US vs Algeria, Durban, and the End of the Trip

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We arrived in Jo-burg early on Wednesday hoping that things would go smoothly so we could get to Pretoria and the third game versus Algeria on time. For once... They did. We picked up our third Chevy Aveo of the trip (this one was silver and named the Silver Bullet unlike the White Bullet and the Blue Bullet, the names I gave the first two Aveos) and headed North to the capital. I will say while not having any power at all (it felt like a 600 cc dirtbike engine when you hit the gas) the Aveos treated us well and will be remembered. Having boycotted GPS altogether and frankly, from being exhausted from traveling non-stop for over 3 weeks - the trip to our hotel in Pretoria was an adventure. I have no clue how, since we had no city map and the directions were wrong - but we made it to the hotel.

The hotel was a budget hotel - a perfect name for what it was. Thankfully, we were only there one night. We walked downtown Pretoria that day and saw the city. As with everywhere else in SA, it was unique as ever. While it looked as run-down and unsafe as Jo-burg, it had a different feel. There was a bit more diversity and you didn't feel as though you were standing out like in some places. As with all of the other places, the locals were extremely hospitable and friendly. They were so excited to have us there, impressed with what we had seen, and asked what we thought. We also for the first time, decided we needed some Americana and went to McDonalds in downtown Pretoria for a quick lunch before the game. Frankly, we have tried a ton of the local cuisine and were just tired of new things for that day. I decided to devote the whole day - the game, McDonalds, Budweiser at the game - to America. We walked up to the train station a few hours before the game to take the train to the game, but got a bus instead and from the station to the stadium, we were there in like ten minutes. Ill continue to dispute any of the media stories of issues with safety or logisitics - things aren't perfect, but they are pretty darn good.

We arrived to Loftus Stadium around 2, headed for the beer tents, and as always - met a ton of people. First was the woman who was on our flight to Cape Town five days before and apparently listened to all of our conversations because she pretty much relayed everything I said and finished by saying "oh, I was on your Cape Town flight the other day; we didn't talk, but I overheard some of your conversations". Ok... Psycho!

We ran into the UVA kids from Victoria Falls, and later on, we ran into Ryan and the infamous Matt from Vic Falls as well. Its crazy that with nearly a million visitors and 50,000+ people at the games, you always manage to come accross the same people. We painted eachother's faces (minus mine because of the disgusting beard), drank some beers, and headed into the game. Again, like the first game, we were in the US section. I managed to sit next to the second person from Lancaster on the trip, as we took on Algeria in a win-or-go home game.

With Bill Clinton and Jay-Z in attendance, the pressure was on. I thought we played our best game of the tournament except for one important (and perhaps our weakest) skill - finishing. We hit two posts, missed two open nets, and for the second time in two games - had a goal called back for no good reason. I was getting frustrated because we dominated the game, and by the 80th minute, I was beginning to worry. When they flashed 4 minutes of extra time in the 90th minute, I knew we still had a chance. For those of you who watched, you probably felt the excitement. When Landon Donovan scored in the 92nd minute, it was the best sporting moment I have ever been a part of. The stands exploded, people cried, I hugged people I never met. My sunglasses ended up 9 rows from where I sat. Anything that anyone held was thrown in the air and the athmosphere and noise that came out of the stadium far exceeded anything I have ever been a part of. Literally, that's all I can say. It really was one of those moments where you had to be there, and I am glad I was.

But... Ill stay pessimistic at the same time. I may be the only one, but I was still disappointed that we didn't score earlier or more. That... Will come back to bite us.

No Americans left the stands for 20 minutes after the game, players went into the stands, American flags flew everywhere - and even the Algerians were gracious in defeat. The celebrations continued outside the stadium. In a moment reminicent to Barcelona circa 2006, someone stepped on my shoe, but instead of Matt Lauer, it was a random guy. Why is this important you ask? Because as he apologized, he offered me something for his mistake - a photo... With the game ball. In all of the excitement at the end of the game, Landon Donovan drop-kicked the ball into the stands and this guy caught it. It had the holligram, logo, and game name on it, and I believe it was legit. How crazy is that? I snapped a photo and the guy rushed out of the stadium never to be seen again.

After the game, we headed back to the hotel and hang out with the locals and other US folks staying there. There were outbreaks of random USA chants and locals came out of shops and houses to take pictures with us in the streets. Its really a humbling expierience and one that I don't think any of us expected when we came. I mean really - who likes the USA other than us? Well, apparently people really do... A lot. We watched the night games, cheered on the Africa teams and head to bed early for the long drive to Durban in the AM.

After 3 weeks of traveling and 3 intense US games, my vacation really needed... A vacation. When we planned the trip, we decided we needed a side-trip to Durban on the East Coast. Its like their Miami and was billed the "hottest place in SA for the World Cup."

The drive there was LONG and boring. Heather slept most of the way while I struggled to find working radio stations, ate bags of chips for meals, and dealt with some heavy fog that caused serious accidents along the way. Have I mentioned that road safety is an issue here? But seriously, no lights when there is dense fog? That's just stupid. The drive took about 6.5 hours from Pretoria because of the weather, and we reached Durban at like 2 PM. We walked the beached, touched the water with no real incidents (unlike Cape Town) and just took in the locals. Its definitly a surfer town and more than Miami, I would say is more like San Diego because of the people.

We met up with Sharon and Jamie (the UK people we met in Rustenburg and Jo-burg) for dinner about 15 minutes north of the city and watched the night games before headed home after midnight. They are a really fun couple and we were lucky to meet them in our travels. They told us one last funny story about their bus trip to the game the day before. Just when I got done praising the SA authorities for doing a great job, they told us this. There shuttle driver got lost on the way back from the game (a 10 minute drive that followed one road) and eventually ended up getting pulled over by a cop. In a scene reminscent of our flat tire, a car swerved uncontrollably and almost hit the cop, who was then pulled over (pulling into the middle lane instead of to the side). After ticketing the shuttle driver, the cop was nice enough to escort the shuttle to its destination. Wrong, almost 2.5 hours later, the shuttle was back where it started... At the stadium. It was about a 9 KM trip and easily couldve been walked 3x in the same period of time. Pretty ridiculous...

Friday was our final full day in SA, and it was a total lazy day. Like I said... This was our vacation from our vacation. We got up at like noon, got a huge and long lunch with Pina Coladas and other drinks, walked the city and the beach, and headed to the Fan Fest around 2 PM for one of the biggest matches of the group stages - Portugal vs Brazil. Each venue city has "fan fests" that have huge projection screens so you can watch the games, but Durban's was special as it was actually on the beach. The big game was actually held in Durban, in fact we could see the stadium from the beach), but getting tickets was impossible. Apparently, so impossible that 40k of us packed the beach to watch it. Jamie and Sharon did have tickets and met up with us after that game to watch the final matches on the beach as well. We all tried a local Durban cuisine, called a bunny loaf, which was basically curry and meat inside of a carved out loaf of bread. I didn't love it, but we were told we had to try it.

Saturday we woke up, made the long drive back to Jo-burg (Heather slept again but did wake up every two hours or so to ask if I was bored yet - great travel partner), dropped off the car, and caught one last game in the bar before boarding our flight home. We did have some last minute issues at the airport, like being unable to buy World Cup wine at Duty Free because we flew through Madrid and a few other aggrevations that frankly... Were the first things to REALLY go wrong on the trip. We used the rest of our SA money to buy drinks and snacks and counted it out like homless people at the counter. We were a few bucks short, but the guy felt bad for us and let us get it anyways.

Unfortunately, because of cost and work, we had to take the flight we had made, so we missed the US vs Ghana match. Frankly... I haven't seen it yet, but from what I've heard... It would just have made me angry - so maybe it was for the better.

We met a few more DC people as we boarded the flight - thus continuing to prove how well-cultured and traveled the fine residents of the NCR are. And as much as I hate to say it... The same can be said for UVA. We met and saw tons of UVA people on the trip, so I guess I have to give them props as well. Although I stand by the fact that the ACC sucks.

As I sit in the Madrid airport waiting for an afternoon flight, I am bummed about a US loss, and even more bummed that my time is Africa is up. While I missed home, maybe more than any other trip, the time flew by and I can truely say its a special place.

Ill follow-up with one last concluding post when I am home and settled. I literally have developed carpel tunnel syndrome from the BB, so Ill wait for a keyboard. Look for one last post to entertain you all, and thanks for keeping up with the trip. It really is nice to know people read, laugh ay, and enjoy the stories. Hopefully it helped you all through the days as I traveled the trip of a lifetime and you squares toiled away at work/school. I would expect nothing less if you were in my situation...

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Photos

US vs Algeria
This was the best sporting moment that I have ever been a part of. Its what sports is all about.

Comments

[anonymous]

great blog buddy!