While I was waiting for the fireworks over the stadium, I was in the staging area for all the volunteers that were in costume. Quite a spectacle when you see these costumes up close.

I was hanging out with some of the young military and as the girls dressed up in their punk outfits went by they wanted photos with the guys. I was happy to assist since the guys had been helpful to me.

Also going on in this area they were getting the athletes in place for the parade in.  In fact, I was within talking distance. They started staging about 8pm and as you know the last team entered the stadium around mid-night. There were lots of opportunities to shoot a few photos. Some of them were standing so long they decided to relax while they waited. The atmosphere was festive and it seemed like all of them were having a great time.

Below is a gallery of some of the many folks that were hamming it up for me. Click on the image to get a large view

[wzslider lightbox=”true”]