At the same time, China will have to face the challenge of managing public expectations in the wake of its success, he said.

"With the confirmation of its new status, there comes an expectation that the Chinese government should behave like other advanced countries. New pressures will come from the Chinese people to be more accountable and responsible," he said.

For the time being, the lingering feel-good aura of the Olympics can be seen in the excited crowds flocking to the modern-day architectural marvels that rival some of Beijing's more historic tourist sights. By one measure — attendance — the Olympic venues have already surpassed them.

During the weeklong national holiday in October known as Golden Week, the Olympic Green — home to both the Water Cube and the Bird's Nest — had 2.42 million visitors. By comparison, the Forbidden City only got 625,000 people during the same period, according to state media.

The Water Cube is due to become a public pool, and there are tentative plans for the Beijing Guoan football club to make the Bird's Nest stadium its home field.

"The image of China has definitely gotten bigger. After watching the Olympics and now seeing the Bird's Nest, you realize how much China has changed," said Gao Yongzhang, 48, a farmer from northwestern Gansu province who was posing for pictures with his family in front of the stadium. "Anywhere Chinese go, they can be proud."

For the last couple of months, dozens of tour buses have filled up rows in the stadium parking lot. Farmers from northern Qinghai line up next to uniformed students from nearby Tianjin to pay for the privilege of strolling through Olympic venues many had only seen on the small screen.

"The kids are all really into the Olympics. They love the Bird's Nest already. Now they get to see it," said Liu Wan, 25, a teacher chaperoning a group of 30 students in blue and white track suits from the city of Tianjin. "We want to develop this feeling in children to love the country in their hearts."

For the relatively pricey cost of $7.30 a ticket, visitors are permitted into the open-air stadium where Olympic victories by Chinese athletes are shown on an endless loop on giant TV screens.

For those who want more permanent memories, the stadium gift shop — housed where the press boxes once were — offers a foot-long model of the Olympic torch, complete with wooden case, for a cool $423.

Among the more popular items is a $73 commemorative plaque with a miniature gold-plated Bird's Nest. During Golden Week, about 1,300 plaques a day were snatched up by eager visitors, sales clerks said.

With little money to spare, one visitor, a burly migrant worker surnamed Han from neighboring Hebei province, simply settled for the view. He had come straight from the train station to get his first glimpse of the Bird's Nest, with his blue comforter rolled up under one arm and a navy duffel bag in the other hand.

"Everybody else in the world has seen it already, so Chinese people should definitely see it too," he said.

The iconic stadium was the high point in the trip of a lifetime for the Cais, the elderly couple from Inner Mongolia. Their seven children had pitched in to pay for the 10-day trip to Beijing — their first ever to the capital.

Posing for pictures with their eldest daughter, they were giddy and beaming. "I have seen many things in my life already, but never did I expect to see China host the Olympics," He said.

Her 75-year-old husband, dapper in a gray Mao suit, seemed even more moved by the grandeur: "I can tell people I can die happily because I have seen the Bird's Nest."