Pretoria

The $160 view, yikes...


Celebration after the final whistle


Team photo, zoomed way in


After more difficulty navigating a highway than I ever could have imagined, we arrived in Pretoria at the beautiful 1322 Backpacker's International. Now, based on our previous experience at the Ritz, we were not expecting a whole lot from this place. We had seen what a highly rated hostel in South Africa looked like, and had hoped that this place would merely be serviceable for the two non-refundable nights we had booked. Our initial reaction was what I would call guardedly optimistic; upon arrival we were immediately invited to partake in a barbecue of burgers and hot dogs, and to sit by the nice outdoor fire they had cooked up on this chilly winter evening. So far so good. However, we soon learned that we were thinking with our empty stomachs instead of our heads. In brief, concise sentences, here is a record of what we learned next:
The meal would cost 25 rand. Not a huge problem, but it put a damper on our excitement. Our room was another six person, over-crowded mess. The bathroom was outside, and had no lock. For our own safety, our skin was not allowed to touch the extra blanket they gave us. When dinner was served, we were only allowed one small and very non-meat-tasting hamburger and two tiny boiled Vienna hot dogs. There was no heat by the bar where the TV showing that night's game was. The owner/bartender did not appreciate our sarcastic jokes about the "punch" she was mixing. When we went to bed with our winter hats, sweatshirts, and long pants, we were greeted with yet another symphony of snoring. When we came back after the game the next evening, our car was parked on the lawn and blocked in by four other cars, ruining our ability to make a speedy getaway. For a place that claims "We pride ourselves on honesty [and] cleanliness," we received little of either.
The actual game was incredibly stressful for both players and fans. Algeria hit the crossbar on a shot early on in the game, and the USA fans were henceforth very nervous and subdued. Our entire section was seated almost the entire game, which was not the case in any of the other three games we attended. Donovan's late winner was a dream, of course, but it felt more a relief than anything else. I'm saving my rant about our actual seats at the game for another time, as it will become an extended rant about FIFA in general. All I'll say for now is that the subdued nature of our crowd had something to do with the fact that we payed $160 per seat for our tickets, and yet we were in the top deck about 15 rows from the last row of the stadium. Not cool.
Our return to Joburg and to Howard's house, which grew in value to us every time we went somewhere else, was a welcome one after our brief stay in sleepy Pretoria. There really is nothing to do there. The next few days were spent relaxing and re-energizing for the US' round of 16 game against Ghana, the final African country still alive in the tournament.