WANCHAI RUJAWONGSANTI

For Thai journalists, covering the Olympics could be either a tough job or an easy assignment.

It could be hard because most of them have to follow Thai athletes in every event although many are unlikely to win anything. It could be light work because many Thai competitors are eliminated quickly.

As of yesterday, less than half of the 51 Thai athletes still remained in the Games, with only seven having a realistic chance of dreaming for a podium finish. So far weightlifting champion Prapawadee Jaroenrattanatarakoon has been Thailand's only medallist at the Games.

Boxer Manus Boonjumnong was the only Thai boxer in action yesterday. With his light-welterweight quarter-final bout starting at 7pm in Beijing, a lot of Thai journalists had plenty of time during the day.

I would have loved to witness Michael Phelps making history at the Watercube but it is almost impossible for a Thai journalist to get a ticket to watch swimming or other popular events such as basketball.

One may think that journalists with ID can walk into any stadium to cover or watch any event at any time they want.

That does not happen as journalists, who do not pay for working positions, have to book tickets in advance for popular sports.

Unfortunately, priority is given to journalists from powerful countries and it is almost impossible for Thai journalists to be allocated tickets for those events so my friends and I killed time by going sightseeing and shopping.

There are several tourist spots in Beijing and the most famous one is the Palace Museum (the Forbidden City) or the former imperial palace in the heart of Beijing.

As it was a Sunday, the place was very crowded.

If you want to go there, you should go on weekdays to avoid the "traffic jam" inside.

Entering the Palace Museum from Tiananmen Square (which is closed during the Olympics), there are several booths selling tickets for less attractive spots.

If you only want to see the main attraction, don't buy any ticket until you reach the main entrance.

A ticket is 60 yuan (around 300 baht) which is very cheap if you are a culture lover.

For people who like things like ancient palaces and pavillions, you probably need a whole day to see everything. For people who are not so keen about this sort of thing - like me - one hour is more than enough. For me, all pavillions look very similar.

One of my colleagues wanted to take a photo at the controversial Starbucks coffee outlet.

He did not know that the shop had been replaced by a Chinese coffee shop, run by the Palace Museum.

The American coffee shop was closed down last year after complaints that its presence was a disgrace to China, particularly the palace, and posed a challenge to traditional Chinese culture.

If the Chinese thought Starbucks was a threat to their culture, then the Palace Museum should also sever their ties with an American credit card company.

At the bottom of narration boards outside each pavillion read "Made possible by the American Express Company" with its logo.

It may be a normal advertisement or the credit card firm has given the museum money to conserve the place.

Whatever the case is, it is a shame to China.

I think the Palace Museum has huge income from gate receipts and does not need such money.

After a tiring walk in the palace, it's time for me to have a hot Starbucks latte and pay for it with an Amex card.