Friday, June 16, 2006

The Final Chapter

before I start ... I know great writing is done in order ... but it's just not possible without you own laptop and ability to get on the internet whenever you want ... so let's wrap it up first!

dateline -- amsterdam -- 9:57 am

My trip is coming to an end ... I will finish the blog when I get back to the States ... that last entry is going to be like a novel! There is so much left to tell and my time on the internet has been limited the last few days (in 2010, at the next world cup in South Africa, I'll have to bring a laptop) You will definitely want to check back in a few days for the finished product (you know you want to know the result of the cliffhanger at the end of chapter one!)

I'm on my wy to the airport in about an hour for my flight back to the emerald isle. I'll be back on american soil around 1 am saturday (in nyc). I think I have timed it correctly that I will be able to catch a good portion of the holland-ivory coast match today during my layover in dublin. I am fully geared up for my flight home with my dutch jersey and some sweet holland wristbands and headband (haha ... the irish don't know what's coming). I am interested to see what the airport is going to be like. I have heard stories from people who were flying around germany that the airports are like everyone else around here during a match (everyone's eyes glued to a television).

Hopefully everything I bought fits into my bags!

Thanks to everyone who followed my adventure here on the blog. Keep an eye out for the footage that I shot on Sportsnite exclusively on Comcast Sportsnet. You will get the 1st hand experience of the story that I have told here! I have a ton of stuff (8 tapes full) and now I have to decide exactly what to do with it!

If anyone wants to know stuff will be on ... send me an email at alittlefield@comcastsportsnet.com and I will make sure you are informed.

And don't forget to keep checking this space for the final chapters of my trip. It should be complete before the end of next week (also the time that I have to go back to the "real world" i.e. -- work). I have a ton of notes to go through. But, I promise you will get more than a few laughs out of the final day or two of the trip!




AKL

ps -- postcards are in the mail!

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Fear and Loathing an dar Weltmeisterschaft 2006

date -- amsterdam -- 8:00 pm

It's nice to be back in Holland ... very cold though and I have am starting the get the symptoms of a little cold. Had to get some medicine, it's working a little bit, I guess. The otehr "medicine" that I am taking is a wole lot better!

This will be a long blog ... so I will do it in parts ... keep checking back for the updates ...

I. A Good's Night Rest

Tuesday night was the first extended period of sleep that I had gotten since the 1st day or two of the trip. I slept in until 11:30 am. I slept more that night that I had the past 3 days. When I wokeup I was greeted by my new roommates ... 3 Aussies (Rachel, Melissa, and Adam) following the Socceroos! They had been to the 1st game in Kaiserslautern on Saturday (a 3-1 australia win over japan) and got into the Munich abput the same time I did after the U.S. game that same day. We talked futbol and told our stories about everything we had already done and I was out the door to check on the status of Tim Murphy. I checked my email, but no new messages from that dude!

DANG!

While wandering around Munich I happenned to run into the Aussie roommates, randomly on the street, and ate lunch with them in a streetside outdoor cafe. I headed for the stadium for the Tunisia-Saudi Arabia match. I wanted to get there early to get a prime spot to hang my flag (space is limited, but anyone can hang whatever they want ... now I wish I had brought my maryland flag to hang as well).

When I arrived at the Allianz Arena on the outskirts of the city, it was just as I had expected. This was the reason that I had any interest in this match. This brand new arena is state of the art. The outside is paneled with big slabs that can glow red (for bayren munich games), blue (for 1860 munich games), and white (for the world cup). it was still daylight out though, so I didn't get to see the lights in action.

They took my video camera at the gate, so there is now footage of this game. I just feel lucky that I was able to get it into the 1st two games I went to. Those were the important ones. The game in Munich was exciting until the end. skill level wasn't all that high, but that was made up by the fact that I was about 10 feet away from one of the corner flags in a 1st row seat that was supposed to be "obstructed view". but there weren't any "obstructions" to be seen!

FANTASTIC!

Hands down, the best seat I have ever had to any sporting event in my life ... and I only paid 30 american dollars for it. I hung the flag a few feet away towards the goal, hoping I would have a better chence of getting some airtime for it there instead of right in front of me in the corner. It had to make air at least once. I made even made air during some of the corner kicks in that area.

The match ended 2-2 with Tunisia equalizing in 2nd half stoppage after falling hehind around the 84th minute. After the game, I quickly hustled back to the tram and headed back downtown. Germany was kicking off shortly against Poland, and I wanted to get the full experience in the downtown spares. I headed to Marienplatz where a surprise was right around the corner ...

II. MURPHADONA

On the train ride back from Allianz Arena, I learned that the FanFest at OlympicPark had been closed due to overcrowding. Word was that over 500,000 people showed up to watch the Germany-Poland match that night ... crazy.

After getting back to the Munch City Centre, I found a cafe, grabbed a few liters, and found a spot to watch the match. It was an insane atmosphere. Tons of German flags and banners all around Marienplatz (the main square in Munich). After watching the majority of the 1st half in the square, I decided to head down to the area where the Hofbrauhaus was. On the way there, I found one of the numerous screens set up and stopped to watch. As I was scanning the crowd, I noticed a familiar face ... the one and only Tim Murphy! After all of the trouble of missing each other and thinking that finding him was a lost cause, we happenned to find each other standing less than 10 feet away from each other on a random street in Munich. From there, it was on! We had a great night. Most of it was spent at the Hofbrauhaus. We found a pocket of Americans and tried our best to start some USA chants, but we were always drowned out by the ever growing numbers of Germans, Aussies, and Brazilians. We even witnessed some English Hooliganism (the Brits and the Aussies DO NOT get along very well). We roamed all over the place proudly displaying my American Flag. It was a very (VERY) late night, but definitely worth it. At the end of the night, I passed the flag on to Murph. I figured it would be cool if he kept it for the remainder of his trip.

After parting ways with Murph, I went back to the hostel and discovered the roof top lounge. The plan was to go back and go to bed ... the plan never happenned. I was up until the wee hours of the morning (saw the sun come up) sharing stories of my week and listening to stories from people from all over the world. Problem was, I had to catch a 9:30 am train back to Amterdam. I had shared some of the ganga that I still was toting around and everyone was quite happy with the mood that it put it us in.

III. The Final Hours

Needless to say, packing up my things and checking out was not a fun process. Lots of water and lots of aleve helped a little bit. But I made my train and sadly, was on my way out of Germany.

The train to Amsterdam was hell on earth. I had begun to contract the early stages of a cold and it hit me with full force on the train. Running nose, sneezing, chapped lips, headache (and not from my late night), you name it, I felt it on that train ride. First thing I did when I got back to Centraal Station in Amsterdam was find a store and get some medicine. It was all written in Dutch, but it did the job.

I checked into my hostel in the famous Red Light District at around 5:00 pm and immediately headed to Leidsplein to pick up some "supplies" and catch that night's matches. England was playing Trinidad & Tobago when I got there and it was quite a sight to see all the Brits packed into the bars. Their volume grew as England notched two late goals for their 2nd win of the tournament. The night cap was a 1-nil Sweden win over Paraguay in Berlin, which I enjoyed while I dined on a huge t-bone steak at the Skye Sports Cafe.

Afterwards, I gorged on two space cakes and wandered around the Red Light District (admiring the window dressing) and NO, I didn't buy anything I saw. I hit the sack around 1 am ... it was my last night in Europe.

The next morning, I was up in time for check out at 11 am. I wished my roommates (who were from Austin, TX) good bye, and surpirsed them with all the weed that I wouldn't be able to smoke before my departure. I made sure to roll one last massive spliff for the walk to Centraal Station for my final train ride back to Schipol Airport. On the train, I met Heidi, a 28 year-old living in Amsterdam. She's originally from South Africa, and when I learned this, I told her all about how in 4 years, that was were I would be ... at the next World Cup. It was kind of an odd symmetry that on my way out of the trip, I was already learning about South Africa, which is still over 4 years away.

The flight home was uneventful and now here I am, safe and sound, back in the good old U-S-of-A.

Ever since I got back, people have been asking me how the trip was and what was it like. I tell them all there is no word to describe what I witnessed on those 10 spectacular days. In all honesty ... I'd have to make up a word, because there isn't a word I know that does it any justice. What I experienced only fuels my appetite for what it will be like in South Africa. I can't believe I have to wait 4 more years to experience it again.

See you in 2010!

Wednesday, June 14, 2006

WATCH FOR ME TODAY ON TV

dateline -- munich -- 11:17 am

watch for me at today´s tunisia-saudi arabia match (noon on the east coast). I have front row seats in section 110 (behind one of the goals). I am taking my American flag and I´m going to try to hang it up ... I doubt there will be many other American flags hanging in the front row, so if you see it ... that´s me! I will be a red shirt ...

Also, I got word that Murph lost his luggage on the way to Prague and that is why he was a no-show.

WHAT A BUMMER!!

We´re still going to try to meet up at somepoint today ... hopefully it all works out.

time for a beer ...

Tuesday, June 13, 2006

F-U-J-J

dateline -- Munich -- 12:30 am

Even half way wround the world, it´s easy to trash Duke. Ealier, I got word from a friend of mine, Gary Carter, a producer at Comcast Sportsnet, that JJ Redick was busted for DUI. FANTASTIC ... what a doofus. He even tried to turn around to try to avoid the ticket. Goon!

Anyhow ... back to the more important stuff. Today was another long one. After the last blog, I wandered all over Munich, killing time before the expected arrival of one Tim Murphy. Munich is a great city. Lot´s of old architecture, and interestingly enough, most of it has been rebuilt. Over 70 percent of the buildings in thew city were destroyed during allied bombing raids in WWII. The country has rebuilt most the the historic buildings to their exact standards from the past and they all look like they have been there all along.

So, 3 pm rolls around and guess what? NO MURPH!

BOO!

I would be disapointed, but it isn´t the easiest thing to set up a meeting in a place where you have never been and you know nothing about. So I trust that something arose that kept that silly Irishmen from showing up. Even still, I grabbed one of the famous liters at the Hofbrauhaus and enjozed the Korea-Togo match, which was very exciting before ending in a 2-1 win for the Asians.

Afterwards, I headed to the Munich FanFest, which is at OlympicPark. It´s a very cool setup with the big screen on a floating barge in the lake of the park. The park itself is a very neat place to be at. So much history. The swimming hall where Mark Spity won his seven gold medals and the Stadium, which is the former home of 20-time Bundesliga Champions Bayern Munich, are all right there in the area. The stadium was where the 1974 World Cup final was contested ... a 2-1 West German win over Holland.

So, tonight was the debut of Brazil, and maybe more importantly, the debut of their ultra-passionate fans. The Samba Nation was out in full force in Munich today and well into the night. Olympic Park was full of Samba drums everywhere you turned, and just as Marge Simpson once said, once it gets in your soul, it is hard not to start swaying your hips and moving your feet. The Brazilians aren´t the only ones in Munich though, far from it. It seems like every country of the World Cup is represented here ... even saw a few American flags!!!

Today I went absolutely souvenier crazy. Bought a ton of stuff, most of which I really have no use for other than the sentimental value of it. Oh Well.

One last thing. You know in the movie Meet the Fockers where Dustin Hoffman working out by doing the Brazilian dance fighting. Well, I have now seen it first hand.

THAT´S ALL THE BRAZILIANS SEEM TO DO!

Everywhere you look there are two guys in yellow pretending to roundhouse kick each other in the face. I can´t decide if it´s too weird or too cool.

Disaster in Gelsenkirchen

dateline -- Munich -- 8:30 am

Embarassing!!! That was the overriding theme after the United States was throttled by the Czech Republic yesterday ... but before we get to that ... let´s recap how we got to this point ...

After the Holland match in Leipzig on Sunday, I headed back to the hostel where I met a 59 year-old Dutchman called Hank, who has been living in New Zealand for the past 20 years. He was at the last world cup in Germany back in 1974!!! He, myself, and one of my Serbian roomates, Miroslav, sat and chatted futbol for about an hour. Afterwards, I watched Mexico destroy Iran, and Portgal struggle to a disapointing 1-nil win over Angola. I was in bed and asleep by midnight.

Up bright and early (5:40 am) for my train to Gelsenkirchen. Leipzig was simply amazing and I will never forget my time there and the people that I met. I an definitely a memeber of the Oranje for life!

First thing I noticed when I arrived in Gelsenkirchen was that the Americans were seriously outnumbered. Tons of Czechs, everywhere in the city. After a long wait to find a locker to store my backpack (big ups to Chris from California for letting me share his -- without him, I would have been S-O-L) I headed over to the bars the check the scene. This was the best part of the day. The pregame atmosphere where the Americans had gathered was something that everyone from the States would be proud of. The footage I got here is priceless. I can´t wait to see it! We sang and danced in the streets for over three hours. My personal favorite chant was a spontaneous one that we came up with ...

´NOBODY LIKES US ... WE DON´T CARE´
´NOBODY LIKES US ... WE DON´T CARE´
´NOBODY LIKES US ... NOBODY LIKES US´
´NOBODY LIKES US ... WE DON´T CARE´

PERFECT ... we must have sung it about 20 times! During this time I also ran into Washington Post writer Camille Powell (who normally covers Georgetown Basketball) and got her to say some words on camera.

Then it was on to the Stadion! But first, the TRAM RIDE FROM HELL. We were packed in like sardines for what seemed like an enternity, and with everyone all sweaty and drunk from hours of pregamming in the sun, you can imagine the stench. On the Tram, I met a couple from Virginia Beach who are here in Germany on their honeymoon ... too cool!

Once into the stadium, I headed to my seat and continued to partake the singing and dancing. The Americans were loud ... the Czechs were louder. It was just a matter of sheer numbers. I would guess at least 70 percent of the stadium was pro-Czech. Signing the National Anthem was something I will never ever forget. Every American in the crowd sang at the top of his or her lungs. It was very special.

But it sure didn´t help that the Czechs scored in the 5th freakin minute. I was going to go in to a full match report, but why bother ... we simply stunk! Our ´young stars´, donovan and beasley, played like it was rec ball. It was if they had never played international futbol before in their lives. Bruce Arena has a lot of thinking to do before the Italy match, or we could be in big trouble. The US has now lost 7 straight World Cup matches on European soil. We just don´t play well in Eurpoe, period. Who knows the reason, but they need to solve it ... RIGHT NOW. In my personal opinion, yesterday could be the beginning of a big step backwards for American Soccer. It´s one thing to lose with class (not sportsmanship-wise, but flare and pizazz-wise) but it a whole different thing to be run circles round. Enough of that ... I´m starting to get pissed off again.

BTW ... my voice was gone by halftime.

Afterward that debacle, I headed to the FanFest to catch the Italy-Ghana match and sample some of the local brew, Vetlins (the company also holds the naming rights to the Stadium ... Vetlins Arena). If there was one positive of the loss, it was that everyone else felt sorry for us Americans and were buying us bier and just being very nice in general. And let me tell you something else ... German girls ... really like American boys. I found my World Cup Crush (word up to the boys in the Zoo back in Bethesda). Claudia, from Dusseldorf. I will leave it at that.

Oh, yeah .. my freaking watch broke yesterday also ... typical.

Gelsenkirchen was amazing, and I am glad I made the trip to see my national team. It was great to meet all sorts of people from all of the Uniedt States, who were all there for the same reason. One kid I talked to said it best. It´s all about the shirt. It unites us all behind one cause and it brings us together no matter what our differences are. When you are rooting on your country, everyone there with you is your friend and you are their´s. After the game, we all go our seperate ways, but that time we spent together is ours for ever and I am positive, none of us will ever forget it.

My train to Munich left at 12:30 am and it happened to go through Dusseldorf (hehe). I arrived in Munich about an hour ago, and here I am at the hostel.

One last thing. Insomnia is really starting to set in. I have been here now just over 5 days and I have only slept a grand total of 30 hours (and only 12 hours since I hit German soil 3 days ago)

I have gone over the half way point, but there is still a lot left to do. Today, fellow CSN employee, Tim Murphy hits Germany! He was in Prague (the Czech capital) for the game yesterday ... that must have been interesting. We´re meeting at the famous Hofbrauhaus at 3 pm.

This should be fun.

Sunday, June 11, 2006

Nothing like it ...

dateline -- Leipzig -- 6:45 pm

I know I just checked in a few hours ago, but I have to get this one up before I depart tomorrow, which will be a day without the Internet. After I got off the computer earlier, I had a chat with a Dutchman, who told me about the Oranje Supporters Gathering that was already going on ... and that at the end of it, the entire oranje army marches to stadium together. I WAS NOT MISSING THIS.

When I got there, I was blown away. Just one big party ... probably about 30,000 people crammed into a small square -- all of them drinking, singing, dancing, and just plain old having a good fucking time. I figured if there was a place in Germany to smoke the joints I had brought from Amsterdam, this was it ... and the Dutch were all about it. One guy even asked me if I had bought the veed at Dampkring ... how crazy is that? So after about 2 hours of boozin', we began our march to Zentral Stadion. It was about a mile and again, all we did was sing and dance the whole way there. Once inside the stadium, I made my way to my seat, right smack dab in the middle of the oranje! Once again, for two hours before the match even began, all we did was sing and dance ... and drink!

The actual match was one to remember. Arjen Robben struck in the 18th minute for the only goal, and the Dutch held on for the 1-nil win! Three points in the bag and tied at the top of the "group of death" with Argentina.

Now my focus shifts to the beloved Red, White, and Blue. I have decided to get to Gelsenkirchen as early as possible to soak up as much atmosphere as I can, because I have quickly learned, that is what this tournament is all about. I know our party tomorrow will not compare with what I have experienced here in Leipzig with the Oranje, but it will be a blast. It will be great to finally be able to communicate with people and to be an American again (my Dutch accent is getting really strong).

Now for the biggest deal of them all ... I GOT THE VIDEO CAMERA INTO THE MATCH. Just wait until you see this footage, and of course, the footage of the pregame party. You will not believe your eyes. There is nothing -- absolutely nothing -- in American sports that compares to what I have experienced today. I have been to the Final Four, which is the closest thing I would compare it to, in terms of the different people coming together in a party atmosphere centered around sports. Well, the Final Four is a daycare center compared to this, my friends!

Watch out world ... the Americans are coming ... tomorrow we shock the world .... again!

PS - I gotta give a shout to my man Ariel Agami for holding it down and posting my blogs while I have been in Leipzig. For some reason, I don´t have the ability to do it from the computers here at the hostel, so big ups to my man from NYC.

Matchday Morning

dateline -- Leipzig -- 8:40 am

When I last left you, I couldn´t believe the amount of Orange in this city ... Well, it has about doubled since then. The Dutch have simply taken over this small, formerly East German city. THEY ARE EVERYONE, and everywhere they are, there is singing and dancing and horn blowing and, of course, tons of beer drinking.

How about little Trinidad & Tobago holding the mighty Swedes to a scoreless draw? The atmosphere during that match in Augustusplatz was really cool. EVERYONE was going bonkers for T&T. The underdog brings people together.

After that match ended, I wondered around with some of the Dutchmen that I met on the train. Yesterday, I had run into them in the square. We found the closest biergarten and partook in the great german culture of drinking huge biers and spilling them all over each other in the process. Afterwards, we headed back to Augustusplatz to watch the Argentina-Ivory Coast match. On my way there I stopped and bought a USA t-shirt. I need to represent ... everyone else is. And let me tell you this: I'd bet any amount of money that you could count the number of Americans in this city right now on one hand ... and I am one of them ... crazy.

Argentina made quite a statement with their win ... they looked very tough. How about all of those shots of MARADONA? That dude is nuts! It looked like he was going to have a heart attack everytime they showed him.

After a few more liters of pils, I headed back to the hostel and passed out around 2 am. Needless to say, there was screaming, dancing, and horn blowing into the wee hours of the morning -- pretty much all night.

This morning I was up at 6:30 am. I headed over the stadium to see what it was like before everyone got there. i got some great footage -- and might have figured out a way to get the camera into the game ... We shall see about that though.

The best part of the morning was what happened next. As I wandered around the city center I happened upon the team bus of the Netherlands, and caught a glimpse of Head Coach Marco Van Basten on his way into the team hotel ... Pretty damn cool.

Kickoff is in just about 6 hours ... I will have a full report at some point soon.

BTW, my comcast blog is up and running ... check it out at

www.comcastsportsnet.com

And please don´t mind the hideous picture of me on the site. How stoned do I look in that picture? Did they do that on purpose???

hahahahahahahaha

Saturday, June 10, 2006

The Oranje Invasion

dateline -- Leipzig -- 6 p.m.

I´m on the ground in Germany and it is simply incredible what it is like, but let´s first take a look at how we got to this point ... sorry for the delay in posting, but the Internet has been hard to get to.

Yesterday was my final day in Amsterdam and it was one that I will not soon forget. After reading The Sun cover-to-cover and watching the BBC for the pregame feel from the opening match in Munich, I walked down to an area called Waterloopein. It is this huge outdoor market where you can find lots of little trinkets and mementos. I myself purchased some Nag Champa incense. I tell you what, I must have walked at least 10 miles -- probably more -- while I was in Amsterdam. I didn´t get on the tram once! I also bought an alarm clock for my early morning rising.

At around 4:30, I headed for the Satelitte Sports Cafe and grabbed a prime seat in front of one of the huge screens they had set up, ordered a tall heineken and settled in. The atmosphere at the place is something that is hard to put into words. As the opening kickoff happenned, the entire place exploded in a huge roar that lasted for a good three minutes. And this wasn´t the German or the Costa Rican supporters, it was everyone who had been waiting for so long for this moment ... the World Cup had begun!!!!!

Six pints and SIX FREAKIN GOALS later, I was feeling good and Germany had opened with a victory. Pretty much the whole bar was rooting for the Costa Ricans, but what do expect, it´s Holland ... the Germans are their arch-rivals. During the game I met Louis, from the Ivory Coast. He was on his way to Hamburg to see his team take on Argentina. You really get a sense what this tournament means when you talk to anyone from a country like the Ivory Coast. This is a nation that has been at Civil War for many years, yet for this special month, the waring factions have agreed to call a truce ... simply amazing.

Many people are saying that if the team advances far into the tournament, the truce could become perminant as the country is brought together by their futbol team´s success on the pitch. Again ... simply amazing.

After the game, I prety much staggered back to the hostel and clicked on the television to watch the Poland-Ecuador match, but it was to no avail. My eyes where shut and I was out by 10. I have yet to mention the weather ... but I will simply say that is has been perfect. I don´t want to jinx it, so that is all I will say.

This morning I awoke at 5:40 a.m. and headed straight to Amsterdam Centraal for my 7:17 train to Leipzig. I was feeling a bit hungover, but two aleves and some echinacea took good care of that! Now, I thought that it would be a loney stroll through through the streets at that time of morning, but I was dead wrong. Basically, everyone was still out from the night before and on their way home as I was on my way out. I also got my first taste of hooliganism and I saw three or four british thugs battling it out with the Amsterdam Police. Needless to say, the thugs lost out and one even got a face full of club, which appeared to remove a few of his teeth. Ouch!

I was at the train station very early and it was a lucky thing to, because the train left about 20 minutes early. Tons of are Argentines are on this train, which was going to Hannover -- where I would transfer. The Argies were heading to Hamburg for their match tonight. There was a mass exodous of Sky Blue and White as we stopped in Osnabrück -- the transfer station for Hamburg. The train to leipzig was a trip and this is where the story of the "oranje invasion" begins ...

The car that i decided to board was definitely the right one. It was decorated with orange streamers and almost 3/4 of the people on the car were decked out in orange. they sang and danced and played their horns for almost the entirety of the 3-hour trip. Breathtaking! I sat and chatted with a few of them and as we plowed through their case of grolsch -- one of holland´s finest lagers -- I informed them I was going to the game. Turns out, most of them aren´t. they are just heading into town fot the atmosphere. Obviously, there was a bit of jealousy and one guy even offered me some cash for ticket, but that baby ain´t for sale!

Once in Leipzig, it all hit me. I WAS AT THE WORLD CUP! Words really cannot describe the atmosphere in this city or what a tiny city it is. Really old school. The first thing I did was go to get my tickets. the lady who handed them to me said she hadn´t seen a smile that big in a while --- obviously I was overly excited.

Now for the best news -- somehow I was assinged front row tickets for my game in Munich. And I am talking front row, front row, not the front row of the upper deck, the front row of the entire arena!!!!!

HAHAHAHAHAHAHA

I checked into the Hostel which is right in the center of the city, but my room wasn´t ready, so I dropped my huge bag and and headed to Augustusplatz, the main city square. This is where they set up the huge screen for everyone to watch the games. I watched England hold on for a 1-nil win over Paraguay and then headed back to move my things into my room, and meet some of my Serbian roomates -- already a little trash talking going on, and here I am sitting at the hostel´s computer.

Tonight I am going to find a place to watch the Argentina-Ivory Coast match and then tomorrow it´s time for the real fun to begin!!!

Friday, June 09, 2006

I don't know Dutch

dateline -- amsterdam (10:26 am)

Let's start with what they call and "aside".

After thinking that I had realized that the real reason that Aer Lingus was so dirt cheap was because their flights are never on time and you just get what you pay for, I heard the news that al Zarqawi was killed. The headline on the front page of The Sun read, "Beast al Zaqawi blasted to death in hideout." those brits sure don't hold back, huh? My guess know is that is also the reason for the increased security in the airports I noticed. Just a hunch, though. So, I'll give Aer Lingus a pass ... for now.

Back to the real story ...

This city is too funny. it just brings out the funiest stuff in people ... at least funny to me. yesteray evening I stopped in to Dampkring. Gram of Kali Mist. Probably the end of my ganga buying until I leave for Germany (can't do it like the old days, and two grams in two days of this stuff is just plenty) walked back up to leidsplein. wanted to grab a chair outside on the square and roll up the green. as I walk through to the door of the Bulldog, on my way to buy some juice, the 1st thing I hear is "USA!" This guy has the only empty chair outside at his table, so I join him.

Jim, from California, this is his 4th world cup and 5th time to amsterdam! After Jim took a puff on his pipe, and I enjoyed some of the best veed that amsterdam has to offer (damkring is class A), we talk about soccer and how people overseas feel about the united states and what the reaction will be at our games (he's going to all three). then he lets me know that he has already fucked two hookers (one in the afternoon and one a night) and been thrown in jail for being too drunk. AND HE HAS ONLY BEEN HERE FOR TWO DAYS. Way to go Jim! He also tells me that they are setting up two big screens in the square to watch the 1st night of the tournament. So that is definitely where I will be tonight.

After that I wondered around for a bit, got chased by a bum who wouldn't leave me alone until I gave him some money, ate some some of the famous patat frite (french fries), and called it a night. It was only 8 pm, but I had been up for 28 hours straight.

ONE DONE ... EIGHT TO GO!

This morning I awoke at 6 am, fully rested after 10 full hours of sleep, ready to explore. I walked down to Central Station and got my rail pass validated. I also checked to find out which platform my 7:13 am (yargh!) train leaves tomorrow. I then walked over to Barney's for some breakfast. To my full surprise, it was empty . This place is always jammed and I was fully ready for at least a 10 minute wait to get a seat. Got an omelettee, did a joint of rookies mixed with kali mist and chowed down. It was delicious. After breakfast, on my out out. I met a kid from LA (didn't catch his name) who is doing a documentary of his own ... he and his pals are going to smoke an ounce of weed today ... and document it. At least that's what he said. I will give him credit though, he did have a whole eighth of herb rolled up on one huge spliff (I got a great picture), so he may be telling the truth. I may go back later and check in on their progress. I think I am going to get a t shirt from this place (either them or dampkring).

This being the first day of the world's great sporting event, the papers where jacked full of nothing but coverage. If it weren't for the death of one of the more well' nown terrorists in the entire world, the front page would have been nothing but world cup coverage (from a violently blatent british viewpoint) But the brits do quality journalism, sleezy, but very high quality.

Some things that stood out ... three full pages of the wayne rooney being cleared to play, a full page on the opening game tonight, a 20-page pullout of everything you could think of relating to the tournament, and some news that over 150 FIFA blacklisted english hooligans were on their way to germany, after sneaking through customs (hooligans are big business in europe).

News affecting the Amercian's ... Apparently, Reading (newly promoted to the English Premier League) are after young U.S center back Oguchi Onyewu. American midfielder Bobby Convey, ... formerly of DC United ... and American Goalkeeper Marcus Hannennman both play at Reading. But now there is news that another Premiership club, Fulham (where American forward Brian McBride plays) wants Onyewu as well. Looks like a battle brewing for Guch, an Olney, Md native. Also word that the Italians are staying in some crappy german hotel (most teams are staying at 5-star kind of places or even secluding themselves at the most exclusive resorts throughout the country). If you are not familiar with the story ... basically the Italian Futbol Federation is in the midst of what could be their biggest scandal ever. And that is saying a lot. Always lots of shady dealings in Serie A (the Italian 1st Division). Delving even deeper into this story though, we could find some negative effects on the Americans chances of advancing out of the group. In 1982, with their soccer federation in shambles after a scandal rocked the country, the Italian team bonded together and went out and won the World Cup. Yikes!

This might be the last post for at least 24 hours (probably more). Next one will be the 1st from German soil!