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With 1.3 billion people cheering for the olympics- and that's only the Chinese population, the one thing you should expect when 2008 comes around in Beijing is lots and lots of people.

If you've been to China before- even if its only a year before, expect lots of changes. China is changing at such an amazing pace, even though I travel to Beijing & Shanghai every few months, I still see massive changes taking place. Because of the changes in infrastructure (tearing down and building up of roads, bridges, buildings) expect the taxi drivers to not know where they are going. So be prepared and bring a map along- there are TOURIST maps available which have the street names both in English (and other languages) and Chinese.

Be prepared for the toilet situation- it has improved by leaps and bounds and in the tourist areas you can always find a proper Western toilet, with all the fixings sans the smell, but should you venture out into the less traveled areas (by foreigners), the best thing to do is to strengthen the muscles of your bladder. Personally, I've gotten used to it- thanks to my trusty necklace which holds a vial of eucalyptus extract. It not only overpowers every smell, it calms me down when the crowd levels start swelling.

There are a lot of other small little things that you will definitely, especially as an American who has not really traveled overseas or out of your comfort zone, be very annoyed, disturbed, perturbed and frustrated at. But the culture shock is worth it- because you will be amazed ...

Amazed at how the population has been mobilized (from the youngest to the oldest), to learn a smattering of English and other foreign languages so that they can be friendly and of some help to visiting foreigners. At the forefront are taxi drivers who are learning English (and other languages) from tiny notebooks filled with notations from their passengers.

You will also be amazed at how far China has come from the 1980's when the entire country was stuck in a time warp because of Mao's errant economic and social policies (The Great Leap Forward, Cultural Revolution). You will be amazed by the temerity and drive of a people who simply want to be better- and not by getting handouts as many nations are wont to do, but to be better out of their own sheer heart (passion) and head (intellect).

Yes, during the Olympics, the US may dominate the games. But the proud champion of the 2008 Olympics will be China- for having risen out of poverty into prosperity, and not for the few as it did for 5,000 years of dynastic rule, but finally, for its people- whom you will come to admire and appreciate, if not love, if you give them the chance.

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