Sponsors show off corporate glitter for Olympic Green visitors
This year's Olympic ticket holders have access to not only the stadiums, but also a 1,000-hectare world of greenery where they can enjoy carnival-like parades and pavilions showcasing the best, and sometimes the oddest, of corporate sponsors and the country.
The Olympic Green, which hosts the architectural wonders of the 'Bird's Nest' and the 'Water Cube', is also home to two other stadiums and - for now - 16 corporate sponsors' pavilions, each trying to impress through eye-catching exteriors, interactive games and a full schedule of performances ranging from Cuban drummers and hyper cheerleaders to acrobatics of the digital age.
Large crowds gathered at Samsung's pavilion - which boasts a colourful seedling design with an outdoor plaza showing live feeds of the Games - and Volkswagen's, which features a 70-metre-long LED banner and suspended acrobats doing running and swimming moves synchronised against background digital images. GE's waterfall facade with the Chinese characters for 'Gold, Wood, Water, Fire and Earth' also features on many visitors' photo collections.
Chinese companies were determined not to be outdone. Insurer PICC (People's Insurance Company of China) has a pavilion mimicking the bow of a giant wave-braving ship with a deck that opens up to a spectacular view of the Bird's Nest (alas, VIP entry only), and China Mobile's pavilion features a gigantic image of comedian Ge You's head bursting out of the wall.
Oil giant China National Petroleum Corporation tried its best to transform its container-like exhibition hall into an example of eco-friendly buildings, by planting grass all over its pavilion's exterior.
The design of the State Grid's pavilion screamed of government conservatism, but the company tried to make up for it with a range of cultural performances and the exhibition of a dinosaur egg from Henan - don't ask why. The Bank of China put on a display about the bank's history, along with simulation games for badminton and stock trading.