For several years, the whole of South Africa has been looking forward to the Soccer World Cup, which is being hosted by us. Since the beginning of this year, the country has been in a state of excitement, with everyone waiting for the games to start. In 2004, South Africa won the bid to host the Fifa World Cup. Since then, many people have been waiting for this year.
MTN, (a cell phone company,) Fifa’s main sponsor, has been advertising a lot about the World Cup, and using their favorite motto, ‘Ayoba!’ Also, the Cup has created a bigger income for flag sellers, who sell 2010 flags, vuvuzelas and t-shirts at street corners. The flags come in different sizes, ranging from small ones, about the size of an A6 sheet of paper, to larger ones about one metre in length, and also wing mirror socks that are made to look like flags. Fifa t-shirts are usually yellow, MTN’s colour.

I am sorry that the picture is blurred, but it is the only one I could get.And there are flags everywhere! In the shops, on cars, on buses and taxis, even on shirts. And the vuvuzelas are the worst!! They have a horrible noise, and are blown the WHOLE way through the soccer match. The other day I went past a restaurant where a soccer match was being shown live on TV, and there were speakers outside, and with average 10 000 vuvuzelas being blown, it sounded like a swarm of bees!

This is a vuvuzela, for those who don,t know what they are. As we don’t watch soccer, we aren’t interested in the Cup. Some of our friends are, though. Last week, on either one of the first matches, or one of the warm-ups days, Nigeria scored a goal, and suddenly very large crowds pushed open the gates and stampeded into the stadium. 15 people were injured, but I don’t think anyone was killed.
Sometime last year or the year before, construction was started a new train system called the Gautrain, named after the province of Gauteng. It is meant to take passengers from the airport to Pretoria, going through Sandton and Midrand (several cities in our country, for those who don’t know what I am talking about). One or two sections have been finished, and are even running, but not all of it.
The games are finishing on Sunday. It seems like just yesterday the games started. The final game is between Holland and Spain. I think Spain will win, but I am not sure.