Day began with a breakfast at 7:45. It consisted of much of of the same stuff as yesterday except it added french fries and a different fish paste. It was OK but the best part of breakfast is the fruit. It is so sweet here.
Immediately after breakfast we headed off to our game day shoot around which went from 9 until 10 or a little after. We had a decent practice and then headed back to the hotel. We had a long stretch until pre-game meal at 2pm. I decided to work on the China film for the start of the week. After watching some of that and then a few episodes of COPS I had on my computer it was almost 2pm. I joined the rest of the crew for lunch.
Lunch had pasta, fries, spicy chicken, "steamed hamburger steak" - basically little hamburgers soaked in gravy, salads, dumplings, spring rolls, rice, noodle soup and different fish items.
After lunch we had a time slot from 2:30 to 5:30. I needed to get out of the hotel and it just happened that our guide was taking us out if we wanted to go. She is a cute older lady who doesn't have the best grasp of the English language but she is fun and looks after us. So we hit the town with our guide, 2 of the players, the manager and team doctor. We were supposed to walk about 10-15 minutes to a store she wanted to show us. Instead she took us on the streetcar system which was quite cool. We ended up in the heart of the city in a shopping district in a neat pedestrian mall. The store she took us to was unique. It was like a dollar store kind of but it was 5 floors with different levels on each floor. A lot of cheap stuff but nothing "original" but we had fun looking around and watching the people look at us approach us. Most just stared from a distance. THe people are so friendly here and they don't bother us.
We got back to the hotel around 4:30 and we were leaving around 5:30 for our 7pm game. Time for a quick shower and I tried to keep drying my clothes. I had to handwash some things and it is hard to dry them in this humidity. I have the air conditioner on the lowest setting around 15 degrees but my thermometer which is built into my travel clock said it was 27 degrees in the room. Not comfy.
Now off to the game. We arrive at the arena and as we walk in, there are people in the bleachers. We ask about it and they told us people started arriving an hour earlier than we did. They expected almost 2000 people and apparently got well over 1000. When I travelled to China, we were in a remote city and there were 4 people from Canada with a Canadian flag. I remember going to meet them after the game. Tonight there were 2 people in the crowd with our flag but after the game we were whisked away quickly so I couldn't get to say thanks for coming. hopefully they come to the next game.
But back to the game. The fastest game I have ever been involved in. Very few fouls called and the tempo was good. We battled back and forth and were down 5 at the end of the first quarter. We slowed the tempo, executed our offense better and turned the ball over less in the 2nd quarter and went into half time with a 5 point lead. 30-25.
The third quarter was a bit ugly and we were leading 40-37 afterwards. THe 4th quarter started with us getting a nice 9 point cushion but we had a bunch of lapses in a row and they took the lead. Down the stretch we didn't execute or rebound the ball well and we ended up losing 64-54. They are quick and can shoot. That killed us in the 4th quarter.
So we have some work to do but I think we can get better and win some games here. Lots of film to be watched and practice tomorrow so hopefully we regroup.
After the game we headed to the bus and it was lined on both sides with screaming fans. A lot of them were little girls which was so good to see. They were cheering like crazy for both teams and I am sure tonight some of them will dream about being on the bus instead of being outside on the street. It is where dreams are hatched and kids get that burning desire to be part of it. I love watching little kids in the game. They love to play and want to be the best. They do it while smiling and maintaining that sense of innocence. So much to learn with so much energy ready to help them "make it on the bus". It was fun waving to them as we got on the bus and then as we drove away.
So back to the hotel for a post game meal. It consisted of beefsteak, ginger pork, and curried pork and potatoes...YUMMY. lots of salad and fish choices. I had a Miso soup with chicken, potaotes (i think), greens and squid. It was fantastic. The food has been very good so far. Hopefully it stays that way.
So now I must watch some film before bed. We have breakfast at 9:00 and then depart at 9:30 for our next hotel. Apparently it is on the other side of the city and the next gym is where they will be hosting the FIBA Asia Olympic qualifier at the end of the month. We will also do some team stuff in the morning. Should be a bit of fun.
Now it is off to film and bed. Until tomorrow.
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