Final Preparations

It is just days before the Cambodian Football for Hope team boards the plane for South Africa.  The final preparations have been fast and furious. 

First and foremost is ensuring all things transportation related are ready, set, go.  This included a trip to Malaysia Airlines to confirm tickets and discuss "Accreditation Letters" in lieu of Visas.  Tickets confirmed, seats assigned, no problem.  Substituting Accreditation Letters for Visas, a bit more difficult.  As the Football for Hope Festival is an official event of the World Cup, all delegations are given Accreditation Letters, just like the World Cup teams, which allow the delegates to enter the country without a Visa and bypass 'normal' passport control.  Airlines don't typically allow passengers on board a flight without checking if the individual has a proper visa to enter the destination country because the airline is responible for returning the passenger to the place of departure if they are denied entry into the country. 

Cambodians cannot enter South Africa without a Visa, which must be obtained in advance.  We were concerned the airline wouldn't allow the team to board the flight with only our Accrediation Letters from FIFA and no Visas in the teams' passports.  After all the hassles during the reservation and purchasing of the tickets, we thought we were in for a battle over this one.  However, after a quick explanation to the ticketing agent and a phone conversation with the Malaysia Air Country Manager at the airport, we were in business.  The Manager is going to walk the team through the ticketing process and through customs, which is a big relief.  There has been concern the custom agents are not going to allow eight Cambodian minors out of the country with two Cambodian adults and one foreigner despite the permission letters from the parents and the Ministry of Education.  Trafficking is a huge problem in Cambodia, as previously mentioned, and anything can happen at the airport when traveling with Cambodian minors sans parents.

The Final Training weekend was filled with, well, final preparations.  One weekend highlight was making scrapbooks.  We printed out hundreds of photos from the six months of training and gave each team member scrap books, glue, stickers and markers and let them go to town.  One interesting observation was the girls looked through stacks of photos, picked out the ones they wanted, put them in a pile and went to work.  The boys, on the other hand, found a photo they liked, typically of themselves, glued it in the their book and then looked around for another picture they could use.  The team had a blast reliving the past six months with the photos while they creatively put together their own story.

Other prepartions:  packing lists, travel logistics, World Cup update, cultural norms, shoe shopping and grocery shopping. We wanted the team to be aware of the way things are done in different countries and to know that what may be considered okay in Cambodia, may not be considered polite in other countries. This list included chewing with your mouth open making loud noises, as is common in Cambodia, spitting in public, and squatting on top of sit down toilet seats, rather than sitting down.

At the top of the packing list was SHOES, and we soon learned the team members don't own closed-toe shoes, only flip flops and other sandals.  Off we went to the local sports store and what a sight it was with eight teenagers excitedly rifling through the entire inventory. Shoes were everywhere!  Surprisingly, it took the boys at least twice as long as the girls to pick out their shoes.  Fashion is so important to these rural village kids, which continues to amaze us.

The weekend included another introduction to western food and this time we went Italian. Spaghetti was fairly well received, especially when copious amounts of ketchup was added.   The team learned forks, not spoons as used in Cambodia, are the utensil of choice in most countries.  The weekend was rounded out with the purchase of Battambang rice - Cambodians can actually the tell the difference in rice from different parts of country - ramen noodles and dried beef.  We have one dedicated food bag, complete with rice maker, to ensure the team eats while in South Africa.  As previously mentioned, Cambodians do not like food from outside the country and are known to basically go on a hunger strike while traveling.

Next up, making sure the team has all their gear.  During the final training weekend, we loaded the team up with travel gear, but the piece that puts it all together, the travel bags, had not yet arrived from the US, yet another donation from old friends at adidas. (Thanks Laura, Britt, Casey and Rocky!)  The bags needed to get from Phnom Penh to Battambang, four hours away.  There isn't UPS or Fed Ex to get these bags around Cambodia, so we had to settle for putting them on the bus and trust they would get to the Spirit of Soccer Battambang office upon arrival.  With two packages filled with travel bags and packed with duct tape,  in hopes of ensuring against theft, we took the boxes to the bus station.  Cambodians travel with an incredible amount of 'stuff', which can be anything from produce to electronic items to live animals, and the packaging comes in all shapes and sizes.  Our one dilapidated box and one giant 'Asian' bag fit in perfectly.  With the payment of 16,000 riel, almost $4, and several safety assurances, we waved goodbye to the packages, hoping they have a nice journey and actually make it to Battambang.  They did.

The bags are almost packed and we're about the leave on a jet plane, but we will be back again.  Next update will be from South Africa.  Wish us a bon voyage!