As the opening ceremonies are about to begin in Beijing, we are very proud to announce that Absolute Travel sales assistant Jessica Rizzolo has the honor of participating in the Olympics as a member of the “Olympic Dream Stunt Team”! Jessica has been cheering for the NBA for several years here at home and she is thrilled to now be supporting the U.S. basketball team in China. She will be sending periodic updates on her experience at this historic event; check our blog for more Olympic updates from Jessica in the coming weeks!

Wow! From the minute I boarded the plane for China, I felt the Olympic spirit! My flight was filled with families traveling to China for the Olympics, media, and even a few athletes. When we landed in China, my fellow performers and I were greeted by people dressed as the Olympic mascots, and the boxer Evander Holyfield strolled by. At that moment, I knew I had officially “arrived” at this crazy event!

The Olympics are dominating every aspect of Beijing, as you can imagine. Security is extremely tight: there is even a special lane on the highway for Olympic-related traffic! But passing through customs at the airport was a breeze compared to the security that I have encountered to get into the basketball arena every day for practice! We are required to scan our official credentials, walk through metal detectors, and then have our belongings thoroughly checked – they even question things like my gum…every day.

The arena is brand-new and very nice, and there are tons of volunteers who work in and around it – they have definitely prepared well for this event. Unfortunately, the food that we get at the arena leaves a bit to be desired, which has been the most challenging aspect for me so far. On our first day of rehearsal, I enthusiastically walked into the cafeteria with my meal card in hand but my high hopes were dashed when I was handed a plastic box with a slab of unidentifiable meat and gelatinous side dishes. I guess cafeteria food is the same – bland and frightening – around the world.

One funny thing: at the last minute, the all-powerful Olympic Committee decided to change the name of our team. We discovered one morning that we would no longer be known as the “Fan Patrol” – now we are the much more exciting-sounding “Olympic Dream Stunt Team”!

We have been rehearsing each day but have been able to hit the town the past two nights. Last night we went to Houhai and a crowd gathered around us as we stunted in front of the arched entrance – people were clapping, flashbulbs were going off…we felt like celebrities! In addition to our moment of fame, we dined at a place called Chopsticks and I got to have some familiar food – I’m happy to report that the pizza was excellent!!

There will be plenty more to come as the games get under way! The atmosphere here is very exciting and filled with anticipation…

– Jessica

Not quite the blue skies they had hoped for…