Fever

Zuma says the game is on. Blatter says it's all systems go.

Bafana Bafana even wins against Denmark. Fever goes up and up. USA beats Australia 3-1 in Ruimsig.

Topplayer from Ivory Coast breaks arm. Topplayer from England is out after first training. Topplayer from Holland injures knee. It's brutal out there. Coaches' headaches.

Brazil cruises to Zimbabwe and Tanzania to play some games. Nigeria and North Korea cause some trouble in Tembisa.

Shakira has landed. The WAGS are already shopping in Cape Town.

If by now you still don't know that the worldcup is about to kick off in SA, then you don't even live on Mars but a couple of lightyears further down the milky way.

It is here!!

For sure SA is in full world cup swing. Australia, Argentina, Brazil... have arrived. Time to get real!!

Bafana Bafana are warming up against Columbia, Guatemala and Denmark. It's all happening.

Trainings, security, blue light brigade cruising the N1, media passes, transport issues, flags on cars, lodges as the home away from home for the teams, coaches drawing up final players' list, media hype, last minute injuries,... and amidst all that soccer fever the Blue Bulls and the Stormers have battled it out and brought rugby madness to Soweto. It's really ALL happening.

Cruising to victory

The Swiss-based organisation running the event that starts on June 11 (can't use all the real names because it seems they might just sentence you to life in a Polokwane jail) had organised a bus-slogan competition with one of their main sponsors (wont mention that sponsor in protest against that Swiss based organisation's handling of certain copyrights).

Anyway. The national teams competing here will often go around in luxury busses ('coaches' seem a sexier word) and the competition was to find the best slogan per bus and thus per represented footy nation.

Here are some of the winning lines....

Argentina goes with "Last stop: Glory". Sounds like a BRT advertisement.

The Aussie bus will read "Dare to dream. Advance Australia". So does that mean that if Australia makes it through to the next round it's all just a dream? An illusion?

Drogba's Ivory Coast will travel under the banner "Elephants, let's fight for victory". Isn't there something about elephants fighting and trampled grass?

England will carry the flag and shout "Playing with pride and glory". And the WAGS? Also pride and glory? Or just shopping with pride?

The French who got here unfairly because of Henry's handsball have as slogan "All together for a new dream in blue". Blue is often also referred to after a punch up, or feeling the blue(s) after being kicked out early in the cup.

Germany's bus will simply say "On the road to get the cup". Just a delivery van...

The Dutch are a bit silly with "Don't fear the big 5, fear the Orange 11". Wanna see how these 11 would run when the Krugerpark lion cwants some Dutch for lunch! Dutch courage!

The All Whites are in party mood. "Kickin' it Kiwi style". Hope they know it's football and not rugby this time around.

Uruguay's players are here for a tan. "The sun shines upon us. Go Uruguay!" Bring the sunblock too!

The yankee bus will have "Life, liberty, and the Pursuit of Victory". Is that the same slogan they used in the Iraqi invasion?

And of course, Bafana Bafana. Our boys will hit the roads in a 5-star coach with as slogan "One nation, proudly united under one rainbow." Need some rain to get a rainbow, so they better move their games to Cape Town!

I want my beer delivered at 4.12pm

Your own private butler! How about that?!?

Well... it's a butler in your hand. Not the human version. A butler in a cellphone!!

Africa Talking has launched a butler service that can help all visitors to South Africa. You land at any SA airport and get a Nokia 1208. When switched on it will find you a taxi, the right restaurant, the road to the stadium, and it is also a tracking device,.... just in case.

It's your own 24/7 concierge service in the palm of your hand!

Wanna know more? Go 2 www.africatalking.co.uk

That French flag

What a short morning drive in Johannesburg reveals.

The small car in front of me has a back window sticker that reads “Warning: Blonde Thinking”.

Less than a minute later an old, battered, white bakkie races past me on a stretch of road that is known to have regular, hidden speed traps. A Caucasian male, probably his later 40s or early 50s at the wheel. Sticker on back end of bakkie which in bold typeface says “Jesus is my guidance”. I wondered there and then if Jesus knew about the speed traps...

Less than a KM further a 4x4 drives onto the road with 2 of those fashionable little flags waving proudly in the Jozi wind. One was the South African flag, and the other one the French. Maybe on the French tricoloured one the driver should have painted “Henry’s hand”. The handsball that put France enroute to the worldcup (unfairly obviously) and kept Ireland at home in front of the TV set. Or make that in the pub with a Guinness watching the games far away in South Africa.

Bit further another car with 2 flags. This time the SA one was accompanied by the Argentinean one. And then a bit later another car with 2. This time the white-with-red-cross one for England besides the SA one. It’s nearly a new trend for transnational Jozi. Fly the flag of your roots and the one of your home. Seen some Portuguese-SA double acts recently too.

Charlotte & Jane

The 50s are back. No doubt about it. Certainly no doubt for Charlotte & Jane.

And they know it, cuz business is booming!

Charlotte & Jane are 2 artists in Kinsale, Ireland whom started a 50s designer fashion service/online shop. It's all made on personal measurements with the rhyhtm and feeling of that 50s decade at the heart of it. And since take off it's been a wild ride. Carlotte & Jane must have found the missing link, because orders have been coming in fast and furious. And even Irish TV RTE recognized and realised and sent down a crew to Kinsale to investigate.

So what are you waiting for? Visit www.charlotteandjane.com now.

Pride and joy

Words are meaningless in some cases...