Beijing 2008

In the 1950’s, Cuban Artist Luis Carbonell recorded “La Habana de Hoy” [Present Day La Habana] for the recording label Kubaney. Inspired by the recording and what I have seen in Beijing, the time has come to write about Beijing. Another reason is to correct the misconceptions of Beijing and China that have been invented by a press in the Western World [examples such as CNN, CBS, and the like] bent on eliminating alternative view points so that they can regain the monopoly once enjoyed. I had already written a reply to the comments made by a BBC Journalist in Beijing that in my opinion defamed the people of China and the Olympics.

Beijing is a city that is thriving and growing without limits. Beijing is a city in which the Peking duck coexists with Pizza Hut, KFC, Wendy’s, Burger King, Taco Bell and other take away restaurants. There are foods for different tastes and the restaurants are subject to the same laws governing cleanliness when preparing, serving, and cooking food. The cooks and waiters have to wear gloves and hats during their work and the food is inspected to make sure that there are no contaminants. Chinese food in China is less spicy than the version in America. Even though I had rice, coffee, and Coca Cola; the vegetables and noodles [as well as the mushrooms, Peking duck, and the meat] was excellent. The coffee in China [as well as the tea] is great and are served in wine cups. It is a pity that I could not implement that custom in America but it may not be ruled out.

Beijing has a whole lot of traffic with Oldsmobile’s, Buicks, Chevrolets, Toyota, and Hyundai’s competing with Cars such as King Long. There are even automobiles that run on electricity. The Service Stations with petrol such as Sinochem are present and have used Motor Oil such as Exxon and Mobil for cars. The traffic in Beijing is the same as in New York City and Miami with the Police maintaining order. The traffic lights have signals which are timed to allow drivers to be informed how long they can wait for the change in signals or to continue. Beijing as well as other cities in the People’s Republic of China have strict laws governing air, traffic, and street pollution and enforce them to the letter which is a great thing.

The Multinational Recording Companies such as Sony, Universal, and EMI are present alongside the local Recording Companies with the flourishing of local and international talent. Traditional Chinese Music is excellent although one has to be impressed with the Contemporary Chinese Music Scene. I remember seeing on CCTV a music video of a female Chinese Pop Star singing and raising the flag of the People’s Republic of China. In the background, there were people respecting each other as well as the sense of family and community. I remember looking at the video and felt an emotion that is hard to express. There is nothing like country and family and seeing the music video made my heart beat and gave me a feeling of happiness and peace within myself that cannot be repeated.

The People’s Republic of China especially Beijing contained a sense of community with people saying “Please” and “Thank You”. The Official Postal Service China Post was also immaculate and organized. China Post was helpful with this humble citizen when he sent his post cards and letters to family and friends in the United States of America and Cuba. The courteous attitude of the people left an impact that I tried to express but could only say the word “Excellent” and it’s Spanish Equivalent “Fenomenal”. Many people in Beijing asked me the reason for my saying just one word. My response was that I am a believer in using one word to talk about all of the positive things in the world. The people of Beijing have a desire to learn about other people. A few people in Beijing once asked me if in America people believed in lucky charms. My response was to say that many people carry a Cross, a Buddha, and a Stone but that I preferred to carry a photo of my wife Marlene and Daughter Veronica as well as a badge of China Radio International. There were people who asked me about my beliefs and I said that “I am a person who believes that people should be accepted for what they are on the inside regardless of race, ethnicity, and ideology”. I explained that my beliefs were based on Deng Xioping and his Cat and Mice Analogy as well as what Cantinflas [the Mexican Comedian] once said: “I do not desire riches or power, I just want to be friends and be at peace with all of the people of the world.”

It was an honour and a pleasure to visit the Great Wall of China, The Forbidden Palace, and Tiananmen Square. It was also a pleasure to visit the Olympic Venues including the International Broadcasting Centre as well as the Water Cube and Bird’s Nest. It was in these places that one could appreciate the different versions of architectural beauty.

The Great Wall of China is one of the Seven Wonders of the World and its beauty has been appreciated by one of the Chinese Astronauts orbiting the Earth. It is surprising how long such a Monument took to construct. There is a saying that whoever can climb the highest peak in the Great Wall of China is an honest, great, and brave man. I managed to accomplish this feat to the delight of those who witnessed this accomplishment.

The Forbidden Palace with its different rooms and areas was also a place to appreciate. The Forbidden Palace is situated in the area of Tiananmen Square. Within the Forbidden Palace it could be appreciated the various rooms and temples where the Emperor and their families resided. There is also a place within the Forbidden Palace where one is able to see more than five hundred years of Chinese History including the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty in 1912 and the eventual expulsion of the last Emperor Puyi in 1924. When Puyi and his family were expelled by the Warlords, he left through the back door.

Tiananmen Square was the place where Mao Zedong proclaimed the People’s Republic of China on the first of October in 1949. Tiananmen Square was the place to be in order to appreciate the statues and memorials to those who died defending China against foreign invaders. Tiananmen Square was also the place where the Great Hall of the People and the tomb of Mao Zedong could be appreciated.

I could not imagine that one day while listening to China Radio International [at the time Radio Peking or Radio Beijing] that I would be in the Great Hall of the People. The Great Hall of the People is a building that houses the reunions of the Government of the People’s Republic of China as well as other formal reunions. It was built during the days of Socialist Realism of the 1950’s and 1960’s. It was a pleasure and an honour to be in such sacred grounds. It was a pleasure and an honour to be the recipient of the Olympic Awards which included a ceramic trophy and a certificate. I felt my heart beat after receiving the award and then receive the following congratulations from the Embassy of the United States of America in Beijing, the People’s Republic of China. I will never forget the words of the representative of the Embassy of the United States of America: “Roberto, you deserve to be honoured for your efforts in the improvement of relations between the People’s Republic of China and the United States of America”. It is these words that will remain in my heart. The Great Hall of The People was also the historical meeting place between this humble listener and the Director of CRI English Service Yang Lei. We were able to talk about CRI English and my beginnings as a listener of CRI English. We also talked about how CRI English was a station in constant contact with its listeners. I suggested to Yang Lei that CRI English maintain its shortwave service. I managed to explain the reasons such as the fact that people in America are purchasing shortwave radios after the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Rita, and Wilma in 2005. Mr. Yang Lei was responsive to the need of continuing Shortwave Service from CRI English.

It was an honour to be able to visit another sacred place called China Radio International [CRI as the initials]. It was great to be shown the building and to receive the award of the Beijing Olympic Stamps. Most important was to meet with the dedicated professionals of China Radio International such as Gao Huiying [my interpreter], Xie Tingting [my photographer], Guan Juanjuan [Deputy Director of CRI], Ye Feng [Deputy Director Associate Professor of the CRI Urdu Service], Jade Wang [Channel Director of Easy FM China Radio International], Meng Yi [West Asian and African Broadcasting Director], Xing Bo [Vice Director CRI Editorial Office], Fernando Bo Asociacio Chinesa do Brasil, and Yang Lei [Chief of CRI English]. It was great to be able to visit a station with more than sixty five years of history.

CRI has a section where they showed microphones used during its initial transmissions as well as photos of the Indonesian Service answering the reception reports. CRI also had displays from different listeners in many parts of the world. I was curious when I saw the souvenirs from the Korean, Laotian, Cambodian, and Albanian Service. I saw in the Albanian Service display, the flag of Albania as well as cassettes and letters from listeners. The Laotian Service had letters as well as paper money called the Kip sent to China Radio International as souvenirs. The Korean Service had letters from listeners in the Republic of Korea [South Korea] and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea [North Korea] as well as Compact Discs and Stamps from North Korea.

After seeing the display from the Korean Listeners, I reminded myself about the time I received a birthday card from my first cousin in Cuba. I remember that she spent time in North Korea and she sent me a post card of a three dimensional tiger. The purpose was that I was born in 1962 which is the Year of the Tiger in China as well as other nations such as Korea.

There was another section of the China Radio International display that showed listener’s letters from different countries on a globe. There was a letter from a listener in Albania, Mongolia, and another one from the United States of America with multiple stamps by a listener named Roberto Carlos Alvarez-Galloso. It was an emotional moment and one that makes me realize that I have arrived home.

The Capital Museum in Beijing was great and it was much more seeing the history of China from the beginning to the present. I was also a witness to the section of the Peking Opera. I saw a section dedicated to the Peking Opera including a booklet dedicated to Records of Peking Opera by EMI China as well as the clothing used by the participants of the Peking Opera. I was reminded of the time I saw a Peking Opera in Akron Ohio in the year 1973.

It was a thrill to visit the Water Cube and the Birds Nest in preparations for the Olympics. The buildings as well as the International Reporters Centre are to be used in the Beijing Olympics of 2008. It was also a thrill to see the preparations for the rehearsals for the opening games of the Beijing Olympics in 2008. I was told that the International Reporters Centre would be used and then torn down. It would be a shame since it could be used to tell the tale of the Beijing Olympics.

The China People’s Palace is one of the greatest hotels in the area of Beijing. The China’s People’s Palace has the best service when it comes to restaurants with its hot café latte, its internet service, and the China Post Office. The China People’s Palace also had great venues when it comes to selling Beijing Olympic Souvenirs. The hotel had great bedrooms as well as a place to take a relaxing bath and drink tea while resting.

While there are detractors who want to unite politics and sports, I am a firm believer in the separation of sports and politics. I am also a believer that the Beijing Olympics will be the Olympics that will surpass Olympics of previous decades. My best wishes to Beijing and the People’s Republic of China in the coming Olympics from a long time listener and friend in Miami Florida, United States of America.