wee hours of the morning. Hopefully over the next few days we will all be pretty much adjusted. Another big adjustment is normally the food. However, our current accommodation at the Beijing Normal University, which is the home base for the USOC (United States Olympic Committee), has made the experience much different than past trips to China. The USOC has done a tremendous job and even though we are currently one of the only teams here (along with the boxers), the American culinary experts they have brought in are preparing some very delicious meals. The first few days have been set up without training scheduled in hopes that it helps us recover and adjust from the travel. Instead of training, we have been lucky enough to get to spend some time sightseeing here in Beijing. The first places we visited were Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. The square is a large plaza near the center of Beijing and is named for the gate that sits to its North, separating it from the Forbidden City. Outside of China, the square is most widely known for the Protests of 1989. The Forbidden City was the Chinese Imperial Palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty and now houses the Palace Museum. For almost five centuries it served as the home of the emperor and his household. The architecture and gardens here were so remarkable to see. Much of the design and architecture to the city was pretty meticulously planned and symbolized different aspects of the imperial power, so it was interesting to hear all of the stories.
The next place, which I think may be the highlight of my trip, was our visit to the Great Wall. We traveled to the Badaling section of the wall and were immediately amazed at the magnificence of it all. It is so hard to fathom just how exactly they built something of this grandeur, but I guess that is part of what makes it one of the Seven Wonders. We only spent about an hour and a half hiking the wall, but I think that was more than enough for most of us. There was an easy route and a difficult route, and being the top caliber athletes we all are, of course we chose the more difficult of the two. It was quite a workout trekking up the extremely steep hills and stairs, but definitely well worth the pain in the end; how many people can actually say they have climbed the Great Wall? By the time we had fully descended the wall, I think the majority of our legs felt a bit like jelly and we were glad to get on the air conditioned bus and relax for a bit. On the way home, we drove by the Olympic Center to get a chance to see the buildings/architecture, since we will not actually be staying in the Olympic Village until later in the Games. We mainly saw the Water Cube and the Bird’s Nest, but the buildings are even more amazing to see in person than what I have seen in photos.
This morning we will have our first training here at Beijing Normal University and then this evening we will take a train to Qinhuangdao, which is the site of our first two games.

Chasing An Olympic Dream

To many people, the Olympics is something you grow up watching on television and dreaming about as a child. For the lucky few, it is a dream come true and a once in a lifetime experience. I am one of those lucky enough to live out a dream and be able to experience the Olympics firsthand, and I am going to share my adventure with you. My goal is to write as often as possible so that you can follow me and my team through these 2008 Olympics, but that will all depend on the Internet access that is available at each of our sites. I want to say thank you in advance for reading this, and please cheer on the Women's Soccer Team and the entire US Olympic Team during this next month as we compete in Beijing.
The whole idea of being on the Olympic Team and actually going to the Olympics had been a bit surreal ever since the final roster was announced. As the final days before leaving for the Olympics approached, the fact that I was really going to the Olympics was finally starting to hit me and become more of a reality. On July 22nd, the dream became more real, as our entire soccer team met in San Jose, CA for team processing prior to leaving for China. I think this may have been the first time that it really hit me that I was going to be an Olympian. Team processing itself was an event filled day that mostly involved getting all of our official Olympic apparel, along with a few other important meetings and activities.
On Wednesday, July 23rd, we departed San Francisco for Beijing. After an 11+ hour plane ride, we arrived in Beijing the afternoon of the 24th. We took a bus from the airport to our temporary "home" for the next few days, at Beijing Normal University. After settling in and getting a bite to eat, we bused over to the soccer field on campus for a short walk, and then most people either biked or jogged around the track for a bit to get the legs loose from the long travel day.
I mentioned a little earlier that we are only in Beijing for a few days. On Sunday, we will be traveling to Qinhuangdao where we will be through our first two games. Soccer is a little different than most of the sports here at the Olympics, because we play most of our games outside of Beijing. Our first game is on the 6th and then our next game is on the 9th. Unfortunately, our team will not be walking in the opening ceremony on the 8th, because of the fact that we will not be in Beijing and we have a game the next day.
I am excited to finally be over here after many months of training for this event. With all of the security and official passes we have to carry with us everywhere, the enormity of this event is really felt. I cannot wait for the games to begin.

Headed to Beijing

Nicole Barnhart, a Boyertown native, is a goal keeper on the U.S. Women's soccer team. She will be blogging from Beijing as she competes for a gold medal in the 2008 Summer Olympics.