the winter olympics: 2010 redux, day 2

the morning began with a very important task: hit the olympic superstore.

each olympics has a superstore, sometimes more than one depending on the venue locations, but usually there is one, main, gigantic store for you to buy all of your over-priced olympic gear. it was my hope to pick a pair or two of the 'it' item, the red canadian mittens, but i knew it was a long shot. every olympics has an 'it' item, but usually by the time you figure it out, they are impossible to find. i hoped this time would be different.


for the first time ever, the olympic superstore was housed in a previously existing retail space (usually they build giant tents), and as a result, finding it was slightly more confusing than we expected. when we arrived at the hudson bay co., an iconic canadian department store type retailer, we followed signs to the superstore, which took us up no less than five flights of escalators up to the top floor.


when we arrived at the top, i was severely disappointed, as the selection was so paltry compared to that of salt lake. instead of all the usual gear, and the diversity of price points, each of the major companies had a section, and each section was comprised entirely of clothing items. since ralph lauren sponsored the us team this year, finding anything under $200 was impossible. i'll admit that i was a little heartbroken as we made our way back downstairs.

when we arrived back on the bottom floor, we saw signs we hadn't seen before, these saying that the superstore was located on the main level. we followed those signs until we found ourselves at the back of a line wrapping around the outside of the building to get in to the store. as it happened, the line wrapped around two sides of the building, and it just so happened we had approached on a non-line side.


we waited roughly 45 minutes to gain entry into the store, and while that was mildly frustrating, once we were inside, all my disappointment faded away. here. here was the mecca of olympic junk. pins and lanyards and vancouver (not team) clothing and hats and bags and anything you could slap a logo on. it was wonderful.

i was on a strict budget, and met it easily. i had a very specific idea of what i wanted. i was looking for a top (jacket, sweater, shirt) that wasn't too colorful or logo-covered. i wanted something that i could still feel good about wearing in five years. and i found exactly what i was looking for. so much so that i expect you'll be seeing it in lots and lots of pictures for the next few months! i also felt like i got a steal on my new hoodie (compared to some of the other prices i saw), so when i found a total novelty item - but one that excited me to no end, i couldn't pass it up.

i'm not sure why but my eyes and ears are really sensitive. my eyes to light and wind and any number of other things, my ears, to cold. in fact, in cold climates it's a rarity if i DON'T end up with an earache. hats are better than nothing, but i don't always want to wear a hat (nor is it always appropriate). i've looked for earmuffs before, but they're all pretty lame.

what i found at the superstore rocked my world.

they're called 'earbags'. they are individual ear coverings that slide over and lock onto your ear to keep them warm. they are super comfortable and super discreet, and made this girl super happy!

sadly, there were no mittens to be found, but i expected as much, and after making our purchases, we were on to the next priority of the day: find somewhere cool to watch the usa v. canada hockey game.

as i mentioned previously, granville street was where it was at in vancouver. the street was shut down to auto-traffic, and was the largest congregation of people i ever saw, outside of the arenas. we knew that whereever we ended up, we wanted to be close to granville street when the big game started.

it was then that we stumbled on the vogue theater. apparently spencer had seen it before, but i somehow missed it when he told me about it. the vogue is a combination indie movie theater/performance venue restored in the last several years, and was offering tickets to see the game on the 42' screen. it seemed perfect, so we bought our tickets, found a place to eat lunch (where i had some really, really good pizza), and headed back to the theater before the game.

the place was already packed. i learned later that the theater holds 1200 people, and every seat was full. i'd estimate 1195 of them were filled with canadian hockey fans. and that WAS just perfect.


as much as spencer and i, and the three other americans in the theater were rooting for team usa, i was excited to be surrounded by all that awesome energy. the excitement level topped the charts.

as much as spencer and i, and the three other americans in the theater were rooting for team usa, i was excited to be surrounded by all that awesome energy. the excitement level topped the charts. and as the canadian team scored, it reached an even higher crescendo.

during the period breaks we were 'treated' with live entertainment. actually, not bad, but just out of place a little bit. during the second period break, the 'announcer' took a few minutes to remind us that this was a 'friendly' rivalry, and that they are happy to be hosting their american visitors. spencer and i had to laugh as we had endured chants of 'BOO S A' among others. but even despite those chants, for the fans, i believe that it mostly IS a friendly rivalry. had the canadians lost yesterday's gold medal game i would have expected them to be heartbroken, but would have been surprised at any anti-american sentiments. they are rooting FOR their team more than they are AGAINST ours. they just know that we are one of the few countries who can give them a run for their money!

perfect example: after the 'announcements' during the second period break, at which time canada was down on goals, i went downstairs to use the bathroom and get a drink. while standing in line for my drink, the guy behind me sidled up next to me and nudged me a little bit with a big smile on his face. 'hey, hey!' he said, ' we are totally going to come back, aren't we?' i smiled back and playfully responded, 'no, i don't think YOU'RE coming back from this one.'

you should have seen the look of confusion on his face: 'wait, you're...' 'american,' i finished for him. he responded with mock dismay, then bought me a diet coke (although apparently he thought i was kidding about that and really wanted to buy me a beer!)

it was all in good fun. made even more so by the fact that team usa won that game.;) even after the game as people poured out of restaurants, bars, other theaters, or joined in on granville after watching on the giant outdoor screens, the mood was still fun and festive. no doubt they were bummed, but they weren't going to let it get them down.


we had a little bit of time to kill before heading over to canada hockey place for our event that evening, so we slowly made our way down granville taking in the crowds and enjoying the buzz. we saw street art and street performers, and enough red to make you feel like your eyes were bleeding, and eventually, we saw the crowd at canada hockey place and became part of it.


the usa/canada game ended at a little after 7pm, and our game, sweden/finland began at 9. it would have been fascinating for me to watch that place get turned over and cleaned. it must have taken an army!

we waited for roughly 20 minutes, during which, i found my own entertainment. namely two giants for men, who were clearly rooting for sweden, complete with old school hockey style helmets with miniature movable crocs (the shoes) attached to the helmets in a movable fashion. sadly, the crowd was far to dense for me to make my way over for a pic, but i enjoyed watching, nonetheless.

as we made our way into the stadium, i attempted to take a self-portrait of myself with the massive crowd behind me, but as the timer counted down, i nearly tripped on a step. thankfully the two strangers behind me were ready with a pose.


eventually, we made it safely into the stadium, and it was covered with yellow and blue and blue and white.

the couple sitting next to us spoke very little english and had come from stockholm to see their team take on the fins.


sadly, the fins didn't put up much of a fight, and i wouldn't have guesed THAT night that they would go on to take the bronze! despite the lack of a fight, the fins did provide some good entertainment. i noticed these guys across the stadium...


then i saw them on the big screen...


then i got up close and personal with them.


after the game, we took the opportunity to go down and sniff the ice (and take some photos)


we also watched the ctv broadcasters do their nightly report


and as we made our way out of the stadium, we ran into these guys!


look how small they make me look:)

it was a really fun way to end a truly amazing day.