There were so many things to digest during the Pittsburgh Youth Symphony Orchestra's recent trip to China, that even now, with the Beijing Olympics set to begin, it's still worthwhile to look back on what many of the participants called "the trip of a lifetime." One thing is for certain -- the visitors flooding Beijing this week will be in for an adventuresome treat.

Their favorite things: When asked about highlights, the student musicians invariably listed The Great Wall, the Hutong (a communal Beijing neighborhood they observed during a rickshaw parade of 70-some vehicles), Shanghai and, bringing up the rear, the "squattie pottie" toilets, which are supposedly part of the restroom installations in the Olympics facilities.

Food, glorious food: Family-style tables were plentiful for the PYSO members all across China. The Beijing diet is hearty, made up of plentiful meat, potatoes and breads (steamed dumplings, rolls). However, my own exploratory lunch in Hong Kong yielded an exotic menu including eel and shark. China is learning to cater to Westerners, adventurous or not.

A building boom: A trip through farmland country yielded an occasional factory, along with at least a dozen skyscrapers, at least 40 stories tall, punctuating the landscape. That was repeated a few miles later. Shenzhen, now a metropolis of 7 million, with another 12 million commuters working for the likes of Nike, IBM and Wal-Mart China, was only a fishing village 30 years ago. Suzhou, another 7 million strong and growing as I write, holds 200 of the top Forbes 500 companies in its grasp. Even the Internet cannot keep up with China's mind-boggling growth. One can't help but wonder: Can this country sustain its growth?

A booming population: Was it possible that all of Downtown Pittsburgh might somehow fit in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, where the Olympic medal ceremonies will be held? Think in Steelers terms -- it's measured as 90 football fields -- and they will probably pack it. New York City (8.2 million) seems provincial in comparison to Beijing (17 million) and Shanghai (nearly 19 million). But these two pale in comparison to Chonqing, in central China's Sichuan province, at nearly 32 million -- all in a country about the size of the United States. Speaking of which, the U.S. registers its demographics as 304 million, while China comes in at 1.2 billion.

A country of contrasts: Some oft-written comparisons made about China: The mammoth sculptures in Beijing vs. the delicate scroll paintings. The gray concrete that permeates the building landscape balanced by the vibrant silks that are produced here.

An educational stamp: The youth orchestra interacted with Beijing Conservatory of Music, Nan Yang Model School in Beijing and Hong Kong's Youth Symphony. While all three musical groups skewed a few years younger than the Americans, it was easy to assess China's musical development in the years since the Cultural Revolution faded away. The strings have achieved a high standard, comparable with the West, and word is circulating that the Chinese string instruments are currently the biggest bargain, surpassing their European and American counterparts. Some of the Pittsburgh students noted that the winds are being trained to have the same technical facility as the strings, but the winds do not have a grasp on sound or a mature sense of phrasing yet.

The big switch. Yes, the cellists, bassists, harpists, tuba player Jared Altomore and the percussionists always had to report early to rehearsal because the PYSO had to rent different instruments in each performance city. The percussion team even had to dash out during the concert in Shanghai to find other tubular bells because they had been given the wrong ones. (They made it back in time.) And the cello players were not averse to grabbing their rented instruments or those of the Chinese students for a musical playoff.

Could it be true? Did I hear a clarinet player practicing at 5 a.m. in the Shenzhen Honggui Hotel hallway the morning we had to get an early start through customs into Hong Kong? The students had to snatch time to practice whenever they could to keep up their musical chops.

Scariest moment: It had to be the trip through the train station in Beijing to catch the overnight train to Shanghai. Gates, escalators, wide spaces, narrow spaces -- the 148-member contingent heeded their guides and turned into "sticky rice." Not a traveler was lost.

Best concert: Despite the instrument problems, the Shanghai concert had it all: a lovely venue, a large and enthusiastic audience and great playing. Rachmaninoff's "Symphonic Dances" was the audience favorite wherever they went.