The Games of the Winter Olympiad are officially open!

Where to begin??!! In a nutshell, I'll start by saying it was the most spectacular visible spectacle I have ever witnessed! The energy, the emotion, the excitement were all almost indescribable but I'll do my best!

The early afternoon ferry ride and subsequent 40 minute bus ride into downtown Vancouver put me in the very heart of the excitement! Here are a few pics from the ferry to give you an idea of the surrounding terrain and the gloomy weather.

So then I made it into downtown Vancouver and was it ever full of people from all over the globe. Much more crowded and busier than the previous day. There were all kinds of street corner entertainment events going on. I got some good video of a trampoline act, there were several aboriginal dances going on, and people going this way and that. Here are some scenes from downtown Vancouver as I made my way to BC Place, the sight of the Opening Ceremonies.

The guy in the middle just kind of jumped into the picture with the two ladies. What's up with that, eh?

I made it to BC Place. Everybody had to go through a security checkpoint. That took about an hour. I was at the line for the security check by 1:30 pm. The doors to BC Place opened at 2:00. This gave me plenty of time to visit with people. Everyone is so super friendly and willing to visit and talk! It's amazing.. So the next order of business was to actually get inside the stadium. That was a breeze. The concourses were jammed with people. I needed something for lunch by this time so after getting a bbq chicken sandwich and a water I sat down at a table and was quickly joined by a couple from Canada. I came to find out that she lived in International Falls until she was 14 before moving to Calgary. Then a couple of young guys sat down, one from Canada, the other from Israel. He was all decked out in the Israeli flag. That seems to be a fashion trend. You wear your home countries flag as a cape. I saw Israel, Canada, Germany, Argentina, the Netherlands, USA, Norway, Russia, Denmark and several others attired like this! Really cool!.. Now it was time to find my seat, which was easy to do. What a GREAT view I had! And I was surrounded by fellow Americans, Chicago, Buffalo, St. Louis, Wisconsin were all represented in our little group. When everyone got to their seat, their was a box and a very nice souvenir program waiting for us. Inside the box were several items to be used by the audience during the Ceremonies. A couple of different flashlights, a Canada flag, a plastic drumstick
used to beat on the box like a drum (makes sense huh?) Also a white poncho. Each stadium section had a volunteer leader down in front of us giving us instructions on when to wave the flashlight, or beat on the drum, which direction to wave the flashlight, which cadence to beat the drum...It was quite involved. I, like many others, saved my box and everything in it and brought it home with me so I can show people when I get back to Minnesota. The prep time took almost an hour, which brought us up almost to 6:00 pm, the start time for the Ceremonies! Excitement was at a fever pitch! And then it began with the introduction of the Aboriginal Tribes, the 4 Nations people.

After several musical acts from noted Canadian performers, the incredibly intricate and choreographed light show began, highlight all regions of Canada. Hopefully the video I got does it justice. The lighting effects were out of this world. And then it was time for the parade of Nations..led, as customary, by Greece. The countries then followed alphabetically. The country of Georgia received a roraring ovation for their delegation which was missing one member. A young man was killed on a training run at the luge course today and the Georgia team marched in wearing black scarves and a black stripe on their flag. It was very touching and moving. My excitement was building as we got closer and closer to the United States entering the arena. They received a thunderous round of applause, but even that paled to the welcome that the Canadians got when they marched in! The host country always marches in last.

And then came the climactic moment..the arrival of the Olympic Torch and the lighting of the cauldron. It was stunning to see. And with that, the Opening Ceremonies came to a close and it was time to head back outside and find my bustop so I could catch the 11:00 pm ferry home. Luckily, I made it just in time and now need to catch some sleep so i can get up and do it all again tomorrow (later today at this point). I don't have event tickets for anything but there are all kind of free activities all around the city and of course, people watch! Until tomorrow...Good night from Vancouver!!!

Rick