Photo courtesy of The Beijing 2008 Olympic Games' official website

I was expecting long queues at immigration. I was disappointed. I was expecting tight security checks. I was disappointed. I was expecting a busy airport. I was disappointed. I was expecting a long car ride from airport to hotel. I was disappointed.

In fact, my arrival last night (August 5) at the world’s biggest airport in the world’s most-watched city, three days before the world’s biggest party, was as smooth as silken tofu.

Granted, I arrived at 11pm and probably the late hour helped but I was impressed by the efficiency and warmth of the welcome at every step of the arrival experience. Beijing clearly is leaving no stone unturned to ensure the best experience for every visitor during this crucial period.

The only thing it cannot fix is the sky. By night, it looked like a misty glow had enveloped the city. By morning, it looked grey and hazy.

“I think it’s fog,” said a friend whom I met for lunch. “It usually clears up by day.”

“It’s actually better today than the last few days. We can actually see the sun,” said another.

“I was out at the Olympic village last weekend. The air is very clear there,” added another.

Everyone has an opinion on the air quality in Beijing. The government has done all it can – closed factories, banned private cars, reorganised road usage around the city. The rest is up to She Who Must Be Respected.

The weather forecast says it might rain on Friday, the evening of the opening ceremony. Everyone is keeping their fingers crossed.

At Shangri-La Hotel, where I am staying, security is tight. I hear Roger Federer is inhouse. At the new Westin Chaoyang, security is even tighter. I hear George Bush Snr is inhouse and when the Americans travel, they bring serious security with them.

The Westin opened a month ago and is running full house over the next three weeks. They’ve brought in 50 extra staff from overseas to help them through this crunch period.

Traffic is wonderfully light. It took me 15 minutes to go from West to East, a journey that could sometimes take 45 minutes. The clearing of the roads is wonderful for visitors – you couldn’t pick a better time to be here, really, to shop, sightsee, eat, drink and be part of the Olympic celebration.

The slogan says “One World, One Dream”. Talking to local Chinese working and living in the city, it could well be “One Country, One Dream”. As far as they are concerned, this is their country’s moment in history.

“You can’t help but be swept up by the pride,” said a Singaporean friend, who’s lived in Beijing the last three years.

My first day here and I can’t help but be caught up too by the excitement and a new dynamism that I had not felt before. In previous visits over the past few years, it always felt like Beijing was preparing for something.

Last night, I caught an interview on CCTV’s English channel. The host was interviewing the Greek personality who had organised the opening ceremony of the Athens Olympics. From patriotism, the subject strayed to homosexuality. The host said, “you’ve always been openly gay, is this why you keep using the word ‘honesty’ a lot? That it’s important to be honest always?”

I think Beijing could well be preparing for a new open-ness. Because after its coming-out party on August 8, 2008, there may well be no turning back.