Omega Aqua Terra Beijing 2008 Olympic Edition

Z3 shares a deeply personal photo review of his Omega Beijing 2008 Olympic Limited Edition Aqua Terra Chronograph, connecting the watch to his experience of Beijing winning the Olympic bid. His narrative beautifully intertwines the watch's aesthetic and technical merits with the profound cultural and national significance of the event, offering a unique collector's perspective.

My City, My Olympics, My Omega 

  - A Photo Review of the Omega Beijing 2008 Olympic Limited Edition Aqua Terra Chronograph. 

These are truly exciting times...

I still remember vividly that humid evening of July 13th 2001 in Beijing , when I was just a wee college student in the States back home for the summer. When IOC's Samaranch announced that Beijing had won the bid for the 2008 Olympics, I let out a shriek, then immediately grabbed the phone, and with violently trembling fingers, dialed my friends. That night, exhilarated, and in a beat-up Jeep Cherokee with non-functional horn and a broken headlight, we sped to Tiananmen square, and joined hundreds of thousands of Beijingers, high on nationalism, in the celebration of a lifetime.

7 years later, that college boy has matured somewhat and has gotten a few more watches; Beijing has undergone some amazing transformations, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse; and the Games are finally here.

Indeed, the hosting of the Olympics has marked China's ascension as a superpower, and Beijing as one of the world's capitals. China, along with its capital, are not without their shares of socio-economic and environmental problems. However, nobody in his right mind right now would wish anything but the best and the smoothest for Beijing and the Games. For the next 2 weeks or so, the worlds' best athletes are overlooking their differences, and are competing in the spirit of the Olympics. For the next 2 weeks, we are one.

Starting in the summer of 2007, Omega has released a series of limited editions to commemorate the 29th Olympic Games in Beijing. The series of models first introduced (i.e. the traditional Constellations and the De Villes), however, were unfortunately not to my taste. When I first heard about the release of the Aqua Terra Chronograph, I knew I "had" to have it. The mere fact that it has "Beijing" on the watch already accounted for more than half of my decision, and the other half was quickly made up due to the watch's handsome finishing, beautiful construction, and the durability and wearability typical of Omega watches.

The watch has the famous Omega caliber 3301 column-wheel chronograph movement with 55 hours of power reserve. The dial measures 42mm, and this particular configuration has the hands, bezel, markers, crown and chronograph pushers all constructed in rose gold. I find the black/rose gold dial contrast to be quite amazing.

So without further ado, as pictures are worth a thousand words, here is the watch:

Starting from the Beijing Olympic special box set:

Check out the handsome dial contrast:

Intricate details and faceted markers.

The caseback with raised-relief of the official Beijing 2008 Olympic emblem.

A closer shot at the different types of finishing on the case:

A wrist shot, with time set on 8:08pm, on the 8th=)

Hope you enjoyed the photos, and that you are enjoying those amazing athletic performances.

Best of luck to all the athletes!

Truly yours,

Jon (Z3)