Bloggin' from SA WC '10

Some random closing thoughts

2010-06-28T08:09:00.000-07:00

I hope you have enjoyed reading this. I have enjoyed writing it and it will enhance my memory of a fantastic trip in the years to come. I have, of course, to thank my wife and kids for letting me go, and to John’s family similarly. You are all special people. I also have to thank John for putting up with me although in truth we get on very well and have gone through the whole World Cup experience together for the third time without a cross word ever having been spoken (and on the face of it without even having cross thoughts that remained unspoken).

The big issue before travel was security and I have deliberately not commented on this anywhere on this blog, until now! I didn’t want to tempt fate. I am now in the safety of an airplane so I can honestly say that at no time did we feel unsafe or threatened. I did have a bit of a bizarre incident at a cashpoint on the last morning and in the end I walked away as I was being confused by someone that was purporting to help me. I think he was genuine and just a poor communicator – at least I hope that is the case. Apart from that there were no issues while we were in SA. We were sensible, we locked the doors in the car, we didn’t stop at traffic lights in some areas and we took care of where we where and what was around us. In reality there didn’t seem to be a need to, the bottom line is that it felt safe. HOWEVER, on arrival home I found that my suitcase had been opened and ‘gone through’, I assume at Johannesburg Airport although I have no proof. The only things that were taken (I think) are two CDs, regrettably including the charity CD from SMYLE that I had bought on the last morning. This incident is a huge disappointment to me as I wanted to be able to report that we hadn’t been victims of crime but at the last minute that turns out not to have been the case.

I cannot determine why there has been such low crime during the event but I believe credit must be given to the South African authorities for their planning and execution of everything and to the South African people for going along with it and recognising the potential benefits. Yesterday on the radio an SA government minister thanked the South African people for their help and behaviour to date and said that there had not been a single security incident involving any visitor to the World Cup. Equally I believe the western press, especially the UK press, have scaremongered their way to the tournament through hyped up stories which have deterred many from travelling. Why did they ever think that football supporters would visit SA like lambs to the slaughter or that the SA authorities would stand quietly by and let that happen at a time when they were centre stage in the whole world? South Africa has a high crime rate and the problem is not solved forever, but so does Africa and so do many other cities in the world.

Although I don’t think they have got everything right I think Fifa’s decision to have the World Cup in South Africa was brave and has largely been vindicated. I think they have made mistakes in the ticketing policies and some other things but overall the tournament will be judged a success. The Fan Fests were also very different to in Germany but were a success for the local people so that counts for a lot. The biggest success is that it has encouraged people from all over the world to visit the country, not perhaps in the numbers first envisaged, but nonetheless in large numbers. They will leave educated and enriched in things that were previously hard to understand or learn about, and by their overall experience – just like us, and as I have described in this blog. And if football can bring the world together that is a good thing. South Africa showed itself to be ready and the training, organisation and service standards achieved were truly impressive – that will be part of the long term legacy. There is also the hope, from white and black alike, that the country will move through its current situation and achieve great things in the future. I hope so. 20 years ago it was a pariah state and now the world has knocked at the door and been welcomed with open arms.

We have been enriched culturally by this experience and have enjoyed every minute of every day. We loved the football, some games more than others, and most of the time the organisation hung together quite well. We met some great people, not just Ilse and Johnny and their team, Harrianne and Jonathan and their family and the others that I have mentioned specifically, but probably over a hundred people that we spoke with for a few minutes or longer. These were from SA, from competing countries like the USA, Slovakia and of course Japan, and non-qualifiers like Turkey, Canada, and Scotland.

There have been so many positives to this experience and almost no negatives. The biggest negative was the performance of the England team, but actually, as I have said, of many big European teams. England flattered to deceive again and I think it is true that the only countries that we beat in qualifying and the World Cup proper were new European states that didn’t exist independently until just over 20 years ago. It is a shame, and I am sure there will be a period of national heart-searching but we weren’t good enough and if you can’t beat Algeria then we are in more trouble than we might realise. The world order of football is changing and Asia and Africa will further develop. This tournament, I firmly believe, will be won by a South American country, probably Brazil or Argentina, and probably three countries from that continent (the above plus Uruguay) will make it to the semi-finals along with either Spain or Portugal. Given that South America is hosting the next competition there could be a while in the wilderness for England.

Finally, I should break the news to our wives that yes, we have already started contemplating our trip to Brazil for the 2014 competition.

Footnote. See above note on the stolen CDs. After my return I contacted SMYLe and Michael Rea was extremely helpful and offered to replace the missing CD - in fact he posted me both CDs which are great. Definitely one of the good guys and this is a lovely organisation with great objectives - if you are ever in Soweto or Johannesburg and have the opportunity to hear these kids play, or to donate to their work, (preferably both!) then please do so! All future strength to SMYLe!

Day 9 – Our last day in SA

2010-06-28T05:13:00.000-07:00

We rose in a leisurely fashion and I was down for breakfast a little before John. There were two guys there, an American and a New Zealander, not travelling together and I joined in conversation with them. The American had just arrived the previous night and the New Zealander had been travelling around for almost three weeks and had a couple of days left. We had a good chat – more nice people at the guest house. There was also another great example of the great service that we had enjoyed, there was yoghurt and fruit for a start today and Ilse had remembered that I didn’t eat Yoghurt from the last time she served this so she just made me a fruit cocktail – just great service! Another example was that Jana, Johnny and Ilse’s daughter was at the guest house this morning (we first met her last week) and she gave advice to the American, who was only in town for the day, and then going by train to Cape Town in the afternoon. She asked where we were going and we said just to the local shopping centre up the road. A few minutes later she came back in and said that about 15 minutes away there was another centre called Rosebank and it also had a craft market and other attractions and she thought it would be better for us. She was right – just so helpful and proactive on our behalf. The above photo shows Ilse, Johnny and some of their team, with us.

We packed and left our bags at the guest house and went to Rosebank. As we got there we heard this great music and turned the corner to see the Soweto Marimba Youth League in full flow. A great bunch of young, talented people and we stood and watched them for a while. I bought one of their CDs which I look forward to. A great group which is largely self-managed – we spoke to a white volunteer that works with them and he explained the set up – and I was happy to make the donation and I’m sure the CD will be great as well. If you have time then have a look at their website, www.smyle.co.za.

We went to the craft market, had the usual banter with sellers and some negotiation for a few things that we bought. It was a great place and after w came out of the craft market area we listened for a while to a quintet of harmony singers (like Ladysmith Black Mambazo) who were excellent. We walked through the main shopping centre, which was impressive, and then got back to the car and drove to the guest house to say our goodbyes and pick up our bags. Hugs and kisses with all the team and we left – but with much fondness in our hearts and admiration for the great work that Ilse, Johnny and their team do for their guests. It was to be recommended and I hope to go back one day.

The journey to the airport was uneventful and we were deliberately early as we wanted to see the England v Gemany game on the TV. The check-in wasn’t yet open for the flight and so we found a table in a restaurant aptly called Cappello and enjoyed some food and drink while watching the game. England were thoroughly outplayed by a stronger side although the referee clearly got a decision wrong where a Lampard shot had crossed the line off the crossbar. It will start the debate on technology use again, and rightly so, it cannot be right that games swing on factual points like this when technology exists so readily for games at the top level. Would it have changed things, who knows, but I doubt it. The truth is that England have been poor all tournament and qualified second in a poor group (USA are out as well so both teams from that group have been eliminated). If they would have done better in the group they would have avoided Germany at this stage. Oh the eternal cry of the football fan...........what if? In the end we were pleased that we didn’t have to watch it live although had they qualified top we would have seen then against Ghana, not Germany, and that might have been interesting. The omens where not good in any case – I saw Mick Jagger filmed in the crowd at half time. In the semi-final of Euro ’96, when England lost on penalties to Germany, he was sitting four rows in front of me. Mick, please stay away next time England play Germany.

And so to the plane for the journey home. We coincided our departure with that of England and our Virgin flight will be only slightly before that of the England team with the same airline in the next couple of days. We had a much better time than them!

Day 8 – Game Drive and Ghana v USA

2010-06-28T04:19:00.000-07:00

We departed from the guest house at 6.30am and Ilse very kind left us out some packed breakfasts with each of our names on and a kiss each for the journey. John drove to Sun City where we were to pick up our Game Drive and we got there quite early at around 8.30am. We ate breakfast in the car park – but note the timings as they will be important later.

We found out where the game drive started from and went for a wander round the shops, mainly to get some drinks for while we were out as we expected it to be warm and dusty. At 9.45am we met our guide/driver Thomas by his vehicle which was a bus with around 20 seats, no windows and a canvas roof and quite high up. Perfect for viewing. We were first and took advice on where to sit, not over the wheels as its very bumpy and not at the back as the dust blows back in. We sat at the front, one behind the other on the outside. There was a bit of messing about finding and picking up passengers but in the end the vehicle was full except for the seats next to John and I. Good plan, as we could move around easily to see animals on both sides of the vehicle.

The game drive was in the Pilanesberg Game Reserve which is close to Sun City and is about half the size of Belgium we were told (so not very big then – sorry Belgians!). It is stocked with around 7,000 animals having been re-stocked about 30 years ago. The animals are natural to the area but the previous inhabitants were killed by farmers working the land. Now it is protected, natural and beautiful. I have to say our trip-mates were generally appreciative of the tour and the whole environment – they were a mixture of Slovakians, Americans and other nationalities – but there were two Canadian guys who were idiots. Making stupid comments all the time and generally unappreciative and infantile. Unfortunately they were right behind us but it didn’t spoil things, just gave us more to talk about afterwards. Thomas was well informed and collaborative, encouraging people to call out when they saw any animals and making sure that everyone had all the pictures they wanted before we moved on. Any time we saw an animal he would talk about the species while we were photographing etc. The other good thing was that all the guides and vehicles were connected by radio so that they let each other known which animals were in which locations. Therefore we saw loads of animals in their natural habitat and it was fantastic – Zebras, Elephants, Rhino, Giraffes, Springbok etc etc – my camera worked well and I was pleased with the results, and John’s was even better. The tour lasted around 3 hours from departure to return and was tremendous. It was something we both had wanted to do and was a real highlight of the trip. It is possible to self-drive around Pilanesberg but we thought the guided tour would be better and it was. We would have been too low in our car, one of us would have had to drive, and we wouldn’t have found all the animals. In addition, Thomas had a rifle, just in case – but he had never used it although the Canadian idiots questioned him persistently about what he had killed and whether he had fired it in the park etc. Infants!

He dropped us back at Sun City and we enjoyed an excellent lunch in their fish restaurant, they really did well this time! Then we decided to go back to the entry gate to Pilanesberg where we had noticed than a number of local people were selling their wares, artwork, craft etc. Second mini-crisis in two days! When we got back to the car we found that it had a flat battery – note the earlier timings – when we left Jo’burg it was dark and so we had the lights on but when we arrived at Sun City it was bright sunshine and we didn’t notice they were still on. We found one of the security men at Sun City who we were told could help, but instead of jump leads and a pick up truck his solution was to push the car. Fortunately we were at the top of a slight slope and it built up momentum and started easily. When we got the exit gate and did the usual “switch off your engine” routine, John assertively explained that it wasn’t going to happen, and why!

We soon reached the craft area and wandered round, enjoying the usual banter and chat with the sellers. I enjoyed a chat with a seller wearing an Arsenal shirt and his mates were laughing, apparently they supported Man. U. The premier league is popular everywhere, and we were in the African bush basically. I bought a couple of paintings from a local seller who told me that she painted them with her husband. We had a bit of a negotiation but not too hard, and agreed a price of about £20 for the two, I could see that she was so happy to have made the sale that she was almost in tears. I was speaking with her and another nearby seller and they explained that they have a hand to mouth existence and they can always top up their income by collecting and selling firewood. Much of the time they survive on one meal per day. Makes you think! I have no idea where the paintings are going to go but I quite liked them and felt I had done my good deed for the day.

We went back to Sun City for a while, experienced the wobbly bridge earthquake (pretty poor really), watched some of the South Korea v Uruguay game which saw the latter become the first team to the quarter finals and they won’t be the last South Americans to get there. The Koreans were the more creative team though. We took the decrepit Sky Train back to the car park and were pleased to leave Sun City. They never managed to show me The Lost City, today they said it was out of bounds to non-residents due to Fifa officials in residence!

We had a plan as to what to do when we got to the chaos of Rustenberg but it failed miserably. There is a dual carriageway from Sun City to the stadium. They had closed off one lane for VIP access – all the corporate hospitality, teams etc were at Sun City and we saw them zooming down the carriageway while we sat gridlocked. We sat patiently while others used the central reservation and even the opposite carriageway to try and move forward. In the end we changed plan and decided to opt again for the first car park we came to, the aptly named and previously commented on Phokeng North. But this time we were prepared and firstly I ignored the guy trying to direct me to the back of the car park and parked near the exit. We easily got to the stadium, that bit worked!

We quickly realised that actually as well as a lot of Americans and some Ghana supporters, there were a lot of English supporters, mainly as disaffected and neutral as we were. There were a lot of English flags around the stadium but perhaps most worrying, a lot of empty seats. Some areas were blocked off but when they announced the attendance it was 10,000 below the official stadium capacity. One of the issues is that they have put the ticket prices up at this stage and there are some very under-supported and ordinary teams left in the competition. Our ticket was $200 whereas the same was $160 in the group stages, and the South African tickets are also more expensive. So to watch USA, according to Fifa the international country to which they had sold the most tickets, and Ghana, Africa’s last hope and the favoured team of many South Africans, the stadium was far less than full. At half time they announced that tickets were for sale for the Japan v Paraguay match on Tuesday, and I’m sure that isn’t the only one. There is an issue here with the ticket prices and levels of support.

The USA fans were boisterous, not only about their team but also about the fact that they were there as group winners instead of England. Well they’re not there any more! The game was an interesting one with the Ghana team being by far the more creative while the Americans were the more determined and focused. Too often Ghana wasted chances and lost their heads in front of goal. They scored first but conceded a penalty and the match went into extra time. In the first period of extra time Ghana scored the decisive goal and in the second period they started a lot of play acting, feigned injuries etc which disrupted the game. Against our principles but to gain time and avoid the chaos and the Mexicans’ 5.5 hour drive, we left 10 minutes early and we weren’t the only ones. The area’s transport chaos was becoming well known. We quickly got a bus to the car park, heard the end of the match commentary in the bus, and then exited the car park quickly. We were away on clear roads and I drove back to the guest house in around 2 hours, getting back at 1am.

Day 7 – Pretoria and Spain v Chile

2010-06-26T23:00:00.000-07:00

The Mexicans depart today which meant long farewells and we will miss them (picture with the Mexicans and Ilse and Johnny, Ilse to my left and Johnny with the grey beard).

They even invited us to join their table for breakfast – we are now honorary Mexicans! So we sat on the table of 9, not our usual 2 alongside, but most of the youngsters were up until after 4am and never made it down to breakfast. They apparently had some friends round for a ‘party’ on the last night but were told to keep the noise down so as not to disturb us. We never heard a thing! They now head off to Cape Town and then to safari in Kenya and Tanzania. We will miss them and we certainly helped each other in terms of directions and sharing things we learned and their presence, as well as that of Ilse, Johnny and their team, has made the guest house experience something truly memorable about this trip. Far better in this situation than the anonymity of a large hotel. The initial part of the journey is on a steam train from Pretoria to Cape Town, a journey which takes 48 hours and stops at Kimberley. They will have a great time I’m sure and we look forward to emailing with them about it later – and maybe I will even see them when they come through London for a few hours in mid-July, I’ve offered to be their tour guide if my diary allows.

Pretoria, currently being renamed Tshwane which means ‘we are the same’, is also our destination for this day. As we were to find, it is an attractive city with many buildings in late 19th/early 20th century colonial style dating to the original British and Dutch colonisers. It is also famous for its trees, many of the streets are lined with Jacaranda trees, and for Church Street, one of the longest city streets in Africa. We started there, mainly lined with shops and market stalls as well as statues and colonial buildings, today it also had the addition of some modern footballer statues, which we later found lit up at night, and quite a crowd of Chilean and Spanish football supporters singing and dancing in a central square. Not much to buy but we did go into a few shops and spoke to some of street traders in search of World Cup memorabilia, the Fifa shops were so disappointing.

We then drove to the Union Buildings, Pretoria’s most famous buildings set on a hill above the city. They are the seat of government dating from the time in the early 20th century when Pretoria became the capital of a united South Africa. You may have seen them in the film Invictus. A photo opportunity of the buildings and their attractive landscaped gardens but no entry as this is really where the country is being governed from. Then we drove to the Voortrekker monument, high on a hill the south of the city. This commemorates The Great Trek when Dutch settlers first loaded their wagons and moved to explore and settle in the interior of the country. 15,000 set out on various different routes and after wars, famine and disease they founded the great cities of interior South Africa. There were various friezes, tapestries and statues depicting and celebrating various events of The Great Trek and you could also go to roof level (about 7-8 storeys up) and look out over the city although the dust and light made views hazy. John was brave and went up further, up a short flight of steps to view down through the roof into the main chamber – not for me that one!

And so on to the Fan Fest. This was a special one as it took place in the famous Centurion cricket ground and fans trampled over the outfield although the square was well protected. A bit of a mini-crisis on the way thought, the satnav stopped working and the only map we had wasn’t clear enough. We drove in the approximate direction, John was driving, and I knew that we needed a pin to reach the reset button and we didn’t have one. Talking through various option John mentioned the word staple, and eureka, I remembered the World Cup newspaper supplement in the bag at my feet and took out the staple from the centre page – that fixed it! We do work well together! We had wanted to watch the Brazil v Portugal match on the big screen but for various reasons, not least that it wasn’t much of a game, we didn’t watch it with particular concentration. We took pictures of the ground, John went and successfully negotiated with Coca Cola for some free Vuvezelas (they give them out after the game normally but there is always a huge queue), and then we went to get something to eat. Pizza today to celebrate the Italian’s demise yesterday. There was one menu item that we didn’t understand (see picture left, Daniel J. if you liked the previous picture ‘joke’ then you’ll love this one!). So we took our pizza over to the main stand to sit and eat and watch the game. On the way I saw a new use for a Vuvuzela – a quieter one this time – the goalposts in an impromptu football game.

So we sat and eat our pizza watching the game and chatting. After we finished eating I put my pizza box down and knocked over my Vuvuzela which fell into the row in front so I climbed over the seats to get it and then back again. There were two young African girls (in their 20s I guess) sitting in that row and one turned to me with a glint in her eye and a charming smile and said “if you had offered me some of your pizza then I would have picked it up for you”. So we had a bit of banter and then a really interesting and enjoyable conversation. I gave them the blog address so they may be reading this in which case, yes I was telling the truth about the blog, and hi there! They were both University graduates, one now working for a pharmaceutical company and the other for an electricity utility. They were really excited that we were there as they believed the English press reporting had put many people off coming to SA for the World Cup. We talked about security and crime, inter-tribal relations between the different black tribes in SA, different languages spoken as there are 11 official languages in SA, relationships and even inter-marriage between white and black people, travel overseas and a variety of topics. They allowed us to take their photograph (see left) and we went our different ways. They will no doubt do well with the opportunities that the new SA will bring as it develops, and we were much educated by their intellect, enthusiasm, willingness to share their thoughts, and verbal expressiveness. Do well young ladies!

Then we went to the match. An easy drive to the Loftus Versfeld stadium and very few roadblocks and minimal police presence compared to Jo’burg or Rustenberg. We drove to a park and walk area and with no ticket checks or pre-booking we parked easily and, importantly, near the exit. It was about a mile to the ground and the colourful red, white and blue of Chile mingled with the Red and Yellow of Spain, united in a common language. The ground is an older stadium obviously used by the eponymous football club. We went to the fan shops, becoming increasingly desperate knowing the eager expectations of the kids back home, and then into the ground. On the way I did see one Spaniard dressed as a matador ‘play bull fighting’ with his mate, and in general in was a vibrant latin atmosphere. On entry to the stadium who should be adjacent to our seats again, yes, the men from the Japanese FA (who John now thinks are not from the Japanese FA). We were excited to see each other and this time we even had a photo taken together! The seats were probably our worst so far, near the goal-line at one end but the stadium was an older one and poorly designed so we had to keep leaning forward or standing up to be able to see and we were roughly under the front of the stand above. This meant that every time the people above made noise by banging the advertising boards on the front of the stand we got showered with rust and dirt. Lovely!

The game was effectively ended by a second Spanish goal and concurrently the sending off of a Chilean player. Although Chile did score early in the second half the game effectively ended on the hour mark when the game took on a monotonous rhythm, it had been good til then. Chile were fortunate that Switzerland only drew with Honduras and for the third time in four games we had seen the two qualifiers in the group play each other, Italy being the only exception and no-one would have bet on that! So although not the teams I predicted yesterday, it was indeed a European and South American team that progressed and not the two European teams. A quick exit from the car park and a good journey (about an hour) back to the guest house and we need some sleep as we have an early start and long day tomorrow.

Day 6 – Museum of Apartheid, Italy v Slovakia and dinner with friends

2010-06-24T16:28:00.000-07:00

For various reasons it took a while to leave the guest house this morning, producing this blog being one of them, so we were a bit later that we wanted to be when we arrived at the Museum of Apartheid. It did leave us short of time and we only spent about two hours there whereas we really needed 3-4 hours. In addition, in my view it was overcrowded and that detracted from my experience. It is a ‘must do’ in Johannesburg though and presents a difficult and emotive subject in an easy to understand way. It traces the history of the different nationalities and races in South Africa right through to the reasons for Apartheid and its rise, effects and ultimate downfall. The experience starts at the gates – your ticket states whether you are White or non-White and that determines which gate you enter by and the initial exhibits that you see. It is a powerful reminder that in the days of Apartheid, the colour of your skin determined the experience that you would have on the journey through your life – there was no escape through hard work, good fortune or any other way out. After a while the routes join together and the powerful exhibits begin. There is too much to explain now but I’m sure there is a website for the museum and obviously plenty of information on the subject on the internet. There was also a special exhibit about Nelson Mandela which was very interesting too, but the whole place is a reminder of some of the worst aspects of the things that humans can do to one another. Having stood for a minute in a solitary confinement cell I can assure you that any longer would have been intolerable.

When we were at Sun City I described a bizarre incident on the way from the car park when I had to remove my keys from the ignition etc. Well it happened again today and I just didn’t get it. Now I have sought and received an explanation from Harrianne and Jonathan, it’s to check that you haven’t hotwired the car and stolen it from the car park. So, do I look like a car thief now?

And so to today’s live match, Italy v Slovakia. It was the least colourful crowd scene and the greatest match. The Italians were there and in their sombre blue and the Slovakians didn’t seem to be there at all, but they soon became apparent. Today we were Slovakians and our support was well rewarded by a great result and a tremendous match. Did I mention that we loved this game! If you didn’t see it, be in no doubt the best team won! The Slovakian fans (including us) and players went crazy at the end as the World Champions were eliminated. Slovakian fans seemed to come from everywhere and the celebrations were tremendous. I was photographing them and managed to lose John but me managed to meet up by text message. It also made us late back to the car park which was a bigger issue.

By the way, football earplugs seem to have acquired a brand name, on the way to the match tonight one of the ‘salesmen’ on the way to the ground tried to sell me ‘Shushuzelas’. I looked at what he was selling and they were earplugs – buy the trade name now, they might be the next big thing (if you have big ears!).

We were due out for dinner tonight and the state of the car park when we got back was unbelievable. One exit gate wide enough for a single car, about 14 lanes of traffic coming from every direction and a couple of thousand cars starting their engine and pulling into lines. We sat for a while looking, thinking and being conscious that time was getting on and in an hour we had to be at dinner. Instead, gridlock, dust and mayhem! We dodged around, followed any car that moved in the right direction, pushed our way in (John said I was driving assertively – that’s one word for it!) and after an amazingly short time ended up in a position to get out. We could then see that the police were letting the cars go in rotation, 10 from each line (14 lines, merging into 7) so after about another 15 minutes we escaped. The roads were remarkably clear, everyone was probably stuck in the car park(!), and we drove quickly to the Melrose Arch area for our dinner.

At this point let me just dwell on the state of the tournament a bit. The previous finalists from two mighty European countries, France and Italy, have exited, both finishing bottom of their groups. They have been the biggest underperformers. So just who are the qualifiers from the six groups determined from this far and where do they come from. From South/Latin America we have Argentina, Mexico, Uruguay, Paraguay, from North America, the USA, from Africa, Ghana, from Asia, South Korea and Japan (we are pleased for our friends from the Japanese FA!), and from Europe, Germany, England, Holland and Slovakia. It is perhaps an unlikely list and may typify the way that the balance of power in world football is changing. In addition New Zealand, South Africa and Slovenia have done well and were unlucky not to progress, especially the former who were eliminated despite being undefeated with three draws. One of the possible consequences might be a reduction of the number of European qualifiers in the future, apart from the financial importance of the continent to Fifa. The other regions will have a powerful claim to press now, and with the next tournament in Brazil, they won’t be helped by location. Still to be added to the list are almost certainly Brazil and Portugal, preserving the continental balance. But our focus tomorrow will be on Group H which will see two from Chile, Spain and Switzerland being added to the list. So at least one European qualifier. I believe that Spain may well be eliminated, another big shock for the pre-tournament favourites – a draw puts Chile through and as long as Switzerland beat Honduras they would also go through. We will be there for the Spain v Chile match in Pretoria, a new city for us, but for the first time John and I will be on different sides. I am going for Chile and John is a Spaniard for the day – we will see!

We easily found a car park, exited and saw the very modern and impressive Melrose Arch development with shops, restaurants, bars and public squares dominated by big screens. Amazingly we were slightly early for dinner and the first to the restaurant which was good because we were the common link between the guests. So who did we dine with? Firstly there was Harrianne and Jonathan and their daughter Nikki – see Day 2 blog for more about them. Secondly there was Olly Worsley and his friend and work colleague James. For those in the hotel industry, Olly is Jonathan Worsley’s (organiser of Berlin Hotel Conference and a former work colleague of mine) son. They are both at University in the UK and are working out here for a travel company. One of their jobs revolves around the Miss World contestants who are out here at present – we’re waiting for the photos guys! Anyway we had a great dinner in a restaurant overlooking one of the public squares in Melrose Arch, the conversation flowed as did the food and drink, as everyone shared their experiences of a variety of things, including life in the UK, South Africa and our views on the country since we had been here, and Olly and James’ work experiences. It was a great evening and everyone went home happy.

We went home ecstatic actually, we had an interesting morning, a fantastic match in the afternoon and a memorable dinner with new friends. What more could we ask for!

Day 5 – Soweto, England at the Fan Fest and Ghana v Germany

2010-06-24T01:29:00.000-07:00

Yyyeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeessssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!! England have won a game and qualified for the next round. Phew! But not totally a positive for us, as I will explain later.

After another great breakfast at the guest house, to which not all of the Mexicans arrived. They had a very late night on the road back from Rustenberg and the youngsters especially slept late. It turned out that the problem started with the transport back to the Park and Ride car park which I had already commented on from our own experience. But there were 9 of them, and to get on the buses (when they appeared) was a real issue and it took over an hour to get back to the car park. By then the traffic was ahead of them and the police were directing everyone to the same road. Hence 5.5 hours plus to get back to the guest house. In comparison our experience was positive, but we have to take care on Saturday night when we have to do the journey again.

Today we went to Soweto, a place we have all heard of for some many reasons. The connotations are mainly negative in connection with the Apartheid period. But things are now much changed, although that change is in process and will be for a long time. First stop was the tourist information centre, there are lots of tours of Soweto, but we really wanted to see it for ourselves and spend time on the bits that we wanted to rather than be part of a group. We needed to get some literature and check that we would be safe. The tourist office was really helpful and we agreed a route that fitted our interests and timescale and off when went, alone in Soweto. Well, not really alone, there were plenty of tourists around but mainly in groups.

First stop was Walter Susulu Square in the Klipstown area, the tourist office was at one end and then we walked down through the local market to the Freedom Tower which houses the wording of the Freedom Charter set out inscribed in a circular aluminium display. There was a man playing a flute which has a strangely evocative in the hollow tower structure, and I think I will always now associate the tune of Amazing Grace with those moments reading the charter. We talked to him at the end about his experiences and he told us that he had been playing there for a long time and seen many changes, but now he was thinking of moving on somewhere else – it was getting to be a noisy place to play the flute. “Life is full of opportunities” he told us “and I have to make the most of those”. Wise words. This was the first, but not the last, emotional experience of the day, as we read of the rights that the ANC sought from 1953 onwards, and which the rest of the world took for granted and which were finally achieved here.

Next stop was Orlando West and the Hector Pieterson Museum. You may not have heard of him and his claim to fame is a tragic one. On 16 June 1976 there were protests in Soweto, by student over the intention of the government to start compulsory teaching in schools in some subjects in the Afrikaans language. The black population didn’t speak the language and saw this as a further attempt to deprive them of the education they sought. The protests started peacefully but turned ugly and Hector, a quiet but mischievous 13 year old (as described in the museum) was the first of many to be killed. 700-1200 people died in the weeks of rioting that followed and it was a starting point to the anti-apartheid movement that those of us of a certain age remember. The exhibit was well explained and we learned much that w didn’t know. We went round separately and didn’t really discuss it when we came out but we both felt the same high emotional feelings about the experience. It isn’t comfortable learning of the killing of young people, and the injustice and frustration of the people, especially the young, came over very strongly and we both felt the same things. I did have one moment of annoyance myself, I took a photograph which I didn’t realise was not allowed. Actually the picture was out of the window. A guard approached me and told me that photography wasn’t allowed in quite an aggressive manner. I hadn’t seen the signs and I asked her why it wasn’t allowed and she told me it was because the information in the museum was secret and they didn’t want it to get around the world! I think she had missed the point on so many levels. But I deleted the picture subserviently, it wasn’t that important. (John took one though – he’s a rebel!)

And so to a walk around Orlando West. The one-time home of Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu (in the same street), a viewing point over the city, the place where Hector had been killed and the riots started and the sights and sounds of one of the better parts of Soweto. We could see from the viewing point that there were far more cramped areas than where we were. We chatted with local kids that approached us as we walked around. We were wearing England T-shirts which brought a reaction about football, one little girl, of not more than 6, told us she supported Bafana Bafana and when we asked who she was supporting now that they were eliminated she named Brazil. A clever girl!, but also interesting in terms of awareness of the tournament etc. It has certainly brought the world to their doorstep. Some of the kids were happy to chat and exchange football banter, others asked very directly for money. We enjoyed our walk around Soweto though, and a very interesting and emotional morning came to an end.

We headed to the Soweto Fan Fest which was located in a stadium about 20 minutes from Orlando West. It could contain up to 40,000 people but there wasn’t more than a few hundred there this afternoon, although it probably reached a thousand by the end of the game. More international fans there than locals initially, but the local people did gradually arrived, and there were quite a number of England fans but also notably Germans (before their game this evening) and Americans. The game you will have seen most likely, but our views haven’t been affected by the English media (which we haven’t seen) or the match against Algeria, and it seemed that this was another lacklustre performance of the type we all thought had gone away a long time ago pre-Capello. It was a win but it remains a mystery why none of these players have shown the ability, drive and enthusiasm that we from them every week in the Premier League. The world may come to play football in the Premier League but at what cost to our own players (we’ll probably go on and win it now!). The disappointment came at the end of the game when news filtered through of the USA win which put England into second place in the group and meant, very disappointingly for us, that we would not be seeing them in the next round match on Saturday. We were really down after that, neither of us really believed that England wouldn’t win this group which looked so easy on paper, and our journey to the stadium to watch the match to decide our opponents, was tinged with silence, what-ifs and discussion of our extreme disappointment. This was a big downer even though we qualified.

The drive to the Soccer City stadium was complicated by a road block which meant that we had to track back and use another route to the stadium, but overall it seemed that they had reduced the number of checkpoints on the roads and that made the journey easier. The previous time we must have shown Park and Walk tickets 6 times but this time it was just twice and we were in. And we parked near the exit route that we used last time to avoid the rally cross experience.

The stadium was as colourful as it had been, the black, red and yellow of Germany versus the green, yellow and red of Ghana and many other colours besides. It was a game that counted, the winners to top the group, the losers could have been eliminated. The African continent’s last hope, against the European masters. The contrast in styles and the importance of the match meant that it was probably the best game we have seen so far and we enjoyed it. We were sitting near the goal line and, very strangely, the Japanese FA men that sat next to us on day 3 were just behind us. We recognised each other and spoke a little, took photographs of each other (for some reason – it must be a Japanese thing like exchanging business cards!) and then wished them luck for their last game against Denmark. In the end the Germans won 1-0 but the contrasts and quality of end to end play made it a memorable experience. The biggest cheer of the night was after the final whistle when it became clear that Ghana had also qualified – the hopes and dreams of a continent rest on their shoulders and it is a burden they will carry into the game with the USA at Rustenberg on Saturday. We’ll be there, whether we like it or not!

In the car park after the game we blew Vuvuzelas for the first time, John was far better at it than me. It wasn’t the best tactic since we were negotiating to buy some but I think the guy felt sorry for my pathetic attempt so we managed to do a good deal (no photographic evidence). We went back to the car blowing Vuvuzelas as we went and that cheered the mood. It was also far easier to get out of the car park this time so we had learned a lot. Actually, taking account of the whole day, we did learn a lot!

Day 4 – Sun City, Mexico v Uruguay and our first African Fan Fest

2010-06-23T01:01:00.000-07:00

Today we are Mexican! We don’t have great deal of choice given the nationality of our housemates and we were the only ones at breakfast today without Mexico shirts. Later in the day we were to get some Mexican face paint though! It was not a straightforward diplomatic decision to support Mexico though, because there was a slim chance that, with the right result in the Mexico v Uruguay game, that South Africa could qualify if they beat France with enough goals. Our hostess Ilse’s words to us were that everyone could get two free nights at the guest house if South Africa qualify. I had to tell her that her bet was as safe as those made by the casino owners at Sun City! But such is the complexity of this last round of group matches that begins today that with two games being played concurrently, twice a day for the next four days, each day will bring a similar dilemma for someone – a favourable result in one place bring disappointment elsewhere as teams start heading home.

The plan for the day is to go to Sun City and then head to Rustenberg for the match. A long day, a lot of driving but we were looking forward to it of course. The roads were pretty good in general although some roads were incomplete and probably should have been finished before the World Cup. Nonetheless we made a good progress and saw some more African scenery along the way.

I had been looking forward to Sun City but frankly it was a disappointment in many ways. It wasn’t especially busy, despite many football fans around the place, and it lacked animation. The casino areas were hardly in use, only the slot machines, the tables etc were closed. I expected a Las Vegas style 24 –hour a day operation. Everything was a money-making exercise, we even had to pay for admission to the complex and then, when we wanted to go a see The Lost City hotel there was to be a charge for that as well (which we haven’t yet done).

There simply didn’t seem to be much to do, the Sun City hotel was fairly tacky and unanimated, the entertainment centre was more for kids and the gaming was hardly open. The best part was The Valley of the Waves, the water park of the Lost City, which was pretty stunning in appearance and was even in use despite the bright sunshine but cool temperatures. We had lunch there which ended in a dispute because, for some reason the kitchen decided to prepare John’s meal totally differently than what was described on the menu. The manager tried to defend what happened rather than apologise for what was obviously incorrect. We didn’t pay for that meal in the end!

Our original plan was to return to Sun City in the evening after the game but we decided not to after our afternoon experience, although we are going back on Saturday as we have booked a game Drive from there in a nearby Game Park. So we will have another look and may try to see inside The Lost City Hotel as well. Otherwise not a place that either of us would rush back to, I’m sorry to say.

When we left Sun City we were a bit later than expected, it took more time than we thought sorting out the Game Drive tickets. When we got to the exit gate to Sun City we were told to keep our entry ticket, which would normally be collected, in case we wanted to come back in the evening (which we probably didn’t want to do but we wanted our options open). So when the security guard asked for my ticket I duly explained this to him. His response was “Ok sir, please turn your ignition off and take the keys out, and then get out of the car”. I had no clue what I’d done wrong! So I looked him firmly in the eye, and asked him why I had to do that? He looked across at his supervisor about 20 yards away but who was watching, and then responded, “No, not him”. We proceeded with our journey. I have no clue what was going on!

We drove to the stadium but hadn’t made plans for car parking, assuming we would find parking easily signposted. We expected the journey to take over an hour but actually it was little more than half an hour to the Park and Ride, which was to the side of the main road. However 20 minutes into our journey a police car suddenly drove up behind me at high speed, lights flashing and hands waving me across to the side of the road. I had no clue what I’d done (again!), and was wary of being stopped by police as we had heard that bogus police stops were a criminal possibility here. I pulled to the side and slowed, and then he told me to move off the road entirely onto the dusty side verge, whereupon a long cortege passed us, including the Uruguay team bus. Phew, again I’d escaped from injustice, but when the procession passed we gave chase to it (in a tiny little car with the engine the size of a washing machine – Hyundai Atol – for anyone interested). There is a great video on John’s camera, which is unfortunately too large to upload from here, of us giving chase, with my voiceover commentary.

Our journey continued with a few similar incidents as other police escorted processions overtook us, with us being waved to the side of the road by police cars and other unmarked vehicles. We felt victimised, especially as some of the vehicles seemed to just contain tourists like us. We didn’t always move over and no problems ensued. Then we reached the Park and Ride and parked in another dusty roadside parking lot (normally known as a field!) which was fairly well organised by security teams. Coaches were plentiful and we got to the stadium area quite quickly. The only issue was that we didn’t want to have to ask our way back given the name of the car park (see picture left), as there seemed to be no polite way of asking!

The crowd was dominated by Mexicans, there are huge numbers of them here. On the coach, one decided, without asking to add a streak of face paint to each side of our faces. Initially he didn’t ask, just was walking down the gangway, leaned over and used the facepaint stick on John’s face! But then we let him finish the job. We just hoped that we weren’t sitting in the middle of the Uruguay fans, although we intended to support Mexico in any case, as discussed.

The scenes outside were colourful, loud and great fun. The Mexicans came dressed for the occasion, sombreros, full bands, and a whole variety of the costumes, outside the stadium was a sea of green. We spent a while outside taking photos, seeing what was going on and talking to few people. John got himself on Mexican TV with a small band of Mexican guitarists (see photo with John in the background centre). And let me tell you something really exciting, today we have worn T-shirts with no overlays for the whole day, the daytime temperature was warmer, and I had my first Ice Cream of the trip!

The stadium was smaller than those in Johannesburg, and it wasn’t full. South Africa were playing at the same time which will have had an effect. It also wasn’t covered and we faced into the full sun (getting a tan) for most of the match, that was pleasant as was the daytime atmosphere and the relative ease of photography compared to the dark and freezing cold evenings. We were sitting high up in the stand among hordes of Mexicans, which was lively and fun. It was also a virtually vuvuzela free zone which was a real plus. One end of the stadium was full of South African’s with them, and we could detect the fortunes of South Africa in the other game by the vuvuzela blowing. The earplug industry lives on though (see pictures).

The game not the best but Uruguay deservedly won 1-0, and Forlan, the former Manchester United player, was highly influential in the game. He has developed into a world class player from those early days in England. Only the South Africans left the stadium disappointed. Uruguay topped the group but Mexico also qualified for the next round, supporting my view of the dominance of the Latin/South American teams at the tournament, and France personified the dismal European showing by losing 2-1 to South Africa. It wasn’t enough to put South Africa through though, and they become the first African nation to depart the competition, albeit with heads held high and a nation’s hearts broken. The most disappointing part of the day for us was when the sun went down and the sunshine quickly turned to cold and jumpers went on very quickly.

Organisation of coaches for the Park and Ride was abysmal and after waiting at the pick up point for a while, with coaches either full or absent, we decided to look for another plan (which was probably going to be to walk). John saved the day when he saw a big ‘Phokeng North’ coach loading up where it shouldn’t have been and we managed to board it and get back to the car park. That was well organised and we were quickly on the road, taking a compulsory route that the police had devised – the satnav was irrelevant as w had to take their route. We headed to the Rustenberg Fan Fest.

Fan Fests first arrived at the World Cup at the last World Cup in Germany, the major host cities had one there where fans from around the world gathered an watched the games and other entertainment on big screens and stages. Here the concept was the same but the delivery was different. They were positioned close to the population, not near to the stadium and we discovered that they were mainly being frequented by the local population who were having a whale of a time when we arrived. It must have been packed earlier in the day for the South Africa game and there was a party taking place. The Rustenberg fan Fest takes 20,000 people but there were probably a couple of thousand there when we arrived, dancing and partying. We were just about the only white faces but it felt pretty comfortable and fun. Just a shame that the fans from around the world weren’t there too, but it was hard to get to and over 15km from the stadium. The two girls photographed insisted we took their picture but it also shows the dust that was being kicked up by the dancing – the camera flash caught the dust particles and that’s the specking you can see in the picture.

We watched the first half of the Argentina v Greece match but it was freezing cold and we had a long journey back to Jo’burg. The crowd dwindled and we took a minibus back to the Fan Fest car parking only to discover that ours was the last car parked there. It was being kept open just for us. It wasn’t hard to find the car parked in the middle of a field that could have held 5,000 cars!

John drove back and it was uneventful and took just over 1.5 hours, getting back to the guest house at just after 11pm. We listened to the football, Argentina qualifying along with the first non-American team, South Korea. Greece and Nigeria kept up the dismal record of European and African teams. We were downloading photos from camera etc when a strange thing happened – the Mexicans got back! Why strange, because they said they had been in a non-stop traffic jam since the end of the game and it had taken 5.5 hours for them to come back the way the police directed them. The main road was gridlocked apparently, so in all the time that we had been at the Fan Fest etc., they had been in the car on the road home. We will find out more in the morning no doubt! And their team lost, and according to them, played poorly but they weren’t that bad, just met a better team on the day. Let’s hope England don’t do that tomorrow!

Day 3 – The Cradle of Humankind and Spain v Honduras

2010-06-21T22:11:00.000-07:00

A slow start to the day, a leisurely breakfast at Northcliff Manor and another excellent one. We also enjoyed another ‘deep’ conversation with our Mexican friends that are staying here during which I think we dealt quite thoroughly with the geopolitical and social attitudes of different countries and groupings of countries. This was not about football! We also discovered that they are leaving here on Friday and heading to Cape Town on a steam train journey that takes two days to go between the two cities, stopping in Kimberley. Sounds great, but for another time.

Our match today is not until the evening so we have the whole day free. We headed to an area known as ‘The Cradle of Humankind’ which is about an hour outside Johannesburg. It is a UN designated area of special significance since many fossils, skeletons and other ancient relics from millions of years ago have been found within an area of about 500 km2. There are two visitor points here, an excellent exhibition and interpretation centre and a cave system where many of the remains have been found. The main prognosis underlying the area is that humankind began in Africa and spread from here around the world through changing land mass movements known as the Continental Drift.

First we headed to the museum area at Maropeng which we both found to be really excellent, displaying anthropological, archaeological, sociological and geographic information in a really interesting and accessible way. As everywhere here, football fans from around the world dominated the visitation - we must have noted at least 20 nationalities. Initially there is a brief explanation about the exhibits from and eloquent and enthusiastic guide. The initial exhibit was by way of a 4-minute boat trip going back in time over billions of years, the four person boat going back through fire, ice, volcanoes, tectonic plate movements all going on around us while we sailed through. Then there was a series of interactive exhibits which were self-guiding, highly informative and ‘made you think’. The visitors of all ages and nationalities were enthralled by the place, which was really interesting and excellently put together and shown, and we stayed for a couple of hours when we were told it would last for about one hour. Well worth a visit. For more information visit www.maropeng.co.za.

Then we visited the Sterkfontein Caves, about 10 minutes drive away. This was well explained cave system, another excellent guide, although the caves are largely of interest for what has been found there rather than being exception caves in themselves. But it was interesting to be reminded of the cave structures of stalactites and stalagmites, and especially to prove how nimble we are by finding our way through some very narrow and low accessways! Wouldn’t have met with UK health and safety standards. Overall the whole area was worth a visit but we preferred the visitor exhibit to the caves.

Then we headed back to Johannesburg for the match.

On the way back we needed to stop at a petrol station for top up refreshments. John went in and did deal of the century – he bought a diet coke, a bottle of water, a large bag of crisps and a bar of chocolate and he got free gifts of a shoulder bag and a full size football. It cost £4 for the lot!

We followed the signs to Ellis Park Stadium through downtown Johannesburg – pretty awful in look and feel as we had been told – and we kept the doors and windows locked like good boys! But there were police everywhere covering for the match so no real risk. We had some trouble navigating to the Park and Walk that we had booked, partly because we didn’t believe the directions that the police were giving us. But yes, it was actually quite a walk to the ground – we just didn’t think it could be that far!

It was a round 1.5 miles away and took us around half hour to reach the ground. We thought the whole experience outside the stadium was better than Soccer City. Firstly there was a whole street of local people selling their wares – everything from food to souvenirs. Interesting anyone selling food was wearing a bib stating that they had attended a food handlers course put on by the City of Jo’burg which was reassuring – a win-win for everyone I think. When inside we found a fan area where there were lots of activities put on by the various sponsors, and better stocked souvenir shops than at Soccer City.

The atmosphere was terrific once again with the red and yellow of Spain contrasting with the blue and white of Honduras but actually red and yellow dominated. We even met some Scots in kilts and one was wearing an England flag round his shoulders – he will be tried for treason when he returns home!

Our seats were good again, lower down this time, no Vuvuzelas especially close but there was a Vuvezela troupe a short distance away – I think this had been organised by Fifa as there was similar the previous day, except they weren’t so close to us. We had four Hondurans sitting behind – one had a remarkably knowledge of English swear words! We also learned that the Spanish for yellow card is.....yellow card! Two Japanese guys sat next to John, they had official Japanese team accreditation on and took lots of notes all the way through – I have no idea why, I don’ t think they are scheduled to play these teams. I had a South African next to me whose main contribution to the evening was spilling beer over my seat! I think he apologised.

Spain dominated the game and we were excellently positioned to see David Villa’s fantastic first goal of the evening. He should have had more than just two and deserved his hat-trick but missed the penalty by a distance. Despite their win, I still have a feeling that Spain could struggle to qualify for the next round. Chile are doing well and if they draw with Spain the Spain could depart depending on Switzerland’s result. We are seeing Spain v Chile on Friday and it should be a cracker! Portugal’s 7 goals earlier in the day show that at least one European team is waking up, and they probably put Ivory Coast out of the running now.

The car park was well organised and we got back to it very quickly, I never knew John was such a fast walker but I just about kept up. I drove through the car park again, not as adventurously at the previous night, and we got out quickly. I drove away from the traffic even though it was the wrong direction as the city is surrounded by Ring Road/Motorways and I knew we would eventually hit one of those, from then on we got home quickly.

Another great day and so much more to come!

Day 2 – A Braai & Brazil v Ivory Coast

2010-06-21T15:51:00.000-07:00

A great night’s sleep before our first match day. No nerves here! Of course we’re not actually playing. Our first meeting of the day was with........Mexico. All the other rooms in the guest house are occupied by a large Mexican family, 9 in total including wives and kids. They are really nice people and speak fantastic English, even the kids. They are spending much of the summer in Africa, initially in South Africa and then going on to Kenya and Tanzania for safari and other experiences of this great continent.

Today was one of the Mexican ladies’ birthday and so when she came into the breakfast room there was much singing, festivities and present-giving. The guest house owners also gave her a cake and a specially decorated place at the table. It was a great start to the day, and so was our first breakfast in Northcliff Manor. Great choice and lovely food, a table of 9 for the Mexicans and one of 2 for us. They are also going to Brazil v ivory Coast this evening and have been to several matches so far including the Mexico games. Apart from having some interesting conversations we also learned that we have to book the stadium car parking in advance so that was very useful and off we went to our second shopping mall in two days. Who would have thought it!

Then John and I sat down for an hour and planned some sightseeing and a ‘to do’ list for the week after which we headed to get the car parking sorted. The Cresta mall was another very impressive centre that could easily fit any European city. Not far from the guest house. We found the ticket office and after a short queue with the rest of the United Nations of FIFA (people from so many countries here for this even, living in harmony in the name of football much as we have seen in France and Germany in the past) we got our tickets for Park and Walk. We chose to Park and Walk at all four Johannesburg events as there will be less reliance on queuing for buses etc.

That done we headed to a braai that we had been invited too at the home of Harrianne and Jonathan, some friends of my parents. They live in the suburb of Riverclub within, as is normal here, a gated and secured development. We learned that this is just accepted as ‘what you do’, and although it wasn’t always this way, it is seen as a stage in the process of the development of an otherwise lovely country. Other guests included Harrianne and Jonathan’s daughters, both in their twenties, the husband of one daughter and his parents and brother. Later Harrianne’s brother and his wife arrived. Great food, really interesting conversation and all really nice people. Our experience of South African hospitality and family life was great and we learned a lot and gained additional insight into what lays beyond the walls and security systems of the houses here. We also got some chocolates as Fathers’ day gifts – thanks Harrianne! – it seems Father’s Day is a much bigger deal than at home. By the way kids, I found my great card hidden in my suitcase, with lovely words, so thanks to Alannah and Richard.

Now for some football!

We were driving to the ground listening to Italy 1 New Zealand 1 on the radio. Another shock result. Coupled with Paraguay’s earlier victory over Slovakia it further confirmed my thoughts on the tournament so far. The major European footballing nations, with the exception of Holland, haven’t performed to their potential and many of them – France, Italy, and England – have really underperformed big time! The African nations have not managed to take advantage of ‘home advantage’ and the huge support they enjoy here, they just don’t seem to quite be ready for this level still. But the Latin/South American countries have dominated the tournament and you’d have to bet on the eventual winner coming from one of those nations. Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Mexico, and Uruguay have all done really well and seem certain to qualify for the next round. The minnows from other countries have managed to pick up points and/or score goals. Hard to work out why, but certainly the Europeans have buck their ideas up big time.

The journey to the stadium was quite smooth and nowhere near the traffic that we expected. We allowed four hours before the kick off but we got there in a little over one hour. The Park and Walk facility was very close to the stadium but little more than a dusty field with lots of local people selling everything, especially the dreaded Vuvuzelas. However we quickly realised that these have spawned another new line for football supporters as we came across people selling ......ear plugs. Some of these seemed to be in team colours. There’s an antidote for everything apparently. But these things are very noisy and their constant loud hum, occasionally varied to staccato sounds, is an unwelcome addition to the football scene in my view. But they are part of the sport in Africa and will be one of the main memories, and probably legacies, of this World Cup in the same way as Argentina will be remembered for its ticker tape and Mexico for its Wave.

We didn’t find much to do around the stadium but late on we spotted an area which may have been more animated as a Fan Zone. We will try it next time. The souvenir shops were disappointing in their range and the prices for things were for the international market, not for locals. T shorts range between £20-£30 etc, and from a first look there was a poor selection. We will look further.

The scenes were colourful everywhere, the Brazilian yellow and green and the Ivory Coast orange and white. We saw a man dressed as an elephant (Ivory Coast) but the Brazilian girls were much more wrapped up than at previous tournaments – it’s freezing cold here at night time. That said, the crowds mingled in carnival atmosphere and a spirit of friendship, not the normal football tribalism.

Our seats were great, towards the front of the top tier right on the half way line and we could see everything around the whole stadium. Ivory Coast started well but quickly faded and the Brazil victory by 3 goals to 1 was fair, even if the second goal was an obvious handball. Another South American victory and another African disappointment – it is still possible than no African teams will reach the knock-out stages. We enjoyed the match and the atmosphere – it was a great start to our week of matches although there will be better games to come.

We made it back to the Park and Walk site quite quickly and it was every man for himself! I drove that night and it was like rally cross through the car park, avoiding people, cars, trees and a variety of other obstacles. I made it to an exit fairly quickly only to discover that there was a massive kerb and out little car was never going to make it without knocking out the oil sump. So we drove along the pavement with many other cars (four lanes at one stage) until a steward finally shepherded us down a ramp onto the road. We got back to the guest house quickly after that and it was a very full and memorable first full day in SA.

Day 1 – Settling in

2010-06-21T15:37:00.000-07:00

An overnight flight punctuated by the surprising and very disappointing news that England had only managed a draw with Algeria. At least we didn’t have to watch it!

All went smoothly on arrival with the many things that we had to do, including, most importantly picking up our match tickets which we printed out by automated machines. A short queue, pop in your credit card and out popped 14 tickets for the World Cup. Fantastic!

Picked up the hire car, a small Hyundai. While doing that, in talking to the man at the rental company he told us that loads of people have been making booking for rental cars and not arriving. Apparently 150 no shows last Monday alone, but if they had all arrived then maybe there wouldn’t have been enough cars anyway so it was probably for the best. Still surprising though.

Then we drove directly to our guest house. The satnav worked perfectly except it turned out that I had forgotten the recharging lead so that was a problem we had to resolve. We were warmly welcomed at Northcliff Manor Guest House by the owners, Ilse and Johnny, their staff and three dogs. A quick check-in and a welcoming cup of tea and then we chatted for a while with Ilse, making plans, getting recommendations and finding more about this wonderful house. They have owned it for 23 years but only operated it as a business for the past 8 months.

After settling in to our comfortable rooms and a walk around the grounds we went into Sandton, the modern business area of Johannesberg, in search of a satnav lead. Sandton City, which claims to be the largest shopping mall in Africa, is indeed very impressive. It would be a credit to any city in the world. We toured the electrical and mobile phone shops and eventually found something that would work. Problem solved.

We took a stroll in Nelson Mandela Square which is just to the rear of the mall and saw the famous statue of the man himself. Very big with very shiny feet, tradition is that you should touch his foot for luck. The square itself has been taken over by a large Sony exhibit which makes it hard to envisage its normal appearance. There were also football fans everywhere from every country, and media all over the place.

Then we grabbed a coffee and watched the end of the Ghana v Australia match. We shared a table with a Canadian guy who had been to several matches and so we learned a bit from him. Match ended in a draw, but more of that later.

We headed back to the hotel, a quick change and then out to a local pub/restaurant that Ilse and Johnny had recommended. Great meal and a fantastic atmosphere, although it was just a local place it had attracted fans from all over the world somehow. Many languages spoken around the place, many experiences shared over dinner. After our main course we managed to change tables and got one so that we could see the TV for the second half of Denmark v Cameroon. Denmark won, but the interesting thing (which we also noted while watching the Ghana match in the afternoon) was how much the South Africans are getting behind the African teams in the competition. They support them almost as much as the Bafaana Bafaana (South Africa) team. We were talking to the staff in the restaurant about it and they explained that the whole of Africa has united for this World Cup and they see it as an opportunity for the whole of Africa and not just SA. It was interesting and they enjoyed watching the end of the match (as we did) since there were many close chances. In the end Cameroon lost and was effectively eliminated from the tournament. Sadness among the staff for that, but we had a great first evening and a memorable first day in South Africa. Things really get going for us tomorrow though, with our first match scheduled!

The Preamble

2010-06-13T03:31:00.000-07:00

On this blog I intend to bring you our adventures of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. 10 days, 7 games, and all the fun of the Fan Fests. A bit of sightseeing. The planned, and no doubt the unexpected!

Expect a new post by lunchtime each day from Sunday 20 June until 28 June. Maybe there will be some news before then, who knows!

The Matches
We will be live at the following games

Brazil v Ivory Coast - Sunday 20 June, Johannesburg, 20.30

Spain v Honduras - Monday 21 June, Johannesburg, 20.30

Mexico v Uruguay - Tuesday 22 June, Rustenburg, 16.00

Ghana v Germany - Wednesday 23 June, Johannesburg, 20.30

Slovakia v Italy - Thursday 24 June, Johannesburg, 16.00

Chile v Spain - Friday 25 June, Pretoria, 20.30

Round of 16 - Saturday 26 June, Rustenburg, 20.30
Group winner of England/Algeria/Slovenia/USA v 2nd place of Germany/Ghana/Serbia/Australia

Travel Plans
Flights - by Virgin Atlantic

Car Hire - Europcar South Africa, via Holiday Autos

Accommodation - Northcliff Manor Guest House, Northcliff, Johannesburg

http://www.northcliffmanor.com

According to the website this is "one of the earliest homes built in 1937 against the Northcliff hill – in the heart of Egoli – The City of Gold."

The hotel's website promises us "On arrival you will be overwhelmed by wonderment, calm and beauty as result of the architecture, luxurious accommodation and lush landscape.

One of Johannesburg’s oldest upmarket suburbs, leafy Northcliff, lies north west of the city’s CBD, its cliff a landmark on the otherwise predominantly flat skyline of the city. Northcliff’s large homes lie on steep inclines that wind their way up the cliff, the views superlative, and the tree-lined streets of a different nature to many of the other suburbs in Johannesburg that function mainly on grid systems.

This unique, historical and architectural gem of Northcliff has been restored with passion, respect and the comfort of guests in mind.

The Manor was designed by the acclaimed architect W. B. Pabst. Bernard Pabst was the carrier of the German Expressionism – 1920’s Berlin – to South Africa. He arrived here during the 1930’s. His architectural designs were quite distinctive, unconventional, irregular and asymmetrical.

The Manor was built as a wedding gift to Ms. Helen Suzzman, the well known anti-apartheid politician. She was the Progressive Party’s only representative, for 13 years, in a hostile, Afrikaans and male dominated Apartheid Parliament. During her lifetime she was awarded 27 honorary doctorates and made an honorary Dame Commander of the order of The British Empire. She was also nominated twice for the Nobel Peace Prize. Sadly, at the age of 91 years old, she died on New Years Day 2009, but the legend lives on.

The Manor has deservedly been restored as a historical and beloved gem of Northcliff and is in mint condition."

So we are looking forward to that accommodation.

Check back regularly for more of our adventures, photos etc as we visit and enjoy the wonders of South Africa and the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

You will also be able to comment below.

Melvin (and John)