The Opening Ceremonies...

Yes... I got to go to the Opening Ceremonies...

... and it was remarkable!

I started off today hailing my first cab. "De She!" I went to the hotel where my boss is staying and the temporary office for the IBAF. So, I finally got to talk to my boss and meet the rest of the people I have worked with while they were in Lausanne, Switzerland. I sat through the exec meeting and learned a lot about the past, present and future of baseball not only in the Olympic Games but in general. It was extremely insightful, plus it was really awesome getting to watch, listen and speak to so many people from different countries. After that, I was offered a ticket to the Opening Ceremonies. (picture above)

I could NOT say no!

So, I took the ticket with open arms. However, I will tell you that the whole event was about a 10 hour experience. We had to load the bus at 4pm and then we left at 4:40pm. We then had to go to a security checkpoint halfway between our hotel and the "Bird's Nest". This was great because they checked the bus for harmful materials as well as all of the passengers. This way, we did not have to go through the security checkpoints at the "Bird's Nest" with the other 90,000 people. Again, thank God for working with the IBAF!

So we got there and I just have to say that the "Bird's Nest" is a gargantuan structure. Anyhow, as we talked around the tables and tables of free food we finally sat down for the Opening Ceremonies.

There are no words! The entire show was remarkable! It was extremely hot and humid. There were so many great things from the show that I cannot explain in this blog -- not the heat or humidity though -- so I will have to do it over the phone or in person.

The announcing of the teams/athletes took forever and I hope I never have to go through it again. However, when USA came out and I saw them with the flag and people were cheering, I never felt more special to be an American. It was a thrilling feeling that left me with chills as long as they were walking out of the tunnel (which took forever, we have easily over 400 athletes, we took up over 1/2 of the track while walking around).

Anyway, the whole show was just great. I can't wait to show pictures and talk to you all about it.

It's 2:20am now, so I need to get some sleep. Watch the opening ceremonies on TV, I think Robert told me it comes on at 8:08pm tonight in the States. It's definitely worth watching. Oh, especially the countdown and the ship choreography.

Loves to all! Thanks for all of the comments, they really made me feel great to know people were reading the blog, keep them up! Ask some questions if you want!

Until next time... HOLLA!