World Cup

It’s been interesting to watch the World Cup while in Asia.  When one travels overseas, there’s a limited number of English-speaking TV channels available at the hotels.  Normally, it’s CNN, BBC and maybe Fox.   And, because soccer is the number one global sport, that’s what they primarily shown on the international news channels.  So, I ended up watching an inordinate amount of sports news about the coverage of the World Cup, including many of the matches.

Trust me, I love watching NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, etc while in the US.  And, I get my fill of the highlights on a daily basis on ESPN SportsCenter.  But, it’s been refreshing to have been overseas for two weeks and to watch other news and sports channels.  I’ve been getting my updates about my favorites US sports and teams via my Blackberry and laptop but while watching TV overseas, it’s been primarily soccer (I was able to watch the US Open on ESPN Int’l – albeit with the 12-hour time change).

I’m bummed I wasn’t to join my Georgetown University Sports Industry Management staff and students for their sojourn to South Africa for the first part of the World Cup, but my trip to Asia was planned over six months ago.   It would have been neat to watch the game in live action, but I did enjoy watching the matches  on the telly.

What a  soap opera the 2010 World Cup is turning out to be.  Yes, Brazil, Spain and Argentina are playing well but what about France, Italy and England?  Holy cow – one to three of them may not even advance to the next round.  The off-the-field stories are indeed entertaining.

I’ll be back in the US on Tuesday evening … in time to watch the US game on Wednesday morning.  I hope they advance to the second round since I know it’ll be great for the sport of soccer in the US if the team advances (of course, ESPN badly wants / needs them to advance since they’re so heavily promoting the WC).

It is interesting to see how the other countries, particularly the European and South American teams, look down on the US squad.   Part of that reason is that the best athletes in the US don’t play soccer.  Instead they follow the money and play the more popular sports (and the ones that pay much more) – such as football, baseball, basketball and hockey.

I’d imagine the US would have a much stronger soccer squad of the best American athletes played soccer.  Could you see if Kevin Garnett was in goal?  With his length and athleticism, he’d potentially be a superb goalkeeper.  How about over the past two decades if the US had such athletes such as Allen Iverson, Reggie Bush, Bo Jackson, Deion Sanders and LeBron James playing soccer?   Athletically, they’d have the power, speed and finesse to help the US serve as one of the best teams in the world.

Here’s a prediction … due to the growing popularity of soccer in the US (due in part to the heavy promotion on ESPN and ABC) … over the next 20 years, the US will continue to rise in popularity and will produce one of the next all-time greats.  Again, it’s just this person’s  opinion, but my guess is that a great American will come into play in the next two decades – to mentioned in the same breath as Pele, Cruyff, Maradona, Kaka, Messi, etc.  Call me crazy but let’s see how it plays out.

In the meantime, let’s all enjoy the next couple weeks of the World Cup.

Hong Kong and the Philippines

As a follow-up to the last blog about my random observations of Tokyo, here’s a few thoughts about Hong Kong and the Philippines:

Hong Kong

-          Hong Kong has one of the best airports in the world.   Their Airport Express, r.e. train from the airport to downtown Hong Kong is my favorite one of any of the major cities.   Once you get through customs and claim your bag, you simply purchase a ticket for about $20 dollar and the ride from the airport to the downtown Central station is only 20 minutes away.   And, it’s even better on the way back … you can check-in for your flight at the train station … then simply ride the train with your carry-on without the hassle of lugging around your luggage.

-          Similarly to other major cities that are built on islands – such as Tokyo and New York – the number of skyscraper is mind-boggling.  But, it makes total sense since HK doesn’t have the land mass.  So, instead of spreading out, it has to build up.  This is particularly interesting to a person from Washington, DC since there aren’t any skyscraper buildings in DC.

-          The Star Ferry is a great way to get across the Hong Kong Bay … for about a quarter you can ride from Hong Kong’s Central to the Kowloon side.

-          Victoria Peak is a must-see for people coming to HK for the first time.  It’s cool to ride the trolley up the steep peak.  The views are staggering and beautiful.

-          The one-hour turbo boat ride from HK to Macau is also very easy and enjoyable.   Macau has now surpassed Las Vegas in terms of total dollars spent gambling.  It doesn’t have the Vegas strip … and LV has many more shows … but Macau is definitely now a gambling mecca (although I don’t gamble or bet).

-          They have superb tailors in Hong Kong.  I went to visit my favorite tailor for the first time in 5 years at the Mandarin Oriental.  I purchased 3 – 4 suits from them back then and just ordered two new suits.  I normally go suit shopping with a lady friend but this time I went solo – hope I did okay in picking out the right colors and texture.   LOL.

-          Love Lan Kwai Fong, which I refer to as the “Georgetown” of HK.  So many fun restaurants and bars.  And, in particular, I love the Filipino cover bands that belt out the pop, R&B and rock hits.

-          A one-hour Chinese foot massage for only $20 is a great bargain.  So relaxed afterwards.

Philippines

-          This country reminds me very much of Brazil with the disparity of income levels.  There’s definitely a clear distinction between the “haves” and “have-nots.”  But, what I love is that similarly to the Brazilians, the Filipinos, despite a vast majority of them not having much income or material goods, have a “joy and happiness about life.”

-          I still can’t figure out how their traffic flows so smoothly without many accidents … it’s a confluence of cars, trucks, buses, jeepney’s, motorcycles, motorcycles with side cars and bicycles.  Somehow, there’s a flow and they roll along without many horns honking or people cursing – pretty much the opposite of how Americans drive in the US.

-          Similarly to the favela’s in Rio de Janeiro, Manila has so many poor areas.  It’s hard to describe the huts and shacks that abound in Manila and its’ outlying areas.   But, as noted earlier, the citizens seem happy and live life with what’s been given to them.

-          NBA jerseys everywhere.  And, the Filipinos seem to love the LA Lakers.  I was there in Manila while the Lakes were defeating the Celtics for the NBA Championship.   But, not just Lakers jerseys, I also saw jerseys everywhere for LeBron, D-Wade, Ginobli, Shaq, Rondo, etc.  Soon, they’ll be sporting Wizards jersey with John Wall’s name on the back.  J

-          The food wasn’t as good as in Tokyo and Hong Kong, but that’s also probably because I grew up eating Japanese and Chinese food.

-          The prices are ridiculously low … for nearly everything.  It’s odd since it seems you’re paying a lot for items with the Pesos, but when you calculate it, it’s very inexpensive.

-          I went to my friend’s cousin’s wedding in a city called Tarlac – which is two hours from Manila and where the current President is from.  One of the groomsmen didn’t make it so I filled in.  What a memorable experience – wearing the barong and taking in my first-ever traditional Filipino wedding.  Fortunately, the families were so gracious and warm – they instantly made me feel at home.  For that, I’m thankful.

Okay, back to DC now …

Tokyo

I’m leaving Tokyo today to head back to Washington, DC.   It’s been a terrific nearly two weeks here in Asia.  I’ve split my time among Tokyo, Hong Kong and Manila.  The trip was a combination of business development meetings for my strategic advisory sports business, JLynn Associates, and Georgetown Univ’s Sports Industry Management program as well as spending time with relatives and friends.

Here’s a few random observations about Tokyo (will write up a separate one about HK and Manila):

- definitely one of the most efficient airports in the world.  Despite being such a heavily-trafficked airport, one’s bags are waiting for you at the baggage claim within 20 minutes of arriving at Narita

- the Japanese people are so courteous.  You are welcomed warmly at the airport … even the baggage handlers for the airport express bus bow and wave to you as you depart

- I don’t how these bus drivers navigate the congested and crowded roads in Tokyo — especially the narrow side streets.  But, they expertly do so with grace.   And, when they exchange drivers, the drivers bow and thank the customers as they leave the bus (compare that with some of the surly bus drivers we have in the US)

- Talk about tall buildings?  Just like Manhattan, Hong Kong, Sao Paulo and other major cities — everywhere you look there are skyscrapers

- Although I’m half-Japanese / half-Caucasian, I definitely feel in the minority here (no knock – just like living in the US — the only place I’m in the majority is in the land of the hapa haole’s … Hawaii

- Coolest toilets in the hotel (Prince Park Tower Tokyo) … when you open the door, the lid automatically opens up … and the toilet has heated seats and a bidet built in (which includes water temp and directional capability) … and when you close the door, the lid and seat automatically close (this is good for guys since they won’t get yelled at for leaving the seat up!)

- Went to two of our family cemeteries to pay respects … amazing … over 600 years old … I get an incredible amount of strength and spirit from these yearly visits to pay my respects (it was particularly special this year to visit both the Tobari and Matsumoto family cemeteries)

- Love my relatives … my Mom’s sister, Aunt Yasuko, is a special lady.  It’s neat for me to visit with them since she and her husband live on the same plot of land that my mother’s family grew up in Setagaya.  They’ve lived on that land since ’39. I used to regularly visit my grandmother and great aunt in Setagaya (including many summers).  My aunt and uncle had a new house build on that land but they’ve kept many of the old stones.

- The food, the food, the food.  NY Times article said NY has the most restaurants of any US city with 25,000 places.  Article said there are over 150,000 restaurants in Tokyo!  Yes, it’s expensive here, but there’s so many options it’s easy to eat find inexpensive food here (I love the ramen noodle shops).

- Harajuku is such a cool, hip and fun spot.  The youngsters there are so experimental in their clothing designs and outfits.  Also love Roppongi (and Roppongi Hills).  It’s cool to see the mixture of new hip spots combined with the Japanese temples and shrines that hundreds and hundreds of years old.

- The hotel service is impeccable.  You are greeted with friendly and warm gestures throughout the hotel — they’re appreciative of the patronage.   For one who travels frequently and often runs into surly or unhappy hotel staff, this is a welcome change.

I could write so much more but I’m going to take one more long walk outside of the hotel before I depart for Narita Airport.

Peace.