Buses are a way of life for anyone covering the Olympics. They take you where you want to go, for free, run on a schedule, usually are air-conditioned and can get you closer to the front door of wherever you need to go than taxis or some private party driving a car. Thus, we think […]

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Yes, yes, we Americans should know more languages. Aside from our first-generation immigrants, few Americans are fluent in any language except English. It can be vaguely embarrassing, when you get into a conversation with someone from, say, Europe (especially northern Europe, where seemingly everyone speaks English) and their second language is almost as good as […]

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Who did that song? The Bangles? Some girl group 20-some years ago. (OK, I looked it up, and it’s by some one-hit wonder band named “The Vapors.”) Anyway, I just fell asleep in the work room at the Beijing Science and Technology University gym. That’s very Japanese. Or very Japanese journalist, from my experience covering […]

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Another random thought, while watching ball. (That’s a great thing about baseball, isn’t it? How you can do other things while it’s going on and not really miss much?) Anyway, I have been impressed by the enthusiasm of the Chinese for the sports on the Olympic menu, most of which they can’t possibly have any […]

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It started down the right-field line, where most of the Chinese Taipei fans seem to be congregated. It was in Mandarin  … and thus unintelligible to me. But it quite certainly was sung to the tune of “Old McDonald Had a Farm.” More fans seemed into that than the seventh-inning stretch tune fest.

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The World Baseball Classic is  baseball’s answer to the soccer World Cup. The WBC works out much more handily. It is held in March, when none of the baseball-friendly countries are in their regular season. So it has all the stars. Unlike the Olympics, which appears to be conducted at about a Double-A level. The […]

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The U.S. is managed by Davey Johnson. Yes, he of the two shaky seasons running the Dodgers. His coaches are Reggie Smith, former Dodgers outfielder and coach; Rick Eckstein, brother of David; and Marcel Lachemann, former Angels manager in the mid-90s. Among the players on the U.S. team are occasional major-leaguers Terry Tiffee, Matt Brown […]

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I noticed this during Opening Ceremonies. Chinese Taipei, generally known in the U.S. as Taiwan … is popular here on the mainland. Or its athletes are, anyway. Which strikes me as odd. But maybe it shouldn’t. It’s all about history, of course.

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I’m over at the Wukesong Baseball Main Field, watching a sport 1.29999 billion of the 1.3 billion Chinese people don’t understand. One that will disappear from the Olympic movement as soon as the last out is made in the gold-medal game Saturday. And I have a feeling almost no one will miss it. First, let […]

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Cliff and Randi Hammer, the parents of cyclist Sarah Hammer, are staying with a local Chinese family, the Jiangs. It was Sarah’s idea for them to stay with the Beijing residents. “She said we ought to immerse ourselves in the culture, really experience China,” said Randi, a third-grade teacher in Hemet. So, they are hanging […]

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