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Beijing is amazing in many ways. Front and center is the stark contrast between its fabled history and ultra-modern architecture.
The venue everybody's gawking at is Beijing National Stadium, which has been dubbed "The Bird's Nest." It's home to the track and field of dreams and the world's first impression of these Beijing Olympics.
Come Friday night, all roads lead to the same spot. China's putting it's best face on for the world to see.
"I was like, 'Why do they have pictures of these, like, smiling police up there. But it's kind of cute. It gets you in that Olympic spirit," one woman told us.
It's almost "lights, camera, action!" in the stadium, and a bird's-eye preview is getting rave reviews.
"The first thing we noticed when we flew in was the stadium. Man, it's a piece of work. It's unbelievable. It's amazing people can actually make something like that. It's going to be very exciting," Utah Olympian Ryan Millar said.
This is where all the action is. We watched workers put the finishing touches on this grand Olympic stage. Come Friday, it will be packed with 91,000 people here for opening ceremonies ready to be entertained and amazed.
We, however, won't be here. It's an extra special e-ticket event, and our KSL group doesn't have any.
In fact, Michael Phelps might win a record eight gold medals, but he won't be in the stadium either.
"I haven't gone the last two times and don't plan on going this time just 'cause I compete the next day. I'm looking forward to hopefully catch some of it before I get to bed that night to get ready for the morning. But it's definitely going to be one of a kind, something we've never seen before," Phelps said.
China's big coming-out party is playing to children of all ages.
"That's what's the great thing about the Olympics. You know, you get here and everyone's undefeated really. So, everyone's kind of got that gleam in their eye and they're really looking forward to competing," Millar said.
Come Friday night, for about three hours, we're all the same, caught up in the Olympic spirit.
E-mail: tkirkland@ksl.com
