I keep hearing reports that “the last shipment EVER” of items are arriving/have arrived at the Bay/Olympic Superstore. I don’t know how accurate this is, because the Olympics are barely half over – so take it with a grain of salt. Just in case you were wondering, though:

• Lines to get into the OS downtown are still insane – reports of a 3-block long lineup before the store even opened
• The Bay @ Park Royal is almost completely cleaned out – lots of baby and kid Team Canada wear, but nothing for adults save the odd t-shirt or too. Tons of generic Olympic gear, but nothing else
• If you’re looking for non-clothing Olympic souvenirs, head to your closest London Drugs! They’re advertising “selected Olympic merchandise” at 50% off, but when I was there last night it seemed as though ALL of it was on sale – I got me a wicked Sumi hat and was sorely tempted by the plush mascots, but I resisted

Yesterday’s Experience Day was a smashing success. I met Shan at BC Hydro’s Power Smart Village at noon, and throughout the day we were joined by others – Reilly and Miranda, then Josh, then Ed, then Renee. We held fast to our rule of “no standing in line”, but still managed to see a lot of great stuff. The Plaza of Nations behind the Edgewater Casino was especially great – the day was gorgeous, there’s an open-air market like a small version of the Richmond Night Market, and an army of inukshuk have been built along the seawall. The area of framed by Science World/Russia House, the Cambie Bridge, and Athlete’s Village across the water – it’s one of the most spectacular spots in the city, and a fabulous place to hang out and people watch.

fisheye'd!

We ended up on Robson Street later that night, but I had to call it quits around 8pm – my feet are angry at the best of times, and the fact that I had spent 8 hours wandering around town had not gone unnoticed. I was in a lot of pain, but I had so much fun I hadn’t really minded until I hit the wall. As a result, we weren’t downtown when Jon Montgomery won his gold medal in Men’s Skeleton – but we got to watch it at home and cheer along.

I don’t know what’s happening tonight, but it’s going to be something. I’m also trying to find out what the Team Canada stock levels are like at Oakridge and Metrotown – will update when I find out.

Pictures from yesterday are up on Flickr, and don’t forget: I’ll be drawing for mittens tomorrow night and for other goodies on Tuesday, so you should enter the draw by commenting on the posts linked to the right!

Tomorrow night: Long Table Series dinner at the Irish Heather, just in time to be in Gastown for the end of the Canada vs. USA hockey game. It’s gonna be epic, no matter the result!

2010 was an inside job