I am finally back in the office after having followed the Slovenian soccer team around South Africa for their 2010 FIFA World Cup campaign. I did this in my capacity as Honorary Consul of Slovenia, playing host to the president, other officials, players and supporters.
In one sentence: This was a truly amazing experience, especially to have been an “insider” with one of the teams; and also to be part of the biggest international showcase and nation-building exercise in South Africa’s history.
As an aside, Slovenia was the smallest of the 32 countries participating in terms of population (2 million people), geographic area (20 000 km2) and number of FIFA-registered players (116 900). But, it was also the team with the biggest heart in the tournament! No wonder a Slovenian newspaper described me as the team’s “loudest fan”!
But, alas, all good things come to an end and Slovenia did not make it through to the final sixteen (albeit only by a single goal). It is therefore back to the real world for me, and the blogging service has now been resumed. My apologies for the three-week absence, but it turned out to be quite impossible to post intermittently.
Below are a few pictures of my World Cup rendezvous: from meeting the Slovenian team at the airport in Johannesburg to our family showing off their Slovenian fan kit to being interviewed by Slovenian television to celebrating the victory against Algeria.
