tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77114267688942443942024-02-07T02:23:47.426-08:00Stamps in my passportRhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-7841168794724266062010-05-02T16:43:00.000-07:002010-05-02T16:43:14.857-07:00Olympic Fever for Vancouver 2010<div style="text-align: left;">Finally, I will get my Olympic post up...it's only taken me about 2 and a half months! In fairness to me, I did have an awful lot of photos to sort through, and this post has taken almost all day to get up.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">We arrived in Vancouver about 2 weeks before the Olympics, but the Olympic excitment was already at 10 out of 10. Giant Canadian flags were popping up all over the place...</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzaJZPN5zmKtKQjwjtuHFkT9VtXJiULPm9t8uXlHnHqdUJvCTn4tkjEDFkoEHntvCENvVusymXq4vnUiJ9bSWJUBae4aYnmU7MwzxQMZyMZVKRBiKiH04pKxSpf_8ZHxOcdZ6SRND8ZY-/s1600/P2010142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglzaJZPN5zmKtKQjwjtuHFkT9VtXJiULPm9t8uXlHnHqdUJvCTn4tkjEDFkoEHntvCENvVusymXq4vnUiJ9bSWJUBae4aYnmU7MwzxQMZyMZVKRBiKiH04pKxSpf_8ZHxOcdZ6SRND8ZY-/s320/P2010142.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;"></div><br />
<div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">All the businesses were getting into it too, from the official suppliers of sleep...</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigaT0J7fF1rJSxNFEtULxuEjGHOvhN7YZZsjtmZaebVuiLYY8EjoCMwT367ZGhqifCy2oPQWpUBAY9WWbUpRvKqClroxAclANG6dt3XK-BUfnmnLCSXmH40mQtXfkR2EII4otpwGOolZ2B/s1600/P2010141.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigaT0J7fF1rJSxNFEtULxuEjGHOvhN7YZZsjtmZaebVuiLYY8EjoCMwT367ZGhqifCy2oPQWpUBAY9WWbUpRvKqClroxAclANG6dt3XK-BUfnmnLCSXmH40mQtXfkR2EII4otpwGOolZ2B/s320/P2010141.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">...to the unofficial supplier of yetis?</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8VJwbUwqVWIdN1r9Koou4KyUGOnc7u9GDmdPxgLOYp5Q2OLReWQnKrJoi_IERbFNdY_dbMPTlQmXUIvNObJ6DvnkBAD7r8Z8agF19R8Mmxj64uJrn4-T1WRFi5hOv-gmRyeO1T0VhPTIx/s1600/P2010146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8VJwbUwqVWIdN1r9Koou4KyUGOnc7u9GDmdPxgLOYp5Q2OLReWQnKrJoi_IERbFNdY_dbMPTlQmXUIvNObJ6DvnkBAD7r8Z8agF19R8Mmxj64uJrn4-T1WRFi5hOv-gmRyeO1T0VhPTIx/s320/P2010146.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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<div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBZKkv5zPyG9FbqBs6w_0J2PIYfYCH0HD9PTFZQG_8mHnq35zjUTlj9H-AiRjo3Pf_neq11OfHhnLJy8M7hUEWsm48M9QH_vwAMwbsT2e9nMuwrYDkIdYh7v6EVltvzynXMgD0W9L33-1Q/s1600/P2010143.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBZKkv5zPyG9FbqBs6w_0J2PIYfYCH0HD9PTFZQG_8mHnq35zjUTlj9H-AiRjo3Pf_neq11OfHhnLJy8M7hUEWsm48M9QH_vwAMwbsT2e9nMuwrYDkIdYh7v6EVltvzynXMgD0W9L33-1Q/s320/P2010143.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none;">The outside of the HBC stores were decorated with athletes, and was the location of the Olympic superstore, which was a great place to go for all the Olympic merchandise, and also to test your patience of being crowded, pushed and shoved by people who want red mittens.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXr5XiqDJBs24YMCn-WHa1AO5ouxCItzl8D_XSxcVY5kjfL-bfiIYu8Cdz6wzFwaOE0XCIYHMFR0C7TY-FZwiob33NIVKGoF7z0uaFg8CU4rW0inVtRVtoIcUJCdmmRtJzY96GoCMgZjda/s1600/P2010149.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXr5XiqDJBs24YMCn-WHa1AO5ouxCItzl8D_XSxcVY5kjfL-bfiIYu8Cdz6wzFwaOE0XCIYHMFR0C7TY-FZwiob33NIVKGoF7z0uaFg8CU4rW0inVtRVtoIcUJCdmmRtJzY96GoCMgZjda/s320/P2010149.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>These guys were popping up everywhere. This display was in the main train/seabus station in town. Apparently Quatchi's (and Miga's) choice of mobile phone brand is Samsung.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ2KSE9A-6BHVNC3MpTGIEPIrkZZID66OFqXh-hAE4uwdTf6TlshXS5Jq_7dD1nesz01LSPW9MKKYIcZCfa68JbCp9JQIxTZS6u-P30LhdEWkBij2y5xX-BF7wo02Y6MBnHpASOWtBa46W/s1600/IMG_0817.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ2KSE9A-6BHVNC3MpTGIEPIrkZZID66OFqXh-hAE4uwdTf6TlshXS5Jq_7dD1nesz01LSPW9MKKYIcZCfa68JbCp9JQIxTZS6u-P30LhdEWkBij2y5xX-BF7wo02Y6MBnHpASOWtBa46W/s320/IMG_0817.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><br />
In the last few days before the Olympics actually started, we were lucky enough to have the torch relay come past Peter's front gate where we were staying.<br />
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Even better, there was a changeover right there!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Vr47_Ls4OqpYtmaUiW5Jl-FlZaDyt5OgGHGRhWdlThwTWW54KcE9qlhfRjckDKLIA7TnWVYqmepXbw0xhnUs3fdOyOcTOoO9I8rGnnY1EQRu7Fzn37iVgkzxD56cGs-zw51xSzj3O5j1/s1600/IMG_0824.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5Vr47_Ls4OqpYtmaUiW5Jl-FlZaDyt5OgGHGRhWdlThwTWW54KcE9qlhfRjckDKLIA7TnWVYqmepXbw0xhnUs3fdOyOcTOoO9I8rGnnY1EQRu7Fzn37iVgkzxD56cGs-zw51xSzj3O5j1/s320/IMG_0824.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>Everyone was getting into the spirit...including the dogs. We saw a husky that had been painted red and white with the maple leaf as well. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuEoVpgQgTiyPKZtrMOlOJKovPOgNmU9vxDtK1-30jtVY6L0EObx08H5PZIFqwFTr5r7PI84Y2lp6mBO5wNGETaozRgPR45BnStXfIBOnjLCj0RqE6DJMR1_jmqZqWGntETSx8SbpboxJi/s1600/IMG_0880.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuEoVpgQgTiyPKZtrMOlOJKovPOgNmU9vxDtK1-30jtVY6L0EObx08H5PZIFqwFTr5r7PI84Y2lp6mBO5wNGETaozRgPR45BnStXfIBOnjLCj0RqE6DJMR1_jmqZqWGntETSx8SbpboxJi/s320/IMG_0880.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We chose a bar in North Vancouver to watch the opening ceremony in. It turned out to be an excellent choice, as balcony looked right out over the Burrard Inlet to where Wayne Gretsky lit the official Olympic Cauldron, and these specatular fireworks went off.</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCNQZRV8MBsr_5hWUAgaLUVc7rRKdsja5GkJyaTMZT2HN6j0LxoOzPZABxOGxaaNxY2GC-SDLG0pENfCbIAdSD8wP39BICGJhYjzfXc4n2CrXeEgYNktJAeeXUR_PNR3xlMUvt9-ggu0Rp/s1600/IMG_0899.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCNQZRV8MBsr_5hWUAgaLUVc7rRKdsja5GkJyaTMZT2HN6j0LxoOzPZABxOGxaaNxY2GC-SDLG0pENfCbIAdSD8wP39BICGJhYjzfXc4n2CrXeEgYNktJAeeXUR_PNR3xlMUvt9-ggu0Rp/s320/IMG_0899.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And there is the cauldron just after it was lit. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoMN6g5LjWgaR2DlZ1N4bujfPhhyy_LoEwu9zZ2BvSqQiL14SjFBstoOjuT4etlpU1B2l-UScovZOSo7iE9ONJrHmhp0pI1LwlPH-aJ3yNrKX5dOgszy96thGyDEEVAyAsw8scDJxPh95_/s1600/IMG_0906.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoMN6g5LjWgaR2DlZ1N4bujfPhhyy_LoEwu9zZ2BvSqQiL14SjFBstoOjuT4etlpU1B2l-UScovZOSo7iE9ONJrHmhp0pI1LwlPH-aJ3yNrKX5dOgszy96thGyDEEVAyAsw8scDJxPh95_/s320/IMG_0906.jpg" tt="true" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ZtX-NOI0l6TuYB7qOiIUL0LlP8Wm-7lSC8jszHxvrRfXNSdunNri40KtJA5mM5Mp5XM8TEWyYTMQw5Kb_uR6MdtYWezvEwlVCv38C4tbp4EaixKtzJIIa8oVTAd4qmu_5-LbgPfnBjw2/s1600/IMG_0957.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1ZtX-NOI0l6TuYB7qOiIUL0LlP8Wm-7lSC8jszHxvrRfXNSdunNri40KtJA5mM5Mp5XM8TEWyYTMQw5Kb_uR6MdtYWezvEwlVCv38C4tbp4EaixKtzJIIa8oVTAd4qmu_5-LbgPfnBjw2/s320/IMG_0957.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><br />
On the first day of the Olympics we headed over to Granville Island. Ashley McIsaac, the punk fiddler who had played in the opening ceremony was doing a free concert at the "Atlantic House", a place supposed to celebrate the Atlantic provinces of Canada. All the other provinces had one of these houses, as well as quite a few other international places. So off we all went on the saturday morning. We enjoyed a wander about Granville Island for a bit, but the weather was pretty bad, so we went off to have lunch. After lunch, we thought we had better check out the line, and when we found it was quite long already, and that people were waiting 4+ hrs to get in, we joined it. That was at 2pm. Three hours later we got inside, with the assurance that we would be able to order food at 7 pm. 7 pm rolls around and then we were told we can't order till 8. 8 rolls around (and by this point we were getting mighty hungry) and the waiter is nowhere to be seen. When we finally track him down, he told us we can't order food because there is an electrical problem. Ok...fine, that might have been believable had food not still been coming from the kitchen, just to the other side of the restaurant. We tried everything to get some food, but we told we couldn't leave without rejoining the line, and we weren't able to order anything in, so it was most frustrating later on when someone walked through the crowd with three takeaway pizza boxes to the VIP room. So, by the time Ashley McIsaac came on, none of us were much in the mood, so we listened to half a set, and left to get food. <br />
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So unfortunately it wasn't the best start to the Olympics.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwnl1ec5wd2xxm68NLFH2829PqBJytT2d4tzPVGz8lS0jD-P9F_zU41CRCJT4BdmCNfEF-X1OjhyphenhyphenVujeo-db_f1CqDILlmYsrZl_U60OsxARLfIE25zNKwP0ZZgSFM88wfjWhENYrtmm3k/s1600/IMG_1125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwnl1ec5wd2xxm68NLFH2829PqBJytT2d4tzPVGz8lS0jD-P9F_zU41CRCJT4BdmCNfEF-X1OjhyphenhyphenVujeo-db_f1CqDILlmYsrZl_U60OsxARLfIE25zNKwP0ZZgSFM88wfjWhENYrtmm3k/s320/IMG_1125.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>One of the more fun (even if it was intended for the kids), was the mascots on ice show, which was on every day, about 5 times a day. It was very cute, and the big mascots skating around was very neat. It told the story of how all the mascots became friend. It was sadly lacking Muk-muk, but overall it was really good. That whole area was great, lots of music and street performers, a free zipline (if you wanted to wait in line for a LONG time) and big tv screens where you could watch the events, and a big light show every night.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMGv2Ywq3QT_6Pn7lnpN9vxwkLxL-1ZGYI0vEi_ZBlCu4TWAWvgpba4X_EjObKNcIOpiwg2veUlcH6rV2Bk9oEokUSKtHWHHEKxK071ZMRIzWMfpZx-iPjPfqC0rTJmWFzWjQbb7gk2PV/s1600/IMG_1169.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMGv2Ywq3QT_6Pn7lnpN9vxwkLxL-1ZGYI0vEi_ZBlCu4TWAWvgpba4X_EjObKNcIOpiwg2veUlcH6rV2Bk9oEokUSKtHWHHEKxK071ZMRIzWMfpZx-iPjPfqC0rTJmWFzWjQbb7gk2PV/s320/IMG_1169.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Here is one of the stars of the show, Quatchi the Sasquatch. He wanted to be a hockey goalie.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgBvK7tMp8iYoF0ijkHb4vNoL5R2Gu78fIwj0aEgyAbJIUHT4msrCOVrlL_TQS7QPKtrdFxCv1iFFePj42qXzqvK4M3sHxuh0UQlJkG3XjRMb3DFiWx-9MIZ2ZU-3OqXPMmV7KQEEAzgY/s1600/P2150352.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbgBvK7tMp8iYoF0ijkHb4vNoL5R2Gu78fIwj0aEgyAbJIUHT4msrCOVrlL_TQS7QPKtrdFxCv1iFFePj42qXzqvK4M3sHxuh0UQlJkG3XjRMb3DFiWx-9MIZ2ZU-3OqXPMmV7KQEEAzgY/s320/P2150352.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>One of the other business that had a lot to do with the Olympics was Birks. Birks made all of the souvenir jewellery and the small souvenir torches, but they also got to have a commemorative bobsled from Omega (the group responsible for all the timing software and mechanics). So of course when we walked past and got asked if we'd like to see a bobsled, were we going to say no?<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibzaxxTiGYn2k56tlnY2L0tkv711TdPi5Qy04EZwbHspeZ6B1PckqbqD9-Z7YLP-fX4nqLR7i_06MzeLtpXHkNlMJd1FDrcfqFmbHHtlbPKepoDNh5FHZbrm3SAGDlzrdWa7ad35LIMkwR/s1600/IMG_1198.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibzaxxTiGYn2k56tlnY2L0tkv711TdPi5Qy04EZwbHspeZ6B1PckqbqD9-Z7YLP-fX4nqLR7i_06MzeLtpXHkNlMJd1FDrcfqFmbHHtlbPKepoDNh5FHZbrm3SAGDlzrdWa7ad35LIMkwR/s320/IMG_1198.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Another night, we walked up to one of the bridges on False Creek to watch the fire works that were set off from the Yaletown celebration site. Unfortunately we weren't able to see them that night, as they were called off because of an accident at the site.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYsEfOq7LjjV20v0E6UI9jUq0RLDo3MghVLaAXvKp9nWgIgYHb0hHzbtb6ze0UsNvBXqrXeCXrwmh57DNkheCQXLhuNh91UvXX_1cgzNJd23XZsLshQTnjMvdti6FBU0vQj9YUcYLY0AoI/s1600/IMG_1221.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYsEfOq7LjjV20v0E6UI9jUq0RLDo3MghVLaAXvKp9nWgIgYHb0hHzbtb6ze0UsNvBXqrXeCXrwmh57DNkheCQXLhuNh91UvXX_1cgzNJd23XZsLshQTnjMvdti6FBU0vQj9YUcYLY0AoI/s320/IMG_1221.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Another morning, we dragged ourselves out of bed very early to go and see Stephen Colbert tape. What a morning that turned out to be...even before we got there. I managed to slip in the shower, landing on the edge of the bathtub and giving my back a good wrench...cue Craig bursting into the bathroom in a panic. So I scraped myself off the floor, and we still managed to go, though walking was not so fun. When we got to the filming site, we found that our plan of getting there early backfired a little because everyone else got there earlier. But we found ourselves a spot where we could see, and where it wasn't a bog. But it was worth the cold and muddy wait because we did eventually get to see him, and his guest Michael Buble. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSFY_OFXC4I1jyJh7NOhdxy-T3qwieh45OqpIm3wojDMzSTn8idb1VY7tqlfkefq-anFp9mw5ZCurfJ8DdC3EXb5MZqR9myV21_S55I1Ir5_kq5iKtiuQpKdFKmdhxhvdznDzXIlOT3gAU/s1600/IMG_1285.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSFY_OFXC4I1jyJh7NOhdxy-T3qwieh45OqpIm3wojDMzSTn8idb1VY7tqlfkefq-anFp9mw5ZCurfJ8DdC3EXb5MZqR9myV21_S55I1Ir5_kq5iKtiuQpKdFKmdhxhvdznDzXIlOT3gAU/s320/IMG_1285.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Unfortunately we couldn't hear them all that well, but if you watched the olympic coverage, we would have been there...perhaps about a pixel size!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7832SboHBuWWPsrbMANIpnR35M47ieXkt2-6AWB2VJz271PZw-50OimR-oOfy6bMqHKcT0b76oIzNhEf1asoTCXtgIqZj-PqpM7CgjQW6-SNA3LJsvl42heaWqOAiXKTV9yFaJyClyrxm/s1600/IMG_1605.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7832SboHBuWWPsrbMANIpnR35M47ieXkt2-6AWB2VJz271PZw-50OimR-oOfy6bMqHKcT0b76oIzNhEf1asoTCXtgIqZj-PqpM7CgjQW6-SNA3LJsvl42heaWqOAiXKTV9yFaJyClyrxm/s320/IMG_1605.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>One day we ended up back at the Mascots on Ice show (not deliberately, we were tired, there was somewhere to sit down, so it seemed like a good idea). We got better seats this time so we got a few more photos.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIJ9ch8qZV6rU17-SQFE6nkrCnwrEh9l81IrXpP-9sB82medRGiPTfS2FwFoA3R8JWz9UA8LRRMkzCAVOL3obf9FFAIlT8RzjjSWnEye5SBxiLr7aO2PQR-lUBTZxzxFlAftKeeBlyDA6v/s1600/IMG_1622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIJ9ch8qZV6rU17-SQFE6nkrCnwrEh9l81IrXpP-9sB82medRGiPTfS2FwFoA3R8JWz9UA8LRRMkzCAVOL3obf9FFAIlT8RzjjSWnEye5SBxiLr7aO2PQR-lUBTZxzxFlAftKeeBlyDA6v/s320/IMG_1622.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>This is Sumi, the forest spirit. She had quite a bit to do with the Paralympic Games.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqbf4HNXRJO0N40inisQF2-ho0Pvdfxi3PYDZzh5NObqj8sgWiv_7BmKcOiGL4BE2BWhzYmqi46pJp0DMmNvs3rvY8msHO0mTuSKozzDp_fmN3eyANdFy5xiZuwpdCRnNeyEwagOka8Bnf/s1600/IMG_7065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqbf4HNXRJO0N40inisQF2-ho0Pvdfxi3PYDZzh5NObqj8sgWiv_7BmKcOiGL4BE2BWhzYmqi46pJp0DMmNvs3rvY8msHO0mTuSKozzDp_fmN3eyANdFy5xiZuwpdCRnNeyEwagOka8Bnf/s320/IMG_7065.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One good thing about the Olympic games was that there was an abundance of mounties around, so of course everyone's favourite patriotic little dinosaur had to get in on the act.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYZ4JynfMtpgoP2Ybugv1SJahneq2SGIWslBAF-VASNVwud8HIDtOcqB7UhC70alsbJIgjBYPS83Dule5DHIeoIzd9lxD4cm0e6laLEMAoezWkWYF_9wTwPYyqamnqcTaEg4wO621ZUpI9/s1600/IMG_1658.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYZ4JynfMtpgoP2Ybugv1SJahneq2SGIWslBAF-VASNVwud8HIDtOcqB7UhC70alsbJIgjBYPS83Dule5DHIeoIzd9lxD4cm0e6laLEMAoezWkWYF_9wTwPYyqamnqcTaEg4wO621ZUpI9/s320/IMG_1658.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>It was such a lovely day that we joined a big group of Peter's friends and went off to the beach, and went to see the big inukshuk on False Creek. The inukshuk had of course joined the legions of Canadian statues to be given red mittens, but I think they looked a bit too much like fire gloves.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPLXnleXMCZLyFbfkt03DGlH8LpgHgJeKBb4dCH1JGM9D06g3sBjRLZggkoEyEi7rS5n0ePa6f2BfV8XUOYX1PXUkUnM17zK7Rms-EMEBEJgA_kxYs918waYUGG2DOb8R2A_IzlKB9m_AK/s1600/IMG_1705.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPLXnleXMCZLyFbfkt03DGlH8LpgHgJeKBb4dCH1JGM9D06g3sBjRLZggkoEyEi7rS5n0ePa6f2BfV8XUOYX1PXUkUnM17zK7Rms-EMEBEJgA_kxYs918waYUGG2DOb8R2A_IzlKB9m_AK/s320/IMG_1705.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Just one example of the average line-up to get into some of the celebration sites. This one was "short", estimated on average at about 3 hours.<br />
Sadly, I had a couple of days where I missed out on going out. I got sick in the middle of the Olympics, and spent 3 days lying on the couch coughing up my lungs. When I eventually got out again, the first thing we did was head out to the celebration site at Surrey.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv40Sc04fN2MbZZH7MBvcTCxBMb_VUyaBH-wYYjaRGudNB2Rp6_R2UVTrIDImGqU7n2OSIR48yRGNRGd4uPDulPhNohGkxE8VMlMTO5c4JtbzKQnLUle6UTO7MlrmfKQKzwrgQWmB1wuAs/s1600/IMG_1708.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv40Sc04fN2MbZZH7MBvcTCxBMb_VUyaBH-wYYjaRGudNB2Rp6_R2UVTrIDImGqU7n2OSIR48yRGNRGd4uPDulPhNohGkxE8VMlMTO5c4JtbzKQnLUle6UTO7MlrmfKQKzwrgQWmB1wuAs/s320/IMG_1708.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>The reason we wanted to go out to Surrey was the the RCMP Musical Ride was performing in a giant tent. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXf89B66ypysCMXzRA5YJdBZmKx2Xqf7CE1ePMkVr3GXT-SrFeehKJTGX2xWzKKMe73VEn4fX4j3KK-s9sJULLav2QQdgxFCzQdDvoIUlFa8zJB7-ubaYpNKapWzEo43P4Bru3Xau31Dv/s1600/IMG_1743.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaXf89B66ypysCMXzRA5YJdBZmKx2Xqf7CE1ePMkVr3GXT-SrFeehKJTGX2xWzKKMe73VEn4fX4j3KK-s9sJULLav2QQdgxFCzQdDvoIUlFa8zJB7-ubaYpNKapWzEo43P4Bru3Xau31Dv/s320/IMG_1743.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>Here is the entire ride. They are all real police, and most of them joined the force without riding experience. The horses are bred specially, and when they hit a certain age, they are taken off to train people new to the ride. The horses were so beautiful, though some of them looked a bit like they'd had enough. I guess it was getting close to the end of the Olymics.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWJza3zcv0fuPsfUUh9hXBLYDWb1ut4jMRuyXhyphenhypheni7Q9QLdY6wyajP4JIS5rIjkAsUTYMg8RNWpTNwjxxfbsNHTZVXeXTKqycfbNyFaeY0CisllgvDGf7Ee4L8XRLilfByab9Eldg57Lnq8/s1600/IMG_1756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWJza3zcv0fuPsfUUh9hXBLYDWb1ut4jMRuyXhyphenhypheni7Q9QLdY6wyajP4JIS5rIjkAsUTYMg8RNWpTNwjxxfbsNHTZVXeXTKqycfbNyFaeY0CisllgvDGf7Ee4L8XRLilfByab9Eldg57Lnq8/s320/IMG_1756.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>Overall it was really impressive, and I look forward to being able to see the ride in a larger arena.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkgr7Vj-T8MuzcxiCYy6YPEwco-Bnzi4AyG5Sz5VfCItrIqzm4sqXvYu6uNr1MBQzucd1FjyvAtbzG8sVN8-C_ZobkuhPA7gvJl5Drn13RFmQ4hI3h8HNFpxyd-Yi1ClcPSOuom3jJBHto/s1600/P2250363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkgr7Vj-T8MuzcxiCYy6YPEwco-Bnzi4AyG5Sz5VfCItrIqzm4sqXvYu6uNr1MBQzucd1FjyvAtbzG8sVN8-C_ZobkuhPA7gvJl5Drn13RFmQ4hI3h8HNFpxyd-Yi1ClcPSOuom3jJBHto/s320/P2250363.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>On the last thursday before the end of the Olympics, Craig, Peter's friend Kim and I decided to join the mother of all line ups to see the Olympic medals. We got there before it opened, and the lineup was already as long as the block. The mint was supposed to open at 9, and we were in the line at 8:30. We got into the building between 1 and 2 pm...and we got into the medals around 3.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWxQXytAZ9ie3FbFK_hMcH3Dq7eA55Qiy4xevbJ-BjNWAKO6OfJjABthHyLj6ldZUqz9YNqBOAck06lEqZKiJBcqGXQNfEcY7gcSwUoMYqYjrOv3ozzLUpLThoaPwV0Rvb0bJlzljqaPvM/s1600/P2250365.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWxQXytAZ9ie3FbFK_hMcH3Dq7eA55Qiy4xevbJ-BjNWAKO6OfJjABthHyLj6ldZUqz9YNqBOAck06lEqZKiJBcqGXQNfEcY7gcSwUoMYqYjrOv3ozzLUpLThoaPwV0Rvb0bJlzljqaPvM/s320/P2250365.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>We were quite excited when we got to the point we we could actually see the front door of the mint. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK8jjJ-AFHa82f4k44AU3nIJuq2vX-Hbo03TlO_0Y4vbqVVqjSwxc2GtggO-0vsoE0ltqhSUlVMiJIdE-4LPHdnEPOF7vboEyewaD91t0Ja_Rdj47Ubt1DTKhEJ_zmPR_Bo_vgAedFaIcY/s1600/P2250366.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK8jjJ-AFHa82f4k44AU3nIJuq2vX-Hbo03TlO_0Y4vbqVVqjSwxc2GtggO-0vsoE0ltqhSUlVMiJIdE-4LPHdnEPOF7vboEyewaD91t0Ja_Rdj47Ubt1DTKhEJ_zmPR_Bo_vgAedFaIcY/s320/P2250366.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Even more exciting! About 30 mins before we went in, a lady came round with a "received" stamp (like the one you put on mail) to show that we had indeed been waiting in line for a long time. You couldn't get into the building without that stamp.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlUZ30_k9H3h-tHeXVgjSF1JlpnOg8XB7OtLzlW8Q9qA5qCt7QhXOsal1_YcR3EWNTvhh-5l16Casmf5V8_PHk6isBE8MCAhNyA-SnODmTvMpE7oIInuYM2b6LQqOQsfOdi4OqP07466xt/s1600/IMG_1796.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlUZ30_k9H3h-tHeXVgjSF1JlpnOg8XB7OtLzlW8Q9qA5qCt7QhXOsal1_YcR3EWNTvhh-5l16Casmf5V8_PHk6isBE8MCAhNyA-SnODmTvMpE7oIInuYM2b6LQqOQsfOdi4OqP07466xt/s320/IMG_1796.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>Eventually we got upstairs and were getting closer to the medals. Only ten people at a time were allowed into the room, so this bit got quite tedious. I was also losing my voice at this point. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGBHRgB0UE_UMCziAfA9IOeq0x8KTdcwUD9crPuTG0-E06mnRRFl389hoQyn_aaQ4HRs0tJXm7dgFvvg_omQ411ue58Dt55Rj0QS3lvAAXjVeKGMbH3KS1r5rnfxBBwRdcIpYTkAE17yKL/s1600/P2250380.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGBHRgB0UE_UMCziAfA9IOeq0x8KTdcwUD9crPuTG0-E06mnRRFl389hoQyn_aaQ4HRs0tJXm7dgFvvg_omQ411ue58Dt55Rj0QS3lvAAXjVeKGMbH3KS1r5rnfxBBwRdcIpYTkAE17yKL/s320/P2250380.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>This was the other ticket to getting into to seeing the medals. No glove no...medals. And even then, you weren't getting into the medal without showing that you had a glove and stamp. Then we were given the rules, which included no licking or biting the medals, no victory signs, so number 1 signs, and no pointing at the medal. And if you did any of those things you would be escorted out by the armed security. So we were all very well behaved.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidh8GwyWpengTccpTc5svyfas8svWxfKsKbJG3Xl0A-6w_ZjJBFzFGx52qUXABAyZA2BUifPVto35FSgmkyGPrmA9PMqa9gLoujO7rdI6KHx2v365hLqQbM52CY0WeEsbQvg74aDfUoI-Y/s1600/IMG_1803.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidh8GwyWpengTccpTc5svyfas8svWxfKsKbJG3Xl0A-6w_ZjJBFzFGx52qUXABAyZA2BUifPVto35FSgmkyGPrmA9PMqa9gLoujO7rdI6KHx2v365hLqQbM52CY0WeEsbQvg74aDfUoI-Y/s320/IMG_1803.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>A Paralympic silver medal<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96nkPH4jxrjSqmM0TRBBFRcTyWAXzdsqk3ieU-ZKMWqWRQImGPfvWR0KaCZd4qfi82J20mt5WlbrP5KUnHT0ShDbbEOpbR0wcSvFB2EIc47XgMaa7IE1LQrn0KEn-CeqegkTLLp6yluMh/s1600/IMG_1804.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh96nkPH4jxrjSqmM0TRBBFRcTyWAXzdsqk3ieU-ZKMWqWRQImGPfvWR0KaCZd4qfi82J20mt5WlbrP5KUnHT0ShDbbEOpbR0wcSvFB2EIc47XgMaa7IE1LQrn0KEn-CeqegkTLLp6yluMh/s320/IMG_1804.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>A Paralympic gold medal<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCdj2j3ivVfnBIfQGfCnPAeYRWBmyq2WTJRK2JeKUz5zirpGbUNc0RyactMWhC4uzEcIUK156EZK082-WzL-L0u-g9PzCTkPCOOd72tRmpNv0AehvpZShiE8V4l9QGNGVkt1akttFxh0Zc/s1600/IMG_1805.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCdj2j3ivVfnBIfQGfCnPAeYRWBmyq2WTJRK2JeKUz5zirpGbUNc0RyactMWhC4uzEcIUK156EZK082-WzL-L0u-g9PzCTkPCOOd72tRmpNv0AehvpZShiE8V4l9QGNGVkt1akttFxh0Zc/s320/IMG_1805.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>A bronze Paralympic medal<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhviUpMG42pUKK0hyphenhyphenCEJHXGpzXdD8AVp33DojYa4p2USjoU6DKu8uZhnzdiPeGczWaYpK-8sZGbdVikLiMmnhhDMII_fdTbnJ2L5JaiL61109f_6X4mjUP3_6700RVfv4AyDGGyH6tuNiLB/s1600/IMG_1819.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhviUpMG42pUKK0hyphenhyphenCEJHXGpzXdD8AVp33DojYa4p2USjoU6DKu8uZhnzdiPeGczWaYpK-8sZGbdVikLiMmnhhDMII_fdTbnJ2L5JaiL61109f_6X4mjUP3_6700RVfv4AyDGGyH6tuNiLB/s320/IMG_1819.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>Olympic Silver<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLjiQ8FMW4npUcAQd-WSX-ikgOxEw4xDTHmKzID_r97ZXvQo-DpLAOO1i2aEhjCer5mmaNn_VNnVeWIJjerpX10OsqKr46jbiVKZnF-zy3vo6Bg6NybzgnLmDqqs4BFX2a47WziEZhc4DW/s1600/IMG_1820.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLjiQ8FMW4npUcAQd-WSX-ikgOxEw4xDTHmKzID_r97ZXvQo-DpLAOO1i2aEhjCer5mmaNn_VNnVeWIJjerpX10OsqKr46jbiVKZnF-zy3vo6Bg6NybzgnLmDqqs4BFX2a47WziEZhc4DW/s320/IMG_1820.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>Olympic gold<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp5xRSTNOV0DuQ3hdcS0Pimu7UwMb1GKQR6t-i5DBl4_A2_8WYkHAhSRjjwoudZoP01Me6Jj5Dkhm130slP0LSvQWKHdNjC5lGG6qDMVlUQhA9T4CIPELAj-OT6-n2TTOriVEdgDJr-QWQ/s1600/IMG_1822.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp5xRSTNOV0DuQ3hdcS0Pimu7UwMb1GKQR6t-i5DBl4_A2_8WYkHAhSRjjwoudZoP01Me6Jj5Dkhm130slP0LSvQWKHdNjC5lGG6qDMVlUQhA9T4CIPELAj-OT6-n2TTOriVEdgDJr-QWQ/s320/IMG_1822.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>And Olympic bronze<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgptY5ZFU-Eit7kHRRIN0DrX66WSzc8aL9HLtGmJio05GODDJ6OXobroqxbSFnesXKLqnA2veZ4qVUia85BJC_PmarBDc60tHcUO4bQYIg6clJjyYhe4uNWLehwt2uf7YWXt3KS6i8GHHL_/s1600/P2250390.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgptY5ZFU-Eit7kHRRIN0DrX66WSzc8aL9HLtGmJio05GODDJ6OXobroqxbSFnesXKLqnA2veZ4qVUia85BJC_PmarBDc60tHcUO4bQYIg6clJjyYhe4uNWLehwt2uf7YWXt3KS6i8GHHL_/s320/P2250390.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Me holding a paralympic gold medal. They were very very heavy, and it was a little nerve wracking holding it. Was so worried I'd drop it!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizZM-PNIlOSTgq6Zl1kwFyhz22Ef0pol_4RKs6I-oXPndGTkcYlB2S9TlWS8ZEZUCDj5Q5HSpMebZiVAvLKBNG3FrCvfwrgDOHBUyJB1RH9UtGfkxtxWLQhK6CU9UlCK4WOT5HLIACiXc-/s1600/P2250392.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizZM-PNIlOSTgq6Zl1kwFyhz22Ef0pol_4RKs6I-oXPndGTkcYlB2S9TlWS8ZEZUCDj5Q5HSpMebZiVAvLKBNG3FrCvfwrgDOHBUyJB1RH9UtGfkxtxWLQhK6CU9UlCK4WOT5HLIACiXc-/s320/P2250392.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>And here's me with the Olympic gold.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjumSBzoABxOWISalmVosIrB86qNk19TEmgG4DiKk0T4A3rj1gq4mw1bmk41IWCWW9OeaC50nVJuEi-2PWBDtJjCpo_gH1iJTRQV4dGE1X41us0oGepkb5oEMIWHgmf0x57YM44gDY-DtQp/s1600/P2250397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjumSBzoABxOWISalmVosIrB86qNk19TEmgG4DiKk0T4A3rj1gq4mw1bmk41IWCWW9OeaC50nVJuEi-2PWBDtJjCpo_gH1iJTRQV4dGE1X41us0oGepkb5oEMIWHgmf0x57YM44gDY-DtQp/s320/P2250397.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>Medal Ingredients!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH6Nu0BAbzORCq2aWpjx7UFNJUG7GKETGDwXDXfZG-gGLgKqUnjAHpTWKbpTvQJgW0MmNoR65FYYeUFhdZmHHNsNBq38AHwbA-MAzzc9dFFrpKtUr3FuNNMcvikLZOUjYiCtdMi8zOyPrL/s1600/P2250398.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH6Nu0BAbzORCq2aWpjx7UFNJUG7GKETGDwXDXfZG-gGLgKqUnjAHpTWKbpTvQJgW0MmNoR65FYYeUFhdZmHHNsNBq38AHwbA-MAzzc9dFFrpKtUr3FuNNMcvikLZOUjYiCtdMi8zOyPrL/s320/P2250398.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>This was the design that all the Olympic medals' images were taken from<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2e7wJyqZ24JDHgOVqB73RLOSs_sVaNN2MWR13krVeR45hPyU1y2Xzsx-ogZ1PyypQ2dVjyPpB3Ja8eRT9oFmDSDfrCfNZQMVyNNOmfrRnd0w4j-yzlUsJObeY9O_JmObrH-efpuvRGtl7/s1600/IMG_1844.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2e7wJyqZ24JDHgOVqB73RLOSs_sVaNN2MWR13krVeR45hPyU1y2Xzsx-ogZ1PyypQ2dVjyPpB3Ja8eRT9oFmDSDfrCfNZQMVyNNOmfrRnd0w4j-yzlUsJObeY9O_JmObrH-efpuvRGtl7/s320/IMG_1844.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>And this one was for the paralympic medals. All the medal winners were given a silk scarf of the design, so they could try and match up where the picture on their medals came from.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicTYMp-cWn0lLExx-VN5JC7D6eM6H2dKRfOUipoRpyH36s9wKHImceSBpVINLP0dwjFa4NN2cFpK-uTFrnv0enVVjPqodtpfDxCEj9WpTiZkfbF2UgwB1Wf-3GemyTlSXlaK9euBo5y0c4/s1600/IMG_1855.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicTYMp-cWn0lLExx-VN5JC7D6eM6H2dKRfOUipoRpyH36s9wKHImceSBpVINLP0dwjFa4NN2cFpK-uTFrnv0enVVjPqodtpfDxCEj9WpTiZkfbF2UgwB1Wf-3GemyTlSXlaK9euBo5y0c4/s320/IMG_1855.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>In the mint, they also had a real gold ingot that you could lift. It was actually pretty heavy!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCrBANt_cu1gkndGLO7lZrvdN9uw3btBUExOO_yTCy11FitiysAQ6a6mB7ftTXuzLqpUVSY0u4CZ6-7uGeREFoj6wbvqT5-H6Pt3X-ImXsoLx0pdvP_KFX48dizt_fE-KCOMNTtd1NYWsS/s1600/P2250401.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCrBANt_cu1gkndGLO7lZrvdN9uw3btBUExOO_yTCy11FitiysAQ6a6mB7ftTXuzLqpUVSY0u4CZ6-7uGeREFoj6wbvqT5-H6Pt3X-ImXsoLx0pdvP_KFX48dizt_fE-KCOMNTtd1NYWsS/s320/P2250401.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This is a million dollar coin...though we weren't allowed to try and lift that one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxuQ88-tO_cnXorc_K7nQANLK344mp4yCjbgkuJ-y0jjANHXl1bO_eQt3Zqde_kICNkIrvdHFZWjmhIAzvfFIfSILdvUvnYiclC5jz8V1v7XpbcIQVOWAsPAq1vwYYnBSRWElDL93ecXB/s1600/P2250431.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxuQ88-tO_cnXorc_K7nQANLK344mp4yCjbgkuJ-y0jjANHXl1bO_eQt3Zqde_kICNkIrvdHFZWjmhIAzvfFIfSILdvUvnYiclC5jz8V1v7XpbcIQVOWAsPAq1vwYYnBSRWElDL93ecXB/s320/P2250431.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div>One of the cute mascto ads on a bus stop.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWGJJZ_g_C2Wr_SbyWxxX1UpDgTlpKPdweiMXOMSApdqnio9U4Oy7jZdKzTARlcwMb5l-TWgb2j4CrKlvLLLy3qwmMoCB_tcNzko0tC9Yi6FAwCDcQZVrTjaXpeqAPgQUER3tNCLLFpRE6/s1600/IMG_2000.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWGJJZ_g_C2Wr_SbyWxxX1UpDgTlpKPdweiMXOMSApdqnio9U4Oy7jZdKzTARlcwMb5l-TWgb2j4CrKlvLLLy3qwmMoCB_tcNzko0tC9Yi6FAwCDcQZVrTjaXpeqAPgQUER3tNCLLFpRE6/s320/IMG_2000.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>The end of a very long day...the last thing we did on the day of the mammoth lineup was go to see the Olympic Cauldron. At first you couldn't get up close to it at all, but then they put up a new fence so people could get closer and take clear photos.<br />
<br />
Our big Olympic finale was attending the Olympic event that I had booked tickets for last September. It was the final night of the short track speed skating. <br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2rNVutI6a1YappU4PpkRI5ODTHIj2G4ttB50ETUvrRKy4BGSxCWxNnVg9ZJtKHQpR1ekxP83cZcNhwUu6uGfTirnhrmjjreXAFYApdHvZHPp_sTz_8Mdbg1iVSLImf_oWdMLhyphenhyphen1vde2zS/s1600/IMG_2006.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2rNVutI6a1YappU4PpkRI5ODTHIj2G4ttB50ETUvrRKy4BGSxCWxNnVg9ZJtKHQpR1ekxP83cZcNhwUu6uGfTirnhrmjjreXAFYApdHvZHPp_sTz_8Mdbg1iVSLImf_oWdMLhyphenhyphen1vde2zS/s320/IMG_2006.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div>The night started with synchronised zamboni-ing...<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEaMGkQdtVqUvCxdS3pHmungw16QByspytkl2p0GkgUoCH3z9aRb0U88ezazCxhlXIUQUoY3SLWwMpgjsh0bjPkbOkP7J5hY7pjspIsjEMifSMoquYvLrnkX2cAtjCaEhDzoSsYKekJ1ra/s1600/IMG_2008.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEaMGkQdtVqUvCxdS3pHmungw16QByspytkl2p0GkgUoCH3z9aRb0U88ezazCxhlXIUQUoY3SLWwMpgjsh0bjPkbOkP7J5hY7pjspIsjEMifSMoquYvLrnkX2cAtjCaEhDzoSsYKekJ1ra/s320/IMG_2008.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Olympic inukshuk. The best thing about the venue was that even though we were sitting really far away from the ice (so far in fact that you couldn't even see the tier that we were sitting in existed on tv), we had a great view of the whole rink.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyJWF_lTIs2tIOeMvyNY7_j6BbxonoA_iaE6Q5gd4NL3lbIRAXJV1vTAl6TtXkSaiHpaVIUNGGdRGVLVUOBBO67TM04UCJQkGHbYUvkQkWWLYRMbSV8cI7sUUowatayW2P2NPaYQAplj0p/s1600/IMG_2014.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyJWF_lTIs2tIOeMvyNY7_j6BbxonoA_iaE6Q5gd4NL3lbIRAXJV1vTAl6TtXkSaiHpaVIUNGGdRGVLVUOBBO67TM04UCJQkGHbYUvkQkWWLYRMbSV8cI7sUUowatayW2P2NPaYQAplj0p/s320/IMG_2014.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here's the venue before it started filling up. The skaters on the ice were just warming up.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisjllAQUTIgv8a_C49VAFihcy5XEqISvuyDFJcmigB-EA3DKcGjXJ0tYCu3GsXVIIQNiJ8YkzhfgOHhHW2eGBoa9iV5oqiL9jzDfh_hMzOyiTwT-_v4gHd1OkgpC6-YGgh1TOxW5j-uqJ6/s1600/IMG_2058.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisjllAQUTIgv8a_C49VAFihcy5XEqISvuyDFJcmigB-EA3DKcGjXJ0tYCu3GsXVIIQNiJ8YkzhfgOHhHW2eGBoa9iV5oqiL9jzDfh_hMzOyiTwT-_v4gHd1OkgpC6-YGgh1TOxW5j-uqJ6/s320/IMG_2058.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The men's relay team from Germany.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi78CUXbMuJZmbsGnP1Q3WGCQdqqojqaL0aZI_P_ED7YmUOE5vNMzNkDC1vhPqj2WpV7fN7Q0PTH84AoJ4eoBVuKgIk_cfEPAHRNgBhgZVJf14fBi2WntC5zTKEWnPIauWEjG3CXjpuptdL/s1600/IMG_2025.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi78CUXbMuJZmbsGnP1Q3WGCQdqqojqaL0aZI_P_ED7YmUOE5vNMzNkDC1vhPqj2WpV7fN7Q0PTH84AoJ4eoBVuKgIk_cfEPAHRNgBhgZVJf14fBi2WntC5zTKEWnPIauWEjG3CXjpuptdL/s320/IMG_2025.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The lone Australian competitor</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtIG3lA1jGP-JICF-P_C2RrcqZFRQLNcngKwM4cuDoiFOD5TiXvJCQQsZdS9PnaSmKMwR6exDeUKZFkK1bxo6ww6VuXL6ZXyK-9no_y2uLjIA9szvX28wGq5YuqcwzMAMIOi1XDd2BrIo2/s1600/IMG_2030.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtIG3lA1jGP-JICF-P_C2RrcqZFRQLNcngKwM4cuDoiFOD5TiXvJCQQsZdS9PnaSmKMwR6exDeUKZFkK1bxo6ww6VuXL6ZXyK-9no_y2uLjIA9szvX28wGq5YuqcwzMAMIOi1XDd2BrIo2/s320/IMG_2030.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Warming up with one of the Candians </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vByqPEC7YLhNgvM94GNT-Np8Ip2EsR6SGpWFG5zj7dAKY93fgh3TmEAG3ozBOIxKX3sAihuGdOv1J3SqzQSl1_tHyNA-hgapVkDuczuImGv57cENb24dA2ZITYKaY4HdcVrupMIC70Np/s1600/IMG_2070.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vByqPEC7YLhNgvM94GNT-Np8Ip2EsR6SGpWFG5zj7dAKY93fgh3TmEAG3ozBOIxKX3sAihuGdOv1J3SqzQSl1_tHyNA-hgapVkDuczuImGv57cENb24dA2ZITYKaY4HdcVrupMIC70Np/s320/IMG_2070.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Miga welcoming everyone</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkp9Ww8YfpF8OK_TLOfYoe-2u8XbrD4BRdypKGqFNl7zysTbQjj4rJ5gErKFBDJs8HGA5q6qHKU81-6RqSc6p5ziLGrcKn-4I5jsi3gulCxv7X5aiNMwY6tjKZn6EAP16_cz-i5c0KLj0M/s1600/IMG_2076.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkp9Ww8YfpF8OK_TLOfYoe-2u8XbrD4BRdypKGqFNl7zysTbQjj4rJ5gErKFBDJs8HGA5q6qHKU81-6RqSc6p5ziLGrcKn-4I5jsi3gulCxv7X5aiNMwY6tjKZn6EAP16_cz-i5c0KLj0M/s320/IMG_2076.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">All the world flag around the roof</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLHq4tT3HqmcXrHMIUZ7ISS-sY62v2zITvuysor9iieFY62F1vhHqq52sovzlh5-r8UREvCz-hsxwI3wS_fySM1laFB4IeySff0rnAwQjydQwXRuWfHKAcHElP2bMpQ5QSLLoG9voxZAZt/s1600/IMG_2079.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLHq4tT3HqmcXrHMIUZ7ISS-sY62v2zITvuysor9iieFY62F1vhHqq52sovzlh5-r8UREvCz-hsxwI3wS_fySM1laFB4IeySff0rnAwQjydQwXRuWfHKAcHElP2bMpQ5QSLLoG9voxZAZt/s320/IMG_2079.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The on-ice cameraman. This is a job I wouldn't be so sure about doing, given the speed of those skaters, and how often they wiped out on the ice. Also, we all thought he looked kind of funny.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitSoIBmLoaHjuoDMZ6Rv0G5t0zguOxwGuIHhupT8K2BJ-p-A6KnTpISq1OQPU4olEHYL0_o7Oh0Cacx61mBGvsPo50Rq_rOYsrGSG1QKstiQIWZiaU7GfRw9XzaPYDA_1nMWjlzA8oDlnu/s1600/IMG_2082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitSoIBmLoaHjuoDMZ6Rv0G5t0zguOxwGuIHhupT8K2BJ-p-A6KnTpISq1OQPU4olEHYL0_o7Oh0Cacx61mBGvsPo50Rq_rOYsrGSG1QKstiQIWZiaU7GfRw9XzaPYDA_1nMWjlzA8oDlnu/s320/IMG_2082.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Suits on skates! These guys are the starter and the guy who watches for false starts (which there were a lot of)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii1e58xiF9qXiXxi687coKoPKwe4lAcFpBQCdlK8T9LdclC12VUt8hEE-5Yy9y08ljjVyxh8SYgn9zsGBp548BOwvIN8z75esE16DK015tUN7_YI07PEQcmSm4xjsAZkwwjwQDJh-0olIu/s1600/IMG_2088.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEii1e58xiF9qXiXxi687coKoPKwe4lAcFpBQCdlK8T9LdclC12VUt8hEE-5Yy9y08ljjVyxh8SYgn9zsGBp548BOwvIN8z75esE16DK015tUN7_YI07PEQcmSm4xjsAZkwwjwQDJh-0olIu/s320/IMG_2088.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Starting one of the men's 1500 races...I think it's probably a semi final.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzugy12YRq1v7s_-R8TKpmdRtcDX8DrF09fBfa5yZkj3TTXI5Kvpgu-cVdm8mjFHKmsRPew6Ki4x8dDI7-wAsQFr80BZjLuVew0hbg8ShHWvh51jbsBOS5vDHuicjwZYNFAnWivdJB1CQ/s1600/IMG_2105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxzugy12YRq1v7s_-R8TKpmdRtcDX8DrF09fBfa5yZkj3TTXI5Kvpgu-cVdm8mjFHKmsRPew6Ki4x8dDI7-wAsQFr80BZjLuVew0hbg8ShHWvh51jbsBOS5vDHuicjwZYNFAnWivdJB1CQ/s320/IMG_2105.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> Quatchi telling us to be quiet. You had to be quiet for all the race starts because the skaters needed to be able to hear their instructions. There were quite a few false starts because of yelling people disrupting things.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWASGi37TjXectvlLr7mohkuGtJLJPE7QPDD9HXXuymLzfEDw4u9-DjSaJB2F2G3YLcB7Sfip-xHqccXnud-aYq6mW1y6enpwBp_kk-pY85QDlvONVzxp9WARyWeDQPm22C25IA92_jpoZ/s1600/IMG_2111.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWASGi37TjXectvlLr7mohkuGtJLJPE7QPDD9HXXuymLzfEDw4u9-DjSaJB2F2G3YLcB7Sfip-xHqccXnud-aYq6mW1y6enpwBp_kk-pY85QDlvONVzxp9WARyWeDQPm22C25IA92_jpoZ/s320/IMG_2111.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The start of one of the womens 1000m races. A semi final too I think. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgriw9PI6pDhpzEKA41i-nN_oHGxohHvTmZah-DADPsRVgKGDNzrm9__307YqCDS2vJRC5d4tzc7rjhl9gfUhENX4la5zQwRqzhNE2KgtEA3vnYahT-9NzxtL3RJvEO8S9L9ZQSxle9f5aF/s1600/IMG_2215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgriw9PI6pDhpzEKA41i-nN_oHGxohHvTmZah-DADPsRVgKGDNzrm9__307YqCDS2vJRC5d4tzc7rjhl9gfUhENX4la5zQwRqzhNE2KgtEA3vnYahT-9NzxtL3RJvEO8S9L9ZQSxle9f5aF/s320/IMG_2215.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">More of the womens 1000m</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0robrCqt6cz9aKu1LnxhVUGIdFyUDtHZfMzW9vTY_1cwgUF6S-ihiXgPuQ3PdEjUBKRY6fH576MGykibLwQ-m8EmZSN5HtGP9wOToiNK11eoMfvbOT6Tjtey-ET1hHNCRCJwJE7EzNuyc/s1600/IMG_2120.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0robrCqt6cz9aKu1LnxhVUGIdFyUDtHZfMzW9vTY_1cwgUF6S-ihiXgPuQ3PdEjUBKRY6fH576MGykibLwQ-m8EmZSN5HtGP9wOToiNK11eoMfvbOT6Tjtey-ET1hHNCRCJwJE7EzNuyc/s320/IMG_2120.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivm9tynVsIQhq4kl9v-w5JeOYJbXkBZQLxqT1ufZJhduyiithvaCGfnN98Yc4yjsrtQzIhyZUMCYfrFLgF17HK-OcZbGUjEh8a6wAU1JVUNKnDbMKXzNC7GJBPbN2DSZE1rwbUv-YGt6nU/s1600/IMG_2142.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivm9tynVsIQhq4kl9v-w5JeOYJbXkBZQLxqT1ufZJhduyiithvaCGfnN98Yc4yjsrtQzIhyZUMCYfrFLgF17HK-OcZbGUjEh8a6wAU1JVUNKnDbMKXzNC7GJBPbN2DSZE1rwbUv-YGt6nU/s320/IMG_2142.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Ew-JseEaoYVSPArwzJ_yv6KE5ahAa_ZqaRpP1oEbuNYHyysuS2xRyjC3ZOfxHP2cO_cvFRkBwfSjq-LJthV9hrJA8BAGZVaXtf6F7ZBquaukq9Fq3ZVfhJ6YY-gpjxXc9vsWfXIgECrp/s1600/IMG_2163.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1Ew-JseEaoYVSPArwzJ_yv6KE5ahAa_ZqaRpP1oEbuNYHyysuS2xRyjC3ZOfxHP2cO_cvFRkBwfSjq-LJthV9hrJA8BAGZVaXtf6F7ZBquaukq9Fq3ZVfhJ6YY-gpjxXc9vsWfXIgECrp/s320/IMG_2163.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This one was the end of the mens 1500 m final. It was a most dramatic finish, with Canada winning gold and bronze, and the Korean guy sliding across the line on his tummy for silver, after being thumped by the American, who was of course disqualified.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKgHLqY5sLMnndQiadLklmtaNZ09V3yhGBYFhSOqa5kYsRJ-KyxBaUZPvoLZwYkq55PRsaFUEF1N0Pp9VTHaOdSC2H0kSUZEj3aogHHdXfhJu0tCFZ_LudtG-l8hlJRafQaaSgNR8peoMt/s1600/IMG_2159.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKgHLqY5sLMnndQiadLklmtaNZ09V3yhGBYFhSOqa5kYsRJ-KyxBaUZPvoLZwYkq55PRsaFUEF1N0Pp9VTHaOdSC2H0kSUZEj3aogHHdXfhJu0tCFZ_LudtG-l8hlJRafQaaSgNR8peoMt/s320/IMG_2159.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">The gold medal kiss! She also won medals for Canada in the long track speed skating.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNbmYcuC5Ilbh717kCw_a78aXQj7c8Kkyykn2GfpySlUDJk_EzXInjKApnGCEdKkjkFZfY5HnSlcZDWk6TpEhnUl_5OrgOBByzdvADwiCQgnM8f0QlWrpSh1_cuw1hD-k1YvFcaXj76o_l/s1600/IMG_2168.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNbmYcuC5Ilbh717kCw_a78aXQj7c8Kkyykn2GfpySlUDJk_EzXInjKApnGCEdKkjkFZfY5HnSlcZDWk6TpEhnUl_5OrgOBByzdvADwiCQgnM8f0QlWrpSh1_cuw1hD-k1YvFcaXj76o_l/s320/IMG_2168.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The neat thing about being at the event in person was that you get to see everything that goes on between races when the commentators are usually babbling. Was much more interesting!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAqkEIRLLktq2POUL3p9R8twcba1u_HylyMu3pOQbRmih8XhvDf4_PsczWSs3GkkX1tLIXNzQjNEpnLVcEZbJ6glem6okfwFTFqyZIlTBmwFjPWhnIBi43Vl5rQw8CA1LNqN7fj5NxnbF3/s1600/IMG_2211.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAqkEIRLLktq2POUL3p9R8twcba1u_HylyMu3pOQbRmih8XhvDf4_PsczWSs3GkkX1tLIXNzQjNEpnLVcEZbJ6glem6okfwFTFqyZIlTBmwFjPWhnIBi43Vl5rQw8CA1LNqN7fj5NxnbF3/s320/IMG_2211.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Some of the fan groups</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNgN2Agz3l2pjaDmmRA4msuWdqKk_jXq3_HCxhUTl8qFW0CcGOV0L3fMcyF4VlCH5Qg12axrfLGf4EbtmifulCN7h_lJ8IzcOXvTf9RCScb4J4SipUlm6OKVH9rstCGPvriqeQBZNeUcVT/s1600/IMG_2218.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNgN2Agz3l2pjaDmmRA4msuWdqKk_jXq3_HCxhUTl8qFW0CcGOV0L3fMcyF4VlCH5Qg12axrfLGf4EbtmifulCN7h_lJ8IzcOXvTf9RCScb4J4SipUlm6OKVH9rstCGPvriqeQBZNeUcVT/s320/IMG_2218.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is during the mens relay final. If there was ever a race that matchs the indoor cycling events at the Summer olympics for insanity, and not having a clue what's going on till the end, this would be it. Being able to see the whole rink meant we could watch all the skaters, rather than just the ones that were on their turn. It was very exciting, but just a bit confusing!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiilmY4k6WasbfbrqqfvhRDJsCBti_-K062cTYjxNkCCFhqsl52WlkCJhV6uq6qz86Je1CgsjwDa3jouFTpRaYhZixUcfQpYUHH9p502ZL34eL5O2CwamuKSHVxq9aRgY6iUuLsJ9zCS6f/s1600/IMG_2229.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiilmY4k6WasbfbrqqfvhRDJsCBti_-K062cTYjxNkCCFhqsl52WlkCJhV6uq6qz86Je1CgsjwDa3jouFTpRaYhZixUcfQpYUHH9p502ZL34eL5O2CwamuKSHVxq9aRgY6iUuLsJ9zCS6f/s320/IMG_2229.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">One of the confusing bits, "the push", where you'd get at least 8 skaters on the ice at once.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXf03QaVUyvTP5br6KSqIigtW0MQooLPaVj6AQUs4GCSHADc_S12ZDsxD1MtgDRVrioHilIEt7whqZDFfG7LAssTXVfGK1xRp9vHPgGa-4AtlfBJtS7Exh7DLTbfDj4gw02SL8YIQLulqc/s1600/IMG_2234.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXf03QaVUyvTP5br6KSqIigtW0MQooLPaVj6AQUs4GCSHADc_S12ZDsxD1MtgDRVrioHilIEt7whqZDFfG7LAssTXVfGK1xRp9vHPgGa-4AtlfBJtS7Exh7DLTbfDj4gw02SL8YIQLulqc/s320/IMG_2234.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Canada leading the way!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW1F0CErO0fsHGI4h7UgnCygiGpcpd-wSAi7CxaBp22B7pXXS2LBj-937FzfPh8XoHilu2udwn_vfuVwWjC-7L7zHcCvoEAdJI9TJ07DSkBzAonhSHKGu3xN7201JzDL8J_ITtO_2Z861p/s1600/IMG_2242.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiW1F0CErO0fsHGI4h7UgnCygiGpcpd-wSAi7CxaBp22B7pXXS2LBj-937FzfPh8XoHilu2udwn_vfuVwWjC-7L7zHcCvoEAdJI9TJ07DSkBzAonhSHKGu3xN7201JzDL8J_ITtO_2Z861p/s320/IMG_2242.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">GOLD!!!!!!!!!!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggtuw91dpZLinYh-n2cnBEb_qYkAC8CBjat04iVgYq9kDRbw1rsEJhYZlpi_4ZlZC6jJZ76sZgfF24dhVFU1JOJcCE8BxvNQWk3NFEFp_H45nDNwxquFXJ0All0DEBAGM2-AHkFaUi3tkg/s1600/IMG_2252.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggtuw91dpZLinYh-n2cnBEb_qYkAC8CBjat04iVgYq9kDRbw1rsEJhYZlpi_4ZlZC6jJZ76sZgfF24dhVFU1JOJcCE8BxvNQWk3NFEFp_H45nDNwxquFXJ0All0DEBAGM2-AHkFaUi3tkg/s320/IMG_2252.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Wow...was an amazing race, and an amazing atmosphere. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEietC39xJDvMP1Xiz3HkD5DkvGazLgleHiWnt7IN4DAv4AnEWXXr2UvP3k5CgysH7he2Q0ueiCt_tXTkrUzQMVAmp9Z0jqDq_uc17DFwOGb6G4wBysnKreGyii1O4Fqu41qISc90sdRuk_P/s1600/IMG_2254.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEietC39xJDvMP1Xiz3HkD5DkvGazLgleHiWnt7IN4DAv4AnEWXXr2UvP3k5CgysH7he2Q0ueiCt_tXTkrUzQMVAmp9Z0jqDq_uc17DFwOGb6G4wBysnKreGyii1O4Fqu41qISc90sdRuk_P/s320/IMG_2254.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">More gold medal kisses</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPs3TDxgdrnxfHjRuSbZSDIXaRQXlZJfOtQlqGqJO8kGlqlVzoIU3FzY9vT4kmw7OGOfCUxzgkV4dKH-P3zUxsPE1EWG5aRxas2_WkbgPAjsK-F92etkIVOvpmIVB3nIjd0zt8TRqYotC-/s1600/IMG_2260.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPs3TDxgdrnxfHjRuSbZSDIXaRQXlZJfOtQlqGqJO8kGlqlVzoIU3FzY9vT4kmw7OGOfCUxzgkV4dKH-P3zUxsPE1EWG5aRxas2_WkbgPAjsK-F92etkIVOvpmIVB3nIjd0zt8TRqYotC-/s320/IMG_2260.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A little bit of cross border friendliness.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6mZowaHr0v4ZgNN5pDx0Z_NchrdRGmiQVdlaaN1WtXA_d4jogWVGCUGreqV7NT0N6Di79MgtC6wE3-Hmd_HX1NbgFkm5xF9m9-fWD7QxrnIXvLbwSwKRRMNLxR_2mfd8D_ZexJi0goo99/s1600/IMG_2269.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6mZowaHr0v4ZgNN5pDx0Z_NchrdRGmiQVdlaaN1WtXA_d4jogWVGCUGreqV7NT0N6Di79MgtC6wE3-Hmd_HX1NbgFkm5xF9m9-fWD7QxrnIXvLbwSwKRRMNLxR_2mfd8D_ZexJi0goo99/s320/IMG_2269.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Something I'll give the Koreans for this olympics. Two things actually, they ruled at the speed skating, and whenever they won anything, whatever colour it was, they were just so happy! It was really nice to see such gracious sportsmanship.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4JFopjXqrDhK3ELU6_rIfcNV7s0eGk9uidJV1iVFJJdgBnpKiH1RiQHwZ_wFG6RNmT778sVEE40u3dHmmbpcbmS4WQcwkXuGd_-MUBepjMeulMB9T7-hjO3Pm_PpopLSGootX8xDmjCX/s1600/IMG_2271.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN4JFopjXqrDhK3ELU6_rIfcNV7s0eGk9uidJV1iVFJJdgBnpKiH1RiQHwZ_wFG6RNmT778sVEE40u3dHmmbpcbmS4WQcwkXuGd_-MUBepjMeulMB9T7-hjO3Pm_PpopLSGootX8xDmjCX/s320/IMG_2271.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Two VERY ecstatic Canadians!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9WPJ8qEP4IJhV2biRzxeMmAZOmR_2prXL5KfkvaPemEVDWQ1aCzWqs9qabnN0KMMxBzhQpx5va5VnuXQn7NuewcXEISu1LMq2vX9gvpPoF8PIhPxOXkzmnfX1UfLqQbdYiAems7t26uZF/s1600/IMG_2274.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9WPJ8qEP4IJhV2biRzxeMmAZOmR_2prXL5KfkvaPemEVDWQ1aCzWqs9qabnN0KMMxBzhQpx5va5VnuXQn7NuewcXEISu1LMq2vX9gvpPoF8PIhPxOXkzmnfX1UfLqQbdYiAems7t26uZF/s320/IMG_2274.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Muk muk asking for applause...applause? I don't think so...I lost my voice again that night.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfA_SEyTaZ9glit5zfira7Xe0tJZJcYZ954uOVXIzG3tZ0LyL4G7V-QkPU7Rj9DchYCQXOJJncvkqZHy-FkQqhTC1GUa57IFJUKMw9fLTw4PpJi3Sc3muh8npB6WtMs4JptgvfdM4qDjXB/s1600/IMG_2280.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfA_SEyTaZ9glit5zfira7Xe0tJZJcYZ954uOVXIzG3tZ0LyL4G7V-QkPU7Rj9DchYCQXOJJncvkqZHy-FkQqhTC1GUa57IFJUKMw9fLTw4PpJi3Sc3muh8npB6WtMs4JptgvfdM4qDjXB/s320/IMG_2280.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">The big moment is coming, and the mounties are bringing out the flags.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheI5kQEdiuYTQrN9gXk8zA-bC-Ai1RDKxfo6kgOFqtUGYG2T9JDUuSiXgBJ7_IO_s1iRxbIfsrQxq7K81ecFR1FNo5RLpZfCGfykps_K4JyZgNO0Ia-SE94B9-k4637s4s_D5nPcXz_RzX/s1600/IMG_2296.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheI5kQEdiuYTQrN9gXk8zA-bC-Ai1RDKxfo6kgOFqtUGYG2T9JDUuSiXgBJ7_IO_s1iRxbIfsrQxq7K81ecFR1FNo5RLpZfCGfykps_K4JyZgNO0Ia-SE94B9-k4637s4s_D5nPcXz_RzX/s320/IMG_2296.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Gold and Bronze for Canada!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjR8MgY7Shtmi_qHSJu_uySHW4wCtmD9RKkIWsMz-nM9aAncb83pKoLkamU3FCq3YR-Kzqcq2N7XmhGqQc_rF5n3fGTxSuYZcYLuKIADn5UcrYm-hHTBEF-XjBm5fHOgEO1H-QhE5Ivb9c/s1600/IMG_2318.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjR8MgY7Shtmi_qHSJu_uySHW4wCtmD9RKkIWsMz-nM9aAncb83pKoLkamU3FCq3YR-Kzqcq2N7XmhGqQc_rF5n3fGTxSuYZcYLuKIADn5UcrYm-hHTBEF-XjBm5fHOgEO1H-QhE5Ivb9c/s320/IMG_2318.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Gold to China, Silver to USA, Bronze to Italy</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIT-rHuXYod7nlIWHRtE0bZr2ZcENJUI9lpGYVXagBqOtOQ6j4rTiwZjPmhAM-8euz7j2wWC_l6BnA9IKDHf-pSb-Unjz4PwmGa2PQsWyRWOSu__93dzRW1MRBmBe9Ko3unM1fZekqWsb/s1600/IMG_2324.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTIT-rHuXYod7nlIWHRtE0bZr2ZcENJUI9lpGYVXagBqOtOQ6j4rTiwZjPmhAM-8euz7j2wWC_l6BnA9IKDHf-pSb-Unjz4PwmGa2PQsWyRWOSu__93dzRW1MRBmBe9Ko3unM1fZekqWsb/s320/IMG_2324.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Boy this girl was fast, she got two records that night.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQEvs3C8KCtHFxaIYG-s7K2vh9uuKyrHP7s4qI8qjpbXKgX6EoSlVYe5Gg_qTPxktb26T_u83AKkdqRsSxUPEbhPB4cSonN4FzBYRLjoJgFKgdNJO6nQ8rEOcP7OCj4sQcZ81un1fNqI4/s1600/IMG_2353.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigQEvs3C8KCtHFxaIYG-s7K2vh9uuKyrHP7s4qI8qjpbXKgX6EoSlVYe5Gg_qTPxktb26T_u83AKkdqRsSxUPEbhPB4cSonN4FzBYRLjoJgFKgdNJO6nQ8rEOcP7OCj4sQcZ81un1fNqI4/s320/IMG_2353.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And lastly, GOLD TO CANADA!!!!!!! This was the only event that Canada got two golds in one night, and I'm so glad we were there to see it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXWLbiXFz1S7G5uNn7zYWy2zHa3vQwLGYlaATSzhsKd5BWW2TNGtLtPJEhcutzOWJcEXuep-JJzsNCjPSixn4hLagP9ew5USG5jjL7RKzC4oQ-wLtoL7Rp89OpDz8GfBaOZ-22Qu7dPYud/s1600/IMG_2359.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXWLbiXFz1S7G5uNn7zYWy2zHa3vQwLGYlaATSzhsKd5BWW2TNGtLtPJEhcutzOWJcEXuep-JJzsNCjPSixn4hLagP9ew5USG5jjL7RKzC4oQ-wLtoL7Rp89OpDz8GfBaOZ-22Qu7dPYud/s320/IMG_2359.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The flags going up for to relay. It's nice how into the anthem Canadians are, especially in comparison to Australians. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL33knNiekaNJ6-7ks9eOEIG0Svge_q09KWBP1CgQ8cvzhEQJ6Ae21ydHondAbfd0-Sr4mHiENVUJ7Mp9wuXK0Imb7lQijN7b-Ssz2xTa746HHHLORTyiTqNuqcNxvMS9SvpEL0HUnAkQE/s1600/IMG_2369.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL33knNiekaNJ6-7ks9eOEIG0Svge_q09KWBP1CgQ8cvzhEQJ6Ae21ydHondAbfd0-Sr4mHiENVUJ7Mp9wuXK0Imb7lQijN7b-Ssz2xTa746HHHLORTyiTqNuqcNxvMS9SvpEL0HUnAkQE/s320/IMG_2369.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The relay boys with their golds</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9nM3qTqV58Tx19cy7mOgdzD4c8Xt-HqEPkKsY9AlrgNQY_VLelnsqIdNCIPp6FCxcIIa5GVUlto2crJi2nNAUqYjir-cFIzIzs3qMMGL2AcCEb91MCn4zYjEJCFj1wRdCIFqoz-8-dRON/s1600/IMG_2401.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9nM3qTqV58Tx19cy7mOgdzD4c8Xt-HqEPkKsY9AlrgNQY_VLelnsqIdNCIPp6FCxcIIa5GVUlto2crJi2nNAUqYjir-cFIzIzs3qMMGL2AcCEb91MCn4zYjEJCFj1wRdCIFqoz-8-dRON/s320/IMG_2401.jpg" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Craig and Peter outside the Pacific Coliseum! What a night!</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Of course, that wasn't the end of the Olympics. There was still the mighty hockey clash to go, and that was one of the most stressful sports games I have ever watched (even including the 2003 Rugby final), but Canada won out, and it was a great way to end the Olympics. And the Olympics were a great start to Canada too!</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-51818752012858158972010-05-02T12:36:00.000-07:002010-05-02T12:36:39.713-07:00Chinese New Year in VancouverThis year Chinese New Year fell on February 14th, which turned out to be a beautiful sunny sunday in Vancouver. Craig and I trooped off to Chinatown nice and early for the New Year parade. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxkDVMKohPqfV9FOU5Kuq6EydOTjAPyiSyNG6TvD70GYDWIIKcfXmGGqBsKDLe4jjwfzfRZjd8Q_GmFQ3YBKFYME053lAvdC8K1CcQyTGEnAWLzBo3c19DcqJMQXVBHSyJMHoEFRR8Ud9S/s1600/IMG_0975.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxkDVMKohPqfV9FOU5Kuq6EydOTjAPyiSyNG6TvD70GYDWIIKcfXmGGqBsKDLe4jjwfzfRZjd8Q_GmFQ3YBKFYME053lAvdC8K1CcQyTGEnAWLzBo3c19DcqJMQXVBHSyJMHoEFRR8Ud9S/s320/IMG_0975.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The parade started with an old man walking through the parade route throwing down firecrackers. If there is one thing that the various CNY celebrations I have been to have in common, it would be the noise! What amused us most was that the old man throwing down the crackers was followed by a young man with a fire extinguisher. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhPhpc4Q4g2jKxsA3bLdmWH5pnIuEv4hZkeBiplBnPWKlXt5IvQYtE5UuroIkFAbQMY5zsi-wJj683yGv8qpbrMYVD7W2g3FHPUSSokWDEjH5gjvhZbJSEE9pUikif-x_hLci1cidSvUYr/s1600/IMG_0976.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhPhpc4Q4g2jKxsA3bLdmWH5pnIuEv4hZkeBiplBnPWKlXt5IvQYtE5UuroIkFAbQMY5zsi-wJj683yGv8qpbrMYVD7W2g3FHPUSSokWDEjH5gjvhZbJSEE9pUikif-x_hLci1cidSvUYr/s320/IMG_0976.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Firecracker-thrower in training perhaps?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYv8yqk8fQTFxzT15FpXXxVNR5ezPka8OD2sCk5egQ-iDRuPxEF0W2FWXYUTHecYmXfdbAvmlXCqJ8dYztSwNBd3W4S7VYPoGz0cve_l1SOoLRmQG8RjxmO1801I3GPrZhI6Qtnf_SKg33/s1600/IMG_0980.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYv8yqk8fQTFxzT15FpXXxVNR5ezPka8OD2sCk5egQ-iDRuPxEF0W2FWXYUTHecYmXfdbAvmlXCqJ8dYztSwNBd3W4S7VYPoGz0cve_l1SOoLRmQG8RjxmO1801I3GPrZhI6Qtnf_SKg33/s320/IMG_0980.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The King of Fortune, wishing everyone a happy new year.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbg7u3FJgexq-8uNYuPLAiDB9Y0-Y-A-wvyi93nduU_5QuUxo1NOn3UMUgd8FTsNVGukXCqHQo1WiTnvExXo7v9DhH9TMt-ilWB24mj0dS-8FlIqmDd9PIGXJ1wzw8ZrEfUE3eh9oBdPuK/s1600/IMG_0983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbg7u3FJgexq-8uNYuPLAiDB9Y0-Y-A-wvyi93nduU_5QuUxo1NOn3UMUgd8FTsNVGukXCqHQo1WiTnvExXo7v9DhH9TMt-ilWB24mj0dS-8FlIqmDd9PIGXJ1wzw8ZrEfUE3eh9oBdPuK/s320/IMG_0983.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Chinese war veterans marched in the parade too.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF8bymHfaGrZh6z6T1IFyQ9c5qlyR1Xs3jae-Rk58FEzNAbKvxaXqU5Fpab4bdWnQLNvE4iqNBr09anzRJ6geIXfInXjxRc3YlDT4G81vlYJKSWdFy2-a3IR6y_voTmF1YfORiY2FFQ3NG/s1600/IMG_1002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF8bymHfaGrZh6z6T1IFyQ9c5qlyR1Xs3jae-Rk58FEzNAbKvxaXqU5Fpab4bdWnQLNvE4iqNBr09anzRJ6geIXfInXjxRc3YlDT4G81vlYJKSWdFy2-a3IR6y_voTmF1YfORiY2FFQ3NG/s320/IMG_1002.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next came groups of dancers, going right from groups of five year olds to retirees.</div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0sdMDQJFADBKkNZRF6IkzvU3ugnSRlE2BtWgZNbodOe15psnrvJpO7NCTzfcwucgzxHmabUwkgnyHLeSz3tV9ZveVWr-HqSspDLkyGW1F0F0QpvPUjYaL-gErOAO7FFne8KHVgSf_2JtH/s1600/IMG_1006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0sdMDQJFADBKkNZRF6IkzvU3ugnSRlE2BtWgZNbodOe15psnrvJpO7NCTzfcwucgzxHmabUwkgnyHLeSz3tV9ZveVWr-HqSspDLkyGW1F0F0QpvPUjYaL-gErOAO7FFne8KHVgSf_2JtH/s320/IMG_1006.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">All the different dancers were wearing costumes from the different minority groups in China.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7k4y6ifFm3kKM9r1SM8kDK9jD91P5_4QN9VAP9I8jAke6L-9iJ3TsLwwyx652NGVduJG4Oq8bgm0FQJz1vDGrOztljvt30aT1L-CQXuxBscxuiBkLShQSjTqvao-tGRfBeSrf6FWCPME9/s1600/IMG_1007.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7k4y6ifFm3kKM9r1SM8kDK9jD91P5_4QN9VAP9I8jAke6L-9iJ3TsLwwyx652NGVduJG4Oq8bgm0FQJz1vDGrOztljvt30aT1L-CQXuxBscxuiBkLShQSjTqvao-tGRfBeSrf6FWCPME9/s320/IMG_1007.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTDgu20zWBBp8ZO9d7lx94eVxqwDtvRaG_Hb1EX7qmmvv4l3jyudUQwypAuoD9DJ3WlBXSXJ_a8eOWJ3n_U1YhfigSnRrjThMFwkjI2mWePXd8i5yuEzCq8vi7nojMqgZzXBj1J2fhZRPM/s1600/IMG_1011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTDgu20zWBBp8ZO9d7lx94eVxqwDtvRaG_Hb1EX7qmmvv4l3jyudUQwypAuoD9DJ3WlBXSXJ_a8eOWJ3n_U1YhfigSnRrjThMFwkjI2mWePXd8i5yuEzCq8vi7nojMqgZzXBj1J2fhZRPM/s320/IMG_1011.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">There were also many lion dancers of all ages. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKYvTKzBDEcUgWvqAWp7IpTUb9498iR3kLHFD8u_KXyrW0hgplVLwLGFEGBIlKlLvcbVZQZO-S0FSF2sEWsUdA_hqPnAHc7smSZQQBurmWwQOjTHFavbdnJvMf2KIm7e1XgtXpo2P4LfzN/s1600/IMG_1020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKYvTKzBDEcUgWvqAWp7IpTUb9498iR3kLHFD8u_KXyrW0hgplVLwLGFEGBIlKlLvcbVZQZO-S0FSF2sEWsUdA_hqPnAHc7smSZQQBurmWwQOjTHFavbdnJvMf2KIm7e1XgtXpo2P4LfzN/s320/IMG_1020.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The most famous foreigner in China. Da Shan! For those who haven't been to China, this guy is everywhere there. He's been in multiple tv shows, works for Chinese TV , and has been the advertising face of a number Chinese companies. AND he has perfect Chinese. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV8ebqWbMrh1Fuawm9PImW6OUc-pjPpvAcxW8WFk7Dc0dEPkCDkxd0qGv0etFlse1M2tY0gH_9x_0PbGHXnIguUSWFGo-0H_K2gOd4u3u7E21y0hD4dmpWMlnlw2tK40Zj0xRRgCAxCGzE/s1600/IMG_1024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV8ebqWbMrh1Fuawm9PImW6OUc-pjPpvAcxW8WFk7Dc0dEPkCDkxd0qGv0etFlse1M2tY0gH_9x_0PbGHXnIguUSWFGo-0H_K2gOd4u3u7E21y0hD4dmpWMlnlw2tK40Zj0xRRgCAxCGzE/s320/IMG_1024.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Craig was a bit bemused that I was so excited to see him, but certainly I wasn't as bad as some of the Chinese people. He really is a celebrity there, and there were lots of people running up for photos with him looking a bit starstruck.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1L7yi76Ias0SPsHnd5OJ1uKu86DzQYDmb0AN_0jNxw4r3X6F4RzBdoBsH1O9pA4wZ6U4q4BMrP3rzVguOtPmyX9ZMvdPkY825OaS6owVtZwUa4E05iXI6L8eg81moBfmqOvyoD3FHqhc/s1600/IMG_1042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY1L7yi76Ias0SPsHnd5OJ1uKu86DzQYDmb0AN_0jNxw4r3X6F4RzBdoBsH1O9pA4wZ6U4q4BMrP3rzVguOtPmyX9ZMvdPkY825OaS6owVtZwUa4E05iXI6L8eg81moBfmqOvyoD3FHqhc/s320/IMG_1042.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">After a not so Chinese New Year style lunch of Cambodian noodles, we headed to the Chinatown cultural Centre to watch a kung fu performance.</div><div align="center" class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFApu0tdQPi5DkyjXLYCS7EJ-HQfulqZelPctn9kA4vDgnNip0TnxH4cUZupLUHzLDyEHM0l-5B0QMiavkAewFbz5QNyFJn3AI1AglSSRD6_Ff1xIGRS8CWCXiKqLuYwgIbsRNJ_oS0Koq/s1600/IMG_1036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFApu0tdQPi5DkyjXLYCS7EJ-HQfulqZelPctn9kA4vDgnNip0TnxH4cUZupLUHzLDyEHM0l-5B0QMiavkAewFbz5QNyFJn3AI1AglSSRD6_Ff1xIGRS8CWCXiKqLuYwgIbsRNJ_oS0Koq/s320/IMG_1036.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">This little one was one of the cutest little kids around. She was totally enthralled in the kung fu, and I thought she was just so cute in her little red suit.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCHsGGzf5ooW8RGylZ1NczsvIyWJdSL0ZrAjHp0cyqFKLqLIQYpZcBrb0FgV2QWNeMBSmhdxVlKv9BFVn0KKY6-5dn58FckqBmgIrlxMeMImKnTkkNpgAnEl4EqLzL8rImoZzTZtSmdAtI/s1600/IMG_1046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCHsGGzf5ooW8RGylZ1NczsvIyWJdSL0ZrAjHp0cyqFKLqLIQYpZcBrb0FgV2QWNeMBSmhdxVlKv9BFVn0KKY6-5dn58FckqBmgIrlxMeMImKnTkkNpgAnEl4EqLzL8rImoZzTZtSmdAtI/s320/IMG_1046.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">These kids were awesome! Arse-kicking kids in pretty costumes</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk8tslWHUVnhQe8jkmIb32TR5S2DIRfvj2mwKs3ZOwbph8xswGtqUEXnrYxH2ZhEPPqtzU4CS7FZIsO83CZ97Vv5KthldCzNZIGj5oCwMxo6Z_OIbT49RH8E2ZNByw2flu9jMARhIW8OZb/s1600/IMG_1057.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk8tslWHUVnhQe8jkmIb32TR5S2DIRfvj2mwKs3ZOwbph8xswGtqUEXnrYxH2ZhEPPqtzU4CS7FZIsO83CZ97Vv5KthldCzNZIGj5oCwMxo6Z_OIbT49RH8E2ZNByw2flu9jMARhIW8OZb/s320/IMG_1057.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I think this little guy was the youngest of all the kung fu performers, but he was very serious about it.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXLRsNmttNdI1MVxEjMcd7zmonj4S_4tlMXoNAQlCMSmh5Ln9vecDedNzUd-mrZUp47q_7eHdNm7yCSVkzhyphenhyphene6uIFBFbahhr0ElYj2W8Rv9-LMWg0krGVXfdzumK-lIesTUL_U2QJ-x_V/s1600/IMG_1062.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEXLRsNmttNdI1MVxEjMcd7zmonj4S_4tlMXoNAQlCMSmh5Ln9vecDedNzUd-mrZUp47q_7eHdNm7yCSVkzhyphenhyphene6uIFBFbahhr0ElYj2W8Rv9-LMWg0krGVXfdzumK-lIesTUL_U2QJ-x_V/s320/IMG_1062.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz4kcjxFaKn1-Sq5prQQKOtw04pvEe1rSkXGuNnkj0Rszb2CVIy3uxRb5WcabQS-pHET4LX5UmRjTgdJCRu2KIsoB1SzEM9sbFgTMn7PN-020r9ZIWfUO9noGFogxBI838tVf4HGvMJ9Vt/s1600/IMG_1064.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz4kcjxFaKn1-Sq5prQQKOtw04pvEe1rSkXGuNnkj0Rszb2CVIy3uxRb5WcabQS-pHET4LX5UmRjTgdJCRu2KIsoB1SzEM9sbFgTMn7PN-020r9ZIWfUO9noGFogxBI838tVf4HGvMJ9Vt/s320/IMG_1064.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This guy was the oldest of the performers. It would have been interesting to see him go with a proper weapon, as the one he was using was pretty flimsy.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4hmJa5NP_jvSVFgf0wkNlbzGvhXqzHKegzni6WieQ9UGvLxoAS8Mx9QLIdVGM-ZUpxz37rjAwiftxq-fMSWBJLdw7DXNWd_O5zd_uo086EWnl7ge28L7i_h0mzHmnHytwwD7_CHTLXYnN/s1600/IMG_1100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4hmJa5NP_jvSVFgf0wkNlbzGvhXqzHKegzni6WieQ9UGvLxoAS8Mx9QLIdVGM-ZUpxz37rjAwiftxq-fMSWBJLdw7DXNWd_O5zd_uo086EWnl7ge28L7i_h0mzHmnHytwwD7_CHTLXYnN/s320/IMG_1100.JPG" tt="true" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Lastly, this guy was the star of the show, jumping and kicking so high, and so fast. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">It was a lovely Chinese New Year, with an interesting Olympic flavour. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next stop...Olympic Fever!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-40650434407519804932010-03-27T15:03:00.000-07:002010-03-27T15:03:04.822-07:00Birthday!So this year, I had my first birthday entirely outside of Australia. Last year nearly took that title, only I flew to Sydney that day, so I got about 6 hours there. I wasn't really into a huge deal for my birthday this year, but Craig and Peter took over and planned some nice things. <br />
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First of these was the cake! <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEdDbzW0qma5CLyaGeq-IQhox4OIAkYlN5mqIO7seDz0hHOSOlERGywp9My0HP3bg0e-I7KrD2AbUQF13-PT8B9upn3mn7MuujZZLcn84Z4bmd4kx6oxUtcAx2uSE5_rJOOqWzQP7g9jEf/s1600/IMG_0727.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEdDbzW0qma5CLyaGeq-IQhox4OIAkYlN5mqIO7seDz0hHOSOlERGywp9My0HP3bg0e-I7KrD2AbUQF13-PT8B9upn3mn7MuujZZLcn84Z4bmd4kx6oxUtcAx2uSE5_rJOOqWzQP7g9jEf/s320/IMG_0727.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is apparently a Canadian tradition, to have an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen. Craig and Peter took it one step further, and drew the Mukmuk as a mountie design for them to put on the cake, which worked really well. And they spelt my name right! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The day was a glorious sunny day, so we took the cake down to the waterfront to eat. A very nice way to spend a couple of hours, especially with the lovely warm sun!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW42wlTnLuLvAkE9d58p70U0wHNHvysOyy5coKwAImJBUGHGgE1xbgv9oTB3LRA6kzdEW_Gz-6Thq45gsvp47a9DVKhHC-jCn4BrS4s1ueuvGEJkf9vuIaeeX4BNY0I00BT6JbyInEaTv8/s1600/IMG_0729.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW42wlTnLuLvAkE9d58p70U0wHNHvysOyy5coKwAImJBUGHGgE1xbgv9oTB3LRA6kzdEW_Gz-6Thq45gsvp47a9DVKhHC-jCn4BrS4s1ueuvGEJkf9vuIaeeX4BNY0I00BT6JbyInEaTv8/s320/IMG_0729.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Later on, we all went out for dinner at a Mexican restaurant. We were all pretty hungry, so we thought a large nachos would be good. This is what we got...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhism_YKP6iBfqhNfnOdbPDEFA5mAmDAxiZSPKHL-u2O4vaUiaVSJT8ul3OJtraWHHkYMMK41IFh-rPlTGLE0Xxr8xXSdZQrJo94CVrejPGUSVu-lJSTQ8_Gnf9GMy1PQ1ZLyX4WWHVMNXB/s1600/IMG_6652.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhism_YKP6iBfqhNfnOdbPDEFA5mAmDAxiZSPKHL-u2O4vaUiaVSJT8ul3OJtraWHHkYMMK41IFh-rPlTGLE0Xxr8xXSdZQrJo94CVrejPGUSVu-lJSTQ8_Gnf9GMy1PQ1ZLyX4WWHVMNXB/s320/IMG_6652.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Thankfully we were sharing that between four people. And it was very very good :-)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">After dinner, I got taken to a revolving bar which had the most amazing view!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnl5tSWWeFxgNDZMp_NAaFilDdOYB5qBG2c9tXWDhPcoMXvw84PB8NQk_pL3qKr3rPgJc_DsfIuAwhWHrhb3fupl0MEE4TePrwSmvBhyphenhyphenTJa0QLggipRsFME5yRAUfnukYaLB9WcG8TQKul/s1600/IMG_6654.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnl5tSWWeFxgNDZMp_NAaFilDdOYB5qBG2c9tXWDhPcoMXvw84PB8NQk_pL3qKr3rPgJc_DsfIuAwhWHrhb3fupl0MEE4TePrwSmvBhyphenhyphenTJa0QLggipRsFME5yRAUfnukYaLB9WcG8TQKul/s320/IMG_6654.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is looking down Robson St to the celebration centre. They set of a giant light show down there every night during most of February. There was also a public skating rink, and a zipline, and the mascots on ice show (more to come on that later)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcEYTczcDQoxhUJyRavZsOj7BETEy-GC4_2qbddeoDhnmjrQUiaRSKHfQlE6oglQN7iCPfJddrEBU6pUccfGPaExKGN1f_fTmVCfRmgPAZ0gtOTqSJ5CqfaSbEUxguHVx07xKhcA8l5iQU/s1600/IMG_6665.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcEYTczcDQoxhUJyRavZsOj7BETEy-GC4_2qbddeoDhnmjrQUiaRSKHfQlE6oglQN7iCPfJddrEBU6pUccfGPaExKGN1f_fTmVCfRmgPAZ0gtOTqSJ5CqfaSbEUxguHVx07xKhcA8l5iQU/s320/IMG_6665.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And this is the Vectorial Lights, a big installation art piece put up for the Olympics. The lights changed formation every seven seconds, and you could even go online and design your own formation. Very beautiful to watch, and very hypnotic. Even if Peter and Craig kept making bat signal jokes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-81427756291406087932010-03-27T13:58:00.000-07:002010-03-27T13:58:08.155-07:00Victoria Bug Zoo<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Possibly on of the stranger things to do in Victoria is visiting the Bug Zoo. We had a few hours up our sleeves before our ferry back to the mainland, so the Bug Zoo seemed like the perfect place to check out before leaving. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil_fvRuyCZ8ia2od39rsEP6Qs2AkZh93LgZRrNcMQ_-pYy3N69ZZcSO58mGrN2XM2XJjHZs5g6jFRfbNMh3VvQeTZ1X3N0nGs37o1sbmJqeS9135FwA-N0TDksRdNTe5mz3PhvnxXn33Nu/s1600/IMG_0598.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEil_fvRuyCZ8ia2od39rsEP6Qs2AkZh93LgZRrNcMQ_-pYy3N69ZZcSO58mGrN2XM2XJjHZs5g6jFRfbNMh3VvQeTZ1X3N0nGs37o1sbmJqeS9135FwA-N0TDksRdNTe5mz3PhvnxXn33Nu/s320/IMG_0598.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The have all sorts of interesting creepy crawlies. I can't really remember many of the names now though. Some of them were really pretty, some of them had too many legs, and some of them were a little too adventurous.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEILXNrSqiZESepusLtPQ2lFQM71wUu4zeW2KCl_De-RPJKgD7NaJFMeS7a3J2MvAiaHRSjs6kg9Xnhvv2eNiKOmR_zPazAOgsBMGaJHt3rkBAWjl2PDqm9DFcMCqNhGdDeJapN_0J85TD/s1600/P2050293.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEILXNrSqiZESepusLtPQ2lFQM71wUu4zeW2KCl_De-RPJKgD7NaJFMeS7a3J2MvAiaHRSjs6kg9Xnhvv2eNiKOmR_zPazAOgsBMGaJHt3rkBAWjl2PDqm9DFcMCqNhGdDeJapN_0J85TD/s320/P2050293.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">They have all sorts of stick and leaf insects. I liked this one because it (she maybe) appeared to be smiling.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiELkV4SG1JD63jdbqTE_IgrCyfHIDKJPIJFERZJHBUN-1g8IvnjNJHmnaYLUN_07qNSnJWMl902a4gfoLqA1vh-SHhgyiPG88k0M2GPQTpsZQriPZB-_svQ2DENTxaHZ6mql-n1OJ8N17X/s1600/IMG_0603.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiELkV4SG1JD63jdbqTE_IgrCyfHIDKJPIJFERZJHBUN-1g8IvnjNJHmnaYLUN_07qNSnJWMl902a4gfoLqA1vh-SHhgyiPG88k0M2GPQTpsZQriPZB-_svQ2DENTxaHZ6mql-n1OJ8N17X/s320/IMG_0603.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is a centipede. The centipede was one of the bugs that wasn't allowed out of its box, for the reason that it is rather poisonous and gives a painful bite. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdjmZBQ3vz0VrdZxH5xog0s91cCNqJQnDoUO2uo-JbyiGzgeMS5E0z3OJtawaw4DaR0XMoaFQc4UsfpV7aqiHQxS8WZ6qqdZZOKyJnxLinb9Me0L2Lu7f52IOgLI-A8C62o5mg03y0G7ew/s1600/IMG_0604.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdjmZBQ3vz0VrdZxH5xog0s91cCNqJQnDoUO2uo-JbyiGzgeMS5E0z3OJtawaw4DaR0XMoaFQc4UsfpV7aqiHQxS8WZ6qqdZZOKyJnxLinb9Me0L2Lu7f52IOgLI-A8C62o5mg03y0G7ew/s320/IMG_0604.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A very small huntsman, <em>only</em> about 5cm wide. Craig had a bit of a giggle at this one, after the huge ones we were seeing at Grandma's last year. We asked the guide, and she confirmed our suspicion that this one was just a baby. I hope they'll get it a bigger box when it grows up!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8QvD7NRtbdNHE_HspBcoz90cjYcyt2f6YX_U5lAj4Of_3ZfOnD0xRl0vLGRcFnOMxR_-1_tmKExO8-isplf2EiHDipYCC7WreSV4S_GQVJJ6rKnvtPuYXEeldTzC2Db9_bXZKPyeD1Pom/s1600/IMG_0601.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8QvD7NRtbdNHE_HspBcoz90cjYcyt2f6YX_U5lAj4Of_3ZfOnD0xRl0vLGRcFnOMxR_-1_tmKExO8-isplf2EiHDipYCC7WreSV4S_GQVJJ6rKnvtPuYXEeldTzC2Db9_bXZKPyeD1Pom/s320/IMG_0601.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Not entirely sure what this was, but it was a very pretty yabbie/lobster thing. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlkKv9POZrpxtAixvqFEGR4YYTVVRU-inGqZ-swIV4cvem66ZitfjXcvXV6PxLnebWBlox5GxbdCmSwdYn_Cqh7ULXnMVGch_Q3yjjqKT1If5bcaFJST2MBscOxIbokz98yZoqsi4FHllW/s1600/IMG_0605.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlkKv9POZrpxtAixvqFEGR4YYTVVRU-inGqZ-swIV4cvem66ZitfjXcvXV6PxLnebWBlox5GxbdCmSwdYn_Cqh7ULXnMVGch_Q3yjjqKT1If5bcaFJST2MBscOxIbokz98yZoqsi4FHllW/s320/IMG_0605.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">SPIDER! Can't remember which one this was, but I think it was the bird eating one. Was bloody big anyway.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6x1gP80zo2rHVzqvTpeuGok3W-q6YfKWHqens0BgphVi566Qt__vLvtII_PyCZzHFEdV4xGz5NtB3kCMMqWl0aGMxFdRx8d_rEFanxlu35c1dB44qmy8GCowaZF_jRAt57pDdYfGbS_cn/s1600/IMG_0608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6x1gP80zo2rHVzqvTpeuGok3W-q6YfKWHqens0BgphVi566Qt__vLvtII_PyCZzHFEdV4xGz5NtB3kCMMqWl0aGMxFdRx8d_rEFanxlu35c1dB44qmy8GCowaZF_jRAt57pDdYfGbS_cn/s320/IMG_0608.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This one is a whip scorpion of some sort. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWBDma24zoo1D7umPnSm5npiuXD8R6doysSg6pJZutqqoIiq6HHwV-4C25qqW2x4DfTvHAbMu_9AahmiHvlPqVyy34FWhRN51JwIK_7G4Rca2OQoT1kSP7uYqtwVnSEnhNtaiY9YNQJLz_/s1600/IMG_0610.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWBDma24zoo1D7umPnSm5npiuXD8R6doysSg6pJZutqqoIiq6HHwV-4C25qqW2x4DfTvHAbMu_9AahmiHvlPqVyy34FWhRN51JwIK_7G4Rca2OQoT1kSP7uYqtwVnSEnhNtaiY9YNQJLz_/s320/IMG_0610.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">This one was my favourite. It's a very pretty grass hopper thing. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0SYIjlV7ScZTiGqKmKpSGJnmWp-k002DZJ4CkwUxGDAy-tyssQywcJ6qUsT0JEJn1s2tP30w36rG0mSmNJAs6u5TWJ9kI4XHt0xIbOzxc1ptlq4lC4py28x-rizPyXM_icfbMmn_TY4w/s1600/IMG_0622.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU0SYIjlV7ScZTiGqKmKpSGJnmWp-k002DZJ4CkwUxGDAy-tyssQywcJ6qUsT0JEJn1s2tP30w36rG0mSmNJAs6u5TWJ9kI4XHt0xIbOzxc1ptlq4lC4py28x-rizPyXM_icfbMmn_TY4w/s320/IMG_0622.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This one is an Ecuadorian Purple Spider. Another of the "not to be let out of the box" critter, because apparently, they jump. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3jorS0dgcUTJK9hbd3b6Mqioj0sUUmZkU0jDKgvZDPeHPmHaym0alUG9wuKtQruRh1dVmIAaH1JxFFjT72_jYKXa6m6u6HkZX_Do0cExekePMee3nUE5taE8E1iaL4kzgj1Io9uRuJeqE/s1600/IMG_6455.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3jorS0dgcUTJK9hbd3b6Mqioj0sUUmZkU0jDKgvZDPeHPmHaym0alUG9wuKtQruRh1dVmIAaH1JxFFjT72_jYKXa6m6u6HkZX_Do0cExekePMee3nUE5taE8E1iaL4kzgj1Io9uRuJeqE/s320/IMG_6455.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Here's me with a large and surprisingly heavy scorpion. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgpHQIhw0YD0KBGdLNYHAimlH_K7oYLbHzivPft97bqutrn9ir0mRFXNR7DSvUeRVlO6lBnTFqGPc-vRoMaNQcilu_J9ho8z9GRhydLedhNZDvhHjhMzGMbfhyphenhypheni2HP3DaofWN-i1qJdLYq/s1600/IMG_6457.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgpHQIhw0YD0KBGdLNYHAimlH_K7oYLbHzivPft97bqutrn9ir0mRFXNR7DSvUeRVlO6lBnTFqGPc-vRoMaNQcilu_J9ho8z9GRhydLedhNZDvhHjhMzGMbfhyphenhypheni2HP3DaofWN-i1qJdLYq/s320/IMG_6457.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And a tarantula. Also surprisingly heavy! And thankfully pretty docile. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt3fGkVvzBnYN8dqz9ySIki4K8D-jVPq8X_Yw9yuIgaRGNdUtaomoNFLK9Aw9n7Ajp-rB-FiicxV3ZN95A81UsLRFBpAgkLQdJFAM9CPlDrjRHzA8GEq5eM_4zbBx5E8KlB_9qL3p42Wtv/s1600/IMG_6459.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt3fGkVvzBnYN8dqz9ySIki4K8D-jVPq8X_Yw9yuIgaRGNdUtaomoNFLK9Aw9n7Ajp-rB-FiicxV3ZN95A81UsLRFBpAgkLQdJFAM9CPlDrjRHzA8GEq5eM_4zbBx5E8KlB_9qL3p42Wtv/s320/IMG_6459.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> With a slightly adventurous stick insect</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBenbOyLALBxZZHvENxH8MU0cwZdSs8ZQCK9ezWEZuGYr2vy6o-FaEWQ-b_zUAjiJ8oQfvVDamAfHxTmjvj4lPhwDP0lz32kA2OzCgsyRBBmvgCW6fhiGfLVjCwOsbJjDF1S4Y90De6ECo/s1600/IMG_6458.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBenbOyLALBxZZHvENxH8MU0cwZdSs8ZQCK9ezWEZuGYr2vy6o-FaEWQ-b_zUAjiJ8oQfvVDamAfHxTmjvj4lPhwDP0lz32kA2OzCgsyRBBmvgCW6fhiGfLVjCwOsbJjDF1S4Y90De6ECo/s320/IMG_6458.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">With a leaf insect</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWdD9hTXTNgVYvENe-t7kqvTAOj58J3X8gdjDhSg1i3MIDNIFSNMVmgVadZCAH6UYGiiscfiorypTllYyNm8QNYp56ZxSoKy_nZkN91zEFXq3_cyqb8VS4SPKUrYJyAC9f9rfnvPVSPqM5/s1600/IMG_6462.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWdD9hTXTNgVYvENe-t7kqvTAOj58J3X8gdjDhSg1i3MIDNIFSNMVmgVadZCAH6UYGiiscfiorypTllYyNm8QNYp56ZxSoKy_nZkN91zEFXq3_cyqb8VS4SPKUrYJyAC9f9rfnvPVSPqM5/s320/IMG_6462.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And finally, with a millipede. I think this one was my least favourite, though still a pretty neat little creature. The sensation of having him walk about on my hands was a little odd, something like being walked on by a bristle hair brush I guess. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> When I said I was going to Victoria, my sister said I had to hold the tarantula, because that was the one she chickened out on. So, I did that, and held all the other available ones too. It was an interesting experience, but I won't be off to buy a pet tarantula any time soon!</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-16087117608161864532010-03-27T12:25:00.000-07:002010-03-27T12:25:53.648-07:00Royal British Columbia Museum<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The Royal BC museum is awesome! Out front, there's a large group of West Coast First Nations totem poles. I think I'll have to do a separate post on the totem poles alone, to do justice to the sheer number of photos I took. I have a nice little book that will help me explain them too...that will help. Anyway...here's the totem pole that's right out the front door. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh28ZxDEBhsw7mxsnBgzmEhFpCS-ep9aAjZdUbd8tvfPBvdrPJDgoToljXSED6uHXnIbkR2oXbIXvMZIKfBzRWBYd70GL99oQ2NtFcNVA4zIM-fH-l-ENBvh_L9qzn8CensufL6iGWCzAzE/s1600/P2030194.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh28ZxDEBhsw7mxsnBgzmEhFpCS-ep9aAjZdUbd8tvfPBvdrPJDgoToljXSED6uHXnIbkR2oXbIXvMZIKfBzRWBYd70GL99oQ2NtFcNVA4zIM-fH-l-ENBvh_L9qzn8CensufL6iGWCzAzE/s320/P2030194.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">All the different animals have different meanings and signifigances in the stories of the local First Nations People. As well as the mythical creatures and the occasional person on the poles, you get the local animals too, like bears and the bear mother, salmon, ravens, orca, beavers, frogs, goats and the wolf. The sun and moon also make an appearance occasionally.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0myJ68KBsrs1mbECUo7d49PBO2ozvHOHf5-6oT7N6p1WnVW1geRBDnAZXu2jtN0znOVqzfnlm8jjyV-2A7h7GSAoKapEl14RK4lMg-8g2_3DT2llw6kq6db96pfhkHnpS6OY-WcnCNhGs/s1600/IMG_0353.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0myJ68KBsrs1mbECUo7d49PBO2ozvHOHf5-6oT7N6p1WnVW1geRBDnAZXu2jtN0znOVqzfnlm8jjyV-2A7h7GSAoKapEl14RK4lMg-8g2_3DT2llw6kq6db96pfhkHnpS6OY-WcnCNhGs/s320/IMG_0353.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, once in the museum, we went to see a woolly mammoth, complete with a real ice wall. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG1LcxsBtJgrSGytj68jFPvLcOudPdABx87Dl4qmc2LN-OycFOoITCEajKqWgU3FW4lU3qYweHgJz_kAPYwnOKoefniqzlQgmBUZOcesjeGFaiCmBtpx9Xbq5TEF38Sma722oFWzUMIlWc/s1600/IMG_0361.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG1LcxsBtJgrSGytj68jFPvLcOudPdABx87Dl4qmc2LN-OycFOoITCEajKqWgU3FW4lU3qYweHgJz_kAPYwnOKoefniqzlQgmBUZOcesjeGFaiCmBtpx9Xbq5TEF38Sma722oFWzUMIlWc/s320/IMG_0361.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then it was off to the temperate rain forest, where we saw elk and dear and bears and I think it was a cougar. This display was really cool, as when you stood in the middle, it echoed and when you stomped, the ground made squelching sounds, just like a real rainforest! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5T0Fp5PMcAW00pCAEoIbaNc5k1socnmyLyMFamzg-sGrpL_HdZZWBo5qfeRmDchNLcPhYU7Lj9FLDIe_7G3KiuryCBu0Diz5nkkSTC-vgnYYP5npPedAq1zwSeO4XS5qXKhIkSGWC1jQ8/s1600/IMG_0365.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5T0Fp5PMcAW00pCAEoIbaNc5k1socnmyLyMFamzg-sGrpL_HdZZWBo5qfeRmDchNLcPhYU7Lj9FLDIe_7G3KiuryCBu0Diz5nkkSTC-vgnYYP5npPedAq1zwSeO4XS5qXKhIkSGWC1jQ8/s320/IMG_0365.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The cougar? Or something feline anyway...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeigRF_1bkQsPWV7iDlb7kNMFT1XrQCFQHXU_4OL5hyjgNnvJ4iw2ESOusQbCvpEqvfuwSV418qN5K38qT7fMLZHNcGmLVHqBX0Yo0D7y0_BGo2h9tlPO1KHy5PvcJDwNhIF2YkQKKmeMv/s1600/IMG_0367.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeigRF_1bkQsPWV7iDlb7kNMFT1XrQCFQHXU_4OL5hyjgNnvJ4iw2ESOusQbCvpEqvfuwSV418qN5K38qT7fMLZHNcGmLVHqBX0Yo0D7y0_BGo2h9tlPO1KHy5PvcJDwNhIF2YkQKKmeMv/s320/IMG_0367.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After the rainforest, we headed to the beach. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy70cpX7-3kroB9foQ12EKqKF_Hdm8VpJHCHDvByTLzNIJ0ZcdPHwyflIUiPfNWiquIxU2du-rfu0Kdf4VQd_m6KesDd1nndHBPRe9ZWsyCKHDVTn2JUuNa2icy0gNPDNugVr5XR4FI1uG/s1600/IMG_0369.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy70cpX7-3kroB9foQ12EKqKF_Hdm8VpJHCHDvByTLzNIJ0ZcdPHwyflIUiPfNWiquIxU2du-rfu0Kdf4VQd_m6KesDd1nndHBPRe9ZWsyCKHDVTn2JUuNa2icy0gNPDNugVr5XR4FI1uG/s320/IMG_0369.JPG" /></a></div><div align="left" class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And we found some harbour seals...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKnMCO3iWgda8bU7LKSKX9OrGoycJgzbGCVG4z_R4l2LS6t5VFlyjqBmR-H3Pcz8SUUNHvVAWHaFItIlKDwubseCRmYltlG5mBbPu0bfZJuxUEizcfq8KdW2LhFLVdFlvi9Na6pBt31vz/s1600/IMG_0372.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKKnMCO3iWgda8bU7LKSKX9OrGoycJgzbGCVG4z_R4l2LS6t5VFlyjqBmR-H3Pcz8SUUNHvVAWHaFItIlKDwubseCRmYltlG5mBbPu0bfZJuxUEizcfq8KdW2LhFLVdFlvi9Na6pBt31vz/s320/IMG_0372.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">A sealion bull...</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNofGLnYaBxuANCANwWQoEfd1pucaRziixNtDiM0mQQh76L2FhyI1MI4XYSUUZO8IH-Y0JUa7KWhHXKhr1t07Tt4eUCE7mVZJ-sKLcznNuPl-RIA3oJT6Scpulxz8RQK9JqNKLPuXqKyxs/s1600/IMG_0376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNofGLnYaBxuANCANwWQoEfd1pucaRziixNtDiM0mQQh76L2FhyI1MI4XYSUUZO8IH-Y0JUa7KWhHXKhr1t07Tt4eUCE7mVZJ-sKLcznNuPl-RIA3oJT6Scpulxz8RQK9JqNKLPuXqKyxs/s320/IMG_0376.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And then onto the wetlands to see some local birds. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD4CBQnJwJiB-JH6WFmhs5LBz87GRF_B_vnLK19zoqvKcDAl9_cmdq-WjPpHUGdHQdm7hPQgDeGTsvJaQrIJQ31e3tcsd5lv3ZNoKU7SvUrcZQ0QcuLzes7LZ6kGHNxYKj7AJYFLsj6C1h/s1600/IMG_0386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD4CBQnJwJiB-JH6WFmhs5LBz87GRF_B_vnLK19zoqvKcDAl9_cmdq-WjPpHUGdHQdm7hPQgDeGTsvJaQrIJQ31e3tcsd5lv3ZNoKU7SvUrcZQ0QcuLzes7LZ6kGHNxYKj7AJYFLsj6C1h/s320/IMG_0386.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then we went under the water! They have this whole room set up that feels like you're under the sea, complete with windows out to the "ocean" and periscopes (in which you actually watched little documentaries about the local underwater life). There was also a ships wheel, and one of those lever things that set the speed of a ship...a certain little dinosaur had some fun with those.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigND2gTKhGVtCrODLENggIOM4Puyf-sdjDrjaGlBeOulsIXAwGLJzkSwTVuL3bcBPsGm-OmavCBKPhb11ftq7ecXqdSHYRsKDPLrexdS67b1qkaGU5BlcNAbsyI8DDG7kDpyQ76kL_59Qd/s1600/IMG_0416.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigND2gTKhGVtCrODLENggIOM4Puyf-sdjDrjaGlBeOulsIXAwGLJzkSwTVuL3bcBPsGm-OmavCBKPhb11ftq7ecXqdSHYRsKDPLrexdS67b1qkaGU5BlcNAbsyI8DDG7kDpyQ76kL_59Qd/s320/IMG_0416.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then into the First Nations exhibit. This area was fascinating! The detail that goes into the art is wonderful, and the stories are really interesting. My favourite part here was an area where they had masks of all the different characters that pop up in the local mythology, and there was a recording that played while we watched that highlighted each mask and explained its role and significance. My favourite was the character called "Crazy like an Otter".</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNiJI0UAbxOau5mq-wb_ZSVkP2LlnbVYtmWx6af-q2N_TiVOdvYa9KuK8In6pdl2fAlrDSOzJW0kyB5Uca07xXTjTR74kYLIdacoye9GKgiQMy5c5Q77lwn2vRXrNYhi6uQO5QZ_bKmXup/s1600/IMG_0425.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNiJI0UAbxOau5mq-wb_ZSVkP2LlnbVYtmWx6af-q2N_TiVOdvYa9KuK8In6pdl2fAlrDSOzJW0kyB5Uca07xXTjTR74kYLIdacoye9GKgiQMy5c5Q77lwn2vRXrNYhi6uQO5QZ_bKmXup/s320/IMG_0425.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Then we went back in time to downtown Victoria.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZNeB1v70uSXTTZyvX-CBTCQLQPTaD8iGyfI2DdnjUOdyJIKiCscks4EKiFybEJTUNCXmojMU2XU5vEoBRdzSIuR0wOAC3nONSTxQyy3MKPEvUmaZ88Ov2Svb5Fm9UXX5TQFPD1SjX6cGg/s1600/IMG_0434.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZNeB1v70uSXTTZyvX-CBTCQLQPTaD8iGyfI2DdnjUOdyJIKiCscks4EKiFybEJTUNCXmojMU2XU5vEoBRdzSIuR0wOAC3nONSTxQyy3MKPEvUmaZ88Ov2Svb5Fm9UXX5TQFPD1SjX6cGg/s320/IMG_0434.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And then off to see the old salmon canneries</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTDUL0tJsESbMuQAizPHJVhiGQk1-h2xRlsbmYKM-jVofpRInfFF9t-sybVhIHVvvozytYkTIkYMspQHpugD1zLaoC90cV-Wc67AhGy-zWuQJVpt2-_B39jUs8_tPJnsO5H9_wx7qVEhm3/s1600/IMG_0444.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTDUL0tJsESbMuQAizPHJVhiGQk1-h2xRlsbmYKM-jVofpRInfFF9t-sybVhIHVvvozytYkTIkYMspQHpugD1zLaoC90cV-Wc67AhGy-zWuQJVpt2-_B39jUs8_tPJnsO5H9_wx7qVEhm3/s320/IMG_0444.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">According the newsreel movie from the 1940s, the fish were first gutted by the highly technological "iron chink" (yes...you read that right...they were well proud of their iron chink too). Then the cans would be packed and checked by women who were "shining with cleaniness", and then taked off to the "vacu-um machine" (say it pronouncing both "u"s, it's fun) by men who were most certainly not shining with cleanliness. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMaJFnpzdjFKKnuOjz1OAUMIIJYgn8IwtHS-ZyMRkxHGNiMr7G5fQVUqiLByEHRID8nRjgp8fTowYJB9COLbs03owj0ui_KJl7IWAPwjqYb2IZ7spFe7ljJfrPI2l04ddr1Dm4x8-Y0AlO/s1600/IMG_0446.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMaJFnpzdjFKKnuOjz1OAUMIIJYgn8IwtHS-ZyMRkxHGNiMr7G5fQVUqiLByEHRID8nRjgp8fTowYJB9COLbs03owj0ui_KJl7IWAPwjqYb2IZ7spFe7ljJfrPI2l04ddr1Dm4x8-Y0AlO/s320/IMG_0446.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Next came the boat ride. I'd heard about this one already from my sister, and was keen to check it out for myself. So you get to the room, and you look at the boat. It's very much stationary. You get on the boat, and suddenly, you feel like you're moving, and the boat does appear to be swaying just like it would be on the water! And when you get off, you feel a bit sea leggy! It's crazy, and we couldn't work out for the life of us just how they pull it off. It's a really neat little trick.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6wMSk0yCOaMj7Z5OFHAVlC4-OeH_XbYRtFNSDm08iiwCsp5Yk6XNaUMZYGacVCFOJ9IMDpGeJ1a9ErJzelkXrERL5ipM8scLe_UHvrtUSUBUqS13izX441WzH_sL8XQTZlPV9uEwmHPC-/s1600/P2030224.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6wMSk0yCOaMj7Z5OFHAVlC4-OeH_XbYRtFNSDm08iiwCsp5Yk6XNaUMZYGacVCFOJ9IMDpGeJ1a9ErJzelkXrERL5ipM8scLe_UHvrtUSUBUqS13izX441WzH_sL8XQTZlPV9uEwmHPC-/s320/P2030224.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">After all that we felt a bit hungry, so we headed off to the old time kitchen. These old rooms were beautifully set up, and here you could actually smell the fresh baked fruit pie, which really did make us hungry. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSlVqnvc6puWBeqOHPl-9e6sptnp1QfjGBR8MKuQ0-aMARNwy3hjwAvQ5eYdEFTgE619CDD_q5Hhlkab8DmKi2DDCNmdbS2gStU-37syihriUF7R6OI9ONR7EE38qYzmLn0dvpMLiF2EEf/s1600/P2030225.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSlVqnvc6puWBeqOHPl-9e6sptnp1QfjGBR8MKuQ0-aMARNwy3hjwAvQ5eYdEFTgE619CDD_q5Hhlkab8DmKi2DDCNmdbS2gStU-37syihriUF7R6OI9ONR7EE38qYzmLn0dvpMLiF2EEf/s320/P2030225.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This room was decorated with the most beautiful oriental furnishings. The most wonderful thing about all these rooms was that they really did just look like the owners had just stepped out for a moment.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZvhWsw3zMeHazA7-4-xiFwqN3bbuxFY01lsHte1Nj059mRmINHnXYyhDz4wTZlDd2MKAPvCFjATf24i4nhdQJt8kNTvhMnXHxPKR7SvCZI3TeDAHNQIVr-U9H6JEuwTYn2MHKeMm8Nnil/s1600/P2030228.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZvhWsw3zMeHazA7-4-xiFwqN3bbuxFY01lsHte1Nj059mRmINHnXYyhDz4wTZlDd2MKAPvCFjATf24i4nhdQJt8kNTvhMnXHxPKR7SvCZI3TeDAHNQIVr-U9H6JEuwTYn2MHKeMm8Nnil/s320/P2030228.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And finally it was off to the mountains to see the pioneers' huts, either for lumberjacks or miners.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">The museum was really a wonderful place to visit. In every room you'd find something new to ooh and aah at, whether it was the main display, or the tiny little quirks they put into them, like moving ships and fresh pie smells. Definitely a wonderful way to spend a morning in Victoria!</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-77750868751351717772010-03-26T16:21:00.000-07:002010-03-26T16:21:09.405-07:00A Whale of a time...only without the whales! (Note: Yes, I am well aware that this stuff happened a good while ago, but I've been busy! I am planning on having my posts up to date by the end of the weekend though...famous last words)<br />
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When Craig and I were doing our research into things we could do in Victoria during the winter season, we were quite disappointed to find out that the whale watching tours wouldn't be running. So, when we stumbled across a company that appeared to be running whale watching tours, we were delighted and signed up immediately.<br />
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So on our appointed day, we went off to the offices of the company. First thing on the list was to sign our waivers...just in case of death and injury and all that fun stuff. Then we waited for a while, and chatted to the other passengers. It was a mark of how much the olympics were gearing up that about half the group was in Vancouver in some Olympic capacity. There were two cops from Toronto, and two Swiss guys who worked for Omega. <br />
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So once everyone arrived, we all went to get suited up. Since we were all going out on a large Zodiac, we needed to wear these <em>incredibly </em>sexy giant bouyant suit things, in which we boiled and couldn't bend properly. Fun!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBNz6UBroRsx-6tWAKdGJuUu9C8vjDyVHi1CSIaKZKcJrxxnZ7hg_uAe4XuFP2QISbrmUawvIyQ3GC_WNeb5-uFr3DBQfLrV9gVP5e4tRTqC89W-4K0Vz0PGIZqSSlt2s7FF-_0Ac04Ery/s1600/IMG_6447.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBNz6UBroRsx-6tWAKdGJuUu9C8vjDyVHi1CSIaKZKcJrxxnZ7hg_uAe4XuFP2QISbrmUawvIyQ3GC_WNeb5-uFr3DBQfLrV9gVP5e4tRTqC89W-4K0Vz0PGIZqSSlt2s7FF-_0Ac04Ery/s320/IMG_6447.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And here's me demonstrating the stylish newer version of the suit. As on as put them on, you'd start sweating and wanting to take them off...but they really came in useful later.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGYcUjgo5ICH6sbsHzCZj284sbB7TUwAxVQWhD_C8bMovyYkcGwl4YUUWiAG5vL5ur39TA-ZhMsXOoEk0Wm1uJ8ufCWn43_ARZkSkkCvw1QKYRNcM-AsMzaGh9y5nJ_aQerdAsqdYLEzYA/s1600/IMG_6448.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGYcUjgo5ICH6sbsHzCZj284sbB7TUwAxVQWhD_C8bMovyYkcGwl4YUUWiAG5vL5ur39TA-ZhMsXOoEk0Wm1uJ8ufCWn43_ARZkSkkCvw1QKYRNcM-AsMzaGh9y5nJ_aQerdAsqdYLEzYA/s320/IMG_6448.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And here's Craig demonstrating his older model suit. After we were all suited up, we got on board the boat. The guide warned us, if you have back problems, don't sit on the front row, so Craig took the front with the two police officers, and I was behind him with the Swiss guys. The guide had said, "the front's pretty bumpy, but you probably won't get as wet", but what he didn't mention was that anyone sitting on the side was going to get soaked.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">We enjoyed a very pleasant ride out of the harbour, with not too much bumpiness or splashes. It was very nice to be out in the sea air. We wound around the coastline, dropping into little bays to look at the wild life which included these cuties</div><div align="center" class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIA-m6Du21SHIr3OBsbpzl9nrWDjprMC2giY7j3pUFAW_c8nxEwgHg4D8Bva8MPG7IVukwMFNFQa6nDx_CPy9XkKDUV20w8GAJKpkJlpTo0RgAtRM-4iC-VgOdJZqCQqTxys56YQDfTklG/s1600/IMG_0495.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIA-m6Du21SHIr3OBsbpzl9nrWDjprMC2giY7j3pUFAW_c8nxEwgHg4D8Bva8MPG7IVukwMFNFQa6nDx_CPy9XkKDUV20w8GAJKpkJlpTo0RgAtRM-4iC-VgOdJZqCQqTxys56YQDfTklG/s320/IMG_0495.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>We also saw some bald eagles, but unfortunately didn't get too many good photos. When we left the nice little bay where we'd watched the eagles and seals, it started to get really bumpy, and really wet! This was also when we discovered that those sitting on the sides got really wet and cold. We were most glad for the suits then!<br />
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Probably the best sight of the trip was a big family of sea lions. They were sitting on a rocky outcrop near Race Island (which nutters dive on, despite the incredibly dangerous currents...the island was named because of the way the currents "race" past). They took a slight dislike to the boat when it stopped nearby, and then just suddenly piled into the water. It was amazing to watch, since usually when we saw sealions in NZ they were sleepy and rarely noticed our existence. <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji8h2SCmymsP_Mi-5K3z9GEstUFiGpvCgtEGPB0QNo5lvq3fCApymDwm8kL32qIKGMhdW3277xpLk5eKsa4E58rp573gJFIMT_I04ncB2ZDZWjowZTzUCm1ZRpCnKFfAI4XzCSdeKjqqbe/s1600/sealions.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji8h2SCmymsP_Mi-5K3z9GEstUFiGpvCgtEGPB0QNo5lvq3fCApymDwm8kL32qIKGMhdW3277xpLk5eKsa4E58rp573gJFIMT_I04ncB2ZDZWjowZTzUCm1ZRpCnKFfAI4XzCSdeKjqqbe/s640/sealions.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">By this point in the tour we were starting to get a bit tired, as holding on with all your might can be a mite draining on the arms! Around Race Rocks, where we spent a fair bit of time zooming about, the water looked like this:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnTNc_qsn8cnNTemvRn-yOTnoQQKbYiNtT0egENs0GidulMq5fZFzSKrsJZ2znCe5KrW8QG6VrmBJQlsjXX0hbVRjTsWSg3P2N1gDoIWwQVDc9cy1QuUDG_Un8b8i-AVVOUp88Hla1w6gp/s1600/IMG_0550.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnTNc_qsn8cnNTemvRn-yOTnoQQKbYiNtT0egENs0GidulMq5fZFzSKrsJZ2znCe5KrW8QG6VrmBJQlsjXX0hbVRjTsWSg3P2N1gDoIWwQVDc9cy1QuUDG_Un8b8i-AVVOUp88Hla1w6gp/s320/IMG_0550.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">So, landing on top of those in zodiac can be a bit bumpy, and going through those in a zodiac can get a bit wet. All in good fun though. When we got back to Victoria, we were compared levels of soaked-ness. Because Craig and I both sat on the sides, we both got soaked, as often enough, the waves went straight down the front of our suits. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxsvmth8B2Fl6gVS6hbeBFnQB9164kSC7oP9oW517LqrNH0oGIIhNYorWQUXI1nBcKe5PaCLa53X-KbC0edu2XstPJbGxto1waUrUyWqDHPWyDkrHZYh9UKlku71jkyIHO313oFPnZN10L/s1600/IMG_6449.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" nt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxsvmth8B2Fl6gVS6hbeBFnQB9164kSC7oP9oW517LqrNH0oGIIhNYorWQUXI1nBcKe5PaCLa53X-KbC0edu2XstPJbGxto1waUrUyWqDHPWyDkrHZYh9UKlku71jkyIHO313oFPnZN10L/s320/IMG_6449.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">As we were all getting de-suited, the two cops who were sitting with Craig were comparing the degrees of being soaked. Craig was saying how wet he'd got, and the man he was sitting next to goes "oh, I didn't get wet at all, just splashed in the face". His poor partner, who'd been sitting on his other side was utterly and completely soaked, and looked rather miserable, and like she wished she carried her gun all the time while her partner was standing there all warm and dry joking about a little splash in the face. The poor Swiss guys just looked a little shellshocked by the whole experience. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">And boy, did we feel it when we staggered out of bed the next day! Carrying our backpacks on the trip back to Vancouver sure was fun.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">But would I do it again? Totally...if I can have some whales next time!</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-77964073615372637712010-02-11T14:51:00.000-08:002010-03-26T15:32:01.060-07:00A Spot of Tea!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">On our second day in Victoria we went to experience one of the institutions of Victoria which is having high tea at the Empress Hotel. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQAX9LFEmhSgVf6-S_s6mw2IKVrfM64EPwq1KnGNk8Mc5-orFCATV4M1_zec5H26nXIF9lxXYxzd0eGN4FGxVhSnTzkiGSAnSnOZZ7xlXQhN2GIWrqW7AX-o0fbBmyBkvU0A7nvNbSWenu/s1600-h/P2030242.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQAX9LFEmhSgVf6-S_s6mw2IKVrfM64EPwq1KnGNk8Mc5-orFCATV4M1_zec5H26nXIF9lxXYxzd0eGN4FGxVhSnTzkiGSAnSnOZZ7xlXQhN2GIWrqW7AX-o0fbBmyBkvU0A7nvNbSWenu/s320/P2030242.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">We were welcomed by our most attentive (and very tall!) server Ray, who sat us down in some nice comfy chairs and went to get our first course. When I booked the tea, I was asked whether there were any food allergies, so I said pineapple for Craig just in case. So when the fruit salad arrived, it was a bit disappointing to find a big chunk of pineapple in Craig's fruit salad. Not a minute later, our server came over, most apologetic about the pineapple, and took Craig's salad back and returned with a specially made pineapple-free salad.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLpxRPV8Eh7qm3aSWuEK5Jz-DNMSM32TwsMhckgIgIMwbBgQlOc55pdxyfMB2sjdIiVUm2v3g66bMKjkVyXyROobj4ZyAfG5oBiB0ElLg1rEEYJ-1nAWNt9HFQqB97ugv-lLEjUYS1A4f/s1600-h/P2030241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLpxRPV8Eh7qm3aSWuEK5Jz-DNMSM32TwsMhckgIgIMwbBgQlOc55pdxyfMB2sjdIiVUm2v3g66bMKjkVyXyROobj4ZyAfG5oBiB0ElLg1rEEYJ-1nAWNt9HFQqB97ugv-lLEjUYS1A4f/s320/P2030241.JPG" /></a></div>Next arrived the tea tray, which really was one of those "ooh...aah" moments, as everything not only looked good to eat, but was so pretty too!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkYtMQl43APajn1LyouUlKuhZH-kciGpoQAx9brwtrU4ELGG3uhG1RVpw3GKkmcEY48JTcBrDCZtL-vKRStwBrDqZBBAOu35B6yF0fyqBRxst4QkuuI2WM7jPxhsorqvvlMJISKOxMfB2N/s1600-h/P2030248.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkYtMQl43APajn1LyouUlKuhZH-kciGpoQAx9brwtrU4ELGG3uhG1RVpw3GKkmcEY48JTcBrDCZtL-vKRStwBrDqZBBAOu35B6yF0fyqBRxst4QkuuI2WM7jPxhsorqvvlMJISKOxMfB2N/s320/P2030248.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Mmmmmm...sooooo good!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj51vRaxtHJh1Qw4ONHYVbrNiHj5nbjW55RkpFBGJilgdt0TbtieylJs8f5RwAVxLrB38i7sKNS5jL7UguKtM19SI-EBue-u7X3auOYXgkm9Uw6ZZOYDFVN5dRLfd_dqo64LdOZZFRXCFgY/s1600-h/P2030252.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj51vRaxtHJh1Qw4ONHYVbrNiHj5nbjW55RkpFBGJilgdt0TbtieylJs8f5RwAVxLrB38i7sKNS5jL7UguKtM19SI-EBue-u7X3auOYXgkm9Uw6ZZOYDFVN5dRLfd_dqo64LdOZZFRXCFgY/s320/P2030252.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The half eaten sandwich plate. At the front we had BC smoked salmon and cream cheese which was AMAZING, on the left at the back was chicken with mango chutney, in the middle is cucumber and horseradish and on the right is mushroom with truffle oil. There was also a carrot and ginger and cream cheese one.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpLXeWFGV-GCJyvJr8CoGXedHCJ7rJS3Q39nxjcPiFVMJlkXy2b25_x5kAdTKxDrC_LZtUr6eTXC2iIzhDhyphenhyphenvJYmw-G1LX3eEgj5azs9EshfxgF-oTRlqRhzJBbNy_JHKnUD8ohOrI6kTi/s1600-h/P2030251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpLXeWFGV-GCJyvJr8CoGXedHCJ7rJS3Q39nxjcPiFVMJlkXy2b25_x5kAdTKxDrC_LZtUr6eTXC2iIzhDhyphenhyphenvJYmw-G1LX3eEgj5azs9EshfxgF-oTRlqRhzJBbNy_JHKnUD8ohOrI6kTi/s320/P2030251.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Golden raisin scones with strawberry jam and cream. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNYEePw5aoUcltjqDAH1oKj98igYbG20ADYGekw7a1S0QJ502pz0DjVhYK-xDQsHgqlI6g573ffcBlpPx8pir3BgMQKhK3NlGO53o1GFnOT2aeGcikkySNolXFOCbUDkS204JeXbONi4vr/s1600-h/P2030250.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNYEePw5aoUcltjqDAH1oKj98igYbG20ADYGekw7a1S0QJ502pz0DjVhYK-xDQsHgqlI6g573ffcBlpPx8pir3BgMQKhK3NlGO53o1GFnOT2aeGcikkySNolXFOCbUDkS204JeXbONi4vr/s320/P2030250.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> The top plate was sooooo good. In the middle was a chocolate fudge cake. Behind that is earl grey shortbreads, to the left is battenburg cake, which I hadn't had before, and really liked. To the right were chocolate tulips filled with a chocolate ganache and an italian cherry soaked in something flammable, and in the front was lemon curd tarts with a tiny meringue swirl.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8AceLrsx1TGTkwvvr5sIt5yFGZ1gqx3UKG7ra7qTDDsgoHx9AA7oQLfzdrfM2GeUK1ZlS7y9-w1pXk5iNRzuWWfcy7cxu8I2CQx2FTCZp1zKryF3Vi71GyQ3vSbKD5E_J6l9iRAQ7XWvK/s1600-h/P2030247.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8AceLrsx1TGTkwvvr5sIt5yFGZ1gqx3UKG7ra7qTDDsgoHx9AA7oQLfzdrfM2GeUK1ZlS7y9-w1pXk5iNRzuWWfcy7cxu8I2CQx2FTCZp1zKryF3Vi71GyQ3vSbKD5E_J6l9iRAQ7XWvK/s320/P2030247.JPG" /></a></div><div align="center"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">All in all, the tea at the empress was well worth the money. The tea was a lovely tasting tea, the food was amazing, and the service was excellent. Only problem is...I've just got really hungry writing this!</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-78110723633940729492010-02-11T13:50:00.000-08:002010-02-11T13:50:43.652-08:00Victoria<div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;">One of the first things we did in Canada was head to Victoria. Victoria is actually the capital of BC, though it is only a very small city, but it is where all the government stuff, both provincial and federal, happens. Aside from this aspect, it is a very pretty place to visit. Going in the middle of winter meant that we had our run of places that we wanted to go, as well as cheap and <em>really </em>nice accomodation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">We left Vancouver early on tuesday morning. To get to Victoria, you need to get a ferry from Tsawwassen, which is a good distance from Vancouver itself. Thankfully, there's a new train line from downtown that makes it a heck of a lot easier to get there. Once we hit the end of the train line, we hopped on a bus, where we saw this horrendous piece of branding</div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOqvSxDgWLAbdvWZPahEU0T49iEnRZI7iSskTO5yhsd5mFM4wASkVXieujzlQ4pjO9jm9eFnHXMbvOpM4OuFjtWYhuUDnxo1TDAlcpS2yw6M7HvvB34A5eO3CBvLwRc2NFexipTzRMUDau/s1600-h/P2020150.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOqvSxDgWLAbdvWZPahEU0T49iEnRZI7iSskTO5yhsd5mFM4wASkVXieujzlQ4pjO9jm9eFnHXMbvOpM4OuFjtWYhuUDnxo1TDAlcpS2yw6M7HvvB34A5eO3CBvLwRc2NFexipTzRMUDau/s320/P2020150.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">It's hard to see because I was taking through a rainy bus window, but that is a McDonalds. In a church. With fake stained glass golden arches. Ok, it's not as bad as Starbucks in the Forbidden City, but still wasn't very impressed. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK-Wxq6-eub4Um9bZEiTaLv8mEW_B4f-FTHXn-URQ_NjDqjTUxV65xpUvEbEsDHnUuDjHCPEa27Kjaows_nIxZEOEtC4RHja8XxTzg_unqaeUJH_sN9vMQQeDxGjVwBRbe6vSJ7qwSh_Cq/s1600-h/IMG_0671.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK-Wxq6-eub4Um9bZEiTaLv8mEW_B4f-FTHXn-URQ_NjDqjTUxV65xpUvEbEsDHnUuDjHCPEa27Kjaows_nIxZEOEtC4RHja8XxTzg_unqaeUJH_sN9vMQQeDxGjVwBRbe6vSJ7qwSh_Cq/s320/IMG_0671.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div align="center" class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: justify;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Once we got on the ferry, the weather started to clear up as we got closer to Victoria. There's some wonderful little houses around the coasts of all the islands. Each house has its own jetty or landing, and the houses look like a wonderful place to live if you like to escape busy life. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPE5Nt5zQDHKmi1V1Eio-6ApGDYcZhCW3caw69_zzpBEkQAOaXo7EBt7zyBy-FM83Q1ynF6o1z6WnHDL5XTsdyt3J2mg8YiV2H-dat5099zd2-Cr3aCe9Y85WoIWFm8vwA24qI861iDFps/s1600-h/IMG_0326.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPE5Nt5zQDHKmi1V1Eio-6ApGDYcZhCW3caw69_zzpBEkQAOaXo7EBt7zyBy-FM83Q1ynF6o1z6WnHDL5XTsdyt3J2mg8YiV2H-dat5099zd2-Cr3aCe9Y85WoIWFm8vwA24qI861iDFps/s320/IMG_0326.JPG" /></a></div>Once on the island, we caught a bus from the ferry terminal to Victoria proper. The island is very pretty, and was really giving me that feeling that I <em>really </em>was somewhere else, mostly because the vegetation is so very different from the native forests in Australia and New Zealand. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3TlQklHr8qzAd3NhlJA4T-2fqCdYeTjhooRlYy_ov6S0RzMTFwg3eESTB9M7WMDJbKoSN5-UqYUFemc_ZI0gaOwrRpjRB7wZaC2bVGFCvoKZT-STNsILU9PcsnWW9BzCTeFlA3fW4wejW/s1600-h/BC+legislature.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3TlQklHr8qzAd3NhlJA4T-2fqCdYeTjhooRlYy_ov6S0RzMTFwg3eESTB9M7WMDJbKoSN5-UqYUFemc_ZI0gaOwrRpjRB7wZaC2bVGFCvoKZT-STNsILU9PcsnWW9BzCTeFlA3fW4wejW/s320/BC+legislature.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">This is the BC legislature building. It is a lovely building with a commanding presence in a small city. At night it is all lit up by lines of fairy lights strung along the major lines of the building.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiuygmcZ5PtjBLsfQseLcCH4m-uvTbmMxWPnBdQUg1vhEmnWM8warF0j0HOoY-B2VG6NMGK1YKEGXHgfp-EVE4P6a6pqAybMEOmYP4ahVMKxQWM35t4z5P4s9oYDBoATPE_Z6qrGjZNRPl/s1600-h/the+empress.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiuygmcZ5PtjBLsfQseLcCH4m-uvTbmMxWPnBdQUg1vhEmnWM8warF0j0HOoY-B2VG6NMGK1YKEGXHgfp-EVE4P6a6pqAybMEOmYP4ahVMKxQWM35t4z5P4s9oYDBoATPE_Z6qrGjZNRPl/s320/the+empress.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">The Empress Hotel, which was built in the early 20th century, is one of the oldest hotels in Victoria. They do an excellent high tea there, and the decor is gorgeous. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76Kmmqyew4qc41e6EvcY13ncDQMmLm3tAp5SvVwt4oCdSD3TttcAra7S1F4pX3dbSvBfPC_fKnnDBYuhFvKkhM4XidD_hcokhdphWtxDmqa6yDzCYqPhp9OCQ6iTRMAlgHi7WAQjw-E4f/s1600-h/P2030160.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh76Kmmqyew4qc41e6EvcY13ncDQMmLm3tAp5SvVwt4oCdSD3TttcAra7S1F4pX3dbSvBfPC_fKnnDBYuhFvKkhM4XidD_hcokhdphWtxDmqa6yDzCYqPhp9OCQ6iTRMAlgHi7WAQjw-E4f/s320/P2030160.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Just across the road from the Empress is this guy. He is, of course, Captain James Cook. Captain Cook reached Canada on his third and final voyage and did a lot charting of the northwestern North American coast, as well as trying to sail through the Bering Straight, something that he never achieved. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHh0lYsogVIFhrvA7TWRmwdn73N4syNQzlj_gk3uCSo04yRU0g_6Q-aTzA2RSe0xqhZX7Eby1fWvArfcFrEb6DUWsoTA2Qc6Hu5DtlBu-6sAunA4BIsoCRSvgBPS2t915tD0OrEqkBjGIe/s1600-h/P2030162.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHh0lYsogVIFhrvA7TWRmwdn73N4syNQzlj_gk3uCSo04yRU0g_6Q-aTzA2RSe0xqhZX7Eby1fWvArfcFrEb6DUWsoTA2Qc6Hu5DtlBu-6sAunA4BIsoCRSvgBPS2t915tD0OrEqkBjGIe/s320/P2030162.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">These eagles are everywhere, all painted by different artists in different styles. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlA-GS-Mklzi0DCiYJupGNUX3lICDFAVsNI6e98qoYWuYCMEh5XR7AIG3FU0pcOcE1ugxXElWmRdLHCyUJ1NJ08Wzn7IjpXUNj3LKTdNLUsQt08ukg-IIFDs8TdsRwAVVVJnXnCc7Z-HPL/s1600-h/P2040268.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlA-GS-Mklzi0DCiYJupGNUX3lICDFAVsNI6e98qoYWuYCMEh5XR7AIG3FU0pcOcE1ugxXElWmRdLHCyUJ1NJ08Wzn7IjpXUNj3LKTdNLUsQt08ukg-IIFDs8TdsRwAVVVJnXnCc7Z-HPL/s320/P2040268.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">This one is in the style of one of the local First Nations tribes.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEhXRI3AgnO9KhpjxCvNKeB_8WitiMAfd0VHAPFeBwheuXVAc593-3TVuStVqDlMmPqsftUIjuxkM_nUdNObNC7F3iELEMiVgNjoNjH6cmInVJzrZtv6_D7woV3CHNS4aAsthFftr4oH9k/s1600-h/P2040267.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEhXRI3AgnO9KhpjxCvNKeB_8WitiMAfd0VHAPFeBwheuXVAc593-3TVuStVqDlMmPqsftUIjuxkM_nUdNObNC7F3iELEMiVgNjoNjH6cmInVJzrZtv6_D7woV3CHNS4aAsthFftr4oH9k/s320/P2040267.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">We discovered that Darth Vadar has an unknown talent. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXGAbFEpT5m-JMWB5c81aJmUVwbUmpbBhAsIIW7tCwcE5a5X10RJyMwZ0Yh26Oy6CaZvE_7_Jl7aeQ8ez-pUxP7jR35K6YhDmz49XxEojlYstERrf67DdeNpcAtllzT1LlZ94EfvFROqFR/s1600-h/P2030170.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXGAbFEpT5m-JMWB5c81aJmUVwbUmpbBhAsIIW7tCwcE5a5X10RJyMwZ0Yh26Oy6CaZvE_7_Jl7aeQ8ez-pUxP7jR35K6YhDmz49XxEojlYstERrf67DdeNpcAtllzT1LlZ94EfvFROqFR/s320/P2030170.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I have decided I really like Canadian post boxes. You certainly can't miss them, and they are a lot prettier than the average Australia Post ones. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVyT3CXgVBm5T8WJ2bOow5ERaHt_SD60rcv4oohyphenhyphendgitrl0rpGhNr-hlenkmIugv_50EFMJX0fnaqR_i5qtMUmjSmq5pQMONQtn1rs58vWm6HSNXa6Z-jgyz-lLU2_VrusS_rvIRl-V2-/s1600-h/IMG_0585.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwVyT3CXgVBm5T8WJ2bOow5ERaHt_SD60rcv4oohyphenhyphendgitrl0rpGhNr-hlenkmIugv_50EFMJX0fnaqR_i5qtMUmjSmq5pQMONQtn1rs58vWm6HSNXa6Z-jgyz-lLU2_VrusS_rvIRl-V2-/s320/IMG_0585.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">And here are the two beautifully lit up buildings at night. Above is the legislature, and below is the Empress.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3wSm0uujjhx3cLfNg4nnFDSnb4KxPZhzWYjb5Q3objpv38pBTfNFzalsns67JN8rNsbfErGYtg0CsCkpfEBkdzR_lLEMfL5SEFMZAVuR0Vsv7cGKXo4j3y6zBo6lT5suAX4YcRD13fwLB/s1600-h/IMG_0587.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" ct="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3wSm0uujjhx3cLfNg4nnFDSnb4KxPZhzWYjb5Q3objpv38pBTfNFzalsns67JN8rNsbfErGYtg0CsCkpfEBkdzR_lLEMfL5SEFMZAVuR0Vsv7cGKXo4j3y6zBo6lT5suAX4YcRD13fwLB/s320/IMG_0587.JPG" /></a></div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-67457823117907817112010-02-07T17:57:00.000-08:002010-02-07T17:57:58.221-08:00So far in Canada<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Just a very small post to give a rough idea of what I've been up to in Canada so far. Most of these things will have blogposts of their own, but until I get those written, this will have to do!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOSSUthAJzAQqgPzeLBhS4XXCYwkNIRmnlHKQ7vtf0zCJIxMiBtaiKA4MSGhD9bsD70hgA2vWYcWG-xFThhgUeZlmME8Ehs7Rg1Lc2q4f28t-e8lpiVzb5Z7HaKySsXJS4RekIxbnhC4w-/s1600-h/P2010142.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOSSUthAJzAQqgPzeLBhS4XXCYwkNIRmnlHKQ7vtf0zCJIxMiBtaiKA4MSGhD9bsD70hgA2vWYcWG-xFThhgUeZlmME8Ehs7Rg1Lc2q4f28t-e8lpiVzb5Z7HaKySsXJS4RekIxbnhC4w-/s320/P2010142.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">So, I'm in Vancouver, and it's getting really exciting here at the moment with all the Olympic preparations!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlzcSllg4X_9RK28jnGGmCNkkbVudj3SUYRDgOw0lIAtPPTl-v1gdtx3qttIOTDtqM5I8bpvLSNJJbro71efI86-3Mva_YW3b6GMPt_2h_FznnqhMTv_k2gri922dRwe_7jDMz878-v3G-/s1600-h/Milennium+Gate.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlzcSllg4X_9RK28jnGGmCNkkbVudj3SUYRDgOw0lIAtPPTl-v1gdtx3qttIOTDtqM5I8bpvLSNJJbro71efI86-3Mva_YW3b6GMPt_2h_FznnqhMTv_k2gri922dRwe_7jDMz878-v3G-/s320/Milennium+Gate.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">Craig and I took a tour around Chinatown, which was both very informative, and very tasty, as it included plenty of taste tests of yummy Chinese snack foods. This is the Milennium Gate, which stands at the western end of Chinatown. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1__JNQlwL1dNHmeMr1UgJP1tPO_28aDP35sZR3tnqUu3BBwoJrNFEFmTvRfTl3eau-7lc5wdZEhdVHFF6uN-OuuYyDKKPzgZkVH5_K_a3eGEqjNOdJsy5NcdDxm5jsLKDDvXcq-kZV_c/s1600-h/IMG_0303.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgl1__JNQlwL1dNHmeMr1UgJP1tPO_28aDP35sZR3tnqUu3BBwoJrNFEFmTvRfTl3eau-7lc5wdZEhdVHFF6uN-OuuYyDKKPzgZkVH5_K_a3eGEqjNOdJsy5NcdDxm5jsLKDDvXcq-kZV_c/s320/IMG_0303.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">We went to see our host, Peter play the dame in a pantomime. This costume was actually less disturbing than seeing Peter in streetclothes with the full makeup on. And if you're wondering, those fake boobs are an H cup!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWY3UXh5-NdjEIL-9ZJtSA4j4rOgrpiBcjARHXi0cAQ5xSylou8PsMW4Miq6mq9SSe0SSRzLh-otnRLm4_M1cApY-khGHQL84sDF4R1x-m_6YEjZE4xr43a3j47QPrPBr8XAj6G13duHAB/s1600-h/P2010127.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWY3UXh5-NdjEIL-9ZJtSA4j4rOgrpiBcjARHXi0cAQ5xSylou8PsMW4Miq6mq9SSe0SSRzLh-otnRLm4_M1cApY-khGHQL84sDF4R1x-m_6YEjZE4xr43a3j47QPrPBr8XAj6G13duHAB/s320/P2010127.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">I went exploring around Vancouver's Granville Island. My explorations also included a tour of the public market, which was very interesting, and like the Chinatown tour, tasty! </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTMrOWQ0XRpkrRF9wA-qwIZCoLkBGy0YYmTR1rOxJUsLO8rTvu7g7XuImc5ZeIWDitYrHbXfSxIdLiS9TD4g2-oMQzA5e-lhdGhzNjTk7DuGSJsnpkgKPn8tMG7swR4h-YTlgA7-xOq-Pr/s1600-h/P2030155.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTMrOWQ0XRpkrRF9wA-qwIZCoLkBGy0YYmTR1rOxJUsLO8rTvu7g7XuImc5ZeIWDitYrHbXfSxIdLiS9TD4g2-oMQzA5e-lhdGhzNjTk7DuGSJsnpkgKPn8tMG7swR4h-YTlgA7-xOq-Pr/s320/P2030155.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">Next, we headed to Victoria for a few days. While there, we went to the museum, attempted to go whale watching, had high tea at the empress, and visited the bug zoo, where I held all sorts of creepy crawlies.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRT2pR9fXuFMEAb2WN2TlTOm71Zz_4fhYZSFBFM7yikGqmQzRb_AhRRx9D1uN1r9kPS0n-MWAN8K2yyAx7hx_8Runof8OHkkmQhHYJH_hWTAdprTaDdU-LgGo1CTH2CGjAHn2TyYDgb33w/s1600-h/P2030255.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRT2pR9fXuFMEAb2WN2TlTOm71Zz_4fhYZSFBFM7yikGqmQzRb_AhRRx9D1uN1r9kPS0n-MWAN8K2yyAx7hx_8Runof8OHkkmQhHYJH_hWTAdprTaDdU-LgGo1CTH2CGjAHn2TyYDgb33w/s320/P2030255.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">I made a new friend. This is Muk Muk. He is the official sidekick of the official mascots of the 2010 Olympic games, and he is supposed to be a Vancouver Island Marmot. Yes, you read right, the mascots have an official sidekick. The sidekick has almost become more popular than the actual mascots. He is certainly the cutest!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn0eNlFOt0Xd3nHI4TERRXKw4gduOUO2IXvFPllsVhXhaibm7WtnFiOLdT0ytOojA1-CgBejoOHqCBLW3qTUaLTx3iAHxx6VAAC8NawgC0ynfXottUyWjUXvGrxESwkh171FwOkbpXUQov/s1600-h/IMG_0689.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgn0eNlFOt0Xd3nHI4TERRXKw4gduOUO2IXvFPllsVhXhaibm7WtnFiOLdT0ytOojA1-CgBejoOHqCBLW3qTUaLTx3iAHxx6VAAC8NawgC0ynfXottUyWjUXvGrxESwkh171FwOkbpXUQov/s320/IMG_0689.JPG" /></a></div><br />
And the most exciting thing recently was that we got to see, stand next and TOUCH the Stanley Cup. For those non-Canadians reading this, it's like being next to the AFL cup (if you care about AFL), or perhaps the Trinations Cup. I was also rather excited by the fact that they had mounties in the red uniform there too. It was very exciting. There was also a hockey player there named Bret Hedican who at one point had played for the local team.<br />
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More posts to come soon I hope, once I've got my photos sorted out, and taken a few more photos in some of the places around here. Much more exploration to come, and hopefully some Olympic adventures too!Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7711426768894244394.post-17965303378126592282010-02-01T23:38:00.000-08:002010-02-01T23:38:29.782-08:00Hawaii!<div style="text-align: justify;">January 27th was shaping up to be a really long day! It started in the morning, when we left Hobart for Sydney and Honolulu. Of course, nothing is ever easy, and we were stuck in a traffic jam for a good bit of the drive to the airport. But we did get there on time, and so the longest day ever began. We left Hobart at about 10:30 a.m. to fly to Sydney where we would wait for 7 hours for our next flight.</div><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJTrmO9txjNZzPtkUc7AZQvKXMjuvXOyNiUylM41_RtrOj7P8FnY2AmwEWtIEF8XLk9vB5OeEERp-WXt0Sxnd_8ouBdifsgbw0FiW0QM8wFQnqLts9jWuW_hbBi2gIV49O9NnErVjXTkrt/s1600-h/P1270001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJTrmO9txjNZzPtkUc7AZQvKXMjuvXOyNiUylM41_RtrOj7P8FnY2AmwEWtIEF8XLk9vB5OeEERp-WXt0Sxnd_8ouBdifsgbw0FiW0QM8wFQnqLts9jWuW_hbBi2gIV49O9NnErVjXTkrt/s320/P1270001.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: justify;">We found ourselves a quiet little corner of the airport where we could lie down and relax and so spent the next 5 and a half hours trying to fill in time, by watching dvds, random film crews and reading. We were both a bit fascinated by the Airbus A-380. When it was sitting at the gate, it was just a BIG plane, but it was only when it started to taxi out with the tiny little ant-men next to it that we really got just how big the thing was!</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS1lKaTESbLhLcuQcl36cCmcGov2cnuWb0_stunnrDbycKBiAMTV-xFRfJlYdc3TYGopW-EfXK9SYX3D8A71n46Ji0nPMkFzuTBPhnvTAIueqj13f4gjHY8uuaLVkhUfYatRTBRfApzhbM/s1600-h/P1270003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS1lKaTESbLhLcuQcl36cCmcGov2cnuWb0_stunnrDbycKBiAMTV-xFRfJlYdc3TYGopW-EfXK9SYX3D8A71n46Ji0nPMkFzuTBPhnvTAIueqj13f4gjHY8uuaLVkhUfYatRTBRfApzhbM/s320/P1270003.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: justify;">Poor Craig...this was somewhere towards the end of the long wait, and we were both getting kind of bored. Nevertheless, we eventually got called to come through the extra security for USA flights. We were originally a bit concerned about the full bag checks, but I think after going through the security in Hawaii on the way to Vancouver I prefer the individual search option, it was actually fairly efficient, and we weren't delayed at all out of Sydney.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkHsasg8pBxmGLNMicQKul_lCo6Y2Gv4TSvuYRZyoB7zh7burmYnsiIpik2ssZtAhUIkR7p28h-mm3XyzvD-ulISFVlOlxuj_S37gQTjChrKmBzVDQM-tMl2QKn4on0vkY4O1vPNWw5LY/s1600-h/P1280015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmkHsasg8pBxmGLNMicQKul_lCo6Y2Gv4TSvuYRZyoB7zh7burmYnsiIpik2ssZtAhUIkR7p28h-mm3XyzvD-ulISFVlOlxuj_S37gQTjChrKmBzVDQM-tMl2QKn4on0vkY4O1vPNWw5LY/s320/P1280015.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">The flight was uneventful, fairly turbulent, but at least mostly empty. Once we arrived in Hawaii, where it was once again the morning of the 27th, and we'd only had a few hours of sleep each. We couldn't get into our hotel room until the afternoon, so we headed out to the nearby mall, which is the world's largest open air mall. I don't think we saw all of it! Wandering about like zombies was about all that we could manage, but we did find some nice ways to pass the time.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6u-F19GV8z1SyOoJrtoHgaFX5TS09hTpOAuKkNusj80YbLgQItGAg116QNCY82vjl1n1x842rOqQi6c1YegdE3ll6qAdVkpUoJNb4X4aeZswsZNKBOWlX_znvf22PflNEV6bGYAMPB9tY/s1600-h/P1280019.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6u-F19GV8z1SyOoJrtoHgaFX5TS09hTpOAuKkNusj80YbLgQItGAg116QNCY82vjl1n1x842rOqQi6c1YegdE3ll6qAdVkpUoJNb4X4aeZswsZNKBOWlX_znvf22PflNEV6bGYAMPB9tY/s320/P1280019.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">One of these that we stumbled upon was a performance by the Royal Hawaiian Concert Band. It started with a shell/horn call, and a welcoming chant very similar to what the Maori do in New Zealand.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZG4W_XYmcDhd5FtidUdELW4O37dHiGWMI1gF5mRfjU6ZBe5TjGFIedvfPE1hnHtWu_gcLp7OicuC_6KO_AWXqS6uXMjhyphenhyphend7gSSXKu2gE6mCyfzNCNFdp00q55rJRonDh8i_1jj_7jhry-/s1600-h/P1280022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZG4W_XYmcDhd5FtidUdELW4O37dHiGWMI1gF5mRfjU6ZBe5TjGFIedvfPE1hnHtWu_gcLp7OicuC_6KO_AWXqS6uXMjhyphenhyphend7gSSXKu2gE6mCyfzNCNFdp00q55rJRonDh8i_1jj_7jhry-/s320/P1280022.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Then there was a singer, who sang anything from Hawaiin traditional songs to jazz. She had an incredible voice, I could really imagine her getting down in a gospel church. </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikmrkxWge7iy_LMoPIefmT804U_cFQxo88muid-fi9uG7zvpR1XDMelboYvPqzVfyr7SZ2ysgPqcPCSL04qSXT-R_odxNfKQWEDt6Z1L1jv_AuCaRDtDk1SNxWqW3oTRYhDxU2YnGLz9f3/s1600-h/P1280027.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikmrkxWge7iy_LMoPIefmT804U_cFQxo88muid-fi9uG7zvpR1XDMelboYvPqzVfyr7SZ2ysgPqcPCSL04qSXT-R_odxNfKQWEDt6Z1L1jv_AuCaRDtDk1SNxWqW3oTRYhDxU2YnGLz9f3/s320/P1280027.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">The band also came complete with a hula dancer, though she wasn't wearing the traditional grass skirt and coconut bra. </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAWaneV-exnzyXud0RKDX4nhkCyO80erUNkDE458BFTvZozZX2SKVtPmvpdkkZqZqHU5LX7fAGeRa4hu9ve8pPls-zfDtVnN2F99c7LPQYaAHwHQGnKqotpsb6Ec7oxRrZsz_6_RjX86gz/s1600-h/P1290029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAWaneV-exnzyXud0RKDX4nhkCyO80erUNkDE458BFTvZozZX2SKVtPmvpdkkZqZqHU5LX7fAGeRa4hu9ve8pPls-zfDtVnN2F99c7LPQYaAHwHQGnKqotpsb6Ec7oxRrZsz_6_RjX86gz/s320/P1290029.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">This for me sums up Waikiki: Palm trees and a big limo. It was actually very pleasant area, tacky, but not nrealy as tacky as I thought it would be. There are some really lovely parks and gardens in the centre, as well as the beach and the marina.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOl9JfUjODvGzJ6FOu5OodTGz7pkWti-D1JSfBhddJ12Ue30YWyhNEKzuesirLMLxge0E26NwIzbO-PHoNiZZVdWyqiK-gG47EwZhL8N87vWx-Q8dUnyk-8Tba8p-yzamDJ0P9ldZwnoet/s1600-h/P1290031.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOl9JfUjODvGzJ6FOu5OodTGz7pkWti-D1JSfBhddJ12Ue30YWyhNEKzuesirLMLxge0E26NwIzbO-PHoNiZZVdWyqiK-gG47EwZhL8N87vWx-Q8dUnyk-8Tba8p-yzamDJ0P9ldZwnoet/s320/P1290031.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">This is one bit of tackiness that we did come across. Of course, Obama, being from Hawaii, was popping up everywhere, this was the only life size cut out we saw. Aside from that, there were tshirts, bags, bobbleheads and mugs, to name a few.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEu-NxE9r35WpmwhidXlso8Y7FP-i5ptjKOjrBT43iyggxyT2EfZ6_Vd_WvNO2yDxGNyvT1Y5J8gCNJxaF_dXuFBpxK24z_NSxQeG4bainN42ZPrxkMpl8q5-K08vnUinVIdaoeNbohxUk/s1600-h/P1290036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEu-NxE9r35WpmwhidXlso8Y7FP-i5ptjKOjrBT43iyggxyT2EfZ6_Vd_WvNO2yDxGNyvT1Y5J8gCNJxaF_dXuFBpxK24z_NSxQeG4bainN42ZPrxkMpl8q5-K08vnUinVIdaoeNbohxUk/s320/P1290036.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">Day Two: After a long and very deep night's sleep, Craig and I headed out to find the aquarium. This is not it, but just one of the cool murals around.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPE2gnHkayKFYrIwTQMJoHxaxnBLL8pwbpQ-6TYIEt5h1GScRr0BFpUfY8sJ0WEselMPwhHfnnAd3kyCsN-4cSnsambwOZdflGcJb7fHPScL9OZmHF8Tno50JcS2wpWuIM2aofRd5Y4WGP/s1600-h/P1290042.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPE2gnHkayKFYrIwTQMJoHxaxnBLL8pwbpQ-6TYIEt5h1GScRr0BFpUfY8sJ0WEselMPwhHfnnAd3kyCsN-4cSnsambwOZdflGcJb7fHPScL9OZmHF8Tno50JcS2wpWuIM2aofRd5Y4WGP/s320/P1290042.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">We did find it eventually, and while it was small, it was a really nice aquarium with lots of lovely tropical fish and local species as well.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiffh6LfrAaEK9WjmOi6uMNUIL_M-8gaaDZLKsaZS0ZluNJ0pWlPpmbYtHrFFBY0t8kgzI5eWMNrk9p3aR1EdIKDvBtwDekZHoH3cWykUP5L_TWU4fkWgGihzGcXDS7MXwlHGM2cbR9i-Pe/s1600-h/P1290050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiffh6LfrAaEK9WjmOi6uMNUIL_M-8gaaDZLKsaZS0ZluNJ0pWlPpmbYtHrFFBY0t8kgzI5eWMNrk9p3aR1EdIKDvBtwDekZHoH3cWykUP5L_TWU4fkWgGihzGcXDS7MXwlHGM2cbR9i-Pe/s320/P1290050.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">Much as Nemo tried hide, we found him!</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKQtfXiC0EELF9BcyrOyippjKaj1IPDPjRuniuHgz1G1IHijRylN6HJEaePrMdG1wyzFwoVjLe1ZsBS-d4DuAvG25ZfIT6szzmFov5cDQV7icIfTBeeHkJt0uOZ8GXYH5ghIqsprzeAhwI/s1600-h/P1290071.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKQtfXiC0EELF9BcyrOyippjKaj1IPDPjRuniuHgz1G1IHijRylN6HJEaePrMdG1wyzFwoVjLe1ZsBS-d4DuAvG25ZfIT6szzmFov5cDQV7icIfTBeeHkJt0uOZ8GXYH5ghIqsprzeAhwI/s320/P1290071.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">And some jellyfish! </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsgMcV5rW97Qj0pVfCuUp61drmLN0FPAaF8W5aZoAPvaqRb7jlgLPzXYhJBJcIVF7x5n0nzOOY45pT_yF9oxJrAB9mTnU3MyV-Gcs97S0ALDe4n0O9uDm0dYcNjz_xYVwPZOK3tvim5oUh/s1600-h/P1290093.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsgMcV5rW97Qj0pVfCuUp61drmLN0FPAaF8W5aZoAPvaqRb7jlgLPzXYhJBJcIVF7x5n0nzOOY45pT_yF9oxJrAB9mTnU3MyV-Gcs97S0ALDe4n0O9uDm0dYcNjz_xYVwPZOK3tvim5oUh/s320/P1290093.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">This is a Hawaiian Monk Seal. They are extremely endangered, only about 1000 left. They're funny animals, and the other one in the tank had a liking for hanging upside down in the water, which I unfortunately didn't get a decent photo of</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho9I4bAGxyJ9nHzC6WFz7nBAuJB8pA9E7OD_7kOEhVOKJ8Ytec4CgsPYEjPVC11iAzl88A4otJpODSNvbNIkT_FGN1I8xGJ-fJXZqG8X40KKV_diqe-eiU-6yypprUhzSSMX78ehEJj925/s1600-h/P1290101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEho9I4bAGxyJ9nHzC6WFz7nBAuJB8pA9E7OD_7kOEhVOKJ8Ytec4CgsPYEjPVC11iAzl88A4otJpODSNvbNIkT_FGN1I8xGJ-fJXZqG8X40KKV_diqe-eiU-6yypprUhzSSMX78ehEJj925/s320/P1290101.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Waikiki Beach with the historic Royal Hawaiian hotel in the background</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW2oHtVO7R0BYwwPO4ZV8Bwv43Tf0gt4KY2D8hPulg62_S7C2jtwcpoyOK_icox377kP-9LY2C7u67BJcunXtgoCMBA_KBa1vYBVUMzO8J7igR7t9_h2NOeNcDmAGHZ77slLNUpzW91U_z/s1600-h/IMG_0231.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW2oHtVO7R0BYwwPO4ZV8Bwv43Tf0gt4KY2D8hPulg62_S7C2jtwcpoyOK_icox377kP-9LY2C7u67BJcunXtgoCMBA_KBa1vYBVUMzO8J7igR7t9_h2NOeNcDmAGHZ77slLNUpzW91U_z/s320/IMG_0231.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">Craig and I bought a new camera in Hawaii, so I spent the time getting used to it by taking photos of the wonderful tropical flowers. This one is a hibiscus.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi42cQQiIZd9IoJhVO-5G9ZB3FRcEymJ48v-TguDUB25mu3YzAna4kDPmviUtuW7b-74C7xE_oibJEeDlGnjHZe5vHfEtdExGw-ra36WbU-rUEOXMQNVzYkjIqftMkXBF-U9uSsl4B_Y8q5/s1600-h/IMG_0253.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi42cQQiIZd9IoJhVO-5G9ZB3FRcEymJ48v-TguDUB25mu3YzAna4kDPmviUtuW7b-74C7xE_oibJEeDlGnjHZe5vHfEtdExGw-ra36WbU-rUEOXMQNVzYkjIqftMkXBF-U9uSsl4B_Y8q5/s320/IMG_0253.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">A beautiful catamaran in full sail off Waikiki beach. Didn't see too many surfers because the surf was really small.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikwM3YAmEHfDUCImcDzDc_JXHtp12skqrg4lG7LL_4JAh1ipqBegLixcnFPPEXjWC6Pjw86pWuy96WGShaJ0KCauzUvRmZwP2_V_lUBVRtL2i9rjmBY_QPSzmtmAFl7FXBmL28nfkRLGAh/s1600-h/IMG_0256.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikwM3YAmEHfDUCImcDzDc_JXHtp12skqrg4lG7LL_4JAh1ipqBegLixcnFPPEXjWC6Pjw86pWuy96WGShaJ0KCauzUvRmZwP2_V_lUBVRtL2i9rjmBY_QPSzmtmAFl7FXBmL28nfkRLGAh/s320/IMG_0256.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"> A lovely frangipani from a huge tree.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtC3cLIWqd4SDwE12jM0Fy1xqNxzb0UxZuQjowHVNPhNS3YoB0NFF7RN-ODsh6THjfrlOkMf4WajUxi5swRAdSaEORIlSeSwBfd67-Qsmw6iFTufxfJYl42tj59MdqbSzQjABan597pkxx/s1600-h/IMG_0261.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtC3cLIWqd4SDwE12jM0Fy1xqNxzb0UxZuQjowHVNPhNS3YoB0NFF7RN-ODsh6THjfrlOkMf4WajUxi5swRAdSaEORIlSeSwBfd67-Qsmw6iFTufxfJYl42tj59MdqbSzQjABan597pkxx/s320/IMG_0261.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">A yellow hibiscus with a red centre.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsq-iFJ1VyhHZXjx0JgNX-J7ji_RHAx4oAjrUluH6eQH39qcw39qhnf3AdxE8UyUnSyYInQD-H3doKqYqzxwIYJhbqsq3N9I-hu-KU8AdrVg_6tlkldNbibI_ohIpHBdv4HQljdXRITTpj/s1600-h/Surfrider.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" kt="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsq-iFJ1VyhHZXjx0JgNX-J7ji_RHAx4oAjrUluH6eQH39qcw39qhnf3AdxE8UyUnSyYInQD-H3doKqYqzxwIYJhbqsq3N9I-hu-KU8AdrVg_6tlkldNbibI_ohIpHBdv4HQljdXRITTpj/s320/Surfrider.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">This is another historic Honolulu hotel, the Surfrider. It was really very impressive, though it seemed more plantation style than the other older buildings in the area.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;">And so we came to the end of Hawaii. Overall I really enjoyed Honolulu. It was quite a pleasant place. The two things I liked the most was how friendly the locals were, and how good the customer service was. For me, the thing that needs the most work is the airport. It's really old, and for the most part, open air, which is not overly pleasant in 80%+ humidity. It's also run quite badly, and it's a bit confusing.</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">The next day we left Honolulu for Canada. The experience of flying out of the USA was not the most pleasant, as ALL checked baggage is hand searched and repackaged by those who search them, so the bags may return in a way that wasn't how you left it. The actual security screening was quite badly organised, and the guy who screened Craig's stuff gave his document wallet to another passenger. Thankfully the lady noticed and ran back with it, but still, if they're going to insist on pulling a person's bag apart they should try and give the stuff back to the right person. </div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: left;">Anyway...we're now in Vancouver. So far I'm liking it very much, though blog posts will have to wait till I've taken some more decent photos. Off to Victoria for a few days tomorrow, so see you all when I get back!</div><div class="separator" style="border-bottom: medium none; border-left: medium none; border-right: medium none; border-top: medium none; clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Rhonwynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10570322030088363627noreply@blogger.com0