Well India has made headline news by introducing the US$2,000 Tata motor car. Wonder when will it be used in public? Good to see you enjoying yourself, bro. I hope our BC friend avataar has been treating you well and taught you a number of "Hyderabad" phrases, especially those that can make a lady happy.
Long overdue for India! So you guys are really having a mini-mini BC gathering there! Enjoy just one more day but please do the fact-finding as more from our part of the world may be descending on Hyderabad during the WC! BTW care to post a pic of the three of you?
Unfortunately Australia is big country but small population and even smaller number of badminton enthusiasts. Chris and his badminton gang, including those in BC, is a very rare exception! How to generate interest and obtain sponsorships from the big companies?
Err, we didn't go so far as learning phrases to attract girls, you know ..... But I did get to meet a few Indian juniors and talked to the parents of one of the "more photogenic" girls in the junior squad. Apparently that girl still cannot neglect her studies and exams, while training and competing in India Open ...... she is in the midst of her exams as we speak. Still a bit of a half measure, I know, now that sports disciplines require an almost full time training approach. There are lots of grand plans for Indian badminton, but proper execution is lacking and needs a more authoritative approach managed by Badminton Association of India and pushed thru to all the training centres. But being a wholesale democracy, this is hard to do in India.
Yup, the real deal which makes traffic in Jakarta look angelic in comparison. Real stunt drivers battling each other and bullying the traffic cops into submission, wakakakaka .... Haven't eaten rice since the day I flew into India, so today I'm treating myself to buffet lunch in one of the hotel restaurants.
The dust has settled and now awaiting for my flight back home in 2 hours' time. The SIN, CHN and INA squads are already here, CHN and INA most probably flying back via Singapore. Many thanks to avataar and davey for their assistance, we had a good many conversations that lasted for hours the past two days. Avataar especially has been very helpful in showing me the ropes, such that now I can call myself a veteran on Hyderabad public transportation system.
Oh, and for the record, I ate out most of the time and didn't get any food poisoning whatsoever. Maybe will post a few more pix tomorrow, taken on finals day.
Many thanks to you for the recce to the WC venue & the commentary from the stadium itself. Safe flight!
Pi vs Julia: Pi was frustrated with the drift in the 1st game. Pi obliged audience's in the galleries posing for them with the medal. Julia had a mere shrug and said that the match was a learning in her post match interview.
Just arrived at KLIA. The whole squad of INA and MAS players shared the same flight, with a great majority of them sitting around my section. Most of the players (CTF and Julia Wong especially) looked dead tired upon arrival, only Hafiz Hashim and one of the new Malay girls (Zakry's sister, I think) was fresh.
Indeed she is ...... Only last night, avataar and I talked about whether badminton should promote, ahem, "enhanced" playing attire for women. But the thought of potentially losing Yu Yang, Du Jing and Lilyana Natsir brought us back to reality. BWF should do a study on sports which are more popular than badminton, as to how they actually became popular.
Pi has just come into the airport and is in the Q checking in for her flight, im also waiting to check in for my flight
she seems sleepy, leaning on her luggage trolley and yawning carefree. damn my camera is packed in my luggage!!
Its is indeed a sad fact of life..being so close to so many badminton loving countries and yet being so far from the action. Hey Loh do you and your fellow Singaporeans want to migrate here and increase badminton our population so we can get to the good life one of these days. All others are welcome as well....
