Liga total! Cup 2012 in Hamburg

Am Wochenende war ich in Hamburg zum Besuch des > Liga total! Cup 2012. Der Samstag begann mit einer ziemlich nervigen Anfahrt über die Landstraße nach Nienburg und von dort zur A7. Auf der A1 vor Hamburg war auch nochmal Stau, so dass ich erst viertel nach drei in Hamburg war. Nach dem Einchecken im > Hotel Astoria ging es zur > Imtech Arena. Das erste Spiel HSV gegen Borussia Dortmund war nicht gut gewesen. Irgendwie hatten beide Mannschaften – insbesondere aber der HSV – keine Lust oder sie konnten bzw. wollten nicht besser spielen. Dortmund gewann 1:0. Im zweiten Spiel besiegte überraschenderweise Werder Bremen im Elfmeterschießen den FC Bayern München. Franck Ribery und wieder mal Bastian Schweinsteiger haben die Elfmeter für Bayern verschoßen. Etwas betrübt ging es dann zum Steak essen ins > Block House am Hauptbahnhof. Am Sonntagmorgen ging es kurz vor Mittag zur Langen Reihe ins > Grünberg zum Frühstücken. Anschließend waren wir schon recht früh zur Arena gefahren um noch einen guten Parkplatz zu ergattern. Nach einer Bratwurst ging es ins Stadion. Im Spiel um Platz drei gewann Bayern München gegen den HSV mit 1:0. Im Endspiel gewann Werder Bremen im Elfmeterschießen gegen Borussia Dortmund. Da ich noch eine lange Rückfahrt hatte, bin ich schon zur Halbzeitpause beim Stand von 2:3 gegangen. Es war auf jeden Fall die beste Halbzeit aller Spiele. Immerhin gab es auf der Rückfahrt nur zwei Staus und so war ich fünf Minuten vor dem olympischen 100 m Finale wieder zu Hause.

Reisebericht: Aus der Traum…

Gestern war ich in > Wolfsburg zum Spiel der > deutschen Frauen-Fußball-Nationalmannschaft gegen Japan. Es war das Viertelfinale bei der Weltmeisterschaft 2011 und die deutsche Mannschaft (Titelverteidiger und zweimailiger Weltmeister) war natürlich der Favorit. Die Stimmung im Stadion war auch gut gewesen. Als das 0:1 fiel war es dagegen sofort still. Leider hat es für Deutschland nicht mehr zum Sieg gereicht. Das > Stadion in Wolfsburg ist aber sehr schön. Die Parkplätze sind sehr nah am Stadion, das Stadion liegt direkt neben dem Mittellandkanal und in die Stadt sind es auch nur knapp zwei Kilometer. Nur die Sitzplätze lassen für die Beine recht wenig Platz. Da hat man z. B. in Hamburg mehr Freiraum.

South Africa Travel Report

Date: 2010-06-22 until 2001-07-15

Photos: On my Flickr Account

2010-06-22, Tuesday

I drove by car from Bad Oeynhausen to Siek, where I parked my car. From Siek Carsten and I were brought to the Hamburg airport. From there we were flown with Air France to the Paris airport. Since we had a some hours stay we watched the game South Africa against France on TV in a coffee shop at the airport. Afterwards we were flown from Paris to Johannesburg airport (OR Tampo).

2010-06-23, Wednesday

In the morning we arrived at OR Tampo in Johannesburg. From there a shuttle taxi brought us the the DFB Fan Village at the Tshwane Technical University. There we stayed at the Orion complex. After noon the fans met in the Fan Village  marquee to join in the game against Ghana. During this, Gerald Assamoah, a german soccer player which was born in Ghana, visited the Fan Village. At 4 pm we drove by bus to the Soccer City stadium in Johannesburg. The game Germany against Ghana was not very well, but Germany have won 1:0 and qualified for the Round of 16. Afterwards we drove back to the Fan Village. In the night we realized that the nights are cold (sometimes below 0 degree celisus) and the rooms had no heating. So we have used three blankets in the nights.

2010-06-24, Thursday

On Thursday we had picked up our tickets for the round of 16 match against England. For that we drove by car with two others to the Brooklyn Mall in Pretoria. Further we visited the Voortrekker Momument. Afterwards we ate at Butcher Brothers Steakhouse restaurant in the Centurion Mall. Then we drove back to the Fan Village where we watched the game Denmark against Japan in TV.

2010-06-25, Friday

In the morning we started a tour to the Pilanesberg Game Reserve by bus. Unfortunately, it was very cold in the morning and the bus had no heating, so we froze. In the evening we watched the game Chile against Spain in the Fan Village.

2010-06-26, Saturday

Today we drove to the Union Buildings complex in Pretoria. In the Fan Village we saw the match USA against Ghana.

2010-06-27, Sunday

In the very early morning we started our bus trip to Bloemfontein to see the match Germany against England. We started at half past six and arrived at 1 pm in Bloemfontein. Their we went to the Loch Logan Waterfront mall near the Free State stadium where the English supporters celebrete the match. Joyful for us, Germany won 4-1 against England and the ‘second’ goal for England was historical. After the match we started at 7 pm with the bus trip back to the Fan Village in Pretoria. There we arrived at 3 am in the next morning. But the party in the Fan Village started and some supporters celebrated the victory until 8 am.

2010-06-28, Monday

In the morning we drove to the Brooklyn Mall in Pretoria. We picked up our tickets for the match Germany against Argentina in Cape Town. Afterwards we spent the day on the Fan Village. In the afternoon we drove to the Centurion Mall and ate at the Butcher Brothers Steakhouse restaurant. There we saw a few excerpts of the match Netherlands against Slovakia. Back in the Fan Village we saw the match Brazil against Chile. Since I predicted the result of 3:0 for Brazil, I won a replic of the final ball, called Jobulani.

2010-06-29, Tuesday

At noon we left the Fan Village and drove by car to a parking lot near the stadium. Today was the match Paraguay against Japan in Pretoria. We bought the tickets in February look forward to see a match Italy against Denmark or Cameroon. We never expected that Paraguay will win his group. We had tickets of category 1, so very good seats and saw the probably worst match of the World Cup. Before we went to the Loftus Versfeld stadium we went to a fan area near the stadium. There we ate in a restaurant. After the match we drove back to the Fan Village, where we saw the match Spain against Portugal on TV.

2010-06-30, Wednesday

In the early morning we rise up to welcome Ulli. Then we went to ate a ‘great’ breakfast. Unfortunately, the Ghana supporters left the university after the match against the USA, so it was very quite in the breakfast room.

2010-07-01, Thursday

Today it was a match-free day. Carsten and Ulli drove this day to Soweto by bus from the Fan Village. I decided to not go to Soweto, since I had problems with my bowel. So, I sat in the Internet cafe of the University and wrote e-mails and searched for accomodations in Durban, Sun City, Pretoria and to tours in Durban and Sun City. Later we decided not to went to Sun City after the final match, since the hotels are too expensive. In the late afternoon we drove to the Centurion Mall, where I bought something against my bowel problem. Further we ate at Butcher Brothers Steakhouse restaurant.

2010-07-02, Friday

We arrived at the airport half an hour before arrival time. At the airport a taxi from Randys Tours picked us up and brought us to our guest house 17 on Loader. Unfortunately, the taxi was more expensive as it was told us by the manager of our guest house. The guest house was more expensive than in Pretoria, but much nicer and not so cold in the night. So, we were happy that we decided to go to Cape town. Afterwards we went to an internet cafe to book our Durban accomodation and the flight from Durban to Johannesburg. After finished this we went to Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. There we went to the Quay 4 Tavern, where we ate and watched the match Netherlands against Brazil. In the evening we went to the Long Street, where we looked for a pub to watch the evening game Uruguay against Ghana. Unfortunately Ghana lost the dramatically match, so the vibe in the pub going down. We stoped a taxi from Intercab and drove to the guest house.

2010-07-03, Saturday

In the afternoon we went over the Fan walk from the Long Street to the Cape Town stadium. Germany won 4:0 against Argentina, which was a great success. Afterwards we went to the Quay 4 Tavern in the Waterfront area, where we watched Paraguay against Spain on TV. Unfortunately Spain has won.

2010-07-04, Sunday

In the early morning we started our half-day tour to the Cape of Good Hope. We drove with the van (with 7 other people) to Simon’s Town, where Boulder’s Beach is. At the beach we left the van and visited the African Penguins. After that we drove to the southern Table Mountain National Park and Cape Point. Afterwards we drove back to Cape Town. In the afternoon we decided to went to the Table Mountain. Since we could not walked we tried to get a cheap taxi. But the weather was nice and many people had the same idea. So we waited about one hour to get into the cableway which brought us to the top of the mountain. After a snack on the bistro we drove down. For that we have waited another hour. In the evening we went to the Andiamo restaurant, which was located in the De Waterkant area near our guest house.

2010-07-05, Monday

In the early morning we started our tour to the vineyards near Cape Town. Our bus was a little bit late, but then we started. First we drove the Zevenwacht. After a short explanation and tour through the vine house it goes into the tasting room. After half a hour we left Zevenwacht and drove to a town, that name I have forgot. Then we drove to Tokara in Stellenbosch. After the visit we drove to Franschoek, where we could bought some chocolates at Huguenot Fine Chocolates. Then we drove to R… and then to Seidelberg. In the afternoon we was back at 17 Loader Street. After a stop we drove by taxi to The Ritz Hotel, which has a revolving rooftop restaurant. The dinner was good a pianist played during the time.

2010-07-06, Tuesday

In the morning we went to Victoria & Alfred Waterfront. At noon our taxi from Intercab brought us to the airport. With 230 Rand was the trip cheap instead of our trip from the airport to the guest house. I can recommend Intercab taxi. We drove with these taxi company twice, and it both fees were fair. Then we flight with Mango to Durban. It was a one hour and thirty minutes flight. At the airport in Durban we searched for a hotel or guest house at the Tourist information office. Unfortunately, they found not a hotel or guest house for us. So, we decided to drive to the Penney Holiday Flats room. First, the taxi driver did not found the Gillespie Street. As we found out later, several street names was changed some months before the World Cup started. Unfortunately the building with the flats make not a serious impression. So, we were glad, if we were in the flat on the 10th floor. Afterwards we went to the beach and ate something in the Mac Rib restaurant of the Garden Court Hotel, where we watched the first semi-final between Holland and Uruguay.

2010-07-07, Wednesday

It is the day of the semi-final Germany against Spain. We decided to went on the esplanade and prepare for the match in the evening. At Joe Cools the atmosphere was great and several Spanish and German supporters was there. After that we went to the stadium. After the lost match we went on the esplanade to the apartment. On the way we stopped at the life guard pub at the beach.

2010-07-08, Thursday

Unfortunately Germany lost the semi-final, so we were gloomy. Today, we went only on the esplanade. In the afternoon we went to the [xxx]

2010-07-09, Friday

In the early morning we started our tour to the Sani Pass and Lesotho. Since we do not had rent a car, we had a driver which brought us to Underberg, where we switched the cars and started the tour on the Sani Pass. The tour was powered by Thaba Tours. We paid 1.200 Rand for the tour. The other three participants had paid 1.800 Rand. In Lesotho we ate and drink something at the Sani Top Chalet, which is the highest pub in Africa. After the tour we went to the Hotel Garden Court at the Marine Parade to drink something.

2010-07-10, Saturday

In the early morning we were flewn from Durban to Johannesburg. Via taxi we arrived the A Lala Lodge in Centurion. Unfortunately we used an approved taxi from the airport, which was very expensive (550 Rand). Normally you pay between 300 and 350 Rand, said the manager of the lodge. From the Lodge we went to the Centurion Mall, where we ate in O’ Galitos and in the Butcher Brothers Steakhouse restaurant. Afterwards we drove by taxi to the lodge, where we watched the semi-final Germany against Uruguay in one of our rooms.

2010-07-11, Sunday

This was a leisure day. We didn’t do anything without playing soccer at the lodge parking area and read a book. In the evening we watched the final Netherlands against Spain in one of our rooms. The manager of the A Lala Lodge organized for us tours for the next days. On Monday to Pilanesberg and on Tuesday and Wednesday to Kruger National Park. Both would be arranged by Trax Travel.

2010-07-12, Monday

At 7:30 am we started to drive to the Pilanesberg Game Reserve. It was a nearly three hours drive, since we used a route through Hartbeespoort. In Pilanesberg we saw several mammals, such as Giraffes, Wildebeest, Hippopotamuses, Elephants, White Rhinoceros, Zebras. At 9 pm we were back in Centurion, where we stayed at the xxx Lodge.

2010-07-13, Tuesday

At 7:30 am Philip – our driver – picked us up from the lodge. First we drove on the freeway to Pretoria and then to Belfast, Dullstroom, Lydenburg and on the Panorama Route on the Long Tom Pass. Form there we drove via Sabie to the Mac Mac falls. Then to Graskop and to the God’s Window and Rain Forest views. Afterwards we drove to the Three Rondvales, where you have a great view over the Blyde River Canyon area. The view is much better as at God’s Window. Afterwards we drove through the Numbi Gate to the Pretoriuskop camp. In the camp we ate at the restaurant and sat together at a campfire.

2010-07-14, Wednesday

In the morning at 7 am we started at Pretoriuskop camp to our tour through the Kruger National Park. During the tour we saw several mammals, a Leopard, a huge herd of Elephants, White Rhinoceros, Waterbucks, Zebras, Bushbucks, many Impalas, Kudus, Giraffes, Wildebeest and Hippopotamuses. Unfortunately, we saw not a Lion. At 4:30 pm we left the park through the Paul Kruger Gate. Then we drove via Hazyview to Pilgrim’s Rest. Then, after a stop in Graskop we arrived at 9:30 pm at the OR Tampo International airport in Johannesburg. Five minutes before midnight started our KLM flight to Amsterdam Schiphol airport.

2010-07-15, Thursday

About 11 am we landed at Schiphol airport in Amsterdam. After a two hours stay we were flown with KLM to Hamburg airport. Afterwards we drove to Siek, where I picked up my car. After a short stop in Ahrensburg I drove over the A1, A7 and A2 back to Bad Oeynhausen.

Pictures from South Africa trip

The last days I have added my pictures from the South Africa trip to my > Flickr account. Since they are over 230 pictures, it was complex to add all titles and some descriptions. The travelogue is not finished today. I hope I can write it down this week.

Day 6 in South Africa

Heute Nachmittag fahren wir zum Training der Nationalmannschaft. Angeblich sind neben der Presse nur Fans vom Fan Club der Nationalmannschaft zugelassen. Das ist auch eine schoene Entschaedigung fuer das gestrige Live-Spiel. Wir hatten Karten der teuersten Kategorie fuer das Spiel Paraguay gegen Japan und sahen wohl das schlechteste Spiel der WM. Eigentlich hatte es keine Mannschaft verdient gehabt ins Viertelfinale einzuziehen. Paraguay war jedoch noch die aktivere Mannschaft gewesen und hat es meiner Meinung nach dann auch verdient geschafft. Wenigstens das Elfmeterschiessen entschaedigte fuer das schlechte Spiel. Mit der Leistung im Viertelfinale ist es fuer Spanien jedoch wohl ein leichtes ins Halbfinale einzuziehen.

Am morgigen Tag geht es dann nach Soweto, bevor wir am Freitagmorgen nach Kapstadt fliegen. Dort koennen wir hoffentlich zuerst schoene Viertelfinal-Spiele im Fernsehen verfolgen und am Samstag dann ein weiteres schoenes und erfolgreiches Spiel unserer Nationalmannschaft gegen Argentinien.

Am letzten Freitag ging es per Bus in den Pilanesberg Nationalpark. Leider haben wir keine Loewen gesehen, aber immerhin Giraffen, Elefanten, Zebras und ein Nasshorn…. 🙂

Day 2 in South Africa

Yesterday we saw the game between Germany and Ghana. Germany wins with luck 1:0 and has qualified for the next round. On Sunday afternoon Germany has to played against England. Unfortunately, the game was bad. But the Soccer City stadium is very nice. Short ways and we had a good place.  And the Vuvuzelas were not so loud as I was thinking. Today is a day off and we will went to the city of Pretoria.

Day 1 in South Africa

Today, we arrived in Johannesburg. The flight over night from Paris was alright. But the rooms here are not very well. Now, I’m sitting in the Internet cafe of the University in which our rooms are. At 2pm the German fans will meet us here at the University and at 4pm the busses will bring us to the Soccer City. And then, I hope Germany will win the game against Ghana.

Gone fishing

Tomorrow I will fly to South Africa to support our soccer team at the > FIFA World Championship. Our flight with Air France will start in Hamburg at noon. Then we will fly to Paris and at the later afternoon directly to > Johannesburg. Then we will drive to > Pretoria to the > DFB Fancamp at the > Technical University Tshwane. On Wednesday evening we will drive to Johannesburg to visit the game between > Ghana and Germany in the Soccer City stadium. Maybe I will find a computer and write some things about the vacation….

Public Viewing zur WM in Paderborn

Bald beginnt die > FIFA Fußballweltmeisterschaft in Südafrika. Wer nicht vor Ort ist und sich die Spiele in Gesellschaft ansehen möchte, für den gibt es für das Spiel Deutschland – Ghana am 23. Juni (Mittwoch) ein neues Public Viewing-Angebot. Aus der Ankündigung > Lotus weiß, wie Sie am Ball bleiben: Public Viewing @PAVONE:

Der Event startet um 19:30 Uhr im Technologiepark 9 in Paderborn. Die Räumlichkeiten der PAVONE AG werden in eine verwandelt: Ab 20:30 Uh feuern wir im letzten Vorrundenspiel gemeinsam die Deutsche Nationalmannschaft beim Spiel gegen Ghana an. Für Essen und Getränke ist selbstverständlich gesorgt!

Zur Anmeldung geht es hier > Public Viewing @PAVONE.

Wer nicht teilnehmen kann, kann am > TipSheet teilnehmen und die Ergebnisse der Fußballweltmeisterschaft tippen. Attraktive Preise winken den Gewinnern.

Deutschland vor Frankreich, England und Italien

Noch bis morgen kann man beim > Puma Hardchorus Song Contest-Wettbewerb abstimmen. Gegen den Stand bei der Fußball-Weltmeisterschaft hätte ich auch nichts einzuwenden… 🙂