Vancouver 2010 Olympics – Imaginary Sunshine

LiveCity Yaletown, Ontario House and Sochi World

Michelle — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 04:18:36 +0000

After splitting up with my sisters yesterday, I met up with my friends (J and S) at Waterfront Station in Vancouver. Our first move was to go from Waterfront Station to Yaletown-Roundhouse Station as the wait for the train was not that long and it’d be a bit faster than walking.

There was some interesting entertainment while my friends and I were waiting in the line-ups. People dressed in gold, silver and bronze were living statues. The gold statue was a skier, I’m not sure what the bronze woman was (possibly figure skating, sans skates?) and silver was a snowboarder.

Gold living statue at LiveCity Yaletown – golden skier.

Photo of the line to get into LiveCity Yaletown.

My friends and I wanted to go into the Happiness House (the Coca Cola Pavilion) first, but the staff person at the entrance to the line told us that the line was now closed (their way of ensuring that they don’t have massive wait times, I suppose?). We wandered off to go see other things first.

Happiness House, aka the Coca Cola Pavilion, at LiveCity Yaletown.

At the Panasonic Pavilion, we waited in line for tickets for a 3D movie and also got to check out some of the new technology, get our photos taken with Olympic mascot plushies and write our own eco-friendly tips that get scanned in to be added to all the other submitted tips.

Outside of the Panasonic Pavilion while waiting in line for movie tickets.

Mascot cubes inside of the Panasonic Pavilion.

After we left the Panasonic Pavilion, the lines were still closed to the Coke Pavilion, so we lined up for Samsung (another Olympics sponsor). Inside there was live entertainment, a lot of cell phones to try out and some activities to do in order to earn stickers in a passport to exchange for a scratch card. Despite having full passports, we couldn’t get any scratchcards because they had ran out for the day.

Outside of the Samsung Pavilion

After that, we went back to the Coca Cola Pavilion and the lineups for open! So we lined up. While in the lines, we watched the hockey game (Canada vs. USA). (Which was an incredibly disappointing game, I must say.) The inside of the Coca Cola Pavilion was fun though! We had to snake through this area that displayed all the styles of Coke bottles that were ever made and even clothing from Coca Cola sponsored Olympics. Even the people working in the Coke Pavilion were wearing clothes that were made from recycled plastic bottles, which I thought was pretty awesome. We got to watch a movie about Coke’s involvement with the Vancouver 2010 torch relay and then after that we got a free drink, did some activities (I got my photo taken with a Vancouver 2010 torch) and then I exchanged my empty Coke bottle for a plastic bottle that changes colour when it’s turned on – very cool indeed.

Outside of the Happiness House, about to enter.

Display of the different looks for Olympics-specific Coca Cola bottles/cans.

Display of the different looks for Olympics-specific Coca Cola bottles.

At this point, it was around 7:30pm and we made our way to a McDonald’s (I’m still on the hunt for some of the more elusive Olympics Happy Meal toys) and we made our way to one that had security at the doors, which was insane in my opinion (but it made going in pretty nice, since they only allowed a maximum of three people lining up at each cash register at any time). I got Happy Meal toy #1 (now I’m only missing #2 and #3) and we ate dinner there before wandering some more.

It was at this point we decided to make our way to Ontario House and the map that I had was missing the street that we were on (go figure) so we asked a pair of police officers how to get to where we wanted to go. In their opinion, my map was crappy and they directed us to the general direction that we should go. Problem was is that even they couldn’t remember which roads were closed to pedestrians! We eventually made our way there and got to Ontario House and we watched the 4D movie (the chairs moved, there were bubbles, fake snow, water being sprayed in our faces and also smells of hot chocolate, trees, snow, etc.) which showcased the province of Ontario, but it was really fun, since there was so much going on.

On our way to Ontario House, spotted an amazing view of Science World (a.k.a. Sochi World) with the lights reflecting on False Creek.

Inside of Ontario House, waiting a very short amount of time to watch a 4D movie.

It was a really fun day, getting to see so much with different people (Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion and Northern House,with my sisters, and LiveCity Yaletown and Ontario House with two of my friends). It was definitely a fun-filled day but now I’m just glad to have a day to relax for a bit I did do a lot of exercise yesterday and my legs could use a bit of a rest.

The Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion & Northern House

Michelle — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 23:16:17 +0000

Yesterday I headed out to Vancouver with my two sisters. D really wanted to go to the Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion and when we arrived, there were two line-ups. We weren’t aware of this at first, so we lined up in the first line that we say (which snaked around the entire block and rounded a corner). This line was for viewing the Olympic medals, as well as getting to touch them, and the rest of the pavilion.

That line up was an estimated 7.5 hours – just for viewing the medals, on top of everything else!

We switched to the second line up, as that was 45 minutes to an hour wait (we waited for an hour and maybe 20 minutes). During this wait, J stayed in the line while D and I walked across the street to get food from Subway – solid food! I’m so happy, haha.

This was the insane lineup. On the right was the ‘shorter’ line for the pavilion, sans medals. On the left is the massive lineup (7.5 hours!) to see and touch the medals (wearing gloves!) as well as the rest of the pavilion.

Super insane lines for the Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion.

I got to see some really beautiful coins – there are so many. I also learned that the Royal Canadian Mint has made currency for over half of the world’s countries, including the United States of America at one point. Plus, the mint runs 24/7, making new coins all the time. I thought this was really cool. All the ‘limited run’ coins are made in Ottawa (they only produce ~8,000 coins per day), while the general minting occurs in Winnipeg, Manitoba (and they produce a lot).

Entrance to the Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion.

Tails side of the Million Dollar Coin

Heads side of the Million Dollar Coin

A block or so away from the Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion was Northern House, representing Yukon Territory, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Sunday was Nunavut day! I got two pins (one with Nunavut, the other with Northern House), which was nice. There were demonstrations of games that children play, as well as displays of mining, transportation, traditional clothing and shoes as well as artwork.

It was well-worth the wait to get in, just to see everything! There was this impressive mountain of food, the sign said that it was approximately 6 months of food for an average family and most families only get the chance to order food twice a year and that if they forgot something, they would have to either go without or trade with another family. It really put things into perspective, considering how lucky I am and a lot of others are to be able to go to a grocery store on a whim to get whatever food we want while some people need to plan for months in advanced. Also, a dollar for a can of pop in Vancouver, BC is nearly $3 for a can of pop in Nunavut.

I also got to say hi to John Furlong (the CEO of VANOC!) while I was in the Northern House, but he couldn’t pose for a photo because he was constantly having mothers shove children into his hands for photo opportunities. The artwork there was amazing. The small gift shop that was there had a sweater that was made from 100% qivuit (for those who aren’t completely fibre geeks, it’s the fibre that comes from a muskox which is incredibly expensive because the animals aren’t sheared like sheep) that was adult-sized and priced at well over $2000 for one sweater. But it felt like a complete dream.

Caribou at the Northern House

Muskox at the Northern House – this is the animal that qivuit comes from!

Polar bear (squee!) at Northern House

Swelling-be-gone =)

Michelle — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 19:17:11 +0000

Wow, the last time I blogged here was Tuesday? Lots of changed since then (sort of).

Wednesday
This was the day that it really hit that I got my wisdom teeth pulled. I woke up very tired and sore. The swelling really started to hit. Also, I didn’t eat very much with the medication that my dentist prescribed and it said ‘Take With Food’. Apparently half of a mushed up banana wasn’t enough and my body really did not like the medication and basically rejected it. Which sucked. I got incredibly cranky and ended up sleeping with an ice pack against my face (don’t worry, I pushed it off sometime during my sleep). I watched some of the Olympic events, fell asleep during it though. I didn’t realize that I’d get so tired from getting my teeth pulled. I guess it’s my body’s way of saying that I need to sleep, rest and let my immune system deal with the trauma of minor oral surgery.

Thursday
So Thursday I actually left my house. I went to No Frills just to buy bananas and generic ibuprofen, which was fun. I swear the cashier looked at me funny when she eyed what I had and went “Is that all?” like she was expecting me to have a shopping cart full of stuff. I watched some Olympic events again. I find that I like the ‘racing’ type events the best, or the ones that have the most aerobatic things. So far, I’ve enjoyed watching the moguls (each run is fast and plus they do neat tricks), snowboard cross (racing!), halfpipe (men’s is so much more entertaining that women’s, only because they do more interesting tricks) and some of the figure skating events. Went to bed relatively early (just to wake up again and stayed up until around 1am). Studied for my biology lab midterm (the Tuesday I go back to school) and did some math problems.

Friday (today!)
So far, I’ve taken some photos of my dolls (who’ve been neglected), some things I’ve made for the Blythe Spring Swap (criteria is that everything needs to be handcrafted) and of my sister’s Vancouver 2010 Olympic plushies. I adore them, Quatchi is super cuddly. I plan on repotting my bean plant as it’s outgrown the small pot I initially planted it in, as well was watching Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice (I didn’t last night because I was feeling tired, that’s a first!). I also plan on trying food that’s a little bit more solid today! Since getting my two left wisdom teeth pulled on Tuesday, I’ve consumed: congee (rice porridge), peanut butter, mushed bananas, apple sauce, cream of mushroom soup and clear chicken broth. Mushed bananas are the best since even if I don’t get the pieces really small, I can swallow them straight down. Peanut butter took a lot of effort, the swelling didn’t allow for very good movement of my tongue (TMI?). Cream of mushroom soup was delightful. I’m pleased to be able to say that the swelling has gone down quite considerably, there’s barely a difference between the two sides of my cheeks now (yay!). I’m also able to brush my teeth without being in pain (whoot!) and the incision site for my bottom left wisdom tooth is healing quite nicely!

These are my sister’s plushies. At the back (in the earmuffs) is Quatchi. In the front row, from left to right, is Sumi (Paralympics mascot), Mukmuk (sidekick) and Miga (whom I personally consider to be the mascot who transfers the worst from drawings to plushie form):

And this is my favourite photo that I’ve taken today, it’s of Sophie (my first Blythe doll):

Snap-happy in Vancouver, BC

Michelle — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 05:58:04 +0000

I explored more of Olympics fun today with J and M.

We started off with seeing the outdoor Olympic cauldron (there are two: one was lit inside of BC Place during the Opening Ceremony and the second was lit outside of the Vancouver Convention Centre). It’s kind of interesting to see – there were a lot of people clamouring to get a good photo of it and there was a lot of security around (the area was fenced off and police officers everywhere), but it looks pretty cool, so here it is:

Canada Place (next to the Vancouver Convention Centre):

Vancouver Convention Centre:

These are some wonderful public service announcements that are put out by Translink. I guess they’re showing off what’s so awesome about Vancouver, eh? The world’s best? Did Canada win gold in pickpocketing as well as men’s moguls (which I totally watched live on television last night, along with the Victory Ceremony this evening – crowd was insane over Canada’s first gold medal ever in an Olympics held in Canada).

Outside of Ontario House (didn’t go in – will have to make another trip to line up to go in!):

Hockey House – I did not have tickets to get in, so clearly I wasn’t allowed in (but at $99/ticket, I don’t really need to go inside). It is, however, very photo worthy on the outside of the building. There was this great maple leaf entrance on the other side (no photos because it’s of me and my friends).

Outside of Maison du Québec and Saskatchewan Pavilion. There was not much to see at the former (a small bistro, volunteers saying bonjour when you enter). At the latter, there was the “Sphere”, I had a photo op with a pair of Mounties from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in full uniform. My friends and I also got wrist bands that said we could drink at the Saskatchewan Pavilion because they thought it was “really cool” that they could legally drink (even though we’re all 20 and have been able to legally drink since we turned 19).

There was a tent area for Right to Play, an organization that works towards helping children get into sports in places that they might not otherwise have the opportunity to do so.

There was some beautiful artwork along the path, this is one of them (with a polar bear!):

This is right outside of Science World/Russky Dom/Sochi House:

And inside were some lovely Russian displays, a look at their country’s different companies and just general information as well as cultural things like their performers:

An inukshuk, because it was awesome:

Outside of the Vancouver Art Gallery steps (so much stuff was going on there, I didn’t get a chance to go in, boo):

Me outside of the Vancouver Art Gallery:

Giant Canadian flag, on two sides of a building – is this awesome or what?

And, last but not least, a polar bear display. The sign says “Please do not feed the polar bears or touch the iceberg”.

I hope everyone had a fabulous Monday, I know I certainly had a lot of fun out and about in Vancouver, BC. However, no city exploration tomorrow as I will be busy getting two (of four) of my wisdom teeth removed and will probably not be wanting to go out at all, boo.

Olympics Musings

Michelle — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 22:22:47 +0000

As the world may be aware, the Olympics began with the Opening Ceremony on Friday. I have my favourite and not-so-favourite parts to the ceremony. Whoever had the bright idea to change up the national anthem is an idiot. But for the rest of it, it was great (uhh, wait, except for that segment with the prairies and blue horses… I dvr’d and fast forwarded that entire segment after the first two minutes).

Yesterday, I went out for lunch with the relatives (visiting from the States – they had tickets for a few events!; and my aunt, uncle, cousin and two of my cousin’s kids). We chatted and my aunt ordered too much food. I swear, every time she thinks that her grandkids will actually eat something but all they insisted on eating was plain white rice (and they asked for a bowl of soy sauce to pour onto their rice, bleh) and barbecue pork (which the restaurant did not have because their menu was more traditional). Needless to say, lunch was expensive (I should know, I paid for it.). Then it was off to some celebrations and checking out some the pavilions.

First stop was the Bombardier Streetcars (borrowed from Brussels, Belgium). It links the Olympic Village stop (on the Canada Line) to Granville Island. They upgraded the existing (but not in use) streetcar tracks for the games (and spent an absurd amount of money while doing it…).

We saw monsters (!!!) and mimes while roaming around Granville Island.

Then there was the Atlantic Canada House. While they were open to the public, for a small portion of it, the rest of the area was roped off for a private function involving athletes from Atlantic Canada (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador & Prince Edward Island).

House of Switzerland (located in a restaurant) was by far the biggest disappointment though. They where decorated on the outside of the building and on the inside, but the restaurant was still running (business as usual) and according to a woman who worked there, they were only having exhibitions to showcase Swiss culture on a few select days. But they are open for patrons, if you want to eat there (only a few Swiss dishes added to the menu though).

Then there was the Richmond Ozone, located a short walk from Brighouse Station (on the Canada Line). There was a lot to see there – I didn’t see nearly everything that there was to see while I was there. There was some gorgeous displays of ice, lanterns, ice wine tasting (yum) and then I got wanded (I left my cell phone in my pocket by accident and it set off the alarm, whoops) and patted down while going through security to go towards the main stage area to watch Hey Ocean and Bedouin Soundclash.

The wolf is playing hockey while the tiger is curling.

Hey Ocean

Bedouin Soundclash

I think Mother Nature is passive aggressive

Michelle — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:09:20 +0000

So my morning newspapers (I get the Vancouver Sun and The Province for free* on my way to school!) have informed me that there are 4 days until the Olympics. What they really mean is 4 days until the second most expensive extravaganza this month, the opening ceremony (the most expensive one being the closing ceremony). Which is weird, because I can still remember that ‘breaking news’ clip about when ‘Vahn-couver’ had gotten the 2010 Games. And did you know it’s incredibly warm in BC right now? It was bright and sunshiney all day. For the day of the opening ceremony (February 12th), there’s a low of 6°C. It feels like spring. I saw girls in skirts on campus, as well as people wearing flipflops, tank tops and very spring-ish wear. Me, personally, I was wearing a hoodie over a tank top and jeans and runners (which need to be replaced already, gah). Very spring-like weather, I rather like it. No wonder they’re having snow issues on Grouse Mountain.

I had a midterm today (boo) for my plants biology class. The nice thing is that my prof, S (whom we all call her by her first name, I don’t think anyone has referred to her, in class or lab, by her last name), wrote up a very fair test. I liked it. Mostly because the multiple choice (20 marks out of the total of 50) were incredibly easy! The essay topic (which was a bit of a bitch to do) was 20/50 as well and the remaining 10 marks came from easy-peasy short answer questions. Oh, and I also got to draw on my exam paper. “Feel free to include drawings on the back page if you feel that they are necessary for your answers or if you cannot get out of the row of seats you are in early.” I was part of the latter. I made the mistake of sitting in my regular spot, which is in the middle of the long row of seats (about 12, I think) and 5 rows from the front of the room (I counted one day, hush). And my row was full of people. And no one left early in my row. So I sat there, after having written my entire test and checked over everything at least three times, doodling on the back of my paper. I drew a plant and labeled it (and also put a caption saying that it was not a drawing related to any of the questions).

Why yes, I am a total dork. Thank you for realizing this.

I just need to get through this week. Only 3 more midterms (yeah, three more) between now and my two week break (which is, sadly, longer than my break between terms was!), which will be followed by two more midterms (1 lab midterm, 1 lecture midterm). Clearly, all my profs have gotten together to decide how to best torture their students.

On Thursday, I have a lab midterm from 9:30-10:30am. Then I have an evening midterm, 7:00-9:00pm that I could not get out of because my prof refused to let me write it the day before (my reason was that because I commute, I would not get home until nearly 11pm). And then on Friday (oh yes, the day after my miserable long day at school), I have a midterm at 8am. Which means I’ll get home at around 11pm, wake up at 5:30am and get to school before 8am to write another midterm.

And my father wonders why I don’t have enough time to talk to him anymore (well, that and whenever I try to talk to him, it turns into a lecture about how I’m not applying myself and how I should ‘only’ be applying to school A and not school B – because I should only want to go to school A – and then it ends up with me being in tears and me wanting to run away… but I try calling people and no one’s home/answering/has their cell phone on – yes, I’m talking about you <- not-so passive aggressiveness at its est, I know).

Hope everyone had a super-awesome-shiny Monday and an even better Tuesday!

* The free papers are sponsored by companies that get their advertisements on the very front page, above the headlining news. Lately it’s only been Olympic sponsors getting their advertisements everywhere – like I need to see a McDonald’s ad to know that they serve disgustingly oily, fried and oh-so-bad but oh-so-good (on a moderated) basis?

With glowing hearts – Olympic Torch Relay

Michelle — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 03:31:08 +0000

Photos taken by me in Chilliwack, British Columbia. I’m not from Chilliwack, I was definitely not the one doing all the driving, but I was (unfortunately?) helping with moving stuff (boxes upon boxes with labels like “kitchen stuff” and “bathroom stuff” and “living roomish stuff” – descriptive, no?). I stuck around for the torch relay and other festivities until I went home (and studied in the car, at home, etc.).