Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

Angela writes:
Our home city of Vancouver/Whistler hosted the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. We had incredible experiences at various ceremonies and sporting events. The crowds were electric and the community just glowed! My mom, step-dad, bother and niece also came to visit from Ontario for the festivities and their energy and enthusiasm infused the weeks with magic! During this time I decided to take a complete 3 months away from bike trip planning in order to fully engage in the Olympic experience and to regroup prior to what I’m sure is going to be a few hectic months before our departure.

Along with being an enthusiastic spectator of the Games, for the last year and a half I have also been fortunate enough to be working for the organizing committee. I wanted to mention this in our blog as this has been an incredible and challenging experience that’s allowed me to meet and work with an amazing team of dedicated, passionate people. These people and the lessons I have learned will give me hours and hours of material to contemplate as I stare from my helmet, out at the changing skies and landscapes throughout our trip. My time working for the winter games has been one of the most enriching and rewarding endeavors I have ever undertaken. I have learned about myself, and my boundaries, and how to push them further than I ever thought possible. It's been a test of confidence, will-power and faith. I’ve learned to be a better problem solver and how to see situations from many different perspectives. I’ve learned how to accept answers to problems that do not have cookie-cutter solutions, how to muster up will to overcome debilitating frustration and how to manage chaos. This position has prepared me for this trip in ways that I didn’t even know I needed to be challenged. These lessons I suspect are going to become quite useful in the months to come. Thanks Daryll for putting up with me as I grew and whined about it!