Memories of my Olympic trip
Okay, so I thought this would be a good way not to forget what all went on during my trip...so I hope no one gets bored--this could be a long one ;-p
Trip with the Nachtzug
Susanne and I met up at the Bahnhof in Freiburg and took the train to Karlsruhe...we were both tired already and looking forward to sleeping on the train. The night train worked out pretty well for us in that no one else was in our compartment so we could each have one bench to ourselves to sleep. But it was pretty cold in the compartment and I slept with two pairs of socks and my toque on my feet ;-p We got woken up at least two times by police doing passport checks and they totally seemed to like my passport--secretly we think they were wondering if they could pronounce my name because they kept looking at the pass and then at me--or it could just be because I'm fabulous ;-p When the Italian police came and asked which nationality we were Susanne totally misunderstood and thought they were talking about which language they should speak and so she said "deutsch"...I said Canada and then "Deutsch " or "Englisch" but the dude wasn't paying attention and so we got away without showing our passes *whoops* Then somewhere in Italy these two ladies came into our compartment and the one lady didn't even give us time to get up and move over...she just walked right in and then she started putting on her make-up lol...the other lady was more considerate. But that was pretty much the *excitement* we had there.
Turin and Sauze d'Oulx
We got our transit tickets and then we made it to our accomodations without much trouble...the transit system was interesting to say the least ;-p We met up with Sara at the hotel and then we all went into the city...we got pictures with the Mascots, well big statues of them anyway and had some lunch before heading to catch the train to Sauze d'Oulx where the aerials were. On the train these people gave out free whistles from some American store Target...what was really funny is that everyone started blowing on them to check if they worked (I guess) like a bunch of little kids. We talked to some Americans and Aussies on the way there about hockey--sad day by the way for the Men's team *oh well*. The Mountains in this area are gorgeous and I tried to take a couple pictures once we arrived and on the bus up to the venue. WE got through security without much of a problem (thankfully) and then we decided to get something to eat. HOly smokes, it's totally ridiculous how much food costed at the venues. I paid 11 euros for a piece of lasagna and a salad...but what was totally nuts were hotdogs--4,50 euros for one (!) But I survived the food experience lol. WE had really good spots because we chose to go to the standing section early. We weren't on the side where the tv cameras were looking though and so we weren't in the crowds on the one side that they had a camera over. But we were behind CBC and thought, hey maybe they'll turn and look at us--not! They totally never did and that was disappointing because we even got on American T.V. lol. People really liked my hat too...I had some NBC guy comment on it and I had offers from people to buy my hat---I said no, even though Sara and Susanne thought I should have sold it--but I got it from my parents and so I was like the sentimental value is better. We met some nice people standing around us from Belgium and then there were these people behind us who were Swiss fans who kept pushing us into the fence. The best moment was when we got the attention of the Canadian, Veronica Bauer and she turned and waved to us--that was pretty cool because it was a real smile...and one of the coaches waved at us too when we started waving our flag around lol. Moments not on camera but still cool. Susanne got some awesome pictures of some of the competitors in the air as they did their jumps. Unfortunately Veronica came in last and she looked pretty disappointed but the weather was against her--it was often foggy and they would have to wait and the conditions were not very ideal for her first jump which threw her off. It was still really awesome to watch. The volunteers here in Turin and at the venues were really friendly and those with loud speakers kept saying "hello Canada" and we had some take our picture and others ask for pins--we totallly didn't know that people traded pins, that would have been really cool. On the train back we were sitting by a nice Italian guy and then we met an American who has been living in Italy for a couple of years, who helped up figure out the words for "towel" and "breakfast" because we had to take with the reception desk at the hotel and they didn't speak English. All in all a good day.
Touring Turin
Susanne and I hung out in Turin on the next day (thursday)...we discovered this one street totally by accident and it turned out to be one of the main shopping streets (like the fussgaengerzone) and we walked to the medal plaza. It wasn't open but we did take a couple pictures...oh and on wednesday we also saw the olympic torch and the stadion where the opening and closing ceremonies took place. It was *exciting*--haha, and on the way to the train station to go to Sauze d'Oulx we saw a car from CBC quite by accident and they totally waved at us...which is why we were hopeful at the event...alas. Okay, Susanne and I discovered this really cool medieval castle and village that they had along the Po river. It was super *exciting* and we even went on a tour of the castle--it's all a farce, because it was all built in the late 19th century for a didactic purpose but it was still very interesting...our tour guide was also very cute. Then we had a late lunch and met up with Sara who had been to snowboarding. We went to Canada house on the recommendation of some other Canadians that we met and thought maybe we could see some of the atheletes. Unfortunately we didn't but it was still really happy to see that people liked my hat and that we had done really well in some other events--they had a medal board. Then we bought the most expensive ice cream I've ever eaten--it was ridiculous but you know, I'll probably only ever eat ice cream once in Turin ;-p That evening we went to Milan.
Milan
We arrived at almost 9 pm and then we went for dinner at a nice restaurant...we had to find our hostel and were totally lost. WE learned an important lesson too--not to trust the stupid internet maps because they are totally off scale. The internet had said that the hostel was a fifteen minute walk--*wrong!* After like a hour of being lost around the main station we found a nice lady from Montreal who directed us to the metro and a nice man at the metro who helped us get some tickets. So at about midnight we arrived at the hostel. I'm so glad that I brought ear plugs let me tell you because some of the girls in our room were noisy. Oh and another thing I've learned (or perhaps remembered) is why I'm not so keen on Italy--the bathrooms. *shudder* often just a whole in the floor or low toilets with not seat seat...so it brought back some camping memories lol. Then yesterday we met up with Sara, who had to stay at another hotel--she had gotten lost too and had a creepy experience of being followed. We went to this cool castle/fortess in Milan and walked to the arch of peace before walking to the Dome. It was being restored but it is still an impressive sight. We had a pizza lunch (being in Italy and all ;-p) and then we walked around this shopping strip with Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton and you guessed it, McDonalds ;-P WE didn't go inside the stores but I had my picture taken by Prada...I figure that's as close as I will ever get lol. Sara had to go back sooner because she had a different train but Susanne and I walked around a bit more, went inside the Dome and inside a couple stores. The weather yesterday was quite disappointing, all rainy and so it made it hard for us to hang out outside. WE went to McDonalds to warm up and give our feet and backs a rest after carrying our bags all day long. Then we checked out this museum with free admission, which turned out to the the former royal palace...it's still very much under restoration but the rooms that were done were quite impressive. One of the security dudes inside made Susanne and I take off our bags and carry them in the front--I guess they were worried they we would bump into something. It was funny because at first Susanne didn't understand what he was saying--something like "sack off" or "sack to the front" lol and it was also funny because we looked like pregnant ladies--now I totally have more sympathy for them--not that I didn't before--but carrying a lot of weight in the front is just as hard on your back. So we took pictures ;-p The train ride home was pretty long but we entertained ourselves by playing hangman, sudoku and cards. WE met two boys from the Netherlands and they peppered us with various questions about Canada and world politics, etc...it was a good way to spend some of the time at least. I seem to have lost my *fabulous-ness* on the way home because they just glanced at my passport on the train home ;-p It's all good though. I made it home and in bed at 1:15 or so and then I slept like a rock until my alarm woke me up before 10am. WE were tired and our backs and feet were very sore--the tongue on one of my boots was digging into the bones in my foot making it very difficult to walk without feeling it. But we survived, though now I am a bit sick and now I should go grocery shopping because I have really no food here.
I am going to go to my friends house in Bad Krozingen for dinner tonight--they are making spaetzle for me tonight and I'm looking forward to that. Yay! I don' think I will be doing any homework today...I think I'll just get my fill of olympics and finish getting a bit organised since arriving back home. Tomorrow it's laundry time and I get to talk with my family-- the *excitement*. Well I hope that this wasn't too boring to read lol. Wuensche euch ein schoenes Wochenende!
Ps: Laurel, you did meet Zicka and she's super nice :-) I am coming home on April 4 until April 20th but then I don't really come back until August 24th (once university is done and I have gotten in some travelling). Hope that answers your question. Take care!
Trip with the Nachtzug
Susanne and I met up at the Bahnhof in Freiburg and took the train to Karlsruhe...we were both tired already and looking forward to sleeping on the train. The night train worked out pretty well for us in that no one else was in our compartment so we could each have one bench to ourselves to sleep. But it was pretty cold in the compartment and I slept with two pairs of socks and my toque on my feet ;-p We got woken up at least two times by police doing passport checks and they totally seemed to like my passport--secretly we think they were wondering if they could pronounce my name because they kept looking at the pass and then at me--or it could just be because I'm fabulous ;-p When the Italian police came and asked which nationality we were Susanne totally misunderstood and thought they were talking about which language they should speak and so she said "deutsch"...I said Canada and then "Deutsch " or "Englisch" but the dude wasn't paying attention and so we got away without showing our passes *whoops* Then somewhere in Italy these two ladies came into our compartment and the one lady didn't even give us time to get up and move over...she just walked right in and then she started putting on her make-up lol...the other lady was more considerate. But that was pretty much the *excitement* we had there.
Turin and Sauze d'Oulx
We got our transit tickets and then we made it to our accomodations without much trouble...the transit system was interesting to say the least ;-p We met up with Sara at the hotel and then we all went into the city...we got pictures with the Mascots, well big statues of them anyway and had some lunch before heading to catch the train to Sauze d'Oulx where the aerials were. On the train these people gave out free whistles from some American store Target...what was really funny is that everyone started blowing on them to check if they worked (I guess) like a bunch of little kids. We talked to some Americans and Aussies on the way there about hockey--sad day by the way for the Men's team *oh well*. The Mountains in this area are gorgeous and I tried to take a couple pictures once we arrived and on the bus up to the venue. WE got through security without much of a problem (thankfully) and then we decided to get something to eat. HOly smokes, it's totally ridiculous how much food costed at the venues. I paid 11 euros for a piece of lasagna and a salad...but what was totally nuts were hotdogs--4,50 euros for one (!) But I survived the food experience lol. WE had really good spots because we chose to go to the standing section early. We weren't on the side where the tv cameras were looking though and so we weren't in the crowds on the one side that they had a camera over. But we were behind CBC and thought, hey maybe they'll turn and look at us--not! They totally never did and that was disappointing because we even got on American T.V. lol. People really liked my hat too...I had some NBC guy comment on it and I had offers from people to buy my hat---I said no, even though Sara and Susanne thought I should have sold it--but I got it from my parents and so I was like the sentimental value is better. We met some nice people standing around us from Belgium and then there were these people behind us who were Swiss fans who kept pushing us into the fence. The best moment was when we got the attention of the Canadian, Veronica Bauer and she turned and waved to us--that was pretty cool because it was a real smile...and one of the coaches waved at us too when we started waving our flag around lol. Moments not on camera but still cool. Susanne got some awesome pictures of some of the competitors in the air as they did their jumps. Unfortunately Veronica came in last and she looked pretty disappointed but the weather was against her--it was often foggy and they would have to wait and the conditions were not very ideal for her first jump which threw her off. It was still really awesome to watch. The volunteers here in Turin and at the venues were really friendly and those with loud speakers kept saying "hello Canada" and we had some take our picture and others ask for pins--we totallly didn't know that people traded pins, that would have been really cool. On the train back we were sitting by a nice Italian guy and then we met an American who has been living in Italy for a couple of years, who helped up figure out the words for "towel" and "breakfast" because we had to take with the reception desk at the hotel and they didn't speak English. All in all a good day.
Touring Turin
Susanne and I hung out in Turin on the next day (thursday)...we discovered this one street totally by accident and it turned out to be one of the main shopping streets (like the fussgaengerzone) and we walked to the medal plaza. It wasn't open but we did take a couple pictures...oh and on wednesday we also saw the olympic torch and the stadion where the opening and closing ceremonies took place. It was *exciting*--haha, and on the way to the train station to go to Sauze d'Oulx we saw a car from CBC quite by accident and they totally waved at us...which is why we were hopeful at the event...alas. Okay, Susanne and I discovered this really cool medieval castle and village that they had along the Po river. It was super *exciting* and we even went on a tour of the castle--it's all a farce, because it was all built in the late 19th century for a didactic purpose but it was still very interesting...our tour guide was also very cute. Then we had a late lunch and met up with Sara who had been to snowboarding. We went to Canada house on the recommendation of some other Canadians that we met and thought maybe we could see some of the atheletes. Unfortunately we didn't but it was still really happy to see that people liked my hat and that we had done really well in some other events--they had a medal board. Then we bought the most expensive ice cream I've ever eaten--it was ridiculous but you know, I'll probably only ever eat ice cream once in Turin ;-p That evening we went to Milan.
Milan
We arrived at almost 9 pm and then we went for dinner at a nice restaurant...we had to find our hostel and were totally lost. WE learned an important lesson too--not to trust the stupid internet maps because they are totally off scale. The internet had said that the hostel was a fifteen minute walk--*wrong!* After like a hour of being lost around the main station we found a nice lady from Montreal who directed us to the metro and a nice man at the metro who helped us get some tickets. So at about midnight we arrived at the hostel. I'm so glad that I brought ear plugs let me tell you because some of the girls in our room were noisy. Oh and another thing I've learned (or perhaps remembered) is why I'm not so keen on Italy--the bathrooms. *shudder* often just a whole in the floor or low toilets with not seat seat...so it brought back some camping memories lol. Then yesterday we met up with Sara, who had to stay at another hotel--she had gotten lost too and had a creepy experience of being followed. We went to this cool castle/fortess in Milan and walked to the arch of peace before walking to the Dome. It was being restored but it is still an impressive sight. We had a pizza lunch (being in Italy and all ;-p) and then we walked around this shopping strip with Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton and you guessed it, McDonalds ;-P WE didn't go inside the stores but I had my picture taken by Prada...I figure that's as close as I will ever get lol. Sara had to go back sooner because she had a different train but Susanne and I walked around a bit more, went inside the Dome and inside a couple stores. The weather yesterday was quite disappointing, all rainy and so it made it hard for us to hang out outside. WE went to McDonalds to warm up and give our feet and backs a rest after carrying our bags all day long. Then we checked out this museum with free admission, which turned out to the the former royal palace...it's still very much under restoration but the rooms that were done were quite impressive. One of the security dudes inside made Susanne and I take off our bags and carry them in the front--I guess they were worried they we would bump into something. It was funny because at first Susanne didn't understand what he was saying--something like "sack off" or "sack to the front" lol and it was also funny because we looked like pregnant ladies--now I totally have more sympathy for them--not that I didn't before--but carrying a lot of weight in the front is just as hard on your back. So we took pictures ;-p The train ride home was pretty long but we entertained ourselves by playing hangman, sudoku and cards. WE met two boys from the Netherlands and they peppered us with various questions about Canada and world politics, etc...it was a good way to spend some of the time at least. I seem to have lost my *fabulous-ness* on the way home because they just glanced at my passport on the train home ;-p It's all good though. I made it home and in bed at 1:15 or so and then I slept like a rock until my alarm woke me up before 10am. WE were tired and our backs and feet were very sore--the tongue on one of my boots was digging into the bones in my foot making it very difficult to walk without feeling it. But we survived, though now I am a bit sick and now I should go grocery shopping because I have really no food here.
I am going to go to my friends house in Bad Krozingen for dinner tonight--they are making spaetzle for me tonight and I'm looking forward to that. Yay! I don' think I will be doing any homework today...I think I'll just get my fill of olympics and finish getting a bit organised since arriving back home. Tomorrow it's laundry time and I get to talk with my family-- the *excitement*. Well I hope that this wasn't too boring to read lol. Wuensche euch ein schoenes Wochenende!
Ps: Laurel, you did meet Zicka and she's super nice :-) I am coming home on April 4 until April 20th but then I don't really come back until August 24th (once university is done and I have gotten in some travelling). Hope that answers your question. Take care!
posted by Anne @ 4:48 AM
1 Comments:
At 11:36 AM,
Bean said…
Wow. Anne, I really like your adventures!! I really want to see some of your pictures! I'm glad that everyone liked your hat... And that the police men had some excitement trying to figure out your name. I told mum this when she phoned to give me the meter reading from the cabin and she laughed. But I don't think it's a secret that you're fabulous! ;o)
Yeah, the people that we saw did not appear to have a Canadian Flag, but then I only saw them at the corner of the screen, behind on of the athletes who had just gone.
That's really exciting though that Veronica and her coach waved at you!!! That would be have been really cool!
Well that sucks that you didn't have any pins - for I remember once Granny talking about the olympics in Calgary how people traded pins or she got many pins or something from random people there - but I guess it's good knowledge to have for a future olympics!
Well I'm really glad that you had a lot of fun!!! (despite being lost occasionally and the gross toilets - I remember these *bleh*)
Have a great day!!!
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