Gleaming the Cube: Beijing's Newest Waterpark

The Olympic Games may be long gone but a nagging uncertainty over what to do with the iconic Birds Nest, which has gone from waidi (外地) tourist attraction, to would-be football stadium, possible shopping mall and a temporary "Snow and Ice World," has lingered ever since.

The fate of the adjacent Water Cube (a.k.a. The National Aquatics Center), on the other hand, has been more clear-cut. Having hosted both swimming and diving competitions as well as a "water-themed music spectacular" since the closing of the Games, the 32,000-square-meter structure will soon re-open as "The Happy Magic Watercube Waterpark."

The management promises world-class facilities and attractions, including "tropical reef forms ... abstracted, enlarged and suspended within the space, as though they are floating," an "Aqualoop" water slide featuring a "40 foot vertical free fall drop," a "Tornado" tube ride in which four guests sit in the same tube as they slide through 90-degree turns and tunnels, a giant wave pool complete with a sandy beach, speed slides, something called the "Bullet Bowl," a Kids' Pool and Ridehouse featuring valves, cranks, water cannons, climb nets and slides, a "Lazy River" for inter-tubing, spas and more.

The park is set to open at yet-to-be-determined date in August - watch this space for more details in the coming months.