WADA, IOC, and everything else that is unimportant.

Hey guys,

The highly anticipated meeting happened on Friday. It was the meeting with the Vice President/Director of Television and Marketing of the IOC, Timo Lumme. This meeting was so important that everyone was on their A-game when they went to visit. Professor Ryan prepared us and made sure that we all knew the background of the IOC so that we were prepared to ask questions during the meeting. As students, we were also very excited for this opportunity to meet someone of such high caliber and great success. Before we went to the IOC, we went to the WADA headquarters in Lausanne and met with the manager of Relations with International Federations, Amandine Bousigue. I think we all enjoyed her relaxed and active personality, which wasn’t what I was expecting. She was very open and friendly and answered any questions that we had. The World Anti-Doping Agency was a very interesting topic that I never considered before because I always cared more about the concrete marketing, legal, or public relations aspect of the Olympics. I definitely recommend a meeting with WADA or with Ms. Bousigue in the future. Then, we walked around the Olympic park, which was beautiful. As a New Yorker, I don’t get much of that fresh air especially in Manhattan, unless I’m near Central Park. I was enjoying the fresh air, warm and sunny weather as much as I can. As Angelis mentioned, Lausanne is located right across from the Swiss Alps so imagine how magnificent the scenery was. We relaxed for a few hours and then we finally made it to the headquarters of the IOC. We met with Christina Low, the Head of Broadcast Services and James Moy, the manager of Business Development. Both of them are relatively new to the IOC but they handle the most important components of the Olympic Games. They used the 2008 Beijing Olympics to evaluate the broadcast rights and the marketing aspects of the event. It was interesting to see how they abide to the IOC Charter. They also explained about the Summer 2010 Youth Olympic Program that will be held in Singapore. It will be a first time event and they have full faith that it will not depreciate the value of the Olympics because it has an educational component part of it. I clearly learned a lot about the broadcasting and marketing aspect of the Olympic Games. Unfortunately, Timo is a busy man so he came back and forth to give some brief remarks. After the meeting, we took a group photo and we walked back to our hotel. It was an educational day that made me want to work for the IOC. With such power and working with such high quality people, it is inevitable for people to want to be their best.

After a long day, we all separated to have lunch. Angelis and I had a great Vietnamese cuisine by the shore and had Movenpick ice cream for dessert. It was the biggest and best ice cream I have ate. Movenpick is a brand of Swiss ice cream and I believe it is comparable to America’s Ben & Jerry or Haagan Daaz. Delicious! It’s a must-have if you ever come to Switzerland. At night, we went out to Lausanne-Flon and enjoyed our stay at a nightclub called D! It was the first night that everybody in the group went out together. It wasn’t anything spectacular but I think we all enjoyed going out together. If I had to criticize Switzerland, it would be the music at the nightclubs or pubs. They are usually always electro, trance, or techno. I like those but not all night long. **Headache**

Today, we just had a very relaxing and wonderful day at Montreux, Switzerland. It was another state that was near the ocean and we all enjoyed taking beautiful scenery pictures that I will upload later in the blog. (I didn’t bring a camera so I have to borrow Angelis’s camera and she plans to upload every time we change a location.) We really wanted to go climb part of the Swiss Alps but it was about 130francs, individually, in order to get there. That is way too much! On the way, we saw a French old lady walking a poodle, so cliché but it worked! We all took pictures of it for our scavenger hunt! Eventually, we ended up at a port where they allowed boat rentals and etc. so some people went on a motorboat driven by Joe Fanelli, while the rest enjoyed the warm sunshine and beautiful mountains. We didn’t do too much but it was very relaxing. After we came back to Lausanne, everybody separated to do their own thing. Angelis and I had lunch and then we tanned a little bit. Eventually, we couldn’t help but get the delicious Movenpick ice cream again. We sat by the shore and tanned. Later, we went to buy some souvenirs because we can’t forget the good, old friends at home. The ladies had crepes for dinner except for yours truly because I didn’t want to change more francs. I had a healthy Greek salad and now I am at “the White Horse” pub to borrow their free Internet. (The lady at the front desk advised us and gave us free coupons for a free beer so that we could sit in and get free Internet access. Swiss people, they are just so KIND.)

The BEST travel day is going to happen in a few hours: 4:15 a.m. Can’t WAIT! Haha. NO, but since we are going to Greece, I will suck it up and make it through! Hopefully, there’s Internet service so that I can post more pictures up, instead of bombarding you all with a bunch of worthless words.
Hope everybody is doing well in the states. Enjoying the HOT weather and drinking lots of water.

Out&About.

Olivia.

--- the Unfortunate happened ---

Hey guys,

We are in Lausanne, Switzerland. The view is just unexplainable; there are no words to describe how beautiful this place is. This is probably going to be the most important week because the much anticipated meeting with the VP of the IOC is going to be Friday. We are all very excited and are trying to prepare to the best of our abilities to ask the most important and relevant questions possible.

Despite all the commotion, the unfortunate occurred. I lost my wristlet which had my credit card, debit, francs, and ID. I am very disappointed in myself but hopefully some nice soul will return it sooner or later. Highly doubt it but it made me realized one thing: you just need to be careful because you never know when it will happen to you.

I have lots to say but time is limited because internet service is by the hour here. Hopefully, everyone else is enjoying the sunny, beautiful weather in the states.

Out&About.

Olivia.

Bye bye London -- Here we go France!

Hey guys!

We are in Paris, France! Finally, there is service!! I don't even know where to start but London was .. an adventure, I must say. Professor Ryan and the group will probably agree with me that we checked off almost all the things that we each wanted to experience in London.

We met with Charlie Forman on Thursday, which honestly changed my perspective of the Olympics. Charlie went through all the details of each component as to what needs to be part of the proposal during the Olympics. Although they received the bid seven years ago, it is a time constraint for all the people that is part of the London Olympics 2012 Committee. They have to incorporate every aspect, from the games, safety, athletic departments to the local issues with the citizens. There are just so much that it is mind-bottling that each Olympics, cities get it done! London 2012 is focusing on creating something that will sustain for a preferably revitalized new community to bring about better economic standards. Unlike the Beijing Olympics, which was centralized in the best parts of the country, London is trying to change. The change is so in-depth that it will take about 20-25 years in order to evaluate whether this project becomes a success for the long run. On Friday, we met with Paul Deighton,the CEO of the London Olympic Committee Olympic Games. Professor Burton helped us confirm this meeting which intrigued me to get into the Olympics. I never looked at the Olympic as such a huge project because we usually watch the games. Not many people look deep into all the background, support systems that needs to be put in place in order to make the Olympics happen.

Aside from the Olympics so far, how can we forget that it was Professor Ryan's birthday on Saturday. Based on a late Friday night, only part of the group was able to join Ryan to go to the Portobello's market. It was a beautiful neighborhood that had blocks of clothes, foods, fresh fruits, and many other antique shops. It was a great walk but we were exhausted from the days before, so we decided to go to the Westminister Abbey to learn some history of London. We saw Big Ben which was just ridiculously beautiful. At night, we went to Angus Steakhouse to celebrate Ryan's birthday. Of course, since we love him so much, we couldn't allow him to enjoy his birthday himself. We understand what happened for his birthday's last year but we wanted him to remember. I'm sure he enjoyed the unbelievably friendly waiter, the walks and talks throughout the night. Let's just say, he had a great night sleep.

Since it was the last night at London, we didn't want to put it to waste but we didn't want to just go to sleep. My roommate and I walked all around. We made a visit to college town, found some nice souvenir shops, and searched for a dessert place. We went to Leichester Square and dreams came true. You can imagine how beautiful it is. Let's just say, it's comparable to 42nd Street in New York City.

We are currently in Paris, France. The trip here was a hassle, I must say. We had to take the "tube" in London to take the Eurostar to get here. With all the amounts of luggage we had, there were some issues. No big deal, we got through it but hopefully our travel to Lausanne, Switzerland won't be as tiring.

Since we are here on Sunday to Wednesday morning, there really isn't much of a nightlife that we can do. The most exciting part is that we are able to go SHOPPING! We will visit the Louvre Museum, Eiffel Tower, possibly Church de Notre Dame, and many major sightseeing places. I came to France a few times already and I absolutely love the French culture. We went to a restaurant for late lunch/early dinner and had issues with the French menu already. It just makes me want to learn French and its culture even more. We'll see as the days goes by what the similarities and differences between London and France are.

Oh, I tried to keep it short. But how is that possible, when we are on a trip in Europe? Haha! I hope everyone is enjoying our slow updates.

Paris, France
Out&About.

Olivia.

WE ARE ALIVE!

We made it! We are in London!!!!!!!!!!

What can I say; the most memorable trip is on its way. From a day late start to a night living in London, I think I can get used to this type of lifestyle. These Europeans have such beautiful accents. I can't help but try and mock them everytime they speak to me. I'm sure we all have a tendancy to want to act like we have the same accent. Although London is a beautiful place but I'm not sure it is that safe. There were maybe 5+ near death situations because of the way these people drive here. It's crazy. Our motto: Look left, look right, look left, look right one more time.. and so on. Don't stop because you just never know!

Well, we are about to sit in on a lecture. It better be interesting because the most expensive part of this trip is the educational part. I will be an expert on the Olympics when the trip is over. [I hope it doesn't; in fact, I don't mind if British Airways goes on strike. We can stay in Europe for all I care. I'm sure we all do!]

Okay.

Out&About.
Stay tune for more real insights of the Olympic Odyssey expedition.

Olivia.

Packing for Olympic Odyssey Trip

AHHHHH!!! The anticipation is almost over because the trip is coming sooner than imagined. Finally, the school year is over and what better way is it to start off the summer with a Europe trip. That's definitely a bang! As I am still stranded in Syracuse University packing my life out of this apartment, I can't help but take 10 minute breaks in between to check out things to do in Europe. Our first stop will be London and it is known to be one of the most luxurious and extravagant places in the world. How can we forget that the upcoming Olympics will be in London, 2012? That gives it even more of a reason for us to visit. I am excited to learn about bid day and what happens behind the scene before London 2012 happens. The rest of the the way, I will post more when it happens.

For now, I just wanted to see if everyone else is as excited as I am about the trip. Educational, Entertaining, and Expensive! Just great!

Out and about, peace&love .
Olivia .