Port Elizabeth and Cape Town

What a journey/adventure this one was. My friends Ana, Jess, Rafiq and I started this one off in an airplane to Port Elizabeth. The airport there is incredibly small even though it's an international airport. We had no idea where we were going to stay or how we were going to get around but Somebody Above loves us and we got a call from a friend of one of the volunteers who had a B&B room available and also came to pick us up. It was very windy but HOT there. We dropped our stuff off and went straight to the beach for some beachside dining and fun. The ocean wasn't as warm as Durban but still warmer than the Pacific and the Atlantic. We walked around for a bit and it turned out that they had a Boardwalk too!

We of course had to shop for a bit and then ended up sitting and watching the Cape Town quarterfinal at this nice little Italian restaurant where I had a glass of rose wine. It was so delicious! The next day consisted of going to the stadium which in and of itself was crazy because we ended up having this public bus, and not MINI bus but BIG bus, take us all the way through a township (like a mini tour) to the stadium. The PE stadium was great aaaaaaaand we went barefoot on the pitch and then was immediately escorted out. Haha.

From PE, we hopped on an InterCape bus that took 14 hours to get to Cape Town. Thank God it was an overnighter because I would've gotten so antsy and squirmy but I took some unisom and it was all good. 5 minutes away from the Cape Town Station our bus broke down and we switched buses. Again, thank you God that we weren't in the middle of no where. We ended up at the station only about 10 minutes behind schedule and got to my sister's place 15 minutes before the sunrise. After the beautiful sunrise we bade my sister goodbye and then promptly went back to sleep. For lunch we ate at this wonderful bakery and then went to the V&A Waterfront to catch the ferry to Robben Island.

Robben Island the second time around was quite different. It may be because of the different visitors but it was a little easier to take in but still just as, if not more moving. I think I was a little overwhelmed the first time. I did have the same guide which was great. That night I got a huge fever and that carried into the next day so I had to opt out of hiking Table Mountain a second time. Shame. I got better though and was able to get up to sneak into the Cape Town semi-final!

From Cape Town we had one last bus ride... this one took 18 hours. This bus was an actual sleepLINER so it was much more comfortable than the last. Good way to see the country!

I'm thinking the next post will probably be the day after the final.... if I have enough energy.

stadium adventures

I have been to half of the stadiums here in South Africa: both Johannesburg stadiums, Pretoria, Cape Town and Durban. Of course, I will work backwards just like I love to do.

The Durban stadium is very pretty as shown in the bottom right corner. That arch above the stadium is one that you can actually walk on! Unfortunately when we went, it was closed but I would've definitely gone up there. Even close-up the outside is pretty! It is literally across the street from the old rugby stadium which unfortunately looks very rundown in comparison.

The Cape Town stadium looms over the city but not in an imposing fashion (and yes I know that's what loom actually means but I like the way it sounds.) Seeing it from my sister's apartment is absolutely amazing. It's so bright, shiny and grand especially against the backdrop of the Atlantic Ocean. Even though my experience is a little marred by the fact that North Korea got slaughtered by Portugal 7-0, Greenpoint Stadium (name of the Cape Town stadium) still stood out to me as being the prettiest. I got a little behind the scenes look from my Twitter friend, TJ and I have to say, it's better than Soccer City.

The Pretoria stadium is not as pretty as the previous two and is weirdly constructed to me. There really isn't space to walk except right in front of the seats at the bottom right by the pitch. Just like the Ellis Park one. Not much to say about this one except for the fact that the game here was electric because we watched Bafana Bafana... lose. Haha sad. It was actually really sad and unfortunate because that was the controversial red card. OH and I rode in my first commercial Hummer (H3). Haha. My first commercial Hummer ride was in South Africa, not the States.

Ellis Park. Ugly. Haha. Sorry I had to say it. To me, poorly constructed, the outside isn't pleasant at all and it's completely awkward! There's really no room to walk all the way around the stadium except between the pitch and the seats. I know that all they did to prepare was to touch it up, but goodness me, it still looks pretty worn down. The only cool thing is that the volunteer centre is a gym like thing and is spacious and actually cutely decorated.

Last but certainly not least, my home away from home away from home.... Soccer City. It's GINORMOUS. It is the only stadium to host an International Broadcast Centre and a big Media Centre. Unfortunately it takes ~12 minutes to walk from the stadium to the volunteer centre and ~17 to the media centre. More than ever I want to wear a pedometer to see how much I walk everyday. It has over 80,000 seats including the media tribune and a spectacular VIP and VVIP (very VERY important people) viewing area. How do I know this? I of course have been inside it all. I actually watched the Mexico v. Argentina game inside the VIP area and ate their food and drank their wine. Delicious. The outside is modeled after the traditional gourd that holds African beer. I walked around the ESPN US studio and no one blinked. My accreditation pretty much allows me to go anywhere which is nice.

Yes. That's it. I may be going to the Port Elizabeth/Nelson Mandela Bay stadium this weekend. We'll see. If I do... another post! But I still have much more to update on besides the stadiums. I'll try and think of more fun stories besides just the stadiums.

Ouch 11 days gone...

Wow. 11 days gone and I have not updated. I will blame it on my lack of internet access. But I have to admit that part of it is the fact that I am seriously on the go all the time.

I have a couple more phrases that I'm bringing back to the states with me: "pleasure" when someone says thank you, waTer not "wadder" for H20 and SERIO?! when I don't believe something... that one is from Brasil.

So what has happened in the last 11 days? Well I just got back from Cape Town and Durban which were both absolutely specatcular.












Those are only 3 of the the things that I saw and experienced in Cape Town. My sister and I hiked up Table Mountain and the first picture is about 1/3 of the way up. Miraculously the next day my legs felt okay! During the hike I felt like collapsing... mmm let's round up to 3 times? But overall it was an experience never to forget. I can't really see how a person could literally fall off the mountain but there definitely were times where I could see myself falling and smacking my face into the wonderful rocks.

The second picture is my first meal in Cape Town with my sister and her her 2 friends. Yes. It is is all meat. Lamb, pork, beef and sausage. Do you see any plates? No? Because there weren't any. Just wonderful servilletes (napkins for you American folk, yet another word I may start using just so I can feel superior.. haha). Beer, meat, good company and football (*coughsoccercough*). Can life get any better? And that was just a smidgen of the deliciousness that my sister introduced me to. We went to a milkshake bar and of course on the flipside we went to one of the highest ranked high tea places in the world. And now that I've had that, I never want to go back. I want all those cakes, breads and teas available to me at all times. Le sigh.

Who can go to Cape Town without seeing Robben Island. The last photo is one that I'm sure almost everyone who goes to Robben Island has: Nelson Mandela's cell. It was such an interesting experience, especially the part of the tour where the guide was one of the former prisoners. It was difficult to soak in because we were being rushed but just to walk where Mandela walked and sit where he sat was incredible.

Durban was an absolute blast. Me and 12 other international volunteers bussed to Durban and back, but in between I had deliciousness called bunny chow, thin waffle with ice cream and fish and chips (for the first time in my life). Although the fish and chips burned my fingers they were AWESOME! The Durban Fan Fest was really fun too.

I will try to update more often but I will also probably update again tomorrow to talk about the adventures to the different stadiums.. :) Until next post!

test and one week update!

What a week it has been. Since the first match things have died down... but only a little. Oh I must remind all of you (and by all I mean the 2 that read this thing) that I usually only work at the Soccer City venue which means you won't actually see me on TV unless they are at Johannesburg Soccer City. So those of you who were looking for me in Rustenburg or Durban or Cape Town... I am definitely NOT there.

That being said, now that FIFA headquarters knows that I speak both Korean and English they are talking about deploying me to different stadiums in the area when those matches with those language populations are present. It's been weird having to think in 3 languages again. Whenever I want to speak in Korean, Spanish comes out and vice versa. It gets even harder because the locals are teaching me some of the 11 languages here and I swear everyday they try to teach me something new and my little tiny brain canNOT handle it. I still can only say "Good morning, thank you" in Zutu. Not even Zulu! Drives me insane. I'm learning the different clicks though and goodness gracious it's hard. Speaking of Korean, I was lent to Ellis Park yesterday for the Korea DPR v Brazil game and sat with the Koreans in the VIP section. SUCH A GOOD GAME! I'm so proud that they scored one goal AND they team waved at us as they went back to their locker rooms!

Tomorrow is the Korea Republic v Argentina game and I know I will lose my voice. It should be fun though. I am definitely working at that one and will try to make it pitch-side so look for me tomorrow!

One last thing... I'm going to Cape Town this weekend and hopefully it'll prove to be completely awesome. I get to see my sister and we are going to the North Korea v. Portugal game and it should be amazing!

First match come and gone

Yes that's me being a dork before the stadium became FLOODED with people. Over 84,000 people came to the match yesterday. I'm so happy that the match came to a draw... mostly because if South Africa won, I would've heard vuvuzelas all night long and wouldn't have been able to sleep. BUT if Mexico won.... my friends would've have made me party with them after pulling a double shift from 7am til 11pm.

I have also finally settled in a flat with my new friend Gabriela from Brazil. She's definitely a party girl but we talk about a lot of stuff too. She stood 5 feet away from Kaka!!!! yeah. she's definitely my "in" to all things Brazilian.

well. until next time :)

T-minus 3 days

What a crazy 6 days it has been. I finally got a small glimpse of the South African health system. Mainly only in the ER but it was worth it. For multiple reasons. Well of course I felt bad for Gabriela but it was really interesting to see the "process" of medicine here at the World Cup. Thank God we were the first to go through it because if it was anyone else, they'd be UPSET.

Which brings me to my constant surprise: Americans aren't as pushy and impatient as other countrymen. Maybe it's because there aren't as many of us here but I am seriously constantly surprised at how much some other countries are impatient, pushy and close minded. Maybe it's just my point of view but yeah. It's nuts.

I'm making more and more "contacts" every day. I've been invited to Brazil, Spain and back to South Africa so far. I need to brush up on my Spanish and Korean. I'm slowly learning Zulu and Portuguese.

As it is T-minus 3 days the Accreditation Centre gets crazier and crazier. More and more countries are showing face and security is getting tighter. Gone are my days of galavanting around the stadium for no particular reason. HOWEVER, because I am language support I am now definitely working all match days INSIDE the stadium. Except of course the day that I am watching the first round of 16 match.

My blogs are boring yeah? I'll try and post more pictures since they "speak 1000 words."

The day that changed my soccer life

ja. that's me and rafiq not touching the pitch but rather touching the "do not touch" sign. That's AFTER I touched the pitch. Haha. We are all international volunteers. Rafiq is from Toronto but is really like THE international man. He was just in Tajikistan... and basically has been everywhere.

I worked in Accreditation today and spoke Korean with SBS reporters and staff and Spanish with Mexicans and South Americans, saw many Lebanese and gawked at a LOT of hot guys. What can I say? This is who I am.

I love being the only American in Language Support. People balk all the time and say, "Whaaa? You are American! What can you speak besides English?" I love telling my story over and over again. :)