Woody and Barb's World Cup Blog

Mary's oldest son, Forrest "Woody" Lange, his wife, Barb and their son, Steve, are at the World Cup in South Africa. Woody called and asked how he could get things posted to the Baudo Family Web Site. I told him it was as easy as sending me an email. I'll continue to update this page as I get the emails.

We are here! Barb& Woody left for the World Cup in South Africa on Monday. We did an overnight in New York. Left New York Tuesday for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia where we did an overnight. Left Jeddah at 5:00 am Thursday morning for the final leg to Johannesburg and the Cup, arriving Thursday morning. Whew! More to come as we experience the country. Barb & Woody

June 12, 2010

Today, Saturday, we are making arrangements to transport to our game against England in Rustenburg. they have about thirty coaches ready for the fans to travel about fifty miles to the game which starts at 2030 (8:30 pm) this evening. We will depart Pretoria about 3:30-4:00 pm for the ride to the game and return about 1:30 AM. Starting to get excited!!! Will write when we can.

June 12, 2010 Post Game
The US/England game was quite an experience. We ran into some of Steven's former colleagues on the bus to the game (small world), but there were definitely more English fans than US fans in the stadium. There was a buzz in the air, and it wasn't just the blow horns (Yes...those vuvuzela blow horns started giving Woody a headache after 90 minutes). The horns really are so loud that you can hardly carry on a conversation. The action was exciting and we were happy the US came away with a tie. We took lots of photos and some video as well and can't wait to share them with everyone.

June 13/14, 2010
Off to Cape Town for a 5 day visit between US games. We arrived and are spending our first two days in Hermanus, a whaling village 1 1/2 hours from Cape Town. The drive here was incredible, through lots of beautiful countryside. Our B&B owner took us on a tour through the area and to visit several wineries. Woody sipped the wine, but Barbara stuck to cappuccino as she's allergic to alcohol :)( - it was the most scenic cappuccino she's ever had - that's for sure!

June 15, 2010
Back in Cape Town to spend the next few days. After our arrival, we went for a trip up the Table Rock Mountain Aerial Tram. Although it's been rainy in the Cape area, we were blessed with sunshine for our trip up the mountain and were greeted with panoramic views of the city, as well as the coastline and out to sea. Breathtaking views! (more photos to share with everyone :)!)
Steven arrives tomorrow!

June 16th, 2010
This morning we took a tour of Robben Island (the Alcatraz of South Africa), famous for housing Nelson Mandela during his years in prison. We got to the island on a ferry boat, then received a 2 hour guided tour on foot and on bus. It was very enlightening to learn the history of the island, going back to the Dutch in the mid-1600s, and quite sad as well. After relaxing at our guest house that overlooks the Atlantic Ocean, we spent the evening at a local pub watching some World Cup action.

June 17th, 2010
Our day was spent on a private tour along the coast to the east of Cape Town. We traveled to the Cape of Good Hope, and also to the point at which the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet. There was no lack of exciting sightings on this tour - we saw South African Blackfoot penguins, wild ostrich, and tons of baboons, to name a few. We also hit a couple of wineries, and settled in with a late-night crowd at one winery that stayed open late for World Cup viewing. Well, our time in the beautiful Cape Town area is coming to an end. Tomorrow morning we fly back to Jo'burg for the US/Slovenia game and we'll be staying in Pretoria for the next week and a half touring sites around Pretoria and Johannesburg between games. Go USA!!!!

We flew back from Cape Town this morning just in time to catch the game. We actually made it just in time as the traffic in Johannesburg getting to the game was gridlocked. Once again the game was thrilling. We were definitely a little worried at half time, but with the goal at the start of the second half, the American fans started making noise again. We all jumped up and down when the US scored the 3rd goal (before it was called off). We thought it was a bad call at the time, but until we saw the replay over on t.v. we really didn't realize how bad a call it was.

June 19th, 2010

We spent the day in Johannesburg having lunch with one of Steven's friend's that works for FIFA and touring around a little. It's a big city and about a 30-45 minute drive from where we are staying in Pretoria.

June 20th, 2010

A relaxing day touring some of the sites in Pretoria and watching some World Cup action.

June 21st, 2010

Today we had a great tour of the Cullinan Diamond mine which is outside of Pretoria. The Cullinan Diamond Mine is the third richest diamond producing mine in the country, but its major claim to fame is the discovery of the Cullinan Diamond, exposed here in 1905. The Cullinan Diamond, which now forms part of the British crown jewels, weighed in at 3106 carats. It is the largest rough gem-quality diamond ever found. Of course the last stop on the tour is the diamond shop, and although Jenny was pulling for a new pair of earrings as her souvenir, we think we'll stop at the traditional African craft market for those instead :)!

June 22nd, 2010

We spent the day in Johannesburg again, this time visiting the famous Apartheid Museum. It is noted as one of the best museums in the country, and has exhibits on the rise and fall of apartheid. While very informative, it is also a very depressing experience as you can imagine. We had lunch at a traditional eatery in the township of Soweto, where we saw the stark contrasts between the rich and poor in this country. We're excited for tomorrow's soccer match, which is in walking distance from our guest house (no worries about being stuck in the gridlock this time!).