A Note About Pollution

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The hazy sky is extreme humidity, not pollution.

I thought I'd write a little bit about the weather and pollution here in Beijing, as it was something that concerned me about traveling here. The first 3 days in Beijing were quite clear, and we could see blue sky and sun each day. I know this is rare, so we were lucky to have that. On the morning we went to The Great Wall, a good deal of pollution rolled in, and it was hazy in the city. The wall is up in the mountains outside the city, so the air was a bit better, but you can probably see from the photos that the air is not crisp and clear the way you might expect it to be in the mountains.

As we approached the Olympic Complex yesterday, we saw that we were really losing visibility in the fog. Nevan explained that even though it looked like pollution, it was actually dense humidity rolling in. In Beijing, this kind of humidity is a harbinger of thunderstorms. Unlike on the east coast of the US, where these dramatic thunderheads roll in before a storm, this was more like a big cloud just sat down on the city. I wiped my arm at one point, and it was wet! Earlier in our trip, someone told us that Beijing is a dry place, and that Xi'an is quite humid. After yesterday, I'm wondering if Xi'an is under water or something. I don't know how any place could actually be more humid! I had the same thought as I was running this morning, the air was so heavy with moisture, it felt thick.

Anyway, the pollution here in Beijing, while noticeable, (especially compared to Vermont) is not as bad as I feared, however, we have heard word from another Fulbright group that pollution levels in Xi'an are so bad that some people have gotten sick. I hope it clears out before we get there. I assumed before arriving that we'd face the worst pollution here in Beijing.