I Won the Chinese Lottery

Weeks ago all of the volunteers found out that the opening and closing ceremonies were going to be off limits because of the high-demand for the tickets. So, when I found out that eight of 85 volunteers at the Velodrome had the opportunity to attend a rehearsal for the opening ceremony I got excited but didn't think I had a chance. I never win random drawings – until now. I picked one of the eight "Congratulations" papers out of a box and it landed me a seat at Thursday's rehearsal.

It may not sound like it is that cool but this meant I was going to have access to the Bird's Nest. From a distance, the stadium looks unbelievable so I was trilled to have the opportunity to walk inside it.

I arrived at the Bird's Nest around 6:30 p.m. for the 8 p.m. start. Security, as you would imagine, was heavy. My ticket was checked four times before I got to my seat.

The Chinese officials are extremely worried about details of the ceremony leaking to the public so I won't divulge large details but I was amazed by the performance. There had to have been more than 10,000 performers used, including high-flying fairies, thousands of drummers and many aspects of ancient Chinese history. Thankfully, I sat with two local college students, Flower and Twiggy, who helped me understand certain aspects of the performance.

I am certain spending two and a half hours watching the ceremony is worth your time.