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I'm starting to think people across Canada are just now starting to realize what the Olympics are :P
I've gotten calls from 3 people asking if they could crash at my place for a few days. Amazingly there is "nowhere else to stay!!". One is arriving tomorrow :( |
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dutch radio is broadcasting from richmond
they have a page on youtube http://www.youtube.com/user/radio538 |
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All 1.6 million tickets for the 86 events of the Vancouver Winter Olympics are expected to sell out, according to organisers. It would be the first time an Olympics has sold out of tickets.
“Demand has been huge,” said Dave Cobb, Deputy Chief Executive of the Vancouver organizing committee, as reported by Bloomberg. A few tickets will be sold on the day at events, including curling, early rounds of the ice hockey competitions, and the closing ceremony, but these are also expected to sell out he said. Sales are being driven by a reviving Canadian economy, US fans coming across the border, and strong demand from the 2.3 million locals in Vancouver. The 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics sold 95 per cent of its 1.6 million tickets, while the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics sold nearly 96 per cent of its 6.8 million tickets. The US television audience for the first two days of the Vancouver Games hit around 97 million. It is the biggest since 1994, when prior to the Lillehammer Games US skater Nancy Kerrigan was attacked by a 'hitman', allegedly hired by fellow US skater and team-mate Tonya Harding to try to put her out of the Games. http://www.sportbusiness.com/news/17...d-at-vancouver i've noticed in many events that there are far far fewer "empty" seats. |
Great news on the tickets.
I was in LiveCity Vancouver last night to watch the men's moguls.. great time! Now hopefully the other athletes can relax. :cheers: |
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You have to wonder what kind of childhood they had, if he left home at 15!:whip: Edited to add, he doesn't seem that popular in Oz either. Is it true he still lives in Vancouver? http://www.smh.com.au/sport/winter-o...ml?autostart=1 |
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I spent a good part of the day downtown yesterday and it was incredible how busy everything was. I tried going to the four host first nations pavillion around 11, but they said the lineup was already too long for the upcoming show/performance, so we headed across to LiveCity Downtown. Waited in line about 20 minutes, then spent maybe 5 minutes inside. Canada Pavillion is very disappointing. All they have inside are a few interactive computer things for the kids, and some Olympic memoribilia. Manitoba House was similarly disappointing. There's really nothing to see or do in there. Walked over to Sochi House next but it was hard to discern if there was an actual lineup among the huge mass of human bodies. It was so packed in front. Later on we went to LiveCity Yaletown (my second time there) and I can tell you that the lineup looks ridiculously long (both times the end of the line was all the way around the corner of Homer St down towards the Erickson) but it moves really fast. We only waited 15 mins both times, but be warned that both nights they wouldn't allow any more people in after approx. 7:30 because they were filled to capacity for the concerts.
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I'm not complaining, mind you - these pavilions are a good excuse to wander around the city and mingle with everybody else. Swiss House was pretty good, but essentially it is Bridges restaurant and bar with Swiss people and an appropriate menu (with Swiss athletes hanging out, plus their broadcast centre). And it is expensive to eat and drink there. I suspect Saskatchewan House will be amazing during the hockey games, and dare I say it, curling. |
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Art Galley "BC pavilion" exhibition, Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion, and Canada Northern House are certainly not "restaurant" and deserve going
Royal Canadian Mint Pavilion wait time was four hours afternoon yesterday. |
I actually really like Casa Italia. I interacted with the people working there and they were realy nice, helpful and informative. i got to sample some great cheeses and Italian wines which was great and met some Italian athletes which was cool too. I also like the Irish Pavilion and Alberta one was a nice hang out but nothing more. Been too busy to check out Quebec and the rest at Concord...Ill go on the 17th right after Colbert!
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i must say the inuksuk logo lots of people seemed to dislike lookd really good on TV in the flags and stuff as it is used in the various events shows up and is easy to distinguish
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My (barely) three year old told me it's called an "Inukshuk". Apparently they covered that at preschool. It's really colorful and easy to identify.
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I went to the German Saxony House (at the Vancouver Rowing Club) on Saturday night. It was a good party there. There was a DJ spinning good music, quality German beer on tap and a bbq on the back deck. It's a pretty small venue and had a pretty decent line to get in. It's also free so it's worth checking out if you have a chance.
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We left before 11:00 am yesterday with no plan, and got back at nearly midnight. Great day, some good fortune on our choices. Lines, but we expected them . . . longest was dinner.
Quick List and Feedback: 1) First Nations Pavilion: Hit it first as it opened at 10 and was close. Glad we did . . . not sure we would have made it in if we'd been much later, as someone commented earlier. GREAT show. Interesting children's traditional dances with cute explanations by one of the older musicians, followed by two modern first nation's performers . . . a rap-like performance with first nation's twist (sounds surprising but they were quite good) and a pop artist (who was incredibly talented and had a real professional demeanor). Her name is Inez Jasper, and I was so impressed I searched and found this article when we got home: http://www.firstnationsdrum.com/2008/july/index.html I would highly recommend the pavilion, but with a caveat. I got the sense that each day might feature another region of tribes so I'm not sure anyone would see what we did. Still, it was interesting and real. Live performances, and learned a bit about another culture as well. 2) Stopped in front of Canada Post and watched the snowboard trampoline show. Cute public space moment . . . more entertaining than I expected. The three snowboarders were really good - both on executing the flips and twists on their snowboards as well as interacting with the crowd. Lots of smiling faces . . . plus the sun had come out by then. 3) Skipped by the Downtown Live Site - line looked daunting and we saw the Yaletown Livesite on Thursday night for the torch ceremony. Ended up instead at the Provincial pavilions down by False Creek. Waited for the Ontario "4D" movie. It was brief and touristy, but entertaining. Didn't think we could manage another long line by the time we finished (maybe 2:30 or so by then). 4) All the other lines were daunting at that point (maybe 2:30 or so by then) so we walked along the seawall instead. People everywhere . . . happy crowds. Ate a hotdog from a stand in Yaletown. Sat and just watched the people a bit. 5) Decided to keep on . . . day was too nice for a break. Waited in line for Aquabus to Granville Island, which moved faster than we expected. Got to Granville Island, and just wandered around people watching and athlete spotting. Wandered to the Place de la Francophonie area. Fun time. Saw an intriguing "Cirque-like" performance above our heads - trapeze artist peforming while a "drum corps" played - all 10 of them balanced on a floating mobile configuration lifted and moved around continuously by a large crane. We ate a couple of crepes, then watched a really impressive Quebec performer - Pierre Lapointe. The whole band was good, and nice vibe of energy from the sizable crowd. Definitely recommend taking in a performance there. 6) After the show, wandered back into the heart of the market area. Dark by then (possibly 7:30 or so). Decided to just eat out at the Swiss House (knowing it was essentially a restaurant anyhow). LONG line, but fun crowd. I think we waited over an hour to get seated. Atmosphere incredible and 3 large visible flat-screens to take in the pairs skating and moguls. Place broke into O Canada once ;). People weren't glued to the TVs, but always took note when they re-played the now famous mogul run ;). We ordered from their "suisse" menu, splitting a cold cut and cheese tray, and a ham and arugula pizza. Lots of folks were getting the fondues which looked great so we did spring for a chocolate and fruit dessert fondue. More food than we really needed, but splitting everything kept the cost reasonable. And it was fun, allowing us to stick around and take in the Olympics in a warm atmosphere. 7) Took Olympic Line and then Canada Line to get downtown just in time to see the light show at packed BC Place right at 11:00 pm. Then wandered home and spent the next hour just seeing all the images on TV and web of all we missed in other parts of town. Insane energy all over the city yesterday from the looks of it, and we only saw one slice of it. All I can say is WOW! Great Day! Vancouver looked and felt incredible. I'm glad the world got to see it shine, literally and figuratively, all day. |
Silver for Mike Robertson in Snowboard Cross!!! It was a verrry close finish.
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Had a bit of a surreal experience today :P I was invited to go on a 160' yacht with 4 decks, the "After Eight".
http://www.northernmarine.com/gallery/151-overview.jpg Yesterday they sailed and had a party for Jennifer Heil and Alexandre Bilodeau. Sheeesh, to have that kind of life must be nice. The owners are flying off to Vienna for a couple of days on their jet tomorrow, and then coming back later this week. :( |
speedskating oval - expect more negative press... the ice "broke up"
and they had to stop the competition and there is a long delay and officials from ISU are not too happy |
sounds like its the ice machine thing again - the zamboni ttype thing - like yesterday it spilled hot water all over the ice AGAIN!
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Woo, I was just given a ticket to USA versus Switzerland tomorrow..
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surrey
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there is so much misinformation floating around out there i just read on another site
that snow had to be trucked in from the Rockies! |
the aussie guy almost smiled
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Some further insight here. Watched the opening ceremonies from Swiss Haus on Friday night and thoroughly enjoyed the OVERALL show. So did everyone else. Very well choreographed. Lottsa fun. Most people didn't quibble about any of the small negative nuances from their perspective.
Until the cauldron hit Vancouver late last week, I knew of some people who were ambivalent about the 2010 games. I even know of an anti-Olympic individual in the same ranks. Guess what? They have all now caught the Olympic spirit and are enjoying the games and festivities very much so. Who woulda thunk? The energy and excitement in downtown Vancouver is surreal. Reminiscent of Expo '86. And after tomorrow the skies will clear and sunshine will rule. And Vancouver will receive overall great press for the duration of the games. I'm sure of that. Forget about the quibbles. Everyone has 'em.;) Just enjoy the show.:tup: |
Olympic curling venue gets mixed reviews
By Allen Cameron, Canwest Olympic Team VANCOUVER — There’s an irony that the greatest curling competition on the planet will be played in a building that wouldn’t be considered suitable to host a Brier. But that’s not the point of the Vancouver Olympic Centre, said the president of the World Curling Federation on Sunday during the first on-ice practices. “What would we do with 15,000 seats? Hey, it’s at least twice the size of any venue we’ve ever had for our fourth Olympic Games, so we’re doing pretty good,” said Les Harrison, a Canadian. “I would have loved to see 15,000 seats and the place sold out and rocking every day. But we all have to realize that curling goes on for 12 days of round-robin and playoff games, and you’re not going to fill a 15,000-seat arena unless you give away the tickets.” Well, that’s a matter of opinion. Considering tickets go for $65 per game, a bigger building could have resulted in lower prices. And besides, noted Canadian Curling Association director of event operations and media Warren Hansen, if you can attract 15,000 to Brier games, why couldn’t you do the same thing at the Olympics? “With the Olympics in Canada and the strength of curling in this country, I have little doubt that you would fill any size of building you provided,” said Hansen. “So it would give more people across this country the opportunity to access the event and set the benchmark for the future of curling at the Olympic level.” And that’s a real concern, considering the venue for Sochi, Russia, in 2014, is a temporary 3,000-seat venue, with the added “bonus,” according to the host website, of being portable and moved anywhere in Russia should there be a demand. Still, the Vanoc priority is a sustainable legacy, and the VOC fits the bill; afterwards, the curling venue will be converted to a smaller hockey rink, and the spectator concourse will become the new home of the Vancouver Curling Club. The community centre also will feature a swimming pool. Also appealing is the location — close to downtown, close to the action, as opposed to previous Olympic curling venues that were an hour or more away from the host city. “We’ve longed for that over the last three Olympic Games,” said Harrison. “We wanted to be close to the action, close to the IOC, close to the sponsors, so that they can come to the venue and see what they’ve developed along with us. We’re excited about it.” The players had nothing but glowing praise for the venue as they got their first official look on Sunday (there will be another day of practice on Monday before the first round of curling competition Tuesday morning). “I think the venue is awesome,” said Team Canada lead Ben Hebert. “When you walk in and see the Olympic colours and it’s decorated so nicely — you know what? It’s nice to play in the big buildings, but it’s a guarantee that this building is going to be sold out, right? And with the fans so close to you, it makes it that much more intimate. It’s a quality, quality facility.” “I think everybody would have liked to play in a 15,000 or 20,000-seat arena because I’m sure Canada could have filled it and it would have been great to show around the world,” added British skip David Murdoch. “But we’re going to have sellouts, it’s tight and I think it’s going to be a noisy stadium. And it definitely feels like an Olympic venue.” ... http://www.vancouversun.com/sports/2...046/story.html |
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I want details on the interior ;). |
global just did a story about olympic spending - on saturday VISA says that $2 million more was spent than the same day a year ago and that the 3 biggest spenders are from Canada, China and Great Britain
denman street is said to be like a ghost town looks like the crowds are only staying around robson/granville and the pavillions/party sites |
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btw, I already posted videos on Youtube. Am I a "media guy"? :) ps: does anyone knows what kind of background music is that? Sounds kinda like african music? |
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