BEIJING, China - Edwin Moses looks as fit as ever. Wednesday night at a small gathering of past Olympians, I met and briefly spoke with a man who was a hero of mine when I was a teenage runner in North Carolina. He was proud of the U.S. runners in the 400-meter hurdles - Angelo Taylor led a sweep by the United States - but as often happens in a social setting, the topics of conversation changed to work and family.

Edwin Moses: The 400-meter legend traveled to Beijing with his son.

For Moses, the highlight of the trip had been being able to travel to the Olympics with his 12-year-old son, Julian. It was only a few days before they departed for China that Julian was looking at the newly arrived visas and said, "Dad, thank you so much. I can't believe we're going to China."

If you're curious, Julian is a "renaissance man", in terms of sport, Edwin said. Julian plays just about everything: football, golf, tennis, scuba diving. But the old man says he will never push his son toward athletics. But interestingly enough, Julian called dad up one day to tell him about running the 800 meters in a meet.

"I'll tell you one thing about track, you have to be prepared," Julian said.

Mine was a short visit with Edwin. He was there to see some of the other greats from track and field – Tommie Smith, gold medalist at 200 meters in 1968; Harrison Dillard, four-time gold medalist in 1948 and 1952; and Mal Whitfield, who won five medals in '48 and '52.

These days Edwin has his hands full, working for the Laureus Academy, giving motivational speeches and building a new Web site.

"You need to go to edwinmoses.com, we have a lotta good stuff on there," he said in parting.

BEIJING, China - The raucous chants were practically non-stop Saturday as two-time defending men's water polo champion Hungary battled Australia at the Yingdong Natatorium.

Music and mayhem: Tamas Kasasr of Hungary attempts to score against Australia.

The two lively sections of Hungarian fans (about 500 people total) were in sharp contrast to the rest of the stands, where most of the crowd watched silently, occasionally clapping after a goal. The Hungarians were well organized on one side with a yell leader who seemed to face the cheering section more than he was turned to the pool. There were even two young gentlemen dressed in Hungarian folk outfits.

In Hungary, water polo players are revered. I was visiting Budapest in 2003. At one point I wondered how much attention our cab driver was paying to the road and how much he was spending on the little TV on the dashboard that was televising an important match. It was a good thing for us that Hungary won. Winning is something they are favored to do here in Beijing, as well.

I couldn't quite be sure of this, but after each point Saturday it sounded like they would play a pop tune. In an earlier contest, which Spain won over Montenegro, we were treated to Ricky Martin's "Livin la Vida Loca" after a goal. Seems it doesn't matter what country you are in - cheesy pop songs follow you to sporting events.

This was my first time watching water polo in person and it was enthralling to watch the off-the-ball battles. I can't see how these guys swim so long, let along do it with another person trying to mug you. I swear I saw one player head-butt another during a battle for position.

And these dudes are huge. Every one of them was taller than me, with the widest shoulders you will ever see.

The Australian crowd was about 50 strong and they came to life as the Sharks went on a goal-scoring streak in the late part of the match. But the Hungarian fans never really seemed to fear a loss and they kept cheering. And clapping. And blowing their horns. And cheering. And clapping. Right up until the last second of their country's 13-12 win.

BEIJING, China - Friday morning was just gorgeous. The temperature was in the 70s (Fahrenheit), there was very little humidity, and the sun was shining. Yes, we could see the sun. It is just the kind of day organizers must have been hoping for, given the constant harping of the international media about the smog. These are, after all, supposed to be the "Green Olympics," and the gray air has not helped the image of Beijing as an emerging environmentally friendly city.

It does seem that the organizers have done a lot to make the games appear green. There are recycling bins everywhere and when you take your tray up in the cafeteria, a worker separates the trash out for you. Only the food waste is thrown away. The recycling bins in the media center are for plastic, paper, bottles, cans, metal, glass - and textiles.

In our dorm there is a drop-off for used batteries. The lights in the hallways are controlled by sensors and quickly turn off when you stop to unlock your door. The toilet in our room has two buttons, depending on how much water you need to flush. I've noticed that many of the trash bags say (in English) that they are biodegradable. These are the little touches a guest like me sees. There are other measures under way.

In today's China Daily one of the top articles is about increasing the tax on cars that have a 4-liter or bigger engine. It's 20 percent now, after September 1 it will be 40 percent. The measure is designed to cut down on fuel use and pollution. Another article talks about a government official who says the amount of water being used during the Olympics is not straining the city's water supply. He said that recycled water accounted for 60 percent of the city's consumption on its greening project.

Many of the venues were built with green features, organizers say. On Wednesday, U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson presented the Olympic Village with one of the highest environmental certifications, LEED gold. The buildings in the village derive most of their power from geothermal and solar sources. They also have rain-water capture systems.

According to the China Daily, Paulson said, "China's leaders know the development of green buildings is a critical need, and the Olympic Village can serve as a model for this development."

BEIJING, China - The crowd, which ended up being around 48,000 at the stadium, grew livelier as the match went on. They liked to do the wave - like every 10 minutes. But not just any wave, the Mexican wave, according to the scoreboard.

I spoke with Sports Illustrated senior writer Grant Wahl at halftime and he said all the crowds have been enthusiastic and savvy. They know when to cheer and when to boo.

The game itself lacked urgency, especially because U.S. defender Michael Orozco received a red card in the third minute of the game.

Near the end of the game as the Yanks pressed for the tying goal the stadium erupted in "U-S-A! U-S-A!" It was very surreal, indeed.

BEIJING, China - It's hot and muggy in the outdoor press box at Beijing Workers' Stadium, but that's just fine with me. My first Olympic event ever is my favorite sport - soccer (or football, as it's called in most of the world).

We got here after a crafty 40-minute bus ride from the central transit point in the Olympic green. I say crafty because most of the other buses I have been on would still be in Beijing traffic. Our driver, let's just say, she was aggressive and likes to use the horn.

The cheerleaders performed during the pregame and the scoreboard showed the animated version of the official mascots. That drew a short roar from the crowd. The place holds 61,000 and looks to be about 80 percent full. Before the game the crowd is pretty subdued.

I see a lone U.S. flag in the lower stands and a few red shirts around it. The one Nigeria flag I could see from here was in the press box during their national anthem.

BEIJING, China - For the past week, pulling up to the Main Press Center at the Olympics has been uneventful. Today, something caused many of the journalists on the bus to do a double-take.

Hot wheels outside the Olympic media center in Beijing.

For the first time, an armored vehicle sat just inside the gate, next to one of the security checkpoints. At first I thought it was just an exhibit because people were milling around it taking pictures and no one was moving them away. But there were men inside looking quite serious.

I'm still puzzled, though, because the gun was covered.

So curious me, I went into the media work area and started searching for pictures of Chinese military vehicles. I still haven't found a photo that helps me identify the vehicle outside. So I'm not sure if it is a military or police transport. But it really doesn't matter, because I've felt quite safe here.

Security is everywhere here yet unobtrusive. It's not like you see soldiers walking around with automatic weapons. Most of the men we see - standing at attention near the perimeter fences - aren't armed at all with anything more than a radio.

Posing as a journalist - something I am accused of all the time - wouldn't be a way to sneak something in. Every day we have to go through bag screening and metal detectors before getting on the bus to shuttle us from the media village to the work. The security workers are pretty thorough, too. Every few days I get picked for a bag search. Every day I get wanded. If I have a drink I have to take a sip. 

Some people have asked me if they stepped up security after the U.S. tourists were attacked (or the attacks on Chinese police officers in other parts of the country). I haven't noticed a difference. We've been pretty secure here all along.

BEIJING, China - Doug Todd was among old friends. Just outside one of the security checkpoints to the Main Press Center, he was happily chatting with anyone who came up to him looking at his flair-laden vest.

Doug Todd: Pinned and ready for action.

Todd and eight other people had set up a makeshift pin trading area. I wasn't a very good trader. I had a few CNN.com pins my colleague Thom Patterson had suggested I take. Most of the traders were disappointed because they are crazy about Olympic pins and I didn't have any of those. So I gave them mine, concluding that even if they didn't want one (only one was enthusiastic about getting one), well then, they could do what they do and get something good in exchange.

Todd said this was his 12^th Olympics; he has been to every one since Los Angeles, including the Winter Games.

He waxed existentially about his hobby and the happiness it brings him. "The destination is your collection, but it's the journey," he said. "Like life, the journey is the people you meet and the memories you create as you build you collection."

Dan Baker, of Hot Springs, Arkansas, said he was amazed by the spectacle of the Games and he seemed to be having a good time, despite the heat. Camped underneath a purple umbrella, the bare-footed Baker traded pins with tourists, athletes and volunteers. The pins for these Olympics – his 13^th – are fantastic, he said.

"Trading has been great," he said. "Everybody who is anybody is here and they all seem to have pins. And they are all beautiful pins."

Like Todd, Louie Barbosa has been collecting pins since 1984. He said there were about 30 people who had come from Los Angeles to Beijing to swap stories and pins. He asked several times if I had a pin that said Beijing on it. That seemed to be the prominent question today.

Pin trading seems to be a passion that starts innocently enough. Most of the traders said they began collecting when someone gave them a freebie. And I can see the appeal of the hobby. Each pin represents a little bit of sports history and each one recalls a story of a really fun time with friends old and new.

BEIJING, China - We almost saw the Olympic torch. We were headed to one of the oldest restaurants in Beijing when it became increasingly obvious the throng surrounding our group was not here to see us.

Crowds struggle to catch a glimpse of the torch.

Thousands of people had lined the streets to watch the torch go by. The crowds were six people deep at some points. We tried to use a back alley to get to the restaurant but after a five-minute walk we were told by a police officer that everything was closed for the torch relay.

People were everywhere trying to get just a glimpse of the torch. They climbed walls, they put children on their shoulders, and they peeked through back-alley windows. Many waved Chinese flags. They were quite intrigued by the Americans and many said, "Hello," and a few took pictures.

We were starving after a long afternoon at Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. We decided to walk back to the van and head to another restaurant when suddenly there was a lot of clapping, cheering and a bunch of people running as fast as they could toward the torch route. A few of us headed back, held our cameras high overhead and snapped away. It was either a false alarm or we just missed it.

It would have been a nice bit of serendipity if we had stumbled into a torch sighting. Actually, it was a lot of fun seeing all those people so proud of their country.