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24 Hour Paralympic Torch Relay via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 10th, 2010 at 16:30

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/24-hour-paralympic-torch-relay.html.The Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Torch Relay will arrive in Vancouver March 11th and make a 24-hour loop around downtown until the Opening Ceremony March 12th. Location Robson Square, with the relay looping around Howe, Georgia, Granville, Smithe, Bute and Robson Time 2:00pm March 11th until 2:00pm March 12th, 2010 Events Robson Square will host live entertainment as well as sponsor activities, sport demos and cultural craft displays. You will be able to skate for free on the ice rink and the free zipline will open up again March 12th at 10:00am....

LiveCity Vancouver Back for Paralympics via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 9th, 2010 at 19:41

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/livecity-vancouver-back-for-paralympics.html.The Olympics are gone but the excitement of the Paralympics is about the take over the town as LiveCity returns. One of the most popular attractions during the Olympics, LiveCity’s downtown location will re-open March 12th featuring pavilions and performances you might have previously missed due to long lines. Location Georgia at Cambie Street Hours Friday, March 12 – Sunday, March 14 and Thursday, March 18 – Sunday March 21, 2010 from 1:00pm – 9:00pm. Cost Free! Family-friendly Paralympic Games celebration site. Pavilions 2010 Canada Pavilion, CentrePlace Manitoba and the newly re-named Vancouver Paralympic House Performers The Trews,...

Vancouver 2010 Paralympics Opening Ceremony via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 8th, 2010 at 17:32

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/vancouver-2010-paralympics-opening-ceremony.html.The Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Torch Relay is en route, making its way to Vancouver for March 12th. This morning I had the chance to speak with Patrick Roberge whose production company, Patrick Roberge Productions (PRP), has been tasked with presenting us the the Opening Ceremony. Photo credit: Kanpeki Yume on Flickr Having closely watched several recent Olympic opening ceremonies, I asked Patrick how the Paralympic ceremony compares. He said that the structure is similar, having the same protocol requirements such as the athletes parade, raising of the flag, and lighting of the cauldron. “Then we have the opportunity to make the show that...

Vancouver 2010 Torch Relay Video via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 4th, 2010 at 01:48

Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/vancouver-2010-torch-relay-video.html.Just when I thought I had wrapped up my Vancouver 2010 coverage, I discover an amazing video on YouTube by director Trevor Meier, featuring the Olympic Torch Relay. Comissioned by VANOC, they have an entire series of videos from the relay, the following is from Days 64 – 70. The Torch Relay was one of my favourite, if not the best, highlights of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. I was lucky enough to ride along in my hometown of Surrey and that memory will be with me always. The Paralympic Torch Relay began today and the flame it will find its way to Vancouver again March......

Vancouver 2010 Paralympics Guide via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 2nd, 2010 at 20:57

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/vancouver-2010-paralympics-guide.html.The Paralympics are coming to Vancouver, March 12th until the 21st, as our city hosts the world once again celebrating athletes who are the very best in their sport. In case you were wondering just what exactly the Paralympics entail, I thought I would put together this quick reference guide. Paralympic History “In 1948, Sir Ludwig Guttmann organized a sports competition involving World War II veterans with a spinal cord injury in Stoke Mandeville, England. Four years later, competitors from the Netherlands joined the games and an international movement was born. Olympic style games for athletes with a disability were organized for the first time in Rome...

Vancouver 2010 Paralympics: Whistler Concerts via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 2nd, 2010 at 19:38

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/vancouver-2010-paralympics-whistler-concerts.html.The Olympic flame will be lit again for the Paralympic Games in Vancouver and Whistler starting March 12, 2010 which means the party isn’t over yet. You will have time to check out some of the pavilions once again and many acts will be hitting stages during the Paralympic medal ceremonies. Whistler Concerts March 13, 2010 – Kathleen Edwards March 14, 2010 – The Weakerthans March 15, 2010 – Antoine Gratton March 16, 2010 – The Trews March 17, 2010 – Justin Hines March 18, 2010 – Serena Ryder Nightly – DJ Chili Thom via The Straight From March 19 to 21, Whistler event medals will also be...

Vancouver 2010 The Final Tally via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 2nd, 2010 at 00:26

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/vancouver-2010-the-final-tally.html.On the very last day of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games I cried twice. Once, when Sidney Crosby’s goal got past a stellar Ryan Miller, and once again when Neil Young was singing as the flame disappeared from the Olympic cauldron. It’s been seven years in the making and even though it’s gone, I did my best to document every waking moment. I promised to cover the Games so here are some numbers… Events attended: 3 (women’s hockey, pairs figure skating, alpine) Posts: 118 (in total about Vancouver 2010) Comments received: 2180 Posts about pavilions: 17 Flickr photos: 608 Athlete press conference photos: 21 Tweets: 841 Badges...

Vancouver 2010 Day 17 Closing Time via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 1st, 2010 at 23:23

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/03/vancouver-2010-day-17-closing-time.html.My Day 17 involved packing up and heading to the BC International Media Centre one last time. Lugging my laptop across town, going through the security screening, and taking photos at a press conference with Jasey-Jay Anderson followed by the gold medal men’s curling team. Then of course, we watched the hockey game. John and I headed home to watch the closing ceremony together, curled up on the couch, tears streaming down my face as throngs of red and white revelers cheered outside our window. Words cannot express how I have felt over the last 17 days, even though I’ve been writing my way through the Games. Thank you, Vancouver....

My daily badges/lanyards [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 2nd, 2010 at 00:26

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Stephen Brunt Video Essay for CTV via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt March 1st, 2010 at 01:07

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/stephen-brunt-video-essay-for-ctv.html.Stephen Brunt, a columnist for the Globe and Mail, put together a remarkable video essay about the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Since I cannot embed the video from the source, you can watch it on the CTVOlympics website. I did manage to find another article by Brunt which is in the same vein. Here’s an excerpt: “… the show got off to an unequivocally awful start. Hours before the cauldron was lit, a luger was killed during a practice run, raising questions about the safety of the state-of-the-art track built specifically for these Olympics. A technical glitch marred the climactic moment of the Opening Ceremony, and freakishly warm...

Canada Wins Gold in Hockey via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 28th, 2010 at 23:26

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/canada-wins-gold-in-hockey.html.This was arguably the biggest game in our nation’s history. It wasn’t the Summit Series, but it was the Olympic gold medal game on our home turf, against our continental brothers. The USA played hard, Miller stood on his head to stop us, and they even made us sweat… a lot. You couldn’t have imagined this match up and you couldn’t have fathomed that this game would go into overtime with Crosby scoring the winning goal. I wouldn’t be surprised if Ryan Miller, Roberto Luongo, Sidney Crosby, Jonathan Toews, and more inspire young boys and girls to start playing hockey. In fact, I look forward to seeing the next generation grow up...

Live Webcam of Robson Square via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 28th, 2010 at 18:27

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/live-webcam-of-robson-square.html.I’ve featured this webcam before but I think for this afternoon’s hockey game, where Canada takes on the USA for the gold medal, this would be an interesting view of downtown crowds. Watch live streaming video from bcmclivechannel at livestream.com It’s bound to be a sea of red later, despite the rain outside. From the gold medal game to the Closing Ceremony, people will be out in droves to cap off their Vancouver 2010 Olympic experience downtown. Thanks to the Province of British Columbia for making Robson Square one of the best places to be during the Games (and during the Paralympic Games). I know my family in Germany has checked out this cam...

Vancouver 2010 Day 16 Wrapping Up via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 28th, 2010 at 17:46

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-2010-day-16-wrapping-up.html.It’s the very last day of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics and I’m pretty sure I’m never going to forget this experience — or find something to top it in the near future. Day 16 yesterday started off with a press conference with our men’s short track speed skating team. They collected gold the night before while Charles Hamelin and François-Louis Tremblay picked up individual medals as well. This morning, it was announced that Hamelin would be our country’s flag-bearer in the closing ceremony. He’s the only person to win two gold for Canada and in a Winter Games where we dominated the gold count, it’s pretty...

George Stroumboulopoulos at Vancouver 2010 via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 28th, 2010 at 00:59

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/george-stroumboulopoulos-at-vancouver-2010.html.Since last year, whenever George Stroumboulopoulos has found himself in Vancouver he has also graciously found the time to do a little interview with me. Strombo & his Miss604 button – Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr We met up on the corner of Howe and Smithe this afternoon and chatted about why he’s in town and the ultimate power of Olympic hockey. Thanks to John Biehler for filming this for me, I wasn’t about to trust an iPod with the audio again. One thing’s for sure, this town is crazy for the Olympics and given the crowd that gathered during our chat, they kinda really like Strombo as well....

Vancouver 2010 Fan Fashions via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 27th, 2010 at 21:00

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-2010-fan-fashion-trends.html.It’s funny what you can get away with wearing when your city is hosting the Olympics. From body flags to body paint, here’s a glimpse of some of the fashion trends you may only get away with during Vancouver 2010. Canadiana Hand-marked letters, painted faces, stapled-on flags, and those popular white boots that look like Calgary ‘88 leftovers. International Flavour While we might see Team Canada jerseys in Vancouver year-round, the international jerseys have made the crowd that much more colourful. Oddities Hula hoops downtown in February, spandex in Whistler, faux-fur suits, and people getting crafty with their hair....

Vancouver 2010 Day 15 Recap via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 27th, 2010 at 16:36

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-2010-day-15-recap.html.Day 15 of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games was another big one for Canada. Our short track speed-skaters collected more medals, our womens curling team got silver, and the men’s hockey team beat Slovakia to move onto the gold medal game on Sunday. As for my personal experience yesterday, it was just a regular day at the media centre. I walked through security, got wanded, told the guard I would “miss this”, he thought I was strange, and I carried on. It’s true though, the security screenings (I go through about 2-6 a day) are a part of my daily routine during the Olympics. Photo credit: John Biehler on Flickr Aside from the peculiar...

Poulin & Ouelette at the press conference [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 27th, 2010 at 00:23

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Members of the Canadian Womens Hockey Team [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 27th, 2010 at 00:23

image miss604 posted a photo: Jennifer Botterill, Jayna Hefford, Caroline Ouellette and Marie-Philip...

Vancouver 2010 Canadian Womens Hockey Team via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 23:14

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-2010-canadian-womens-hockey-team.html.This afternoon’s press conference with the Canadian womens hockey team regarding their gold medal win last night was heavily focused on two topics: the way the women celebrated last night and the future of their sport in the Olympics. The Future of Womens Hockey IOC President Jacques Rogge commented on the unlevel playing field in womens hockey and that blowouts (I’m assuming like the 18-0 Canadian win over Slovakia) are not conducive to fair Olympic play. At the press conference the ladies addressed this, noting that when men’s hockey started out it was Canada and the Soviets that dominated but that the rest of the world caught up....

FollowFormation For the Olympics via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 19:33

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/followformation-for-the-olympics.html.With many programs out there to help you sort and filter the abundance of Twitter “noise” out there, the Vancouver service FollowFormation has come up with a solution. Using the concept of Twitter lists, they have a simple user interface that allows you to pick one of their lists, select how many people you’d like to follow, click a button and be done. As it stands, Followformation is the easiest way to follow the top Twitterers by subject matter or topic. [Mashable - July 2009] If you’re just getting started on Twitter, FollowFormation’s recommended lists are a good place find people of particular industries or categories to...

Anniversary Dessert [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 18:23

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Anniversary Dessert [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 18:23

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Vectorial Elevation [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 18:23

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Vancouver 2010 Day 14 Recap via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 18:00

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-2010-day-14-recap.html.Day 14 at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics yesterday was another big one for Canada, and for the Bollwitts personally. John and I celebrated our 4 year wedding anniversary while Canadian women won gold in hockey. The heartbreaking story of Joannie Rochette triumphed as just days after her mother passed away, she skated her way to a bronze medal. I also met gold medal skeleton athlete Jon Montgomery (after his Oprah show taping) and covered press conferences with Clara Hughes and the silver medalist speedskating relay team. We took the water taxi across False Creek and walked home through the West End, under the soft blue glow of Vectorial Elevation. It’s one of...

Vancouver Olympic HDR Photography via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 26th, 2010 at 15:59

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-olympic-hdr-photography.html.It’s been a while since I profiled HDR (High Dynamic Range) photos of Vancouver so what better time than to showcase some Olympic photos from around the city. Photo credit: penmachine on Flickr Photo credit: penmachine on Flickr Photo credit: Here in Vancouver on Flickr Photo credit: zzinger on Flickr Photo credit: GillTy on Flickr Whistler – Photo credit: ecstaticist on Flickr You may also read HDR Photography Tribute part 1, 2 and 3. Please click through to view other works by each of the photographers as well....

Vancouver 2010 Coca-Cola Pavilion via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 25th, 2010 at 19:02

image Copyright © 2010 Miss604. Visit the original article at http://www.miss604.com/2010/02/vancouver-2010-coca-cola-pavilion.html.When the Coca-Cola “Happiness Inspector” asks if you’re ready to “Open Happiness” you’d better be ready. Set up inside LiveCity Yaletown the Coca-Cola pavilion will leave you smiling and giddy, and that’s not even from all the free pop they’ll toss your way. While the line ups for LiveCity or the Coca-Cola pavilion (once you get inside LiveCity) may deter some, the attraction is full of corporate history, Olympic torch relay memorabilia, warm fuzzy movies, and delightful visual effects. Free Coke products are dispensed hand over fist while families pose for photos with the Henson-animated polar bear, who has...

Nardwuar with gold medalist Jon Montgomery [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 25th, 2010 at 22:23

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Womens Relay - Silver Medalists [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 25th, 2010 at 22:23

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Clara Hughes [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 25th, 2010 at 22:23

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Jon Montgomery [Flickr] via Vancouver Blog Miss 604 by Rebecca Bollwitt February 25th, 2010 at 22:23

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