Day 2 was Men's Hockey. No tickets to this event either before arrival in Vancouver. On day 2, it was discovered that it was possible to get tickets to events at the last minute... and not using scalpers. THIS was a fantastic discovery that I, quite happily, abused. I had my "favorite" ticket agent at the tourist office who quickly figured out exactly what I wanted, what I was willing to spend and where I wanted to sit. His name was David, and he was a ticketing God.

Thanks to David, I sat 8 rows from the ice for the hockey game. It was awesome.

Finding places to eat in Vancouver was at times, challenging. Not for lack of options... that was never the issue.. the queues to get your food or get into establishments were sometimes very much at odds with your growling stomach. Even the street vendors were at times, very overwhelmed:



This line was to get a "japadog," a hotdog with a japanese flair. Mine had kimchi and black sesame seeds. Definitely something a little different.

My first night in Vancouver, I headed out to the Curling venue to wing it. Didn't have tickets, but thought that there must be scalpers. And there were. Scored front row tickets. SAWEET. So close, you could have hit the curlers with a pea shooter.




Having never been to a curling event before, I had no idea what to expect. Certainly not the amazing energy in the crowd. It was like being at a hockey game. Complete with "the wave" and chants. No polite golf clapping here.

But there were golf PANTS, however. I'm sure you've all heard of "Norway's pants." I feel very privileged to have witnessed them in action in person. They were quite impressive.



If you were wondering how exactly curling ice is resurfaced, here you go - the ice blesser....

The first stop in Vancouver was obviously to the Cauldron. I don't know if the US coverage of the games said anything about the drama surrounding the location of the Cauldron and the public's access to it. Initially, the closest the public could get to the flame was almost a football field away. With a huge chain link fence blocking the view and any good pictures. The next time I walked by there, the fence had been moved closer to the flame about 50 yards and there was an eye level space in the fence so that you could take pictures more easily. By the time I left, the fence was replaced by plexiglass. I guess people just kept complaining.

USA! USA! USA!

I just got back from attending the Vancouver Olympics for a week. I had never been to an Olympic Games before. As a relatively serious skater in my youth, going to the Olympics to watch the best of the best has always been a dream for me. The past week completely lived up to every expectation I had. And more. I can highly recommend the experience. The energy in the host city is intoxicating.

I will be blogging about this for a while. To start, here is a picture of me and Miga and Quatchi, the two "official" mascots of the games. There is another character, "MukMuk" who is my favorite. He is their "groupie." I was bummed to not have met him, but these two were a treat regardless.

On Saturday, I had my "do over" Lutefisk dinner. It was unanimous that the fish was cooked correctly this time. It definitely looked better then the liquidy jello fish substance I had in December:



The consistency was significantly improved. Here is a video that illustrates this:



It tasted basically the same, however. Pretty bland, kinda like tofu. In my previous lutefisk post, I didn't mention anything about something that makes lutefisk famous - its odor. I had been told that this stuff smells pretty foul. The reason why I didn't mention it before was because... well... it didn't smell. And on Saturday, it didn't smell then either. I asked the chef how this was possible - apparently the "old school" lutefisk reeked because it was of poorer quality. I guess they've come up with a better way to make lutefisk. I'm OK with not having experienced the old way.

Over the weekend I spent some time exploring Pike Place Market. I generally avoid this popular spot because it is almost always super crowded, no matter when you go. Having said that, this place is really quite amazing. There is something for everybody and it is all super fresh. Just look at this fabulous lamb tongue I found.



But the stars of the market are the fish. No doubt. Just look at these kids posing with them:



Even though the fish got the most photographic attention, the one vendor who by far and away has the longest line.. and this line NEVER gets under 10 people deep, is the Piroshky seller. Nice.

Recently I had a baby shower to shop for. I'm a big fan books, so I checked out possible children book options and found this:



I went looking for "The Poo we Do," which naturally had to be its sequel. I'll be honest, I don't remember seeing books like this as a kid. I'm pretty sure even if they did exist, my parents would never have brought them home for us. What happened to "Goodnight Moon?"