The countdown is at 206 days and I’m finding myself thinking more and more about Sochi!
I spent the weekend playing tourist in Whistler over the past weekend, which included a little photoshoot at the 2010 Olympic sites. I figure I should collect some fun images for when I head to Russia next February to use on my social media profiles. So here are a couple of images, and I’ll be collecting more over the coming months, as the countdown continues…
In the short time I spent on the whirlwind Whitehorse Olympic media day last February, there was much to see and do! (This post is well overdue….)
The trip started right from the moment we checked in at YVR. The woman handing out the boarding passes was dressed in traditional dress from the gold rush days. She wore this while hosting the flight to Whitehorse with contests and games.
Upon arrival, our media group was ushered to waiting school buses to take us to the local Whitehorse tourism centre, where we were introduced to the Province’s premier, Dennis Fentie, and members of Yukon Tourism. We were also treated to a dance from the Snowshoe Shufflers! Yep, dancers with snowshoes strapped to their feet! They also had past Olympians and Special Olympians present from the local area. I was honoured to personally meet Christine Larsen and she allowed me not only to hold her medal from the Atlanta Games, but to hang it around my neck as well!
Travel Yukon hosted a quick lunch with tastes of various restaurants in the city with traditional loca foods, such as moose, bison, and venison meats! It was all absolutely delicious!
We were then separated into our respective groups, depending on the activity we had previously chosen. The one my partner and I chose to be a part of was the Wildlife Reserve and Hot Springs tour. In between the two, we even stopped at t a local coffee roasting company, Bean North, where they roast organic beans from around the world that are purchased via fair trade.
At the wildlife reserve we saw many animals, from reindeer, to mountain goats, mountain sheep, elk, and deer, to my favourite: a lynx!
The Takhini Hot Springs were heavenly! We didn’t have a whole lot of time to enjoy them, but in the -20 degree Celsius weather it was a welcome warm up! The great thing about these hot springs was that you did not get that rotten egg sulfur smell that you often do with hot springs. There was no odor at all! Just two big pools of different temperatures to enjoy at your leisure. We were told that if you’re enjoying the hot springs at night, you may be lucky enough to catch a great light show from the arora borealis. Now THAT, I would love to experience!
Connected to the hot springs is accommodation in the form of small cabins in the woods. The cabins looked very cozy and a good place to warm up as a nice winter retreat. With snow shoeing and cross-country skiing as daytime activities, and the hot springs to warm up in at the end of the day, you will never get bored at the Takhini Resort!
Next, we were taken to the Whitehorse Museum where we had an opportunity try our hands at gold panning, taste some locally brewed beer and attempt the Sour Toe Cocktail. You’ll find more details about interesting cocktail, continent a mummified human toe in this previous post. You can watch a video of me drinking the cocktail on YouTube.
From the museum the media group was taken to our last stop of the trip, the banquet dinner for the Yukon Quest dog sledding race. (http://www.yukonquest.com/) We were invited to partake in the celebration and announcements of the winners of the 2010 Yukon Quest. We had the honour of meeting the winner and speaking with him about the challenges he experienced over the 1,600 km of rough, sometimes hazardous terrain between Whitehorse, Yukon and Fairbanks, Alaska.
We had one final surprise at the Whitehorse airport to round off our Yukon experience as we waited to check in and board our chartered flight back to YVR. Cancan dancers! Pretty sure this is not a regular occurrence for travelers to Whitehorse…
After a full day of travel and activities, we arrived back in Vancouver around midnight. It was a nice break, but I was happy to jump back into the Olympics craziness the following day.
I’d like to thank Travel Yukon and Canada’s Northern House for inviting me to come along on the Yukon media trip. It was truly amazing to see such a beautiful part of our country. I know I’ll be back again to see and experience all that Yukon has to offer! This was a once in a lifetime opportunity that will not be forgotten!
During the Olympics, I was invited on a media trip to Whitehorse, Yukon for a day. On the trip the group visited a nature reserve where I saw this beautiful lynx.
For more photos from the Yukon trip, please visit Flickr.
Another year gone by, and an epic year it was…
The year started off preparing for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. Seeing 2010 on the calendar suddenly made it all a reality and the mad rush to get organized and a site up and filled with content began about a month before the Games actually opened. I was very lucky to have had the opportunity to work with an amazing group of talented folks who teamed up to create the VancouverAccess2010 website. With BCIMC accreditation, we focussed on the fan’s view of the Games and the team of us set out to attend as many events as we possibly could. We photographed and reported on them via this great resource site that we collectively created. Posts were also featured on Canada.com’s VanFans2010 blog.
The Paralympics was an even more amazing experience for me. With IPC photographer accreditaion, I was able to get up close and personal to shoot the amazing athletes and their inspiring performances in sports ranging from from sledge hockey, to sit skiing, to vision impaired downhill skiing, to curling, to incredibly emotional medal ceremonies! Unbelievable!
During the Games, I was invited to join a media day trip to Whitehorse, Yukon. Yep, that’s right, a DAY trip to Whitehorse! It was crazy! Caught a 7am flight, toured Whitehorse, met a 2006 silver medalist Olympian, visited a nature reserve, tasted coffee from a local eco-friendly coffee roasting shop, soaked in some hot springs, drank a Sour Toe Cocktail, and enjoyed a banquet dinner celebrating the annual dog sledding racers. The Yukon is such a beautiful part of our country! I would love to head up there for some summer camping to see what’s under all that snow! I imagine it to be absolutely breathtaking! Another amazing adventurous experience!
When the Games were over, I was caught in the Olympic hangover, felt by much of the city, and many of my colleagues and partners in crime throughout this great world event. This got me thinking what I should do next and I came up with the idea that I wanted to do more traveling…
So, in March, I flew to Austin Texas to shoot a wedding for a friend who was unable to make it, due to a car accident. Never having met the bride or groom, nor having ever spoken to them directly, it was an interesting experience. The couple were amazingly welcoming and we got along instantly. I am happy to now call them friends. Their jewish wedding was held in Houston, so there was a bit of a road trip mixed into the trip (and of course some tasty Texan BBQ!). Unfortunately, there was not much time for site seeing with the short timeline, but I hope to make it back to Texas to see and photograph more of it!
Less than 2 weeks after returning from Austin, I was in flight yet again! This time for a month long adventure to Bali, Indonesia! Wow! It was an amazing month full of culture, food, site seeing, crazy drivers and photography! I spent the majority of my time on the northern side of the Island in Lovina. I spent about a week in Ubud as well. My trip to Ubud included a motorcycle adventure through the rice paddies, a walk through the Monkey Forest, a cooking class, and a Kecak and Fire Dance performance. It was an amazing month indeed, and I came home with gigabytes photos of the trip which can be viewed on Flickr.
Upon returning to Vancouver, mid-May, the city was gearing up for summer. I was excited to do as much camping and music festival-ing as I could! The first camping trip of the season was the first weekend in June, at Golden Ears Park. Always awesome camping there, one of my favourite provincial parks! No cell phone service, great hikes, campfires and of course tasty camping food (and drink)!
My first music festival of the summer was the Vancouver folk fest. I was fortunate enough to get 2 free Lifetimer, all-access passes to the festival from a friend who was unable to use them (thanks Lulu!) and me and a friend enjoyed a weekend of music, sun and family atmosphere at the beach!
Next on the list was a whale watching adventure with my family out of Cowichan Bay on Vancouver Island with Ocean Ecoventures Whale Watching. Again, amazing! You will find a full summary of the adventure in this blog post.
Komasket Music Festival in Vernon, during the August long weekend, was the next road trip. Teaming up with @Scales and @Uncleweed for some social media coverage of the event was great fun! Got some great shots, met some great artists (including Fred Penner and the Wailers), and as with most summer music festivals, came home with a sun burn!
Later in August, I took a week long trip to my home town of Duncan, on Vancouver Island to spend my birthday with family and friends. Good times had by all with boating/tubing on Lake Cowichan, and floating in the Cowichan River, a day trip to Port Renfrew and Botanical Beach, and no Island visit in summer would be complete without a fresh local crab fest! The perfect birthday it was!
In the fall, things finally wound down a bit. The last trip of the year was one out to Ucluelet and Tofino, on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. I had not been out this way since I was about 12 years old, so I was very excited to go enjoy and photograph the beaches, especially with storm season just setting in! I was not disappinted! We lucked out with beautiful sunny weather the first day, including a gorgeous sunset on Long Beach. And the next day we enjoyed a storm and some great big crashing waves on the rocks in Ucluelet. And of course no trip to Tofino would be complete without a stop at Cathedral Grove and Coombs to see the goats on the roof on the way back!
In the fall things became quite busy. I moved out of the downtown core at the end of September, to East Van. Although I have always had a dog on a part time basis, in November Roxie came to stay with me full time as @Scales departed for Thailand. I love having her and love that she gets me out rain or shine (or snow!) for two hour-long walks a day! Having started a fulltime position at 80 Elements Entertainment in October, I have fallen back into a full time job routine. Also, I have been shooting weekend events for Estee Lauder. I started doing Bikrams Yoga three times a week in November, which I have become ridiculously addicted to. So the end of the year has found me to be quite busy.
I was happy to spend Christmas on the Island with family and friends and will be spending New Years Even there as well to ring in another (hopefully) adventurous year full of travel and surprises!
My new years resolutions are these: Travel more. Photograph more. Build my photography kit. Learn more about social media. Do more Bikrams! More is MORE!
Cheers to 2010 and all of you that I have met and befriended in the past 365 days! You have made an impact, and (whether good or bad) you have helped shape who I am and who I am to become. I thank you and look forward to another amazing year in 2011!
Cheers and Happy New Year!!!
This photo was taken on my 2009 visit to Quebec’s Ice Hotel. Sleeping in the ice hotel was an amazing experience! If you have the opportunity to do this, I highly recommend it! Details here: http://www.icehotel-canada.com.
You can view the full blog post of the trip, here.
For more photos of the Ice Hotel, please visit the Set on Flickr!
(image source: Canadian Paralympic Committee)
Ottawa, ON (October 22, 2010) – Today, the Canadian Paralympic Committee and several decorated Paralympians gratefully accepted the financial contribution of $5M annually over the next five years from the Minister of State for Sport, the Honourable Gary Lunn. The funding was announced during the 2010 Canadian Paralympic Congress in Ottawa, attended by leaders in sport and disability organizations from across the country. This announcement follows the financial commitment announced by Minister Flaherty in the Federal Budget on March 4th.
This new funding has triggered the most ambitious plan in the history of the Canadian Paralympic Committee.
“Our vision is to be the world-leading Paralympic Nation. This means more than gold medals. It means having success on the world stage, as well as having a sustainable Paralympic sport system that encourages participation; provides access to the best equipment, coaches and leadership; and, celebrates the accomplishment of our nations’ Paralympians,” said Carla Qualtrough, President for the Canadian Paralympic Committee . “This is a significant day as it marks the beginning of a very bright future for us. It will empower us to enhance the podium performance of the Canadian Paralympic Team as well as to work closely with our partners to raise the awareness of the opportunities available in sport for Canadians with a disability.”
“Our Government is proud to support our Canadian Paralympic athletes. We have all been inspired by their recent successes, notably at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Games and the XIX Commonwealth Games in Delhi. This additional investment will ensure that the CPC has the tools that it needs to continue to build on these triumphs, and to encourage more persons with disabilities to actively participate in sport.”
This funding represents a new era for the Canadian Paralympic Committee and leads the organization to a new and brighter future. With significant, stable funding, more children with disabilities will have the opportunity to participate in sport and pursue dreams of representing their country in international high performance competition. The result will be a positive impact on the health and well-being of Canadians, especially those with a disability.
The new Strategic Plan will focus on four pillars: (1) enhancing podium performances at Paralympic Games; (2) building a World-class Paralympic Sport System; (3) creating a sustainable business model for the Canadian Paralympic Committee; and, (4) expanding the awareness of Paralympic sport and building the Paralympic Brand.
“The Federal Government’s commitment represents a new era for the Paralympic Movement in Canada,” said Chantal Petitclerc, five-time Paralympic wheelchair racer and winner of 21 Paralympic medals. “It is very encouraging to see that up and coming athletes will have this type of support from their Government and I am thrilled to see Paralympic sport receive this kind of recognition.
This increase in funding demonstrates that encouraging healthy lifestyles for the 3.6 million Canadians living with disabilities through promotion of sport and recreation remains a priority for this government. It also reflects the growing pride and support of Canadians for the Canadian Paralympic Team. The Canadian Paralympic Committee and its athletes applaud the Federal Government for their support and their vital role in being a strong advocate of the Paralympic Movement.
(source: Canadian Paralympic Committee Press Release)
The Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) is pleased to announce that Dr. Gaétan Tardif has been named Chef de Mission for Team Canada at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Dr. Tardif is a dedicated long-time volunteer within the Paralympic Movement. He first became involved during the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games as a member of the Canadian medical team and has been part of the 6 consecutive Mission Staff Teams for all subsequent Games, making London his 7th Games.
“It is an honour to be selected as Chef de Mission and given the chance to represent Team Canada at the London 2012 Paralympic Games,” said Dr. Tardif. “From the first time I began working as a part of the medical team for the Paralympic Games, I was captured by the incredible drive, athleticism and spirit of Paralympic athletes. They continue to inspire me, and I intend to work tirelessly with the Mission Staff to ensure our athletes get all of the support they need to reach their dreams of standing on the podium.”
Dr. Tardif is Vice?President Quality, Patient Care and Chief Medical Officer at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute. He is also a Professor in the Department of Medicine and Director, Division of Physiatry (Physicial Medicine & Rehabilitation), at the University of Toronto.
Dr. Tardif has extensive experience at the Paralympic Games as he was part of the medical team for the Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004 Paralympics, as well as Chief Medical Officer for the Salt Lake City 2002 and Torino 2006 Paralympic Games. Most recently he served as Assistant Chef de Mission for the Beijing 2008 and Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Games, where Canada achieved its best ever performance. He is also a member of the Board of Directors with the Canadian Paralympic Committee as Director of Administration, a role he has had since 2008.
“We are thrilled to have Gaétan as our Chef de Mission for Team Canada at the 2012 Paralympic Games,” said Carla Qualtrough, President of CPC. “Gaétan is incredibly qualified for this role and has been an invaluable member of the Canadian Paralympic Team Mission Staff for the past six Games. We look forward to having his expertise again in London and know he will excel in this new leadership role.”
The Chef de Mission is responsible for helping Canadian Paralympic athletes achieve their performance goals by acting as the official representative and spokesperson for the Canadian Paralympic Team. In this role Dr. Tardif will oversee the Canadian Team’s operational planning and logistics, promote the exploits of Canada’s elite Paralympic summer athletes, and raise awareness of Paralympic sport and the Canadian Team across the country and around the world. The Chef de Mission will lead team building initiatives for the Canadian Paralympic Team volunteer mission staff to create a strong and cohesive support team for Canadian athletes at the Paralympic Games.
Dr. Tardif’s initial key priorities as Chef de Mission include an initial visit to the London 2012 Summer Paralympic Games site, selecting the Assistant Chef de Mission and key volunteer Mission Staff, and meeting regularly with athletes and coaches to understand their needs and provide them the support and services they need to succeed.
Dr. Tardif was born in Saguenay, Quebec, and completed his medical degree at l’Université Laval and has obtained specialty certifications in Quebec, Canada and the USA following his residency training at the University of Ottawa. He subsequently obtained a diploma in Electrodiagnostic Medicine from the American Board of Electrodiagnostic Medicine as well as a diploma in Sports Medicine from the Canadian Academy of Sports Medicine. Dr. Tardif also has a keen interest in physician leadership development and was recently appointed to the Faculty of the Physician Leadership Institute of the Canadian Medical Association. He also became President of the Canadian Society of Physician Executives (CSPE) in April 2009.
The London 2012 Paralympic Games will take place August 29 to September 9, 2012.
(source: Media Relations, Canadian Paralympic Committee)
For more information about the Canadian Paralympics Committee and the Canadian Paralympic Team, please visit http://www.paralympic.ca.
I never thought I would take a winter vacation, being a sun baby and one who is not at all fond of the cold. But with a friend from Montreal, the idea to head out to Quebec City in February 2009 for the annual Carnaval d’Hiver somehow didn’t seem like such a crazy one. It was an incredible 5-day adventure that I will not soon forget!
We decided to spend the first couple of days just outside of Quebec City at Station Touristique Duchesnay, home of Quebec City’s Ice Hotel! We were not able to make a reservation to stay in the ice hotel, but thought we would go anyway and tour the ice structure and stay at L’Auberge Duchesnay, next door. Connected to the hotel is spa, which we took full advantage of with a massage, body scrub, sauna and jacuzzi package. AMAZING!
We thought we would check out the bar in the ice hotel for a cocktail one evening, before it was closed off to the public for the hotel guests. Because it’s so cold at the Ice Hotel, they serve only hard liquor, as anything else would freeze due to the icy temperatures. To boot, all cocktails were served in glasses made of ice, eliminating any worry your drink getting warm!
For entertainment, they held an ice carving competition. I never imagined myself as an ice sculptor, but now was my opportunity to give it a shot. It turned out to be a fun, creative experience! The ice was fairly soft and easy to carve. Between myself and my travel partner, we carved the head of the Bonnehomme d’Hiver, the mascot for the Carnival. I carved the toque, while he carved the face.
We had such a great time in the Ice Hotel that evening that we tried our luck with the ice hotel reception desk to see if there happened to be any cancellations that night. We were in luck! We were even able to swing a themed room for the price of a regular room, and ended up with the Cathedral Room.
Again, let me stress to you how much I hate the cold… And I mean HATE THE COLD!!! So I’m really unsure what possessed me to agree to staying in a hotel with walls made of ice, floors of snow, a bed made of ice, and an average temperature of 4 degrees Celsius! I think I may have suffered from some form of temporary insanity at the time… But in the end it was a “cool” experience and I would recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity to do it!
The hotel provided us with North Face sleeping bags and a crash course on how to stay warm for the night. There were six hot tubs and a sauna at the Ice Hotel, to warm up before turning in to your COLD room for the night. They recommended to dry off COMPLETELY (including all your nooks and crannies) when leaving the changing area, as any moisture at all would be a risk of freezing and making your Ice Hotel experience a very unpleasant one. They provided blow dryers to help with this – not only for your hair, but your entire body!
Once in the room, we unpacked out sleeping bags and crawled in fully clothed, socks, toques and all! The bed frame was made of ice, but the mattress itself was foam covered with animal furs, which made things much more comfortable.
We survived the night right up to the 8am wake up call when they booted us out to prepare the hotel for the daily public tours. I had woken up maybe an hour prior to the wake up call and it was not until then that I started to feel cold and a bit uncomfortable. But I stuck it out, my sleeping bag was still the warmest place to be at that moment!
The best part about the stay at the Quebec City Ice Hotel is that you have the comfort of knowing that you have a room at the nice WARM L’Auberge Duchesnay, just up the hill included with your stay. So just in case you do get too cold and don’t think you will make it through the night at -4 Celsius, you are able to go to a nice warm bed! And after our wake up call, you can bet that I made a beeline for a nice, long, hot shower!
For more photos of the Quebec City Ice Hotel, please visit my Flickr page.
The Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) today announced that sledge hockey captain Jean Labonté has been selected as flag bearer for Canada at the opening ceremony of the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
“Jean has demonstrated throughout his career the determination, athletic excellence, and strong character that embodies the Paralympic spirit,” said Blair McIntosh, chef de mission, Team Canada.” Jean is a most deserving athlete to not only captain our sledge hockey team but to also lead our entire Canadian delegation into B.C. Place for the first Paralympic Winter Games on home soil.”
The native of Gatineau, Québec has competed in three previous Paralympic Winter Games, earning a gold medal in 2006 and silver in 1998. Labonté is one of the most decorated and admired athletes in the sport, having played in five International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Sledge Hockey World Championships, taking the gold medal in 2000 and 2008, and bronze in 1996 and 2009.
(photo courtesy of the Canadian Paralympic Committee)
The veteran defenceman demonstrates great leadership both on and off the ice. Labonté is an outstanding ambassador for sledge hockey and for the Paralympic movement. He has worked tirelessly to promote Paralympic sport across Canada, educating Canadians about sport for athletes with a disability, and encouraging young and old to participate and take advantage of sporting and volunteering opportunities in their communities.
“When the eyes of the world focus on B.C. Place for the opening ceremony of the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games – the first to be hosted in Canada, they will witness an historic moment in Canadian sport,” said Carla Qualtrough, president, CPC. “The profile of Paralympic sport has reached new heights and our flag bearer, Jean Labonté, has helped lead the way. It is a tremendous honour to carry the flag for your country. Jean, like all of our Paralympic athletes, is about to make Canada very proud.”
The Opening Ceremony of the 10th Paralympic Winter Games is scheduled for 6pm PT on Friday, March 12, 2010 at BC Place in Vancouver.
The Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) is a non-profit, private organisation with 43 member sports organisations dedicated to strengthening the Paralympic Movement. The CPC is responsible for creating an optimal high-performance environment for the Canadian Paralympic athletes to win at Paralympic and ParaPanAmerican Games. By supporting Canadian Paralympic athletes and promoting their success, the CPC inspires all Canadians with a physical disability to get involved in sport through programs delivered by its member organisations. For more information, visit www.paralympic.ca.
Follow the Canadian Paralympic Committee by becoming a fan on Facebook, and following on Twitter.
(News Release courtesy of the Canadian Paralympic Committee.)
(Photo credit on blog page: Ariane Colenbrander)
I watched the Canada vs. USA Gold Medal Hockey game from the best venue in town next to Canada Hockey Place: the Molson Canadian Hockey House!
Already at 8am the lineups were growing for bars, pubs and cultural houses around the city. The lineups on and around Granville Street were huge in the morning in anticipation for the noon-time game! This was the view from my living room window that morning.
Inside the Molson Canadian Hockey House, the people were packing in and the energy and excitement for the upcoming game was building!
Francois-Louis Tremblay stopped by to celebrate the Canadian speed skating team’s Gold Medal win!
Wide Mouth Mason played two AMAZING sets! I was very excited about this, as I had been hoping to see them at some point during the Games and my moment had finally come!
And of course, the crowd cheered for Team Canada with such loud, excited optimism, that I have no doubt that we could be heard at Canada Hockey Place!
After the game, and during the Olympic Games Closing Ceremonies, Roberto Luongo and his daughter, Gabriela, stopped by for a quick visit to thank the fans for their support and show off his gold medal and the crowd went WILD for one of Canada’s newest heroes!
All in all, it was an amazing day and the perfect wrap up for the Games! If someone had written a script for the day, it could not have been written with a better ending!
For more photos of the Molson Canadian Hockey House during the Gold Medal Hockey Game, visit my set on Flickr.
For more photos of Wide Mouth Mason, there is a Flickr set for that too!