Beijing's Olympic welcome

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  A vendor sells Olympic hats and other paraphernelia. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Guards outside Beijing's Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square play a role both of security and ceremony. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Beijing's Forbidden City, formerly the imperial palace, presents a series of 'secret' courtyards and cities within a city. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  The Forbidden City was once closed to all but the imperial court. Since the 1920s, it has been a public museum. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Beijing's Forbidden City presents a series of gates within gates, cities within cities. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Pomp and circumstance: Military guards outside the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square play a role both of ceremony and security -- much like guards in front of monuments in Washington, D.C. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Zheng Yi Cong, 4, poses in front of the Meridian Gate of Beijing's Forbidden City. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  These days in Beijing, you're as likely to find tourists on bicycles as locals. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  One sign of China's economic prosperity: Tourists to sites such as Beijing's Temple of Heaven are more likely to be Chinese than foreign. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Old ways: A man naps in his bicycle trolley, Beijing. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  In 'one-child' China, twins are a coveted rarity. This pair -- dressed in matching watermelon hats -- were surrounded by tourists at Beijing's Summer Palace. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Accordian player at the Temple of Heaven. Beijing, June 2007. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  At the Temple of Heaven. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Angled buildings under construction in Beijing add to an increasingly sophisticated skyline. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Cafe in Beijing's hip 798 arts district, in an old warehouse area. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Hip scene: Lan Club, designed by Phillipe Starck, in Beijing's Twin Towers. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  Old meets new: Beijing's futuristic National Theater of Performing Arts is situated next to the venerated Great Hall of the People. JANE WOOLDRIDGE / MIAMI HERALD STAFF

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  China's Great Wall was recently named one of the Seven New World Wonders. If all its sections were connected, it would stretch about 4,000 miles. Areas with the easiest tourist access are near Beijing. COURTESY BEIJING OLYMPIC COMMITTEE