Goodbye Olympics, hello Paralympics!

**HERE IS MY CTV NATIONAL INTERVIEW**

**HERE IS MY CBC RADIO INTERVIEW**

That's it. That's all she wrote. For the Olympics at least. I spent the final night with my dear Tania and watched the closing ceremonies from the comfort of our neighbourhood bar. I did manage to get my hands on one of those flashing medals from the ceremony! Don't ask me how...I've got connections ;)

It was an emotional night last shift and last night. Most of my team will not be staying for the Paralympics. The hardest to see go was Tania. I rode the bus with her to the airport to see her off just hours ago. 

Goodbye Tania. See you in Canada!

The last two shifts were energetic and eventful. As most of you probably saw, Canada bob 3 crashed. My heart sunk as they skidded down the track. The entire venue went dead silent. When the guys got up and walked away from the sled, the crowds cheered! The best part was the next day when the team decided to do the third run. Everyone cheered. The Russian team that came in fourth however... one of the athletes threw his helmet on the ground. Hard. Then he chucked his goggles, all the while swearing away like a sailor. Put side by side with the Canadians who overcame adversity, the Russian sportsman's display was disgraceful.

A certain Russian celebrity also graced our venue on the last day of competition. Former president Dmitry Medvedev walked right past me! We were all geared up to the nines with security expecting Putin, but his number two showed up instead. I also forgot to mention that I talked to Prince Albert of Monaco! He was in my zone and I asked him to move slightly to the right. (Monaco had a bob in the two-man competition)

With bobsled being one of the last events of the final day of the Olympics, I did NOT get to watch Canada take gold in men's hockey. I did, however, manage to celebrate to the fullest! I found myself at the local karaoke bar. If you've ever been to karaoke with me, you'll know I can put on a good show. Yes, I may be tone deaf, but I can perform. I belted out Queen and Elton John to the roar of the crowd. Go Canada go!

I walked into my residence at 7 o'clock in the morning. I strolled straight to the canteen to find the best blini (crepes) full of condensed milk. Delicious! The cherry on top of my Olympic experience. Now I plan to rest a bit, see some sights in Sochi and then hop on a train to Krasnodar and Rostov-on-Don this weekend. I will begin my shift for the Paralympics on March 7.

I do not plan on bringing my laptop with me as I venture outside the 'Sochi bubble,' but I will post photos and stories on my return!

To cap off my tremendous Olympic extravaganza, I share with you some snapshots my friend Tania took of the last couple of shifts and our venue - Sanki Sliding Centre.

Sanki team mixed-zone!

With one of our interpreters Oleg. 

Beautiful Tania. 

Goodbye Olympics, hello Paralympics! 

Sanki Sliding Centre

With our Brit, Will.

Luke, our American on the team.

Russia takes gold in four man bobsleigh

Watching the last bit of the mens hockey game. Represent! 

Krasnaya Polyana at sunset.

Farewell team Sanki!

It's been a slice!

Alpine



Last night I visited the Rosa Khutor alpine centre. I must admit, I much prefer my sliding centre. the venue was cold and very muddy. My poor boots are covered in muck. 

The gondola ride up to the event was a lot of fun. I met a family from Hawaii. The oldest daughter gave me a russian coloured lei - Aloha! 

Kieri the friendly hawaiian.

Here is my view of the women's slalom event. There's a big TV to watch the beginning of the runs, and the announcements are done in English and then Russian. It was bitterly cold sitting in the stands. Sixty skiers went down the run. SIXTY! The time difference between each athelete came to down 400th of a second in some cases. I was surprised to learn that double medals have been awarded in downhill skiing because two skiers got the exact same time. There are so many factors going down the track that the thought of two different people getting the same time blows my mind!

Alberta's very own Bertie Beaver with the russian lei.

Represent!

Volunteers ski down after each run to smooth out the snow. That would be an awesome gig!

Beautiful but so cold!

Russian fur everywhere!

Another gold medal night meant the wine was flowing! I'm happy to report I made it to work early despite the headache. Canada is third in the medals standings. I'm overjoyed that we're doing so well. Maybe one of our 4-man bobsled team will launch to the front of the pack? (I doubt it, those Germans are fast!) My manager told me I did such a great job mediating the last press conference that he may let me do it again. It would be great to have canadians on the podium one more time here at Sanki. Be sure to cheer them on!

CTV delay

After telling you all to PVR my big CTV interview, I was bumped because of the happenings in the Ukraine. The interview was recorded and will air on CTV National sometime.

My interview with Mark Connolly will be aired on CBC Edmonton radio Friday (today) at 7:50 am. Tune in on your way to work!

My camera wasn't able to capture the view from the CTV studio overlooking Olympic park, but it sure was a great sight to see!

 

 

Today I will be in the crowd at the women's slalom finals. Last night was full of celebration for the double gold medals for Canada. I'm hoping the pulsing in my head will cease before I get to the Alpine centre. Also, a Russian holiday is coming up. On February 23, it is man day. Yup, men have a day... The tradition is to give every man in your life a gift. So I better do some shopping! We've got four men on our team. Thankfully women's day is in March, so I will get my dues ;)

Canadian gold at Sanki

Jump for joy!! 

That's exactly what I did when Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse took the gold medal in women's bobsleigh. I was elated. My team got a medal, a GOLD medal, at my volunteer venue! In the jumping process, I may have pushed my ankle too far, but it was totally worth it! The best part was every Russian on my team came up and gave me a hug. Me. Just a regular Canadian. I was congratulated for the gold medal I did literally nothing to help achieve. That's the Olympics. There's no better way to describe the feeling. When Canada takes home a medal, every single Canadian takes that medal too. It was my shinning moment. Sure, sure, I've said that before, but this has to be the cherry on top of my Olympic experience. My trip has officially been made completely unforgettable.

Getting on my own little podium

Before the final race, my press manager made me a deal. If Canada won gold, he'd let me moderate the press conference. The wagger paid off and I was one of the first people in the world to introduce the team as the gold medal champions. Me! I couldn't believe it. Before the conference I practiced and practiced my speech. When I was up on the platform, the words came out so smoothly. I kept my voice calm (not overly excited like I was in my interview with Mark Connolly) and I kept my pace clean. I'll never forget being a part of Olympic history. This is the first time a team has received two gold medals in women's bobsleigh. This is the first time two american sled teams made the podium. These are Canadian and Olympic record breaking milestones, and I was standing right beside the amazing women who made it happen.

I love how happy they are!

I will never forget this moment. I even traded one of my favourite pins to get the official Canadian bobsled pin! I also couldn't pass up getting the '88 bobsled pin either :)

The good luck keeps flowing

With the bobsled event ending so late, I was at work until 2am. My friend Tania and I managed to catch the first of three buses to the Gorki media centre. There were four of us who were waiting to hop on the bus to the main media centre at the coast. The transportation volunteers told us it would be a 45 minute wait. AT TWO AM! Thankfully a bus driver offered to take us back since his shift was over and he was going that way anyways.

We ended up going on a bit of an adventure through Adler to get fuel. I chatted with an interesting journalist from Michigan the entire ride down. He is covering Michigan athletes, so primarily figure skaters. I'd kill to go see figure skating, but it's an incredibly popular event here, so it probably won't happen.

When we rolled into the main media centre, the bus to our hotel was just leaving. I yelled "HACHU HACHU" which means "I want, I want." Our wonderfully kind bus driver started honking his horn and magically the other bus stopped midway to the street. The four of us, tired from a long day in the mountains, bolted to the bus. As we ran up the stairs, the entire busload of journalists broke into applause. Most of them had been at the Sanki sliding centre for the bobsleigh event, and were happy to see we had made it. If we hadn't caught that bus, it would have been another hour wait.

After the high from watching Canada win gold, and then by chance catching every bus I needed, I crawled into bed around 4am and nodded off to sleep with no regrets. In one day I saw the most beautiful landscapes of the Laura cross country venue, I was part of Olympic history, I met some amazing people, I was interviewed by Mark Connolly and I got back to my residence without waiting outside in the cold. Also the food provided to the volunteers yesterday happened to be phenomenal. All around - a perfect day.

Russian rain

Last night at work it rained. And rained... And rained some more. To protect us from the rain, we were given Sochi 2014 rain slickers. My team looked great as walking blue pillons.

As a volunteer, we are not allowed to wear anything from our home country. No flags, no Canadian mittens, no toques. With the unique weather situation, I managed to sneak in a very special umbrella!



The Canadian umbrella even helped out the Dutch women's bobsled team! My volunteer team is made up of mostly russians, a brit and an american. So far, every single one of their countries have got a medal here! I'm counting on Kaillie Humphries and Heather Moyse to take home a medal for me. I hope you are all watching at home to cheer on our Canadian women's bobsled teams!

Go Kaillie and Heather!! (My manager anya wanted to be a part of the Canadian group)

At work, I just ran into Mark Connolly with CBC Edmonton. We did a quick radio interview about my experiences here. Stay tuned to CBC Edmonton! I'll update this post with the time it will be aired. Probably tomorrow :) No more rain here either! SoIi've had to put away the Canadian umbrella...for now.

Mission Jamaica complete

As a volunteer at the Olympic sliding centre, I hoped and dreamed that the Jamaican bobsled team would qualify. Thankfully the two-man team did and I was there to greet them at the finish line! After run 1 & 2, I was able to sneak this little gem with Winston Watt.

The story behind this unique kiss roots from me telling Winston that I went to school in Calgary. He gave me a huge hug and spun me around. He was elated to see a Canadian and mustn't have been able to hold in his excitment. I personally like this next photo better. (It came before the kiss).

 

The next night was their final runs. Unfortunately, Jamaica came in dead last, but they had the most positive attitudes! Feel the rhythm. Feel the rhyme! Get on up - it's bobsled time

My trip has officially been made! This and running into Clara Hughes have been the highlights for sure. My ankle has been causing me some troubles, but these snapshots are all worth the extra pain to stand at work. I haven't been running, but I can't stop walking. There is so much to see and do. Today I visited the Laura cross country ski and biathalon centre. The views absolutely took my breath away. I have to admit, I am quite envious of the volunteers that get to work at this venue. A fresh dusting of snow sure helped. I was joined by my friend and co-volunteer Tania. (Also my translator)

 

Laura cross country venue

 

Don't forget! I'll be on CTV Edmonton Thursday, February 20 around 7am! Set your PVRs!!