This past weekend, thanks to my friends at Nokia Canada, I attended the opening day of the Calgary Stampede. It was my first time at such an event and had lots of recommendations of things to see and do. Fortunately, I was able to do most of them.
Things started off at the Rodeo:
Followed by the Chuck Wagon races which are insane:
After the last race, they hauled this huge stage onto the main track area:
The stage was where the Grandstand Show (called World Party) was held…I was skeptical at first but it turned out to be very entertaining, featuring all kinds of performances (including Cirque du Soleil performers from Quidam, and crazy motorcycle stunts), finishing off with one of the most impressive fireworks shows I’ve ever seen in person:
We finished up the night with a trip through the midway:
I tried a deep fried Snickers. You can view my full set of photos on Flickr.
Special thank you to Hala Dehais (Calgary Stampede) and Judy Love Rondeau (Tourism Alberta) for their assistance with media access to the Rodeo and Chuckwagon races and to Tom and Donna with WOMWorld/Nokia for getting me there – how I got there will be the topic of my next post but here’s a hint:
Earlier this month, over a hundred WordPress enthusiasts headed down to the Museum of Vancouver on one of the first summer days of the season to spend the day learning about WordPress. I was one of the organizers and we were all amazed at how smoothly everything went.
I gave a talk about using MAMP/WAMP for offline WordPress development. My slide deck was pretty short due to the live demo nature of the topic but you can view the PDF if you’re so inclined.
Justin Carlson recorded the sessions for us (head over to his site for the rest of them – some of them may even appear on WordPress.tv soon) so if you want to watch me get nerdy for about 1/2 an hour, hit play:
One of my tasks as a WordCamp organizer was to sort out internet access for the attendees. Thanks to Miranda & Melanie at Rogers Communications, I was able to borrow a few of their Rocket Internet Hubs which Dale Mugford & I setup in the various rooms at the MOV.
I’m still surprised how well these units performed considering the number of users sharing them (some of whom were streaming World Cup games). Dale connected them to a couple Airport Extremes along with some Airport Express extenders so that we could have one big wifi net and I didn’t hear anyone have issues with the internet so I’m grateful for Roger’s helping us out in a big way….having solid internet is a common issue at many conferences that we didn’t have.
As with all the previous WordCamps I’ve attended, I had a great time and met a bunch of new people that seemed to enjoy our little conference. Next year when talk starts up again, I’ll remember those folks I met and not think about all the effort that goes into pulling off a conference like this which usually seems too daunting.
Thanks to all our sponsors that helped make the event affordable and the speakers that volunteered their time to make it the success that it was.
Special thanks to my pal, Dave Olson, who not only brought down the house at the end of WordCamp, also put me up the night before and made sure I got back from our speakers dinner, um, safely. It seems that whenever we get together, we have some amazing adventures.
See you next year!
Last night, I was invited to attend the opening night performance of Vancouver Opera’s production of Madama Butterfly. This was my second Opera and the last production for the VO this season.
As I mentioned previously, I’m not an opera goer and was not familiar with the material. I was told that I would have probably heard some of the music used in Butterfly and that the plot shouldn’t be a big surprise as it’s a commonly occurring one (I won’t spoil it in case you don’t know what I’m talking about). Both these points turned out to be very true.
As before, we were given a backstage tour before the show which I quite enjoy.
The set this time around was quite different from Norma’s with its vertigo inducing lines and bold shapes and colours. On the tour, Kelsey suggested that it could easily be used as a set for a 60′s game show.
I love seeing the ‘craft’ that goes into a production of this scale after my humble beginnings producing plays in local *cough no budget cough* theatre.
Unlike my previous visit to the Opera, this time we had front row seats. I liked this A LOT. It dramatically improved my appreciation for what was unfolding on stage where I could see every nuance of the actors performances as well as a perfect view of the stage. If I stood up a little, I could even peer down into the orchestra pit:
Last time, I was fairly far back on the main floor. Not a horrible place to view the Opera from by any means, it’s just a much better experience in the front in my opinion.
Puccini’s music certainly was familiar to me. As had been suggested to me, it has been used in many movies before. It was nice to finally connect the dots on something like this so I now know where it came from.
Again, like last time, this Opera reminded me of a videogame. Due to it’s strikingly bold colours & costumes, strong visuals and somewhat nautical theme (thanks to Mr. Pinkerton), I was immediately thinking of the Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker. The game contains many similar traits to Madama Butterfly with it’s family ties, bold colours, dramatic music and many simple characters. The musical interlude between the second and third acts even further strengthened this connection for me with the three panels of video projections that could have easily been produced for the videogame (this isn’t a bad thing).
Due to my seat in the front row, the surtitles above weren’t that readable without craning my neck but I found the story easy enough to follow along without too many looks upward.
I thoroughly enjoyed this performance. Clocking in at around 2 hours 40 minutes, I can’t recall a single time when I was thinking it was dragging or was slow. It actually seemed to be fairly quick and before I knew it, I was backstage afterwards meeting the cast.
One final thing that still surprises me that happens during the final bows at the end of both Opera’s I’ve attended is the extended ovation that gradually builds as the performers come out. For Butterfly, it went on for a long time and it was cool to see the passion the audience had for these performers. It’s not often you see an older gentleman hoot and holler while wearing a tux.
As a side note, this post and photos was mostly created on the iPad during the course of the evening…which in itself was fun thanks to a number of curious Opera goers inquiring about it during the intermission.
After finally obtaining the camera connection kit for the iPad, I thought it would be a good test to see if you could in fact, use an iPad completely in place of a laptop to photograph/process/upload photos, and write a blog post on the spot.
It almost worked.
I was able to shoot backstage photos, download them to the iPad, post-processed a few favs with the Camerabag for iPad app, upload them to Flickr/Twitter during the performance straight off the iPad.
Using the WordPress iPad app proved to be the weakest link unfortunately…I had to resort to my laptop (at home later since I didn’t bring it to the show) because the app was too flaky for my workflow and it was tedious to switch back and forth from Flickr to the app to paste in the photos (I rarely upload my photos directly into WordPress, but instead embed them from my Flickr account) – it probably would have better to simply use Safari for the WordPress side for this task.
That aside, I am impressed with how well the photo side of things worked out and look forward to being to upload photos on the go at other events.
Over the past two weekends, I was invited up to Whistler to take in the Telus World Ski & Snowboard Festival. I had heard of the festival through friends that are avid snowboarders but had no idea that so many other things happen around the event.
The first weekend, as a guest of the fantastic Whistler/Blackcomb Media team, I got to stay in the amazing Dream House that lived up to it’s title. A fantastically appointed 5 bedroom ski in/out lodge right under the Blackcomb Gondola complete with hot tub on the deck which I spent a large amount of time in:
Shortly after arriving, we found out that the house was hosting a party with a huge list of who’s who in ski and snowboard media, gear makers and a number of world class athletes. Word quickly spread that I had my iPad with me and I gave a bunch of demos of it and had some great conversations with photographers and magazine people about the device and how it had the potential to transform their industries. I also learned a new trick that I have yet to master but I’ll keep practicing. It was a great way to get settled into my new home for the next couple of days.
One of the more interesting things (to me) that happens at the festival is a number of different photo & video contests that happen. There is a 72 hour film showdown where teams have 72 hours to make a video that is then screened and judged. There are also a couple other photo contests including the Pro Photo Showdown where some of the best ski & snow photographers compete. Unfortunately, these events happened mid week so I missed them but I’m thinking they are a great reason to come back next year and get more involved in them. Getting to meet a lot of the people competing in these competitions also made me envious of what they were doing as it seemed to be an absolutely fun way to compete, doing something they love.
The next day started off with a new experience for me: a visit to the spa!
I had already spent a fair bit of time in the house hot tub (hey, it was there and somebody had to use it) so the idea of going somewhere for more hydro therapy was very appealing. I’d never been to a spa of any kind before and apparently the Scandinave Spa was a pretty special place. It’s a huge outdoor facility with pools scattered amongst other buildings which housed different types of wet and dry saunas, including the amazing Eucalyptus steam room (the red building in the photo above) – it felt like you were inside a Halls lozenge…in a good way. Then it was suggested that you jump into the cold pool for full effect…it was actually quite exhilarating.
Being a first timer at a place like this, which is really an adult playground, I kind of felt like I was in a James Bond movie…expecting Sean Connery to come out of the steam room and then ninjas would jump out of the bushes and attack. I know that may not sound relaxing but it was still a pretty cool place to visit. We were all very mellow afterwards so clearly the spa experience is relaxing.
Next up was a visit to Sushi Village for dinner. Now I’m not a seafood eater so I was a little nervous about going for sushi but my hosts assured me they would help me navigate the choices. Worse case, I could order some chicken ‘KFC rolls’ if the fish didn’t work for me.
I figured I was already trying new things and might as well try new foods while I’m at it. I had tried sushi in the past was never compelled to try more than one or two pieces before being turned off. Thanks to everyone’s help, I eased into it and eventually found myself quite enjoying it all…It would appear that fresh & quality seafood really makes the difference. Or perhaps it was the Saki Margaritas. In any case, it was fun experience with great company.
The buildings in the village were a fantastic backdrop/screen for some awesome video projections during the opening kick off party later that night…including these retro videogame visuals:
It was pretty cool to hear the Donkey Kong theme blasting throughout the village while being projected on the side of a hotel.
Before we headed home the first weekend, we spent a fantastic afternoon sitting on a patio in the Village watching the Whistler Chef Challenge in front of Araxi:
It was a frenetic cookoff with lots of chefs competing Iron Chef style in timed challenges then judged on the spot to see who would advance to the next level:
Heading home that day was tough – the festival was just getting underway and we had to head home. But a few of us were coming back the following weekend so we had that to look forward to.
Fast forward to the following Friday, John, Rebecca & I met up again to participate in the Chevy Road Trip to WSSF along with some other media folks (Chevy is one of the sponsors of WSSF). We were loaned a brand new Chevrolet Equinox to drive up to Whistler and take in the rest of the festival (although this photo was taken at the Squamish Spit):
One thing we tried to do the previous weekend but didn’t make it before they closed was to visit the Grilled Fromage in Squamish. Rebecca had gushed about this place and I’m a big fan of grilled cheese sandwhiches so we convinced the rest of the Road Trippers to stop off and get our cheese on:
It’s a fun little diner that features over 60 different kinds of grilled cheese sandwhiches with a cheesy decor that includes a ton of cheesy things that I could spend all day browsing around the shop:
I opted for a smoked gouda, bacon & pickle sandwich which goes by the name of the ‘Polyester & Pickle’ which was amazing:
Once checked into our hotel in Whistler, we headed to the Fashion Exposed show to see the latest in ski and snowboard fashions all the while, a couple of great bands (The Zolas and We Are the City) performed in the middle of the runway.
We spent Saturday checking out the many WSSF events around the Village including getting to test drive a bunch of different vehicles including a Camaro and a few hybrid trucks which were on hand for anyone at the festival to take for a spin:
So much going on and I didn’t even set foot on the mountain where there was a whole other set of ski & snowboard events happening. As I said earlier, next year, I’ll have to plan to spend more time up there for the full festival. It was still an amazing couple of weekends in Whistler.
A huge thank you to Amber, Michelle, Tabetha & Stephanie for hosting me the first weekend and George, Janice, and Fred for hosting the second weekend.
You can view my full WSSF 2010 photoset on Flickr.
Update: I figured I could probably do a separate post just about all the food photos I took at Whistler but because she mentioned it and did suggest an awesome place for breakfast, I give you VanCity Allie’s ‘Meat Pile’ from our breakfast at Elements in the Village:
I was in Whistler this past weekend so I sent my good friend, Peter Andersen in my place to The Marriage of Figaro at the Vancouver Opera. Here’s his guest post & photos (a first for my site) of the event:
What’s the recipe for a Blogger Night at the Opera? A table of laptops, black coffee and a Twitter photo booth at the ready. Mix in eager blogger participants (myself, Tris Hussey, Gus Fosarolli and Kelsey Dundon) and you get the clicking of keys on laptops before the show and – even more frantically – during the intermission.
Thanks to Ling Chan and John Biehler, my wife Marilyn and I were able to attend this Blogger Night At the Opera, which turned out to be a very enjoyable experience for both of us. Sitting at the table in the lobby pre-show for the opening night of The Marriage of Figaro at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre felt a little like “bloggers on parade”, but it was very social as well. Plenty of friendly people dropping by to see what we were up to, with lots of questions about both the blogging world and that thing called the iPad that I happened to be working with (thx for the insight, Tris :p).
Having no opera experience whatsoever, I had no idea what I was in for. I did the usual Wikipedia lookup beforehand, and at least understood that I was going to see a comedic opera by Mozart. After we were settled in at the table, Terry Harper (Director of Production) came around and introduced himself before taking us on our backstage tour. It was a treat to be able to go behind the curtain and see the sets up close. An amazing amount of detail is visible everywhere, from props to backdrops. We learned a few interesting bits as well, like the fact that the complete set – costumes and all – was rented from Alberta. We also learned sticky floors are preferred by the actors, and are achieved with a mop and mixture of Coca-Cola and water.
Backstage
So for those of you that are opera-unaware like me, there are a few things to know. First, don’t worry about not knowing the language the opera is performed in. Thanks to “surtitles“, which are displayed above the stage, an English interpretation lets you follow what’s going on. Second, while being up close to the performers is a treat, if you sit very close (as we were fortunate enough to do) the surtitles end up being miles above your head. It’s critical that you get very skilled very quickly at looking up, looking back at the stage, looking up, looking back at the stage. I’m sure this is secretly done to amuse the performers as they play ’spot the newbies’ when looking out at us.
While I normally would prefer sitting up close like this during a live concert, I would recommend sitting further back in this case. I think for those of us that haven’t been to an opera before, or haven’t been much, sitting back far enough to see both the entire stage and the surtitles at once without taking your eyes completely off the performance would be beneficial. Fight the urge to buy the best, and give the close seats to those that know the language or the opera well and can take it in seamlessly.
I was told The Marriage Of Figaro is a great “first opera” and I for one am glad I was initiated by it. It was very enjoyable from start to finish. The story was well written and well accompanied, but the best entertainment came from the performers themselves. All of the players were very skilled vocally, as expected, but they also seemed right at home doing physical comedy. It was a great combination overall, and the 3+ hour length went by surprisingly quickly. 
It was also great to see the Vancouver area so well represented, with many of the cast members hailing from the Lower Mainland (including the Count, Countess and Marcellina). I also noticed that the packed house was full of all ages – good to see the variety and the interest for opera being so high.
The night ended with an after-party behind the stage where we got to mix & mingle with the cast & crew. It gave us another opportunity to show our appreciation for a great night. Thanks again to Ling and John for this opportunity, and I’m sure that another opera is in my future. Madama Butterfly…let’s see… a Japanese tragedy by Puccini, performed in Italian with English surtitles. Sounds perfect.
Thanks to Peter for filling in and the guest post of his experience at the Opera. Also check out my previous post about my first time at the Opera – John
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