Goals By Ginger #1 - Painting The Scene

Here is thing, from elementary school in Saudi Arabia, attending high school in Massachusetts, university in Toronto and business school in Arizona, I truly have met some interesting characters along the way. The beauty of it all is that those characters have interesting stories and as part of this endeavor onto the world wide web, some of them will share some of their stories.

So here we go, live from Johannesburg is a Posts By Panos exclusive, our very own reporter from the scene of the madness, Ginger Mitchell. Thanks Ginger!

Painting The Scene - Goals By Ginger - Article #1

When I was working in Johannesburg last summer (winter for the southern hemisphere), the World Cup was something hallowed that people spoke of quietly. It seemed terribly far away, with roadworks gumming up the morning commute and massive construction sites dotting the country as South Africa prepared to host the World Cup on the continent of Africa for the first time. Now that I am back a year later, the excitement has reached a fever pitch and the World Cup is clearly front and center.  

With my family having lived in this country for the past two years, I feel somewhat bound to defend it against the tide of "but are they ready???" stories that the Western media love to broadcast. To answer: yes, we are ready. The major roadworks on the highways are done, the stadiums are all complete, the Gautrain connecting O. R. Tambo airport to Marlboro will start running tomorrow, on schedule, and the logistics are set in place to host "the big dance." With no offense meant to Panos, the Greeks managed to pull off a very successful Olympics in 2000 with many of the same concerns raised and South Africa will be able to do at least as well, if not better. 

World Cup spirit is sported in more ways that I could possibly imagine. Instead of casual Fridays, team jersey Fridays have been de rigeur in most offices since March. Most workers opt for brightly colored yellow Bafana Bafana jerseys, the name of the South African national team which means "the boys" in Zulu, but there is a smattering of England, Netherlands, Portugal and Brazil jerseys amongst the crowds. The roadside vendors have taken their creativity up a notch, offering car flags that slip into your windows and flag pattern rear view mirror covers that have exploded in popularity. Most drivers either have two South African flags proudly displayed, or one SA flag and one from their team of choice. I have even seen Mexico and Chilean flags, proving that nearly all countries are represented. I'm still looking for that North Korean flag, and will of course report as soon as I see one. Even my parents have gotten into the spirit with a USA mirror cover that took them some time to ferret out, as my mother enjoys telling me. What is most amusing is that the covers resemble bikini tops, so it's rather like your car is wearing a bathing suit once the device is applied properly. 

My family has also received an excellent gift from a friend, our very own plastic vuvuzela, or horn, so we can make obnoxiously loud tooting noises at matches (and outside our home) to our heart's content! I have practiced my skills and am proud to frighten the neighbors dogs without too much sputtering and unfortunate blatting warmup noises. Word of advice, however, if you are attending any games in person, bring earplugs!   

Just before the weekend we received the exciting news that Nelson Mandela himself will make a very rare public appearance at the opening match on June 11th to cheer on Bafana Bafana as they take on Mexico in the newly renovated Soccer City stadium in Soweto. As to whether or not Madiba will opt for a yellow Bafana jersey or one of his trademark patterned button-downs, no one can say, but I have my suspicions that he will show his team spirit indeed!   

All the cynicism over the increased traffic and the skepticism that some South Africans expressed to me last year about the readiness of their country appears to have melted away and everyone is incredibly excited to be hosting the biggest party in the world for the next two weeks. It appears that most offices will be hosting kick off parties this Friday in anticipation of the big game, and many of my coworkers are planning to take their families to the large outdoor viewing spaces that have been arranged with a big-screen broadcast of the game. Hopefully everyone will be able to have some fun over the next few weeks and cheer on their teams to victory!  

-Ginger Mitchell