"Don't even think about getting in this line if your boarding pass isn't stamped," a shockingly loud warning rang out at the gate as I stood in line to board the flight to the Vancouver Olympics. Pre-boarding procedures required passengers show their passports, resulting in this stamp — a prerequisite for boarding. The tone and language transported me back to age 3 and scoldings from my mother. Only this was not my mother — this was the gate agent raising her voice at a crowd of grown, paying customers.

The tone was set for the day, or so I thought.

Fast-forward three hours, when I disembarked into a terminal filled with the sound of chirping birds and a babbling brook complete with birch bark canoe. A waterfall and totem poles greeted us before customs and immigration. I felt like I had deplaned at the spa. The scene was a cross between Ten Thousand Waves and a Canadian anthropology museum. What a tranquil welcome to the Winter Olympic Games.

Blue-jacketed Olympic volunteers directed us to the SkyTrain platform, where there were more volunteers. Over the next 10 days we would come to recognize the volunteers everywhere as we moved about the city and Whistler. Our train stop was the hopping youthful district of Yaletown. Despite the late hour, the city was electric. We made our way through the crowds and another volunteer approached, asking, "May I take the heavy one?" and reached for my mother's suitcase. I felt like a guest arriving at a friend's home. Talk about a good impression.

If there ever was a host nation worthy of being called "hosts" it's Canada. And if there could be a global award given for customer service, Canada would win the gold.

No matter your views or interest in the Olympics, the logistics of putting together an event of this scale are monumental. Host nations rely heavily on volunteers — 18,500 of them signed up with enthusiasm this year. They came from across Canada and beyond on their own dime to work an unpaid post for at least three weeks, taking unpaid leave from their jobs, often crashing on a friend's couch. There were no guaranteed perks, such as event tickets. The majority of posts were mundane 10-hour shifts standing on street corners, directing spectators to the right venues; grueling hours spent on their feet, often in damp, clammy weather. Despite the long hours, the volunteers could not have been more gracious, helpful and positive.

Their warm and engaging personalities were infectious, creating a domino effect on the crowds and the staff at local businesses. While walking down the street on a cold rainy evening, I was offered free hot chocolate by a neighborhood association. There was not a single shop or restaurant where I was not engaged in conversation by the staff, who inquired about where I was visiting from, what events I saw and how I was enjoying beautiful British Columbia.

Southwest Airlines CEO Gary C. Kelly was quoted in The New York Times last week regarding the friction between airlines and passengers: "You can decide whether to take care of people and treat customers like guests in your home." In Vancouver, I was made to feel like a houseguest by the cashier at the doughnut shop, the security guard searching my purse, the volunteer showing me my seat. Etiquette is about making others feel comfortable and Vancouver achieved this. If an entire nation can organize an event hosting hundreds of thousands of people with grace, warmth and enthusiasm, surely we can adopt that attitude in our homes, places of business and communities. We all play the role of host and guest in our daily interactions. Making eye contact, giving a warm smile and a welcoming hello does not require Olympic effort — just a conscious human spirit. And that's worth a medal.

Bizia Holmes Greene is founder of the Etiquette School of Santa Fe. Contact her at www.etiquettesantafe.com">www.etiquettesantafe.com or 988-2070.