BEIJING, August 1 (Xinhua) -- Photography and Aikido, a popular Japanese martial art, occupies most of Bruno Mathis's life. He has taken these hobbies with him when he travels to the Olympic cities-- first Greece, now Beijing, and in future, London.

    "Those athletes have already got enough photo shots, so my camera is always looking for something which escapes people's attention," the Frenchman said.

    Mathis said he had been taking pictures of Beijing and other cities over the past 3.5 years because he wanted to know how the country had changed during the process of preparing for the Olympics.

    "I could not find a word to describe the huge change happening in this country, where customs vary so much in different places and the gap between the rich and the poor is so big," he said. "But as an European, I could feel the amazing speed of its development and progress."

    Since he came to Beijing in early 2005, he had visited the western Tibet Autonomous Region, the southwestern Yunnan and Guizhou provinces, the northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and the eastern Jiangsu Province. He even climbed the Himalayas up to the 5,300-meter level.

    "I love Beijing for both its old hutong, lane houses and the skyscrapers in the eastern CBD area," he said. "I perceive it as acity which carries the great historic heritage on one shoulder and vibrant development on another."

    Apart from the philosophy-based Aikido, Mathis also studies and practice shadowboxing and calligraphy in Beijing under the guidance of a Chinese master.

    "Hosting the Olympics is a good opportunity for China to improve its international image and change some Western countries biased views," said Mathis.

    "Beijing impressed me as a 'city without walls,'" he said. "People are always kind and warm-hearted toward foreigners."

    With the Olympics getting close, Mathis's life in Beijing also enters the final stage of countdown.

    "I will leave after I complete my two final wishes: one is to see the Three Gorges Project, the other is to capture foreigners' facial expressions during the Olympics and see how they react to what they see in Beijing."