RHIAN SOCCER JOURNALS           

ARRIVAL IN BUDAPEST HUNGARY                     6th June 2011

The whole squad was up early for a pre-travel training session this morning. There was only time for a quick practice, so we partook of  some shadow play, then some fast footwork and then it was time to hit the showers. Because we are leaving the Roman hotel for a couple of days, we had to completely pack up and move out of our rooms. In all, this was a rather chaotic start.

The flight to Budapest went smoothly. I have mentioned before that I am not a great flier, so anything that isn’t a perfectly smooth flight is anathema to me. Today was okay. I tried to pretend I was elsewhere by listening to the amazing audio book Bossypants by Tina Fey. If you have not read or listened to it, you should do so immediately. It is hilarious. I just could not stop myself from laughing out loud, and this even when I noticed the annoyed looks being thrown my way by nearby travelers.

For some reason though, and even though I had my head up against the aeroplane window and had earphones in my ears, the woman next to me plane kept tapping me and insisting that we should talk. Problem #1 was that we did not speak the same language; problem #2 was that I was exhausted; and finally, problem #3 I was listening to Tina Fey on my earphones.

For once, all our bags arrived at the same time we did, and there was nothing missing. In Budapest we were soon loaded on the team bus and we headed for the Global Football Park and Sportshotel in Telki. This suburb of Budapest is at least an hour's drive away from the airport, but the ride was quite enjoyable as it took us right through the city. I still have no idea which side of the Danube is Buda and which side is Pest. Not that this really mattered as both were equally interesting. Not sure I would want to live in a city called Pest!

Once arrived at our hotel we were whisked away quickly to the meal room. It was already 8:00pm and we were ravenous. This is when we had our first glimpse of our competition - thee Hungarians.  I have to admit to not knowing much about them as we have never played them before. All I can tell you is that seen from across the dining room they seem like an athletic bunch of players who will definitely give us a run for our money tomorrow.