A snowball in the face is surely the perfect beginning to a lasting friendship.” Markus Zusak, The Book Thief

Snow glorious snow. The snow gods were on our side today and we experienced snow in all its white gold glory – and we loved it. We fell in it, threw it, rubbed people’s faces with it, landed in it and threw it some more. Loved it.

After a glorious night’s sleep in what may just be the best bed’s ever in the world (or was that just because we were all so tired) we all arose feeling fresh and bubbly (well, bubbly might be a bit of a stretch).  Everyone awoke on time and headed down to breakfast (special hats off to AJ who braved the cold in his football shorts). From there, it was a matter of putting on as many layers as humanly possible and our big jackets (which were fantastic) prior to heading to Grouse Mountain for the day.

Rising 1250 metres above Vancouver and just a 5 minute drive from our accommodation, Grouse Mountain is Vancouver’s most popular attraction – and we can see why.

We stopped at the bottom of the mountain for an obligatory team photo, before piling into the Grouse Mountain Skyride which is an 850 metre ascent to the peak of Vancouver. Sometimes mistaken for a gondola, which has cabins suspended from a continuously circulating cable, the Skyride is in fact an aerial tram, which remains fixed on the cable. It is the largest aerial tramway system in North America. Over the ascent the Skyride travels up 850m/2, 800ft from the base to the top of the mountain.

The excitement started building as soon as our Skyride driver mentioned there was snow falling on the mountain – pick the 33 Aussies who audibly gasped with excitement as soon as he uttered those words. We saw the snow falling as we made our way up to the top, and once we hopped out of the Skyride there was many a photo taken before we headed into the land of snow.

It was hard for our intrepid travellers to remain still as Bucks tried to pass out some instructions. After much feet twitching and the gradual patter of random snow balls falling, the kids were let loose. Twenty seven blue clad Aussies all had the same idea, make a snow ball and throw it, and that was pretty much how it went for the next 5 hours. In amidst dodging snowballs (which wasn’t always successful) the highlight was watching our little poppets try and stay on their feet – special mention to Emily and Jaidyn who tied for the most falls, not terribly graceful either.

We tried to move out of the public eye (in the fear of them getting hit by stray snowballs) so we moved to the slide zone. Now that was entertaining. Picture if you will, 27 Titans sliding in any manner (forwards, backwards, sidewards, even rolling) down the hill. And in amongst all this, we of course, still had more snowballs, which by this stage had increased in ferocity, speed and size. They were like bullets – and they couldn’t get enough.

At 12.30pm we called a truce for lunch, but before we hit the chalet, we enjoyed the photo opportunity of a lifetime with the man in the big red suit. That’s right, Santa was visiting from the North Pole (and brought his own North Pole sign) so we took the opportunity for a group photo. Thankfully Santa failed to mention who was on his naughty and nice list so presents should still be on the cards for our Titans clan (phew). From there we headed for lunch in the chalet, before coming down for a wave to the webcam to anyone in Australia who was watching. We had an hour left before we left the mountain so what else would we do but more sliding and snow ball fights. At the end of the full assault attack we left the mountain a little wet and bedraggled after what had been a really great day. The kids loved it (and so did the adults).

We had a half hour rest before donning the big coats again and heading down the street for tea, we even visited our first supermarket which was an experience in itself. The kids had some time to kick back and rest after what had been a fantastic and memorable day (and injury free 😊).

Tomorrow we visit Stanley Park and see the sights of Vancouver before we head to Kitsilano High School for our first game and homestay.

Fun Fact:

• Grouse Mountain was named by the first recorded hikers to reach the summit in October 1894. In those days, climbing Grouse Mountain was a three or four day epic journey – there was no bridge across Burrard Inlet and no road to the base. The hardy group of hikers slogged through snow, scrambled over rock and up through the dense forest. Along the way, they hunted a Blue Grouse and honoured the plentiful game bird by calling the Peak “Grouse Mountain”.

The Flag!

The lucky winner of the flag will come as no surprise, he was a definite contender from the get go, a certainty from the start, so without any further ado, congratulations Toby de Wit. Toby earned the honour of carrying the flag all day after a bit of, let’s call it, misplacing. On Saturday night, Toby’s room mate left him in charge of the room key. No problems there….yet. On what was a leisurely walk for most of us to Denny’s, there were a few energetic lads who thought it would be a good idea to give a bit of a gentle nudge to each other as they walked past hedges. Not a huge problem…yet. Unfortunately, Toby was one of the lads who was given a gentle nudge into the shrubbery and landed in it. All good, he hopped himself up, brushed himself off, and continued on his way. We enjoyed a good dinner and then our posse headed back. After our team meeting and a good night was bid to all, we went to our rooms. Well most of us….now we have a problem. It seems after numerous patting down, checking pockets and a slight amount of panic, it was worked out that Toby’s key had been misplaced, and was no doubt stuck in the bush. Too scared to tell Bucks, the decision was made to go for discreetness, so the lads went and arranged a replacement key. Points for initiative, but maybe next time don’t tell those around you, their art of discretion is not as good as yours 😊

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