So it begins...

With about two hours to go until I begin the arduous 30+ hour trek from Hingham, MA to Johannesburg, South Africa, one would likely think that I would be spending these final hours on American soil resting and relaxing. However, when your room looks like the photo on the side, you are not afforded such luxuries. Although this sorry state of affairs is 100% my fault, I refuse to give in to the barbaric ritual of packing. I'm secretly hoping that with my back to them, the clothes and random travel stuff will go into the bags by themselves. I'm not optimistic; sadly, I think I am going to have to take a little initiative.
In spite of the drudgery involved in getting on the road, I could not be more excited. I am not only going off to an amazing country with a fascinating history and culture, but at the same time I get to take in the 2010 edition of the World Cup. Having been to the last installment in 2006, I have witnessed firsthand the incredible power of the world's game. In spite of rivalries between teams and nations, soccer has an inspiring ability to bring together people of completely different backgrounds and beliefs. Their love of the game becomes their common ground, and it bridges the gaps between people that, on the surface, seem impossibly wide. For one month every four years, people from all over the globe come together and put many differences aside in the name of sport.
I am so excited to get to be a part of this event again. It all begins (for me) on Saturday night in Rustenburg, where the US meets England in a hugely anticipated game. There's a lot more on the line for England than the US, but I fully expect both fan bases to be out in full force and borderline out of control. It will cap an absolute whirlwind of globetrotting, where over less than two days I go Hingham-New York-Dubai-Johannesburg-Rustenburg-Johannesburg. It's going to be long and exhausting, but the exhilaration of being there will be enough to carry me through (for a time at least!).
I'm going to try to update here as much as I can, since it will be easier to do that than to be chain e-mailing a bunch of different people. I'm going to try to post some pictures here, and I'll post some on twitter from my phone. You can follow me @dcsibor. Other than that, everyone enjoy the States and next time I'll be coming to you from South Africa!