Good As Gold

There is nothing like being there to watch your country win a GOLD MEDAL in the Olympics.

It was truly AMAZING.

In fact, my whole trip was pretty amazing:

Friday I went to Milan for the night so that I would be able to get into Torino and then out to Sauze d'Oulx in enough time for the competition on Saturday. My good luck started right away at the metro station in Milan when I was trying to buy a subway ticket from the machine. The machine only took 5 and 10 Euro notes, but all I had was a 20. I wanted to buy three tickets, so the lady behind me put in her 5, took one ticket, gave me two tickets and a Euro so I could buy my third one, took her Euro change, and wished me goodnight.

Then I took the transit out to my hotel. It was a little further out than I thought from looking at the map, but there was an available taxi right there when I realized I couldn't walk from the subway station. And if you've ever tried to catch a taxi in Italy you know that this is a rare thing since you can't just flag them down in the street.

On Saturday morning, I woke up early and left the hostel. I had to wake up the guy so I could pay and leave. I owed 20 Euro, but only had a 50, and he didn't have any 10's to give me change, so I got a 10 Euro discount. Score! That more than made up for my arrival issues from the night before.

Then it was off to the train station. Caught a tram right away, and got to Milano Centrale with about 5 minutes to spare before the 8:18 am train left. I had decided to take my carry-on bag with me to Torino and leave it at Left Luggage there as opposed to Left Luggage in Milan even though I was planning on returning to Milan on Saturday night. And it's a good thing I did because on my way out to Sauze d'Oulx, I got a message from my friend Stacy, whom I was meeting Sunday in Torino to get a ride back to Padova with, that they had an extra bed where they were staying in downtown Torino since her boyfriend was sick and couldn't come. Score!

Once in Torino I got on another train and then a shuttle bus to the competition venue out in the mountains about an hour and a half outside of Torino.

Once inside the venue, I met up with Gliz and Neve, the 2006 Olympic Winter Games mascots!

Then it was off to find a good standing spot! I found one right at the bottom of the hill, a little to the left, and maybe three rows back. It was great. I could see the hill, the jumbo screen, and the socreboard. My dad taped the event, and said that I was even on TV twice! It was a good spot indeed.

The qualifying round was great. People were cheering and waving flags! The enthusiasm was catching. And I had a really great view of the athletes as they made their way down the hill.

The Qualifying Round ended with Canada's Jennifer Heil in first place! Now I was even happier to be staying in Torino that night as it meant that I could stay to watch the Finals. If I had been returning to Milan, I would have had to have left after the qualifications to make sure that I was in Torino in enough time to make the 2 hour journey back to Milan without arriving in Milan too late.

During the 2.5 hour break between competitions, I met up with my roommates Alison and Eric, and a few other friends from school who had come to Torino Saturday morning. Alison, Eric, and I went to get something to eat from one of the snack bars. We saw three Canadians in front of us, so we started talking to them. Turns out one of them was Jennifer Heil's mom!

The lady next to me is the Gold Medal Mom. They gave me the flag I am holding as I, sadly, did not have any Canadian paraphernalia with me. *tsk tsk* The other lady and man are GMM's best friend and husband.

To watch the Finals, I joined the others who were standing on the side of the hill so that I could make a quicker exit. The Olympic guidebook warned of long wait times to catch shuttle busses from the venue back to the train station. I still had a good view, but with the sun having set, it was SO COLD!!!

There were 20 laides in the Finals, down from 30, and all 4 of Canada's athletes qualified. But there is only one gold medal, and as you know, it went to Canada's Jennifer Heil!

After the competition was over, we made a quick escape to the shuttles and back to Torino. I met up with Stacy and her parents, and we headed back to the place where they were staying. It was actually someone's apartment. Apparently lots of people that live in Torino are renting out rooms in their houses since there is such a high demand for accomodation. Not a bad idea really.

This morning we woke up. I went to the train station to sort out my ticket home since Stacy didn't end up driving on account of her boyfriend being sick. Then I wandered around the city to catch some Olympic Spirit (and do a little souvenier shopping of course).

Then it was back to the train station to pick up my bag again, jump on the train, and begin my long trip back to Padova.

Now I am home and exhausted, but it was totally worth it!

What an experience!