Images of Jim and one picture that is not Jim

We have been out and about again.  We are quite enjoying all the activity and all the excitement that is happening in our city.

A big congratulations go out to today's winners -- Yay --  Lindsey Vonn - I was cheering for you and Shani Davis  -- What race!!  Great day for the U.S today!!  Great Day for Maelle Ricker yesterday -- Lucky Andrew was at the Snowboard Cross up Cypress to watch the race live and then won a couple of front row tickets to the medal ceremony last night -- Bare Naked Ladies! 

Anyway as Jim and I are tourists in our own town - we did the touristy thing and take lots of pictures.  I am the photographer and Jim often in the pictures.   So I am going to post a few of our "touristy"  shots.



Where is that torch????



This in in front of Canada Place - The Pan Pacific Hotel - also the media centre.




Years ago when we were traveling in Belgium and Holland it became a bit of a chuckle to see a bunch of tourists posing like this in front of all the monuments - so on every trip we now must have a few posing photos!


Then we decided we needed a few photos of Jim and the competition!!  Anyone in a foreign jersey or the colours of their country was approached for a photo op!!




Norway







A couple of guys from Switzerland.






Russia -- there are a lot of these Russian jackets downtown.  This guy didn't speak a word of English but he happily posed for the picture and could say the word -- HOCKEY!!





Sweden.




Today was Alberta Day at the Canada Pavilion.  So here is Jim with the Mounties. 




They were giving away Cowboy hats at Canada Pavilion.  Jim took a hat and wore it for most of the afternoon but decided he was going to find someone to give it to before the end of the day.  So I needed at least one picture of him in the hat.  They were nice hats -- I kept mine.



Rocket Richard's Montreal Canadian's Jersey.  That is not a great picture! 



Here he is with a couple of guys from Russia -- who have been shopping up a storm. 



They happily posed for the picture and then asked how to get to Pacific Centre Mall. 

He was quite thrilled when Jim told him he could keep the hat!
Off he goes to shop some more -- ready for the Calgary Stampede!




And the last picture is Howie Mandel -- who was just standing next to me at the Roots Canada store!



I asked him if I could take his picture and he said - sure.  Not a bad picture of him!  And then I told him it was so crazy busy in Roots that we were going to go and come back to shop when it was a little quieter.  I should have told him how much I liked him in St. Elsewhere.............................

Images of Vancouver

It is pretty exciting downtown Vancouver right now.  We spent yesterday wandering around the streets - having a great time -- along with a couple hundred thousand others!!

It was so much fun to see so many people downtown enjoying themselves. 

These are just a few of the pictures I took as we wandered about.  Yesterday was more of a fact finding mission -- to find out what exactly was going on and what we needed to see at some point during the Olympics.  We found out it was VERY busy and we walked miles and miles and my feet hurt today.  Jim calculates 5.4 Kms -- it felt like at least 6.8 kms!!  LOL

These are the steps of the Vancouver Art Gallery.  There is a free Leonardo da Vinci exhibition in the Art Gallery - there was a bit of a line up so we didn't go in - but we will go back and see it before to long.  I really want to see it.



There is a free zip line that goes from the Vancouver Art Gallery to Robson Square - with a huge line up of course. 



This is Robson Square.  There is a small skating rink in Robson Square - a few young children skating but it was not too busy on the rink. 




This is LiveCity Vancouver - in here is Canada House and Manitoba House and a few other things.  There is a quilt on display in Manitoba house that I want to see.  There is also a First Nations Pavilion - "The Four Host Nations"  which has some live performances through out the day which we will go back and see if we can get in to see one day.



This is Granville Street.  There are a bunch of Olympic themes down here as well as the lanterns and displays set out for Chinese New Year. 







These are lanterns for Chinese New Year.  At night they are all lit up - it is supposed to be beautiful down here at night.  We plan to go back in the evening to see the crowds and the lanterns and maybe catch a few live performances or try to get in to see a medal ceremony. 




A picture of the massive crowds.




Here is a street performer on a unicycle juggling -- I was a little concerned he might electrocute himself if he wasn't too careful of the streetcar lines just above his head.



We saw many - MANY Canada hockey jerseys --lots of whole families decked out in them.




Lots of uniforms and jerseys from countries all over the world -- lots of Russians.  This is just outside the "Olympic Superstore" at The Bay  - there was a line up to get in there as well.



And lastly the Torch.  The torch is on the waterfront and those are the North Shore mountains in the background.  Cypress Mountain is on the far left of the picture.  West Vancouver is straight ahead and North Vancouver and Grouse Mountain would be to the right - not in the pictures.

Valentine's Day 2010

We have been very busy here with the necessary watching of the Olympics. We also were away in Portland Oregon for 5 days.  Jim had meetings in Portland and I was a tag along.  I visited the Japanese Gardens - which were lovely and of course Fabric Depot!! 

We are now right immersed in Olympic mode here in Vancouver.  It has been quite fun so far and we are early on...

Last night we had a nice Valentine's dinner as we watched the Olympics on TV and most excitedly watch Alex Bilodeau win Canada's first Gold medal.

Dinner was a Belgium theme as Jim tried to re-create the meal we had in Belgium 16 years ago when he proposed to me in a little cafe in the centre of Bruges



Belgium endive with goat cheese and shrimp with a bit of spicy lime hot sauce -- nothing to do with the dinner in Bruges - but very tasty!



Jim was very busy most of the day cutting up vegetables and making a chicken stock - I think the chicken stock took 4 hours!  Although he said it didn't.



The meal -- it was a dish that was sort of like a chicken stew but it was made with chicken and chicken stock and angel hair pasta baked with Gruyere cheese top.  He really did a good job this time.  We have tried to re-create this dish before without success - it is hard to keep the angel hair pasta from becoming over cooked and clumpy.  It was very good - well worth 4 hours of chicken stock cooking!



My contribution to dinner was a plum cake - make from plums from a plum tree we have out the back of the house.  I froze a bunch this year - I am often too slow to get any plums as the bear usually beats me it. 



Then the highlight of dinner was the Men's Moguls -- with the gold medal going to Alex Bilodeau.





We spent today downtown again immersed in Olympic fever!!  What fun - and I have some great pictures to post - which I will do in the next post.

The excitement around here.

The Olympic torch came through our little village on Thursday.  It was a big party - with bands and balloons and lots of excitement.  I am posting a few of the pictures I took.


You can see the stage set up here with the 2010.




Stilt walkers and the Olympic mascot - I have no idea which mascot this one is - there are three of them.  We are all gathered waiting for the torch runner.



Here she comes!



I think most of the village was out for the event.




There were some young acrobats from the village preforming on the "silks"  They were great to watch.



And here are a couple of pictures of Jim and I holding the touch.  Ah -- we look pretty goofy but it will be something to put on the digital photo frame!!  LOL



Jim is wearing his Team Canada jersey he got from Santa this Christmas. 



One of the quilters from my Friday stitch group got to carry the torch earlier in the day in Gibsons - so this is her torch.  It was a pretty exciting day.  The torch will be winding it's way along the southwest part of B.C and then next Friday will end up at the opening ceremonies in B.C Place Stadium.