During November’s trip to Switzerland our group stopped in at the headquarters of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in Lausanne.
Perched at the top of a small grassy hill, the IOC looks out over Lake Geneva and the public park, Parc Bourget. The IOC is made up of a few buildings pasted together over the years including a mansion that was centuries old. The entire area was once occupied by the Roman Empire and recent archeological evidence shows bones and ruins dating back to 6,000 BC.
I must explain that I missed pieces of the tour. Unfortunately this was our first stop after arriving from London the night before and with the 9-hour time difference and the jet lag migraine bubbling up in my head, I had to excuse myself from the tour a few times. After my intermittent absence I rejoined the tour group but as a result I didn’t take nearly as many notes on this tour as I could have.
Inside the IOC much of it seemed like your standard office building, with more than a few high-tech and upscale elements. The one thing that stood out most was the art work. Culture being one of the Three Pillars of the Olympic movement, the building featured statues, installations, paintings, and sculptures on every floor and down every corridor.
Olympic-branded candies sat in a dish outside one of many meeting rooms with dominating wooden doors, behind which I could only imagine the importance of the business being discussed.
There was a modern cafeteria for employees where chefs prepare culinary creations for staff daily. The eating area had dark wood floors, modular furniture and a full view of the lake from the floor-to-ceiling windows. On a pillar near the employee lounge/cafeteria were bulletins, including one promoting the Vancouver 2010 exhibit over at the Olympic Museum.
Our guide explained that just out the window and to the West was the local waste treatment plant and that energy produced from the waste when it is treated actually supplies power and heat for the IOC buildings. With Environment being yet another one of the Three Pillars of the Olympic Movement it seemed quite fitting.
From there we walked through a few more boardrooms, each more impressive than the next with flat screen televisions, branded pens, and bottles of water on standby as though half a dozen meetings were about to convene at the same time.
We crossed over to the old IOC building, which is the mansion and home of the smallest meeting room we had seen yet, although it was the most distinguished. This was where top-ranking IOC officials get together with IOC President, Count Jacques Rogge.
I’m unsure if they do tours normally but it was a nice familiarization of a beautiful complex that simply emanates excellence, right down to the Olympic-branded Mercedes parked out front.
On our way out some protesters started to gather on the front lawn. They had t-shirts, signs, and appeared to have invited local media – either that or they brought their own troop of photographers. We were inside the building as the group began chanting outside and two of them walked over to the entrance. Pausing outside for a photo op, we watched as the protesters chatted politely with the women at the front reception desk. After a few minutes they came back outside, picked up their signs, and continued their display. No security, no men in suits with earpieces coming to take them away. They pretty much just walked to the other side of the street on their own and continued peacefully. For some reason I suspect that this isn’t a rare occurrence at all outside the IOC.
We hopped in our tour van and headed for the the Olympic Museum but not before our guide pointed out that there’s a campground next to Parc Bourget and the IOC. To camp on Lake Geneva, in a place as historic as this, surrounded by dozens of international sporting federations and museums just seemed like something we’d have to do when John and I go back to Switzerland. We’ll even see if our pal Dave wants to come as it seems like something he’d really get a kick out of.
You can view the rest of my photos from my media trip to Switzerland in this photo set, and read all posts here.
Club Bud, the notorious Olympic party destination is coming to Vancouver for the 2010 Games, setting up shop for five crazy nights in February.
Torino introduced the world to Club Bud in 2006 with a six-story pyramid-shaped nightclub. Club Bud kept the party going in Beijing with 360° video screens, an electrifying dance floor and an outdoor pool. In February 2010, Club Bud will transform the famed Commodore Ballroom into the place for athletes, celebrities and some lucky fans to celebrate in style. Athlete and celebrity arrival times on the red carpet will vary by party.
Companies and sponsors are each hosting special evenings at the Commodore and Club Bud is looking for an intrepid social media reporter (and a friend) to capture and document the festivities. They’re calling it the Club Bud Party Crasher search where successful applicants will get full access Club Bud in order to blog, tweet, and take photos.
Here are the Club Pub parties that the Party Crasher can choose to attend:
Friday, February 19 – Burton Party (Update: Read about it here)
Saturday, February 20 – NHL Party (Update: Read about it here)
Thursday, February 25 – Budweiser Party
Friday, February 26 – Under Armour Party
Saturday, February 27 – lululemon athletica Party
To apply to be the Club Bud Party Crasher all you have to do is become a fan of them on Facebook which will add the Club Bud application badge to your profile.
I’m unsure if the public can purchase tickets for Club Bud so it’s definitely worth entering the Party Crasher contest if you’d like to take part in any of these events. The job search closes on February 3, 2010 and you can read all contest rules and regulations on their Facebook page.
This morning the Sled Head campaign kicked off at the newly renovated London Drugs on Georgia & Granville.
Red toques sporting the “I’m a Sled Head” logo will be sold in support of Canada’s Olympic & World Champion Bobsledder, Pierre Lueders.
Having been to the birthplace of Bobsleigh this initiative is of special interest. Lueders has been the Olympics before having competed in Lillehammer (1994), Nagano (Gold), Salt Lake City (2002), and Turin (Silver).
He is the most decorated bobsleigh pilot in Canadian history and there’s even a turn named after him (“Lueders Loop”) at the Whistler Sliding Centre where the Olympic sliding sport events will be held.
The Sled Head toques are made by the Kootenay Knitting Company Ltd. and retail at London Drugs for $9.99, with $3 from each going towards Lueders’ Olympic efforts and expenses.
As a side note, the Kootenay Knitting Company is also making scarves for the Canadian Olympic Cross-Country Ski team.
To further their support, all London Drugs one hour photo departments will be also be donating $2.10 from the sale of every 14 oz photo mug to the Sled Head campaign.
The Vancouver 2010 Bobsleigh events begin February 20th.
After gale-force winds ripped through Vancouver last night, the clouds parted and I set out on foot to do a walking tour of Gastown. I was invited along by Vancouver Urban Adventures to participate in their Gastown & Chinatown tour this afternoon.
Being a local history buff I was pretty curious to see if I would learn anything new during the walk and I’m pleased to say that I did. I won’t share too much (so I don’t spoil the tour for others) but I have a few history post ideas that were inspired by our walk today.
We started out at Waterfront Station and walked along Water Street, stopping into The Landing which used to be the home of Kelly, Douglas & Company (and their Nabob Coffee) at the turn of the last century. From there we continued down water to the infamous steamclock. I admit, I had my camera out for the entire trip but already looking like a tourist I wasn’t about to take any snaps of the timepiece (we have a bit of a history…).
The photos of faces above are sculpted up high on the front of a building along Water Street. It’s funny how we often forget to look up when walking down the street. Mind you, it’s probably not the best idea in the world to head down a bustling sidewalk with your chin up but there were some great building details that our guide pointed out that I had never noticed before.
We rounded the corner at Maple Tree Square (where you can find “Gassy Jack” Deighton) and stopped into the Irish Heather for a sampling of Blue Buck beer. Gastown is the birthplace of Vancouver as we know it. Called Granville before its incorporation as Vancouver, almost everything happened in the area we now know as Gastown.
Making our way over to Chinatown we explored the history of Shanghai Alley. If you have the chance to take a quick stroll down there you’ll find some information placards detailing some of the area’s history.
Looping up across Main Street we stopped for some Oolong and Jasmin tea samples before looping back down through Chinatown and into Dr Sun Yat Sen Gardens. The urban oasis balances water, earth, stones and plant-life against a skyscraper backdrop.
I find that getting out and walking around your City is a great way to rediscover it and explore places both familiar and new.
With regards to Urban Adventures, the walk was about 2 hours long but they broke it up nicely with the pit stop at the Irish Heather, the tea sample, and various other visits to galleries and shops along the way. The guides did supply useful information and I liked having the earpiece so I could hear their narration. They covered history, architecture, great places to catch a bite or lounge about, and the tour ran consistently on schedule.
The end of the stroll is at Tinseltown so you’ll be a bit displaced once it’s all over if you don’t know your way around the city or back to Waterfront. Otherwise, SkyTrain and bus are close-by. I would recommend the tour for friends or couples as the walking time (and alcohol) may not be suitable / comfortable for all ages.
The cost is $25, which is a good value taking into consideration the samples and the history lesson, however it may not be feasible for large families. As an afternoon activity for a group of friends, it’s well worth it and you’ll probably end up back at the Irish Heather or Salty Tongue for a full meal as you’ll work up an appetite.
Other walking tours I recommend would be…
The Sins of the City tour operated by the Vancouver Police Museum
The Miss Guides
The Gastown Business Improvement Society free walking tours of Gastown
The self-guided Silk Road walk
The self-guided Historic Mosaic Art Tile Tour (if it’s still around)
Disclosure: cmp.ly/1 – Unpaid. Admission was complimentary.
Nominations for this year’s YWCA Women of Distinction Awards are now open. Since 1984, the YWCA has honored over exceptional 200 women who have been nominated by family, friends and colleagues.
The YWCA Vancouver Women of Distinction Awards encourages nominations that will showcase individuals and organizations who are driving positive change for women and girls either directly or by example. Activities and achievements of all potential nominees must align with the YWCA’s values. Candidate’s participation in employment, recreation or special interests will encapsulate the spirit of women’s equality as outlined in YWCA Vancouver’s mission and vision.
I have partnered with the YWCA to help promote this event and help it reach as many women as possible in the region. Categories in which you can nominate outstanding individuals include: Arts, Culture & Design, Business & the Professions, Community Building, Education, Training & Development, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Health & Active Living, Non-profit & Public Service, Technology, Science & Industry, Innovative Workplace and the Young Woman of Distinction.
Candidates and nominees should be considered leaders and role models, someone who breaks new ground or busts down barriers, shows vision, guides and supports others, takes initiative, is well-respected by her peers, and makes a sustained commitment or significant difference in her industry or community.
Past recipients…
Non-profit & Public Service 2009: Shawn Bayes – Executive Director, Elizabeth Fry Society of Greater Vancouver.
Community Building 2009: Christy Clark – Host, The Christy Clark Show. Christy initiated BC’s first Anti-Bullying Day in 2008.
Young Woman of Distinction 2008: Amanda Reaume, founder of Antigone Magazine (they do the Dreams for Women Calendar).
Nominations will close March 15, 2010 and the finalists will be honored at the Awards Ceremony in June (exact date TBD). Proceeds from the Awards Ceremony go to support the YWCA’s many programs and services for women and families in the Lower Mainland. If you nominate someone, know a finalist, are a woman in business, or simply want to take part in an inspiring event for a fantastic cause, please consider joining us for the Awards Ceremony.
For now, be sure to get those nominations in. Note, nominees must live and work (individuals) or operate (businesses or organizations) within the Metro Vancouver region bounded by and including Hope, Pemberton, Sunshine Coast and the United States border. You can get the nomination forms online or by calling (604) 895-5768.
Become a fan of the YWCA of Vancouver on Facebook for links, news, updates, and information about the Awards Ceremony when it becomes available.
