I can live without my fireworks or musical instruments, but please don't take away my sunblock!

"What should I wear?"  or "what should I bring" are two common questions I ask myself before taking trips, and I definitely want to be prepared for anything at the Olympics next month.   Perhaps sensing that this could be a common dilemma, the Olympic organizers, who have prepared for just about everything, have published an extremely comprehensive guide to help me make my selections./span>

According to the official Olympic website, I can't bring things like musical instruments, flags of countries and regions not participating in the Beijing Olympic Games or Paralympic Games (aka no Tibetan, Taiwanese flags), crossbows and daggers, fireworks or flammable materials, or long-handled umbrellas./span>

To make sure we spectators behave properly, there are more behavioral house rules, which prohibit everything from "a group of people wearing uniforms with identical or similar design patterns, color combinations or commercial signage," or having "unauthorized signage" on clothes or bags.  /span>

I wonder, though, what happens if a group of people accidentally wear the same outfit, which is bound to happen in a country of 1.3 billion people.  As if it isn't embarrassing enough just to be wearing the same thing as somebody else?

Even though hundreds of thousands have learned the official Olympic cheer, "Go China!" banners are prohibited, because "it would be unfair for athletes from other countries."  Of course, considering that most foreign athletes can't read Chinese, and there's no regulation prohibiting cheering for China/st1 :country-region>, I don't know how necessary this regulation is./span>

Streaking is another no-no, but there isn't anything explicit in the rules about public nudity, unless that qualifies under "behaviour which may disrupt public order."/span>

According to state-run Xinhua News, "lip gloss, fountain pens and sunscreen in small quantity are allowed," but what does "small quantity" mean?  From the perspective of someone who could probably get a massive sunburn just looking at a picture of a sunset, a "small quantity" of sunblock for an outdoors sporting event isn't going to cut it. 

Maybe this is just an evil conspiracy for the local aloe vera brands or cosmetics companies that sell skin bleaching creams in mass quantities, but it's a little over the top.  Do they seriously expect overzealous sunscreen enthusiasts to throw bottles of cream at athletes, or somehow use rash-inducing "sunscreen" to slather on annoying fans sitting next to us?  Is sunblock seriously that much more dangerous than hand creams or lotion?      /span>

I'll probably be okay if I wear a giant hat, but I couldn't even bring "a long umbrella" for extra shade, and who wants to sit behind somebody with a huge head?  Could "excessive headwear" perhaps be another regulation I've overlooked? /span>

While the Olympic venues will probably be the most heavily-guarded places, locals and tourists alike have their own unique rules.  There’s a special local handbook with fabulous cartoon drawings that have more regulations, and fines for breaking them.  There's a 500,000 RMB (about $71,000 USD) fine for "organizing people to stick up posters or give out flyers," but the fine for attacking an athlete or referee is only 500 RMB.   /span>

Tourists, instead have their own 57 guidelines in Chinese (or read a translated version here), which prevent foreigners from bringing in things like counterfeit currency, "items which may harm China/st1 :country-region>'s political affairs," or deadly poisons. /span>

At the end of the day, even though these long lists of guidelines might seem intimidating, if you go to Beijing/st1 :city> without some type of subversive intentions or plots against the government, you should be fine.  There are some inconveniences, like remembering to travel with proper documentation, but things should run smoothly overall.  

Just remember to wear your sunscreen.