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The second half of the Beijing Winter Olympics has long since begun.
And since the weekend there has even been natural snow.
Plenty even.
Finally: A wintry landscape.
For Marcus Krämer, our reporter on site, that doesn't change his Olympic feeling.
Marcus Krämer DER SPIEGEL »Nevertheless, I can't mentally separate myself from the conditions under which these games take place, what all the trappings mean for my reporting. Even if you get used to certain things: mask, the morning corona test, these long bus rides. Of course, you always get used to a lot of things very quickly. But my personal impression is still that these are games that simply shouldn't have taken place under the conditions."
Due to the conditions, the so-called German House does not exist either – always at previous Olympic Games. The central meeting place for athletes, journalists and other guests.
Because of Corona, this meeting point is cancelled.
Marcus Krämer DER SPIEGEL » At the end of the day you can't go to the German house and just soak up the atmosphere there. It is usually the case that the athletes are cheered after they have won medals because they arrive at some point in the evening. to be cheered upon entering. Then maybe you can sit down with them for a moment and have something to eat or drink, chat with them for a moment. It all falls away, it just doesn't exist. There is no German house.«
It also remains unclear what people in China think of the games.
Only this much is known: The run on the Olympic souvenirs has increased enormously.
The panda mascot Bing Dwen Dwen is particularly popular.
The Olympic reporters from the West don't notice any of this - they are not allowed to leave their bubble, which is partly secured with fences and barbed wire.
Marcus Krämer DER SPIEGEL »It's still the same: You just can't move freely, you just can't talk to the people you might want to talk to. Do not meet athletes outside of the competition venues. It's a very, very bad handicap."
In the run-up to the games, human rights violations against the Uyghurs were also a major topic.
As here in Berlin, people protested against hosting the games in China.
Hardly anyone talks about it in Beijing.
At least not publicly.
Natalie Geisenberger, six-time Olympic champion »I think you always have to be a bit careful when you say what, where, and that will probably work for a lot of people. «
Marcus Krämer DER SPIEGEL »The topic of China and human rights and everything that is connected here and there, actually, they largely ignore it. In fact, before the games, one or two warnings were issued that one should be careful, even as an athlete, to speak openly about the conditions here.«
But the dominant topic in everyday reporter life remains Corona.
Covering the Olympics under these conditions is anything but a dream job.
Marcus Krämer DER SPIEGEL »You count down the days until it's over. In any case, I catch myself, yes.
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