Having taken the metro for the first time today, I plan on spending a good few hours on it at some point photographing the city. It's a great way to see the bizarre intermingling of old and new, between the hutongs with their shanty feel to the skyscrapers in a continuous stream of development. There are people working everywhere, carrying, moving, sweeping, knocking down, putting up. I'm not sure how the city would be without the impending games and I wonder how much of the current gargantuan push is fuelled by the need to impress in 2008. Having been here for a month and a half now, I think that impress they will, whether or not it costs blood, sweat and tears for those on the sharp end of the orders.

The reason I got to use the metro (30p anywhere in the city and very efficient) was in order to have the shortest interview of my life: and....you're from England right?. Yes, that's correct. Right, when can you start? I'm in the lucky position of being a genewiiyne Brit, of which there are a shortage for teaching English. Even though I explained very carefully that I had no teaching experience at all, I will get paid more per hour for this than I get at work in a day. Two hours a week should fund most weekend activities. I'm also doing this because it will be a new experience and I'm interested to find out what language teaching is like. I'll pick up some TEFL books this weekend and hopefully start in the next couple of weeks.

Anyway, with blood pressure back to normal levels, I'm off to the gym after another 11 hour day.