Hosting the Olympic Games is China’s greatest step in the effort to bring its ancient country fully into the modern world.

The Olympics will start at 8:08 p.m. Chinese time on 8-8-2008 in Beijing. The number 8 is traditionally a lucky number in Chinese culture.

China was long held back by its imperial system and by wars and extreme Communism in the 20th century. Today China is a major industrial power, with a rising standard of living for many of its 1.3 billion people. (Just Beijing had a population of 13.8 million in 2000.)

“One World One Dream” is the motto of the Beijing Olympics. According to a statement, sponsors of the event hope it will be a “Green Olympics,” a “People’s Olympics” and a “High-tech Olympics.”

The Olympic complex has been designed by a number of world-class architects. The huge Olympic Stadium has beeen likened to the appearance of Chinese “bird’s nest” soup, and the aquatic complex resembles a giant ice cube.

While the majority of Olympic events will be held in Beijing, some sports will be contested in other locations around China. Thus sailing will be in Qingdao, in northeast China, and equestrian events will be in Hong Kong.

About 500,000 foreigners are expected to attend the Games, Chinese tourism officials reported recently. However, plenty of hotel rooms 4-star and below were available in Beijing last week.

In recent weeks, the U.S. Olympic Committee has been naming the American teams that will compete in the Beijing Olympics. The U.S. teams will stay in the Olympic Village with other athletes from around the world. However, the U.S. team reportedly will be bringing its own meat to China because of concerns over food safety.

For those who do not attend the Olympics, trips to Beijing in coming years will continue to offer fascinating insight into an ancient culture and into the rapid change taking place there today.

E-mail Allen Chesney at achesney@timesfreepress.com