"Howzit my scatti? Are you making a plan for ayoba time, shame, can you borrow me your pen is it? Ke nako yoh yoh yoh shap shap I'll see you just now or now now"
Mine and Melody's favourite line was "THIS IS NOT AYOBA!!"
ok so definitions:
Howzit? = hows it going
Scatti = dear
Make a plan = sort it out/figure something out
Ayoba = cool
shame = poor thing or awwwww but also used for everything
borrow me = lend me
Is it? = now this one im still learning.. at first I thought it was like 'is that right' or 'oh really' but people here use it all the time for everything
Ke nako = it's time
yoh = some kind of animal like sound to assist with emphasising expressions
shap = cool/ok
just now and now now = a little later or in a bit
funny story about just now, i was taruffing sweets to people and this guy goes I'll have one just now, so I hold the plate out infront of him waiting for him to take one and he's just staring at me like 'what?' and then he explained that just now actually means later which doesn't make any sense
Ok so I think i've filled your heads with enough learning now for more World Cup action
Melody was gone and my next game was the Round 16 Argentina vs Mexico so I was on my own. My plan of action was to make new friends at the game and so begins the next chapter of my voyage called New Friends
Luke
So I'm on the Gautrain coming home from the airport after dropping Melody off at the airport and I figure when I get back to Sandton I'll call a taxi. At Sandton station I see a guy infront of me with an Aus flag on his suitcase so I say hi to him and ask why he's arrived so late and soon the conversations turns into a deep and meaningful on life and the Baha'i Faith. Luke's friends drive me home and we agree to meet at the Argentina game which brings us to Peter, Yosie and Les.
Peter
I'm at Melrose Arch with Nima, Sina and Hendrick trying to figure out how I'm going to get to the stadium for tonights game, and then I have an epiphany! I'll get a taxi to the park and ride and then con them into giving me a ticket onto the bus. I go to get a taxi and into my life walks Peter. He is going to drive me to the park and ride for a very good price and he has been my taxi driver ever since.
Yosie and Les
I've managed to talk one of the workers into giving me a bus ticket and now I'm waiting in line for the bus to the stadium. 2 guys infront of me are talking about the Germany vs England game and the outrageous decision to deny the goal. I join the convo "I can't believe they disallowed that goal!" and we're all best friends. We go to the stadium and hang out for hours before the match, Luke comes too and we talk some more about the Faith and life and stuff. When the game starts we all split up and I go to my seat to find Mario.
Mario
We met (in the online sense of the word) on the Ggarmy forums where I was selling my extra ticket to the game. It's nice to have someone to share the game with and we talk and discuss the players and the cold and the horrible que for food. Here are some shots from the game.
So inbetween games and Baha'i activities I have to find ways to occupy myself, I do this by visiting museums and shopping. On one of these excursions I met my next 2 friends..
Cameron and Nik
So I'm at Constitution Hill which is the site of the Constitutional Court and up until around 15 years ago was a prison. Nelson Mandella and Ghandi both spent time at this prison (not at the same time) and prisoners were separated by race; white people in one section and coloured and blacks in another area. There is a tour and I join the group, we have to go around and say our names and where we are from, I go first with my "I'm Martha from Australia" there's a family of Canadians and some others and then it gets to the last 2 guys who with South African accents say "Sydney, Australia". Of course we click straight away because we have so much in common i.e Australia. We tour through the prison which is so strange because it's such recent history and then I start talking more to Nik and Cam and we decide to go to the Oriental Plaza together. Nik gives me a tour of Joburg and tells me stories about his younger days growing up in the city. We eat Sumousas for lunch and talk about the Faith and then they drive me home.
Ok so that's all the randoms who I've made friends with, now there are so many others here who I have met but I met them all through Baha'i things and so I won't go into all of them. I just wanted to tell the stories of these people who have been there with me when I was all alone and who have all been so receptive to the Faith.
Next is my last World Cup game.. the Quarter Final Spain vs Paraguay and this has to be one of the best games that I attend. Aryan and Nahaal have accidentally bought an extra ticket so I buy it off them. Although the seats are separate we are only a few seats away from each other. We are like 5 rows from the field which is amazing and besides Spain winning which was wonderful ME AND NAHAAL ARE ON TV!!!!!!!! It was pretty amazing if I do say so myself.
So that's the end of my attendance at any games I'm much too poor to spend the money on expensive semi final and final tickets. For the final all us kids go to Soweto Fan Park which is great, it's freezing but it's not too crowded and the vibe is really good. The closing ceremony is beautiful as I'm sure everyone saw. The game is on and we are all (mostly) going for Spain. Some of the locals seem to forget that the Dutch colonised them so there are those amongst us who are supporting the other side but it's ok because both teams actually deserve to be in the final. As the game goes on we are praying for a goal, not only because we want Spain to win but also because it is freezing cold and we are all tired and don't think we can survive extra time and especially penalties. There are only a few of us left when Iniesta scores that amazing goal and Spain emerge victorious. We fight the cold to stay and watch the trophy ceremony before leaving the World Cup behind. I have only known South Africa in World Cup mode so it will be interesting to see it without the tourists everywhere and the spirit of the World Cup in everything we do.
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