Beijing
From Lester Holt, Weekend TODAY
I'm not sure how to say "I've got next" in Mandarin, but the street ball players I encountered at a city park here in Beijing this weekend got my message. The next thing I knew I was taking on all-comers, hoping to show a few ball handling moves from the States they may not be wise to. Turns out they've seen it all. They even had trash talking down to perfection, though admittedly they could have just as easily been talking about the weather. You know. That language thing again.
The game, by the way, is not basketball, but ping pong. Yes, that's what they call it, not table tennis like they do over at the Olympic venue. Ping pong is a national pastime here, and city parks are filled with tables in much the way you would find blacktop basketball courts in city parks across America. It's pick-up ball, Beijing style.
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| Petra Cahill / msnbc.com |
| Li Chang Jiang, 56, reaches for a shot during a ping pong match in Chaoyang Park, Beijing on Aug. 12. |
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Marilee Thoresen from McFarland, Wis., asked the TODAY family: "If you could compete at the Olympics, what sport/event would you want to compete in?" So we asked them...
Matt Lauer
Either the 100 m, because it's the true glamour event of the Olympics or the pole vault, because it doesn't seem like it should be humanly possible to do that.
Meredith Vieira
Gymnastics, for sure. Ever since I was a little girl I've been enthralled by the grace and the beauty of the sport.
Ann Curry
Diving because I love the feeling of flying.
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From Kevin Tibbles, NBC News correspondent
It is a centuries old, elaborate tradition simply called "the Peking Opera."
Acting, singing (although to the western ear that is debatable), tumbling and all sorts of other sundry stuff makes it an enjoyable, if not incomprehensible, evening.
So, to be allowed to "suit up" and partake in a production of traditional Chinese theater in Beijing was both a privilege and honor.
My role? I was to be the "Ocean King" in a production of something no one bothered to tell me. CONTINUED >>
Since Julie Foudy, Bela Karolyi and Michael Johnson stopped by the set to chat about “Let It Out,” a new documentary featuring Olympic legends sharing life-altering personal and athletic moments, I took the opportunity to ask them about the greatest moment they’ve seen at these Games so far:
Julie Foudy, Olympic soccer gold medalist in 1996 and 2004, silver medalist in 2000
When I go home every night I turned on CNN International in my hotel room, and all I here is the war going on between Georgia and Russia. And then the second day, the Russian and the Georgian are on the medal stand together, and they reach in and embraced on the medal stand. I thought, 'That is what the Olympics are all about.'
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From TODAY producer Josh Weiner
Have you ever arrived at a hotel after a long trip to find out you didn't have a reservation after all? Imagine if that happened -- after you'd traveled 18 hours on three flights going halfway across the world! That's exactly what happened to Melissa Lawson, the new winner of NBC's "Nashville Star." She was here in Beijing during the Olympics for a live TODAY performance of her new single. Melissa was pretty unfazed at the hotel mishap, and with a little Southern charm and the help of her friend's credit card, it all worked out.
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From Jenna Wolfe, Weekend TODAY host
If you were making me dinner last week and you asked me if there was anything i don't eat, I’d have quickly said, "mayonnaise." Ask me that question today and I’d easily say scorpions, lizards, sea horses and silkworms. Yeah, I pulled a "when in Rome" this week while here in Beijing covering the Olympics, and embarked on
my courageous journey to the Chinese night market (video), sight of all things delicious to the Chinese and, well, interesting to Americans. Walking through the market is one thing, sampling the goods is entirely different. It's not like I’m at Whole Foods tasting a new fruit spread. We’re talking real rodents here, a delicacy to the Chinese. And since I was doing a piece on these little critters, I sort of HAD to taste them.
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There have been questions surrounding Michael Phelps since he arrived here in Beijing on Tuesday evening: Will he win eight golds? Will he establish his place in history as the most dominant swimmer of all time? And, perhaps more importantly ... what is with that facial hair?
Matt Lauer put that question to Phelps this week while interviewing him for a segment that aired today. Contrary to popular belief, Phelps is not channeling Mark Spitz circa 1972 in order to break his record of the most gold medals won at a single Olympic Games. In fact, the answer is not that exciting at all:
"Just messing around a little bit," he said. "Just having a little fun, is all."
Phelps said the 'stache is going to go tonight or tomorrow, well before his first preliminary heat on Saturday morning.
So...enjoy it while you can?
WATCH VIDEO
If you hadn't previously heard of Chinese pianist Lang Lang, consider yourself introduced. WATCH VIDEO
The 26-year-old is an international superstar, who has played to sold-out crowds around the world. Today, he took his act to our Beijing set, and tomorrow night, you can see him perform at the Opening Ceremony (7:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. CT).
In fact, not only did he bring his act to our set, but he also brought...his own personalized piano (photos after the jump).
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You've heard of Ping-Pong Diplomacy, right?
Well today here in Beijing, we got a instance of it, though instead of breaking down diplomatic barriers, the only result of today's table tennis exhibition between President George H.W. Bush and a group of table tennis players was fun for everyone involved.
This all went down at Beijing Normal University, where most of the American athletes here are training before and during the Games. Thanks to a stubborn boxing coach, who kicked our interview out of the pugilists' lair, we ended up in the judo training room -- which happened to be adjacent to the table tennis room. WATCH VIDEO
On his way in to meet Matt and the rest of us, President Bush couldn't help himself and hit a few balls with the U.S. team, which, ironically, is comprised entirely of Chinese-American players. WEB-EXTRA VIDEO
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Here are a few pictures from a recent trip to Beijing World Park, a Chinese amusement park that's one of three areas within the city that have been designated as official protest zones:
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