Inside Vancouver

Sumi the Paralympics mascot rock star wows the crowds at UBC

by Julie Ovenell-Carter in Events on March 13, 2010

Sumi wows the crowds at UBC

Scared the heck out of me this morning when a little girl ran shrieking past me outside the Thunderbird Stadium at UBC. But it turned out she was just a giddy groupie rushing to hug her 2010 Paralympics mascot hero, Sumi.

There weren’t any line-ups to get into the Canada vs. Italy sledge hockey game (just a steady stream of human traffic), but there was a big crowd lined up behind a blue rope for a chance to pose with the black bear/thunderbird/orca whale hybrid.

I admit: I’ve been worried that I might have exhausted my supply of Olympic spirit during February’s party. So I was a little surprised by the wave of sentiment that washed over me as I watched hordes of red-dressed kids cheering “Go Canada Go!” and waving their maple leaf flags as they waited to embrace a creature as real to them as their parents.

Seems love is all around. Again.

My Olympic Diary: Good Bye Vancouver

by admin in Events on March 3, 2010

My Mom and I cheering at the Ice Dance Finals

This will be my final blog post from Vancouver, but I hope not the final post on the Vancouver 2010 Olympics themselves. We are leaving for the airport in a few hours. Unfortunately the Olympics are over and it is time for us to return to Toronto. Even though the Olympic events have ended, I really hope the spirit of them has not. Coming into the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games, I had no idea what to expect from Canadians. We are known as modest people, quiet in our love for our country and support of our athletes. I really thought I would go to events in Vancouver and there would be a minimum amount of cheering. Was I ever wrong about that. The energy and noise from Canadians at events and in the streets of Vancouver was huge! I think the entire world and Canadians were taken by surprise at the level of enthusiasm we exuded during these games. Countless people had Canada flags draped around them, maple leaf tattoos on their faces, Canada apparel on pretty much everybody and a complete willingness to show and tell others how much we love Canada. Complete strangers in the street were your friends, so many high fives, hugs and “Go Canada” passed around the streets of Vancouver. I have never seen anything like it. I don’t even think I am doing a good job of portraying what it was like. It was so special to be here and be witness to these Olympics Games, the athletes involved and the people who supported them.

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My Olympic Diary: Good Bye Vancouver

Celebrating Hockey Gold at LiveCity Downtown

by Remy Scalza in Events on February 28, 2010

Fans celebrate Team Canada's first goal inside LiveCity Downtown's beer tent.

You couldn’t have asked for a more fitting finale to the Vancouver 2010 Games – Canada vs. U.S.A. in a gold medal hockey game on Canadian soil.

I took in the action today at LiveCity Downtown, perhaps the best place in the city to see the game outside of Canada Hockey Place. As I made my way across town and toward the gates, a swirling roar of cheering was rolling round and round the city. Something special was in the air.

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Celebrating Hockey Gold at LiveCity Downtown

The Right to Believe at CentrePlace Manitoba

by Remy Scalza in Events on February 28, 2010

Joralyn Zaballero, of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg, poses outside of the CentrePlace Manitoba pavilion.

There must be something in the water out in Manitoba. Canada’s Central Province, with a population just over 1.2 million, sent 14 athletes to the Olympics. Seven will be coming home with medals, including Canada’s new posterboy for skeleton. Jon Montgomery, the bearded redhead who won gold in the event, hails from the tiny town of Russell, Manitoba, 340 kilometers northwest of Winnipeg.

I learned this and more while exploring CentrePlace Manitoba this afternoon, inside the LiveCity Downtown celebration site. I picked a good day to visit. While the rest of the known universe – including every last person in LiveCity Downtown – was absorbed in the thrilling men’s hockey final, I had CentrePlace Manitoba all to myself.

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The Right to Believe at CentrePlace Manitoba

Olympic Partying in the Bars of Yaletown

by Remy Scalza in Food & Drink on February 27, 2010

Cocktails with cotton candy are among the creative libations in Society, one of Yaletown's Olympic hotspots.

This is it. You’ve got one last weekend to take part in the biggest party that Vancouver has ever seen. When it comes to places to celebrate, the city’s suffering from a wealth of riches at the moment. There’s the Granville Street entertainment district, the Olympic houses and pavilions scattered across town, not to mention the city’s official celebration zones. But when it comes to finishing off the Games in style, my money is on Yaletown.

Continue reading:
Olympic Partying in the Bars of Yaletown

Sumi the Paralympics mascot rock star wows the crowds at UBC

My Olympic Diary: Good Bye Vancouver

Celebrating Hockey Gold at LiveCity Downtown

The Right to Believe at CentrePlace Manitoba

Olympic Partying in the Bars of Yaletown

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