Games in Full Swing

This is Olympic Vancouver, through the eyes of Cole and Jakob, two local sharpshooters.

As the Olympic torch came around up Hastings and headed south down Main, there was a flurry of protest. Their primary complaint? Housing, or lack thereof.

Before, if you reached high enough, you might have been able to get a picture like this of the Olympic flame. (For the short, the chainlink fence was in the way.) The fences are lower now, and view is clearer than the first days after Gretzky lit the caul

Whether you agreed to it or not – or even were informed – automatic gratuities are now at the bottom of your bill at many ancouver restaurants, much to the chagrin of locals.

For us, the highlight of the Olympics has been the huge crowds of people downtown. The party atmosphere is incredible, and may never be repeated in this manner.

The crowds have been huge and peaceful, and hats off to the police for balancing fun and duty. We haven’t seen any violence yet, and the police have done a great job of keeping things in line without being overbearing.

Another unforgettable aspect of these Games is the patriotism. To hear O Canada sung on street corners by strangers is goosebump-worthy. Oh, and you may have noticed that flags are everywhere too.

While police and security personnel are on every corner and constantly in view, everything has been safe and secure.

Did we mention that the weather has been ridiculous? The term “Spring Olympics” has been tossed around, and for good reason – flowers are in bloom, birds are chirping and the stunning views are everything, such as this one of Coal Harbour.

The hockey atmosphere: its more a big dance party at a rink than a hockey game. The Games we visited have been fun, fun, fun a far cry from the stiff atmosphere that sometimes plagues Canucks games.

What can we do to get these great street artists to stick around after the Games are over! If you have roamed the downtown core, you have caught a spectacular show by buskers, performers, and escape artists.