It's showtime as Olympic athletes and tourists stream into Beijing. For those of us who've waited months for the Olympics amid construction dust and growing traffic congestion, the rewards are now here. Tuesday brought my first Olympic perk, and it was fabulous.

But it didn't start out well. A sudden late afternoon text message telling me of an International Olympic Committee (IOC) press conference sent me scurrying to the Olympic Green. It was peak rush hour and after 30 minutes hunting for a taxi in the snarl-up near Newsweek's bureau I was ready to abandon the idea as it seemed impossible to get there in time. Then an empty cab appeared. The driver—more switched on to the possibilities than I was—demanded to see my Olympic press pass.

Soon we were waving it at policemen and hitting Beijing's Second Ring Road at 100 kilometers an hour (63 mph). Driving in Beijing is normally not fun. It's frustrating. Anyone who enjoys driving—especially driving fast—should avoid a Beijing traffic jam. But on Tuesday evening the Torch came back to Beijing and Second Ring Road—one of Beijing's most congested roads at any time of day—was cleared to greet it.

We raced round policemen, almost taking their legs off at the knee, but they cheerfully waved us on. OK, I know the buzz I felt was anti-social, and ecologically unsound. Others suffered as Second Ring Road's usual heavy traffic was crammed into service lanes and bike lanes to make way for us. Just south of the Bird's Nest stadium we too became small fry, forced to the roadside by a stream of black Audis and SUVs heading towards the stadium, carrying officials to watch Opening Ceremony final rehearsals. But a 30 minute journey took just 12, and for those 12 thrilling minutes I got to see life through their eyes.