In my life...

Vancouver Olympics 2010

I have been throwing around the phrase “once in a lifetime” lately with the whole Fashion Week experience.  This weekend, we decided to cross the border and be a part of the 2010 winter Olympics.  We tried to get tix through several lotteries to no avail so instead we hit as many Olympic venues that we could on one day.

We crossed the border in 15 minutes and stopped at the Surrey visitor center where we got a map and a listing of all the free venues.  We parked in Richmond for free and then jumped on the SkyBridge.

Our first stop was the Olympic cauldron and media center.  The crowds were crazy (of course we picked a Saturday with beautiful weather!) and it was an hour wait for a better view so this was the best we could do.

The next stop was the German Fan Fest.  This place is wild at night but it was the perfect stop for a bratwurst and a German beer.  We got in line early and only had to wait about 15 minutes.

Every place we went had live Olympics coverage with people cheering while enjoying a cold beer.  It was so fun to watch the big screen as if we were watching a football game and getting into the races.   Our third stop was LiveCity downtown.  We waited in line here for 30 minutes.  By this time, we realized there were lines everywhere so the best thing to do was jump in one.

This is the inside of LiveCity downtown.  Behind Jake is a huge outdoor bigscreen.  The people are in line to view Canada house.  It sounds like the main attraction here was the Stanley Cup.  On the other side was a bar/lounge with live Olmpics coverage.  Here, we watched some cross country skiing and enjoyed a Molson.

Next, we wandered to the Bell Lounge which is an techy, interactive place that hosts interviews with Olympic athletes each day at 3:00.  We say Maelle Ricker, Canadian gold medalist in Snowboarding.  People went nuts taking her picture and listening to her interview.  Canadian Olympic fever was running high!

They also had the Olympic torch here which was neat to see.

Our next destination was Yaletown which was somewhat of a hub for Olympic festivities.  The streets were lined with vendors, live music and crazy crowds all wearing red.

My goal was to fit in as much as possible in one day so we started walking toward the water to take the Aqua Bus to Granville Island.  Again we waited about 20 minutes but had a chance to take some really nice pictures.

Once on Granville, we found the French quarters called Pace de la Francophonie.  There were no lines here at all.  We got a table right away and ordered a fruit and cheese plate and Quebec fries with gravy and cheese curds. The best part (for me) was that the Olympics coverage was in French!  Of course, we couldn’t understand it but it felt like we were sitting down for a beer in a country far, far away from the US or Canada.

Feeling like we had conquered the Olympic experience, we jumped on the trolley, to the sky bridge, and into the River Rock Casino (which is connected to the station where we were parked).  I had never been in this casino before and it was fancy!  In Canada, there is no smoking in the casinos so it is ideal for gambling.  We sat down at the tables for a few games.  Kristin won big, I won small and Jake lost a bit.  Don’t feel too bad for him.  He was coming off a $310 win from the night before.

We had such a fun day and accomplished quite a bit without having to stay the night or invest in any event tickets.  I have to say that our Olympics 2010 visit was truly a “once in a lifetime” experience! 

…Although the summer games ARE in London.  I wouldn’t hate a corresponding Europe trip =)