Unfortunately Day Two of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games got rung in with the sound of smashing glass at the HBC store downtown. From what I hear, 100-200 protesters moved from Georgia Street, down to Denman, looped up Robson Street and are currently being penned in by police on Robson Street between Broughton and Jervis.
Yesterday the Olympic Torch Relay was re-routed due to protesters in the downtown Eastside but it was a peaceful protest. Today it seems like a different group of people with anarchy signs, masks, hoods, and actions such as knocking over newspaper boxes, spray painting cars & mailboxes, and smashing windows.
John went down to take some photos and Duane even saw a woman pushing a stroller moving with the group who knocked over a box in one fell swoop.
On the other hand, our pal Kris Krug is reporting on Twitter that he was caught in crossfire and got hit by a police riot shield. He was taking photos of the event and was told (with the shove of a riot shield) to move back. He did, said he was press, then was shoved with the shield again. Kris told me the Legal Observers got it on video and he will be launching a formal complaint.
John also said that people along the way were trying to help by putting the mailboxes back upright after they were knocked down. He said the police told the helpful citizens to leave the boxes alone as they may just get knocked over again. Store owners, shop keepers, and residents along Robson came out to see what was going on. All looked very concerned and frankly I was hesitant about John and Duane heading down there.
As the crowd becomes dispersed by police on Robson Street now the core group of about 20-30 protesters now are engaging in peaceful actions — banging drums, dancing around, and making their statement known – if the message hasn’t being diluted by actions earlier. Things seem to be calming down but there is still plenty of tension. I still hear shouting, whistles, sirens and helicopters overhead.
You can view more images in John’s Flickr set. I’ll post updates as they come through…
Update @ 11:56am February 13, 2010 Things seem to have calmed down as the sound of the helicopter above moves further away from my neighbourhood. I had family coming downtown today who have now change their plans because of this.
Update @ 12:04pm February 13, 2010 It’s being reported that there were two groups; the protesters bringing awareness to native land use and poverty in Vancouver, and then those with the masks and anarchist flags. CTV News Net is still carrying live coverage.
Update @ 12:15pm February 13, 2010 I will be turning off the comments on this post as this is simply to document what happened this morning, as we saw it and heard about it on the news. I am responsible for all statements made on this website, which includes the comments section so I’ll just keep this as a reference piece. Thank you for understanding the sensitivity of this subject matter.
Update @ 12:44pm February 12, 2010 Our friend John Biehler was also down on Robson Street, here are some images from his Flickr set:
Update @ 1:11pm February 13, 2010 My husband John took some video following the protesters up Robson Street:
Update @ 1:17pm February 13, 2010 The website ShotinVancouver.com has some amazing photos from the protest action this morning including a newspaper box being thrown into the window of the TD Tower downtown. They also have an image of someone stomping out the headlight of a Swiss Olympic vehicle.
Update @ 2:26pm February 13, 2010 The Georgia Straight says the event was billed as “2010 Heart Attack”.
Throughout the Games, admission to the Vancouver Art Gallery will be free and you can head up to the fourth floor to check out the BC showcase.
Explore Da Vinci’s work and even Emily Carr’s at no charge at all, which is a real treat. Other exhibits inside include:
Visions of British Columbia: A Landscape Manual (January 23 to April 18, 2010)
Leonardo da Vinci: The Mechanics of Man (February 6 to May 2, 2010)
Visceral Bodies (February 6 to May 16, 2010)
Michael Lin: A Modest Veil (January 15 to May 2, 2010)
CUE: Artists’ Videos (January 23 to March 21, 2010)
A 4D theatre experience
Other exhibits highlight new media, sustainability, tourism and cultural diversity
Back outside at Robson Square they also have a massive projection of Games coverage (50′ x 70′) along with daily performances and pyrotechnics. The area has just been hopping lately, turning into a major hub for spectators, participants and revelers so far. This is pretty much my top pick for free things to do during the Olympics with so much going on and so many people coming together.
Free daily events outside:
Meet the Mascots on Ice: Daily at 1:00pm, 3:00pm, 6:00pm
Ignite the Dream: Evening light show with pyrotechnics, lasers and projected images nightly at 9:30pm and 11:00pm
First Nations Carving Exhibit: At the front of the VAG near Georgia, daily from noon until 8:00pm
A full listing of events can be found online. If you can’t make it down, check out their webcams, which are showing some great live video of Robson Square. On February 14th they will celebrate “BC Day” at the pavilion.
After the success of my first two contests (one which is still ongoing) BC Hydro has asked me to make another contest announcement this afternoon. They have two tickets for the Women’s 500m qualifier short track speed skating happening tomorrow that they want to give away over Twitter.
Contest:
For this one BC Hydro Power Smart would like to boost up their Twitter presence. To enter to win these tickets follow them on Twitter @PowerSmartBC in an attempt to be their 400th follower. The only way to enter the contest is by doing this so they’ll keep track then notify the 400th person. This will run until they reach their goal (or at least until tomorrow morning) and the winner will be notified tomorrow morning by the Power Smart folk.
Rules and regulations:
Winner must be able to pick up their tickets from the BC Hydro Power Smart Village at 333 Dunsmuir Street. The winner will need to bring a copy of the email I will send saying they have won and will need government ID to prove their identity. Tickets are for tomorrow’s event starting at 5:00pm over at the Pacific Coliseum.
Update: BC Hydro Power Smart has reported that @KevinWalton is the winner, congratulations!
Turns out they have much more to give Miss604.com readers as I’ve been offered tickets to tonight’s opening ceremonies. I only have two hours to run this contest so that the winner can pick up tickets in time so here we go.
Contest:
Leave a comment between 1:20pm and 3:00pm 2:45pm on this post about the Olympics (anything you like). I will draw a winner randomly at 3:15pm 2:50pm. The winner will be notified by email and must be able to confirm within 30 minutes that they can pick up their ticket tonight.
Rules and regulations:
Winner must be able to pick up their ticket for the opening ceremony (tonight at 6:00pm at BC Place) from the BC Hydro Power Smart Village at 333 Dunsmuir Street. The winner will need to bring a copy of the email I will send saying they have won and will need government ID to prove their identity.
That’s it, good luck everyone and Go Canada!
Update: This contest will need to close at 2:45 so that the winner can get their tickets and get into the ceremony on time. Update: I just drew the winner and it’s Katy, congratulations! Update: Katy has claimed the prize and is on her way to the Power Smart Village.
My first posts about the Vancouver 2010 Olympics was in November of 2007 although I’ve been following the lead up to the Games ever since I heard the IOC announcement of “Vancouver” for 2010 from my desk in Boston back in 2003.
Can you believe it’s actually here? I wrote a tweet this morning that simply said, “Welcome to probably your biggest day ever, Vancouver.” My husband woke up even more excited than a child on Christmas morning.
After watching the torch relay come through a crowd of thousands on Georgia Street we headed over to the countdown clock in front of the Vancouver Art Gallery. It reads, “Day 0000”. This is it. The Olympics are here.
A small group of colleagues stood in front of the clock and cheered, “Go Canada!” as their photo was taken. Within seconds more people joined in their photo. Complete strangers stood arm and arm to pose for another photo, together. Soon enough it became one massive photo opportunity with all participants chanting young and old chanting, “Go Canada!”.
To say I’m excited is an understatement and I told my husband already that I’m going to cry during the opening ceremony. The world’s eyes are now on my city and I’m lucky enough to be right smack dab in the middle of it all.
Across the city rounds of “O! Canada” are being sung and I’ve heard it at least twice already here at Robson Square. All I have to say is, Go Canada Go!
