Olympic Opener

Jfer got to go to a girls-only party to watch the opening ceremony at the games. So I hung out at home doing some work and the watched the ceremony (sans commercials, thanks to the DVR) with Homer.

I wasn't impressed with the NBC commentators' blather and the pre-show special about the security "during these times". Can't we get a break from it for at least a few hours? It felt like they were hoping for something to happen to improve the ratings or something.

The ceremony itself, though, rocked in a big way. It was a big spectacle but not overblown. I really like the floats representing the different parts of Greek history. I forget how much of "western culture" has been influenced by ancient Greece. And it was pretty neat to recognize all the major parts of their history.

Although it takes forever, the Parade of Nations is one of my favorite parts. I think that's what the Olympics are really about. You see countries that you've never heard of fielding athletes that don't have a snow ball's chance in hell to score a medal -- but it doesn't matter! It's cool and diverse and idealistic. And the greek spectators were kind and generous, even to athletes from Turkey and other countries that may have a beef with.

The lighting of the fire is always fun and it seems that every place tries to come up with something new. Greece decided to go with a big-ass replica of a marijuana joint that bent down to be lit by the torch carrying runner. I'm not sure if that's the best symbol with all the doping scandals going on, but it sure looked cool.