Today also saw me hanging at home and watching the games on the couch. Also it was my Day in the Life picture project today. I wanted to do a World Cup theme, but realized if I did then I would have about 1 million pictures…so I just stuck to the formula J
For Day in the Life pics go to: http://picasaweb.google.com/lynseemelchi
(remember the new pics for June are at the end of the album)
It was SO freezing today in Pretoria and from the looks of it, all over the country. I know people think it’s impossible for any place in Africa to be cold…but you are wrong. There was snow on the ground in a few places around the country today (not where I live though) and it seemed like it was generally cold as hell just about everywhere. I wanted to go for a bike ride today to check out the city and see if anything was going on, but it was chilly enough to make me think twice. Also we started a fire in the fireplace at about 2pm so that helped encourage me to stay inside J
As far as the games go we had: New Zealand vs. Slovakia, Cote d’Ivoire vs. Portugal, and Brasil vs. Korea DPR (aka North Korea). NZ vs. Slovakia was a draw with a very exciting goal scored by NZ in the last seconds of the game. Another draw in the mix for the Cote d’Ivoire/Portugal game and Brasil beat NK 2-1.
The Cote d’Ivoire game was the most interesting to watch although I did enjoy the Brasil game too. Cote d’Ivoire vs. Portugal was cool cos it was the first game where you could tell 2 really skilled teams were fighting for it. The level of ball control was amazing compared to some of the slop that we’ve seen so far. It was my first time seeing everyone’s sweetheart Christiano Ronaldo play and I have to say I was mildly impressed. He is hot…I’ll give him that. His skill as a soccer player is amazing but otherwise he kind of seems like a class A royal douche bag personality-wise. It looks like he falls on the ground if a mild breeze even dares pass his way and that is kind of a lame way to play soccer…however effective it might be.
Ah, the Brasil game. Brasil, for me, is such an annoying team because they are just so damn good. I mean…where is the surprise and fun in that? Brasileiros are just so cocky about it too. And I always want to talk shit, but come on…we are talking about Brasil here! It was a joy to watch the Brasilians play though. They really have amazing skills. I can’t deny that. But I’m sorry…I just like rooting for the underdogs and that sure ain’t Brasil. North Korea put up a pretty good fight considering they are ranked something like #105 in the world and Brasil is ranked #1. They were quick and tenacious, but it just wasn’t enough. Sorry guys.
I think North Korea is one of the most interesting teams in the World Cup. They are totally shrouded in secrecy from what type of team they are on the field to what has been happening since they arrived in SA. Very few reporters have had access to the team in SA and you could tell from the commentary during the game today that not much has been said about them before they got to SA either. I heard them described in one paper as “shy.” The games are supposedly not being broadcast in NK and only highlights will be shown IF they win. Sorry NK fans…it’s going to be a dry World Cup for you so don’t hold out for those clips. Also they are based out of Tembisa, one of the more hardcore townships in the Joburg/Pretoria area. The team was in the news last week when they played a friendly with Nigeria in Tembisa and a stampede went down. But dude, Tembisa…that is some other shit. I wonder how they got stashed there. At any rate, I wish them well. They are going to need it since they are playing in the “group of death” as it has been called here...Cote d’Ivoire, Portugal, and Brasil. I would NOT want them for my opponents, that is for sure.
Um, also, it seems like there is no end to the jokes one can make about a strict regime like NK. Sorry...but state-sponsored bogusness just makes for good comedy...
PS: Kyle, I did see NK fans in the stands at the game, so apparently they exist. Whether they came here just for World Cup or were already here…I have no idea.
Random thought of the day…what is up with all the super skin tight jerseys on some of the African teams?? I’m not complaining, but it is something that I noticed today when Cote d’Ivoire played and also when Cameroon played.
On the bogus tip for the day…
Yesterday when Ross was telling his stories of going to Soccer City he recalled a moment when the train he was on erupted into cat calls over a group of scantily mini-dress clad Dutch fans passing by. I sure thought that was the end of that story, but I was certainly wrong. This morning I overheard Ross and Helen talking about “they should sue” and other such talk. When I finally got out of bed and left my room I asked Ross about it and he told me about how the chicks he saw had been harassed/detained/arrested at the game last night by FIFA people over these dresses they were wearing. I was like…WTF?!?!?
Here’s a link to the story: http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=6&click_id=2871&art_id=vn20100615044444433C406692
The first thing you must understand is that FIFA is very very monopolistic about the brands they have as sponsors for the World Cup. No one is allowed into the stadiums wearing branded items, so they say. FIFA has very stringent rules about a lot of things so that they keep an iron-fisted balls clutch on all that goes on surrounding the World Cup. It’s kind of ridiculous if you ask me and just about anybody else, but those are the breaks if you want to host the World Cup. Also it seems like things in SA are so fluid sometimes that these sort of strict rules just don’t go down well. People here are all about “making a plan.”
So these ladies were wearing a dress that was given out in Holland with Bavaria beer as a lead up to the World Cup. Apparently there is no branding on it, but it seems like those who know might be able to associate it with the beer. Honestly, though, outside of Holland…how many people really knew what that little dress meant? FIFA made a big mistake making such a big deal about all this as it only drew more attention to how fucking ridiculously FIFA acted as well as giving Bavaria more press. Good one, dumbasses.
I think the worst part is that these women were harassed under pretty stupid pretenses. If you don’t allow branding into the matches then they should have been barred from entering the stadium. But where do you draw the line on branding? If Adidas is the official sponsor of the World Cup and I come into your stadium wearing Nike…am I branding for Nike? What about players that wear non-Adidas shoes or the gloves worn by Brasil today (they were Nike)??
Anyways, good job dumbasses. And the monopoly keeps on turning…
Tomorrow should be nice and exciting. It’s a public holiday in SA tomorrow called Youth Day. This day commemorates the protests and police killings of a bunch of students (like elementary students) in June 1976. Youth Day is one of my favorite public holidays here…I don’t know why…I just like what it stands for. Also Bafana Bafana will play on Youth Day in Pretoria, so it should be an exciting day in the ‘hood.
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