Aggie Kruse & Rebecca Lee
Reporters

Most students will be turning on the television to watch the Winter Olympics, but two freshman are celebrating the Games first-hand in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Chiara Figari and Mary Katherine Michiels-Kibler are traveling to Canada with their families.

“I am excited to experience it, to be in the action, right there as it’s happening,” said Figari. “I’ll remember it for a long time.”

Both students are attending the Olympics for the first time.

“We’re going to the Opening Ceremony,” said Michiels-Kibler. “It’s my favorite part. I find it interesting to see how people from all over the world can get together in one place for the same purpose and continue the traditions.”

Tickets for just the Opening Ceremony range from $175-1100.

“We don’t quite have tickets,” said Figari. “It’s still up in the air, but my sister goes to University of British Columbia so she gets free tickets.”

Tickets can be purchased onsite at a fan-to-fan marketplace where individuals can legitimately buy and sell their tickets in an auction setting.

“I grew up with skiing,” said Michiels-Kibler, who spent winters in Jackson Hole, Wyo. “I love to watch professional skiers speed down the mountains and see how hard they’ve trained for this moment.”

NBC will broadcast the Games continuously starting at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 12 running through the Closing Ceremony at 10:30 p.m. 17 days later.