Kogeria Match Day in Delightful Durban

“The warmest place to be in 2010” has been the marketing line for Durban during the FIFA World Cup! Durban promises great weather, mouth-watering cuisines, and the only Host City with a Fan Park right on the beach!
From the time the Host Cities and games were announced, David and I had no doubt that Durban was the place to be for the World Cup, for reasons obviously greater than the food and weather. Our two countries – Nigeria and South Korea would be taking on each other.
With the game tickets, flights and accommodation sorted, finally the long-awaited day arrived. 22nd June in Durban was a delight!, a group of us were at the FIFA Fan Park, at the beachfront supporting Bafana Bafana as they fought to restore some hope in the nation’s psyche after their loss to Uruguay on June 16th.
There was passion and excitement everywhere. An endless sea of yellow and green, Hip hop artistes on stage, food stalls, multi-cultural faces, friendly security officers and obviously the deafening vuvuzela choirs, where every tune and pitch works best at distortion levels.
The Bafana Bafana game became an instant spectacle as South Africa landed the first goal against France in the first 25 minutes. The whole place caught fire. Strangers were jumping on each other and the natural dancers displaying their moves. The joy was indescribable. Being on the beach during winter watching the world cup with passionate supporters was priceless.
After that, it got even better. We made our way on foot to the beautiful Moses Mabhida Stadium, to watch Nigeria play South Korea. The architectural design of the stadium is the most admired among all others. Stepping into the stadium alone gave me an endorphin rush. As we settled in, the two teams took to the field as the electrified crowd cheered. Both teams needed to qualify for the next knock-out stage of the game, so the tension was as thick as glass.
There were over 61,000 people at the stadium that night, mostly wearing either green for Nigeria or Red for Korea. The game ended with a tie, but Korea moved to the next stage while Nigeria didn’t qualify.
As we exited the stadium around 10:30pm at night, meeting fans and taking photos with strangers was such fun, no actually therapeutic for me, since i was depressed that Nigeria did not qualify for the knock out stages. Everyone was on high with happiness, but at the same time very considerate and friendly. It was truly the best choice to be in Durban!
The question that remains in many minds is ”how has the game impacted on our relationship?” Well, all I have to say is that I’m glad David is not as much of a “die-hard” fan as I am.

My World Cup Woes and Wins

As you’ve probably experienced, most bearers of news will begin by asking...”good news and bad news, which one do you want to hear first?” and usually, the receiver chooses the bad first.
Flying through Johannesburg at the end of April on my return trip from Nigeria, My suitcase was broken into, and the only items only stolen were two Nigerian National Soccer Team Jerseys (Adidas Brand). I was very upset because one was a gift from my brother-in-law and the other was also a gift from me to David, my boyfriend. By the way, David and I are planning to watch our two countries take on each other in Durban, where South Korea plays Nigeria.
My second woe was recent. This time, David bought me a Nigerian flag to put on my car, and three days later, it was stolen when I left my car parked at the airport. These two unpleasant experiences put a slight damper on my world cup spirit.
Rewind button. I applied for match tickets in February, and was super thrilled when my application was randomly selected. The procedure was that you would be notified if successful, then price deducted from your credit card and finally, starting from April, you walk into a FIFA ticketing office, with all the proof in the world to redeem the tickets.
Upon receiving the instruction for collection via email, I got this dreaded picture in my head... me spending a whole day in a long cue, then finally when it’s my turn, the person behind the desk looks at my documents and says “we still need X”. Then I would have to go away, and go through a repeat of long cues again. Oh, another worst-case-scenario was that I will be told “sorry, your payment transaction failed, you have no confirmed tickets on the system!”...then what will happen to the flights, car and every other thing that was booked?
If you have ever attended a procrastination party, you are able to perfectly predict the next point. Two months passed by, and then, two days before the kick-off game, still haven’t gone for ticket collection. Suddenly, I woke up to the thought of FIFA re-selling my ticket if I didn’t collect it before the game starts!!! (Another silly fear scenario i created). So I decided today was the day (08 June).
I printed the confirmation email, my passport, proof of my residential address, along with a hand-scribbled address of FIFA Collection office. I drove into town without looking up the actual location online, but I was lucky to accidentally spot the street name I was looking for, and later on FIFA Sign! First miracle!
Then there was the problem of parking. It was full to the brim. I was told to drive in so I could make a U-turn and exit. But I had a gut feeling that I shouldn’t exit, and Bingo! I found parking, the ONLY spot available, with a string of cars behind me, scrambling to turn around and exit. That was my second Miracle.
As I get out of my car, I saw a long cue in front of me, which confirmed my paranoia. I looked further and noticed another sign that said “collection”. It had no queue, too good to be true, I thought. Upon entering, I saw some volunteers. Bear in mind that by now, I was already so defensive and apprehensive, waiting to be told a long procedure.
A lady guided me to a self-help point. She asked me if I had the credit card that I paid with, again my answer was a defensive yes. She collected the card, simply slotted it in, and out and then comes the sound of printing! In less than two minutes (no exaggeration), I had my two tickets in my hands. My mouth fell open, and the volunteers were so amused by my expressiveness.
As I walked out, there were cars trying to turn around and exit due to full parking. I realised that I didn’t even need to pay for parking, as I was there not longer than 5 minutes total.
It literally shocked me as I realised how much of my “perception of reality” and “fear” had held me back for over two months!
If there is anything to remember, “Do not always believe the scripts in your head”. In my case, I made up horrible reality in my head to a point of paralysis. Fear and self-inflicted limitations hold us back from so many wonderful, magical and memorable experiences. Once again, I’m reminded that the best way to test your fears to see if they are true is to act as though they didn’t exist. Courage is not the absence of fear, but acting in spite of fear.