Checking In

I have taken a bit of time off this past week because I have been (thankfully) busy. My visa finally got approved and I will be back in the work force in the very near future.

In other news, I am using my last (hopefully) days of being a lazy, unemployed dilettante to support the art of...rugby! Oh, like that is a surprise. I have agreed to be the local liaison officer for the women's team from Papua New Guinea. It is not a pretty assignment. While J is lounging in the swanky hotel room provided for him by the organizers for assisting the Samoan team, and X is having wine and cheese with the French coaching staff in a nearby room, I will be racing through the island as I frantically try to tie up loose ends.

I was asked at the last minute (last night) to help out the organizers. The women's teams have a vastly different experience from the men. The men are all staying at a lovely hotel in Kowloon, and each team is given a bus to go to meals or tours or training sessions at the pitches in Happy Valley or King's Park. The women's side does not provide accommodation for the liaison officers so I will be waking up very early to find my team in one of two less fancy hotels that they will be staying in, and scrambling to take them to their training, all the way in Sandy Bay, at 7AM, with no arranged transportation. If you see a large group of tan women and one very pale woman on a minibus at 6AM, you will know who we are.

Despite the hardship, especially compared to my friends who are hosting the men's teams, I am happy to oblige. I hope that I can ease some of the concerns that the team may have about scheduling and navigating the city, and that I can show them a good time. I have enjoyed living here immensely and I want to be able to share the experience for the next few days. I will let you know how it goes!

P.S.- I admit I knew only a few things about Papua New Guinea so I had to resort to Wikipedia for a quick fact sheet, and then a few PNG government sites. I think I should at least be able to recognize my team now.

P.P.S.- My undergrad classmate is a member or the USA men's team. All you Texans, especially Aggies in Hong Kong, please give up your whoops and gig 'ems for Justin Boyd!

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