Posted by holly on Feb 13, 2010 in
Americas,
Blog,
BlogSherpa The opening ceremonies last night were incredible. Watching them at home I was just as blown away with the spectacle that is the Olympics as I always am, but then I take a moment and realize – that’s here. Here here. Like “if I lean far enough out my balcony I can see that”here. Going home on the skytrain yesterday the whole car just burst into the national anthem, a whole bunch of strangers heading to the suburbs and celebrating the true north strong and free.
Now that’s cool.
Vancouver’s ceremony definitely did not disappoint. It’s weird, I think we all have this slight Canadian inferiority complex that expects everything we do to be good, but always has the feeling that someone could have done it better. I know, it’s stupid, but the show last night reminded us all to snap out of it, that we really are awesome and we’re going to prove it to the world. Repeatedly. While wearing a toque. Preferably one shaped like a maple leaf. My favorite moments were the projected whales breaching across the floor of BC Place stadium (oh, and just let me add while I remember, BC Place looked incredible, I kept having to remind myself it has a roof – the first in Olympic history – and that the snow was fake. The parkas worn by all the athletes were definitely not needed as it was probably 25 degrees in there, although Bermuda’s shorts were right on), and the beat poet’s declaration that Canada was here to kick some ass and take names. It reminded me of the Molson Canadian ads from years ago that ended up printed on t-shirts and can most likely still be at least partially recited by 70% of the population. Come on, you know it: “…the beaver is truly a proud and noble animal. A toque is a hat, a chesterfield is a couch, and it is pronounced ‘zed’!”
As a city we were all pretty hyped up for the games before, especially getting behind the torch relay, but after the opening last night, we’re now officially Olympic mad. I work in a mall, and both the Bay and Zellers – the official Olympic apparel suppliers – are packed. I mean hold-on-to-your-children packed. It’s crazier than the last minute Christmas rush to get your Canada mittens and tees, and there was actually a fight over the last scarf when I was in Zellers. It’s like we were all laid back “yeah, I’ll get some of that stuff eventually”, but last night has spurred us and our wallets into action. Personally, I’m one of the true north strong and cheap, so I’m waiting for them to go on sale after the games. But as soon as those markdowns come, you can bet I’m going to look fabulous.
And this is only day one. Tomorrow we get the super fantastic combination of Chinese New Year, with it’s giant parade and great food, and the Olympics, so the roof is going to be blown off this town, that’s for sure!
Tags: BlogSherpa, Canada, Canadian, excitement, Olympics, opening ceremonies, party, pride, shopping, skytrain, the Bay, torch, vancouver
Posted by holly on Jan 17, 2010 in
Americas,
Blog,
Tips We’re in the home stretch now – less than 30 days until the winter Olympics get underway. Personally, I’m excited, I love the Olympics and having it right here is going to be cool. I’m going to be watching it on TV (afford to go to the events? You have got to be kidding me) and going “hey, I know where that is! I went to school down the road from there!” Or whatever. I always get excited when I see places I recognize on screen, which happens frequently, this is Hollywood North. Like the end of the Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, when they’re walking through a building to a restaurant, I actually squealed “ooh! thats the library!” aloud. But anyway, during the olympics this is going to be happening at an alarming frequency. Anyone who knows me, consider yourself warned.
The city itself is starting to show noticeable finishing touches. The construction walls are coming down on Granville for the first time in like 6 years, we have the spiffy new Canada Line skytrain from the airport to the city center (which rocks!) and even the ads on bus stops and park benches are now citywide exclusively for the official Olympic partners. Needless to say you can go blocks and see nothing but McDonalds, Samsung, Coca Cola and some random company I’ve never heard of before, but that apparently is the official vaccine supplier for the athletes. If I can survive the crazy-long commute times – God knows I can barely get on the train on some normal mornings, and when you add eight million extra visitors we’re going to need the people to cram passengers on the trains like they have in Japan – I hope to wander around downtown a bit during the games, because the vibe is going to be electric. All the excitement, the street performers, free shows, random overheard conversations in different languages to pretend to understand and happiness. It’ll be great.
If you happen to live in Vancouver and are hoping to get away on vacation during the games to escape the crowds, why haven’t you booked yet? Do you really have that much money just hanging around that you don’t mind paying eight times the regular price? The destinations you’re heading to probably have lots of space left, it is the low season, but the flights departing Vancouver don’t and are going to cost you a mint. At this point it’s not how much but what’s left. There are a lot of people I see on a daily basis who are surprised by this, but think about it: all the athletes, their fans and supporters are coming and going throughout the games – most of them don’t stay for the whole time, they just jet in, do their event and take off, as do their fans (to avoid a ridiculous hotel bill, as everything’s expensive), and when you combine that with the regular people traveling, there are shit tons of people coming in and out of YVR and only a certain number of seats on the planes. If you still insist on trying to book for mid Feb, do it now. Like now, now. Stop reading this and book this instant or else you’re going to be totally out of luck.
And if you already have tickets, remember that at this point (thanks to the underwear bomber) you can’t take any carry-on onboard the plane with you. And the heightened security due to that, combined with the heightened Olympic security, means that you’re going to be spending forever in line. Get to the airport early. Really early. 3-4 hours early. Any later and youre going to be in line sandwiched between the chaotic family with the screaming baby heading to Disneyland and the Blackberry-addicted businessman who texts continuously as your plane takes off without you on it.
I’m sure the city will change when the games start, and I’m looking forwards to it. What it’s going to be like I don’t know, but I’ll report back with the details in two weeks 
Tags: airports, commute, crowds, excitement, last minute travel, Olympics, public transportation, security, skytrain, vancouver