Top Ten Olympic Moments

Like many Vancouverites, I have enjoyed living through the Winter Olympics far, far more than I ever expected I would. In fact it has been a blast. It feels like it's been a non-stop party, whether you're out in the jam-packed downtown streets, or sitting at home watching Canadians tally up gold medals on TV.

Here, in no particular order, are my ten favourite Olympic memories:

1) Taking part in the Flash Mob Dance on Robson Street. I've posted the link below this long post - it's not the best video (there are better ones on youtube, shot from above), but in this one, you can actually spot yours truly if you look carefully! (for all of about ten seconds). I found out about this dance 24 hours before it happened, and basically stopped writing and spent the rest of my day learning the dance moves (an instructional video was provided). It was SO MUCH FUN. Not nearly as artful as some flash mob dances, but the vibe in the crowd was incredible. Even the police were smiling!

The policemen kindly assent to doing "jazz hands" with my friend Louise and me!

2) Sitting next to the parents of speed skaters Charles and Francois Hamelin on the bus. Yup, that could happen during the games. I didn't speak much French and they didn't speak much English, but we got by ... the buses in general were a riot - jam-packed every time, but full of happy, chatty people. You couldn't get on a bus without getting into multiple conversations. It made me love public transport.

3) Sitting right behind the Swiss Women's Hockey Team for a game between Sweden and Switzerland, at UBC Thunderbird Arena. We were really up close and personal with both teams (I don't know how we got such good seats - we got them, and tickets to two other events, during the second lottery). My son actually got to high-five the goalies from both teams as they left the ice, that's how close we were.

My husband, showing his Swedish heritage and pride!

4) Watching Alex Bilodeau win the first gold medal on Canadian soil. It felt like a truly Canadian moment, where we were united in our pride for this incredible young man and his entire family, particularly his brother Frederic. It felt like a truly Canadian story. Not far behind for me was the win for Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir in pairs ice dancing. They were leaps and bounds ahead of the competition, their skating was beautiful ... But my joy extended beyond Canadians - Yu-Na Kim, the South Korean who won women's figure skating, was also leaps and bounds ahead of the competition ... and, well, she did have a Canadian connection, of course, her coach Brian Orser!

5) K'Naan. This guy is a super-star. And we got to see him in concert, 9th row seats, thanks to the amazing Cultural Olympiad. K'Naan rocked the house. He's a fantastic singer, rapper and poet. Awesome show.

6) The above-mentioned Cultural Olympiad. There were incredible shows every night leading up to the Olympics, during the Olympics, and beyond (their schedule runs till mid-March). At fairly reasonable prices we got to see some of the best music, theatre, comedy and dance from around the world, all here in our own city! Highlights for me were the Cloud Gate Dance Theatre from Taiwan, the Neil Young Project, and The Blue Dragon by Robert LePage.

Now if only Premier Gordon Campbell would recognize the importance of arts in our province and restore arts funding!!!

7) Discovering that curling is actually kind of fun. And even kind of cool. We got tickets to three sporting events in the second round of the lottery. The only events that had tix available were hockey games that didn't involve Canada, and curling. So, we got tix to the first women's round robin, and you know what? It was pretty fun.

The Canadians playing against the Swiss. Canada won!

The Swedes won against the Danes. I rooted for Sweden in spite of my Danish heritage - I was outnumbered by my Swedish husband and half-Swedish son ...

8) The Paradise Institute. Again, this was part of the Cultural Olympiad - they had three "Code Live" sites around the city, showcasing incredible interactive art. Janet Cardiff's Paradise Institute was my favourite (and there are many favourites to choose from). I can only say, you have to experience it. Check out her website. If you're in Vancouver and get a chance, go to Emily Carr and experience it for yourself!

9) The nightly light show at Robson Square. It was incredible. Sorry I don't have photos. But it included people dressed as athletes, flying overhead on the zipline. Plus fireworks, lasers and shooting flames of fire.

10) The sheer BUZZ in the city for over two weeks. The crowds downtown were incredible ... sometimes a little overwhelming, but almost always fun. Sigh. I will miss it.