The CBC Studios at the International Broadcast Centre, my home away from home, erupted to the news of our first gold. There are, of course, many, many televisions all over the desks and studios in which we reside, and time stood still as all eyes were on our mogul champion. A warm rush of national unity and family washed over me. Time to make the departure from the embarrassing hockey news and let’s focus on these Olympians!
Sunny, bright blue skies and temperate weather once again today in Torino. The weather has been spectacular. The mountains could use a little more of the white stuff, but I am enjoying my shades and leaving the winter jacket behind when scooting around town!
Yesterday I was able to visit some of the venues for the first time. The two hockey venues in particular, imagine that. The building you will watch most of the men’s games from is a new structure erected this year (and barely ready in time). It is in close proximity to the Olympic Stadium and that infamous torch – what a site it is to look up into the night sky and see this beautiful structure that holds so much history in its’ flame. I can’t believe I can look at it with the naked eye.
The second hockey arena was once an auditorium, converted into a hockey rink. It, too, is an impressive building.
Most of the venues in the city are within 10 – 15 minutes apart by car. On the main streets throughout the city, there are designated “Olympic Lanes”. Local traffic has a bit of a tough time, but my zippy Italian drivers can blast through the city pretty efficiently. It’s fascinating to see what a well-oiled machine the production of the Olympics is from a television standpoint, but also to see how a city is able to transform itself to accommodate millions of people. The infrastructure of Vancouver scares me as it is now, but after seeing how this city is able to handle it, I now have total confidence that Vancouver will be able to pull this event off. It just might frustrate a few locals…!
Time for another espresso.
Ciao.
(check for more pics today – link added in left column)
Hey megonian… Kelly and I were looking at the pictures… can you get someone to take one of you actually working? Thanks