北北京京欢欢迎迎您您

I photographed three of the five friendlies next to the character for "luck"on a sign
adjacent to 川国演义chuanguoyanyi, one of the best Sichuan restaurants in GZ. It's
on 体育东路tiyudonglu, east of the stadium in the Tianhe district. (Photo by kou)

The names of the Friendlies, the official mascots of the '08 BJ Games, are: "Beibei," "Jing, jing," "Huanhuan," "Yingying," "Ninnin." When compiled they (respectively) mean: "Welcome to Beijing." According to the official Web site of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, they carry "a message of friendship and peace--and good wishes from China--to children all over the world... [They] embody the natural characteristics of four of China's most popular animals--the Fish, the Panda, the Tibetan Antelope, the Swallow--and the flame." For more details about each mascot, check out the link above. (Also note that they are collectively known as "Fuwa," which loosely translates to "lucky and/or happy" "baby doll or toy.")