…..couldn’t have asked for better weather or a better outcome

There was so much negativity in the media about these games that I felt compelled to actually buy tickets for some events. The prices were very reasonable and I questioned why wouldn’t we want to support our athletes. People were critical of how memorable these games aren’t and challenged people to remember where the last games were even held.

One day, recently, someone phoned in and actually answered those questions. I decided to do some research and I also learned a little bit about the last games. They were held in Guadalajara, Mexico in 2011 and opened Oct. 14th and closed Oct. 30th. There were three mascots for these games: Huihci, a deer, Gavo, a blue agave and Leo, a lion.

Image courtesy of: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/90/Guadalajara2011logo.JPG/220px-Guadalajara2011logo.JPG

This year is the first time that golf was added as a sport. I learned that bit at the soccer game during intermission when they hosted a trivia game.

Well I think the support for the games has been quite a surprise for the naysayers in the media. Many events have sold out and so far traffic hasn’t been the nightmare that they predicted.

On Saturday, my family and I drove to Hamilton to attend the women’s soccer game. There were actually two matches for the price of one. The first game was Brazil vs. Costa Rico and then it was Canada vs. Ecuador. We could have taken the Go Train free of charge but we weren’t sure how late it would be before we returned home so we opted to drive and park at our daughter’s house. She lives a couple of blocks from the new train station, that was actually finished on time for these games. At the station there were shuttle buses to take people to the stadium. It was a sea of yellow school buses or ‘cheese wagons’ as the kids call them.

It was barely a 5 minute walk to the station and we boarded one of the complementary buses to the stadium. The ride took only 10 minutes, if that, and then it was a short walk to the entrance. There were volunteers everywhere to assist people and they were extremely friendly.

We were sitting on the sunny side of the stadium but luckily the sun was setting so we weren’t staring into the sun for too long. We missed the first half of the first game but we really were there to see the Canadian women play. In the first match the Brazilian team won over Costa Rico.

There were easily over 15 000 people in attendance at this game. The camaraderie and spirit in the stands was amazing. It was a sea of red and white with a smattering of yellow from the Ecuadorian fans.

The Canadian team didn’t disappoint. They easily won with a score of 5 to 2.

When the game was over thousands of people lined up for the shuttle buses. We were glad to be in the line for the Go Trains because the line up for the buses going to the parking lots were crazy. There are a few kinks that need to be worked out with this free service but all in all it was a wonderful experience and we’re looking forward to returning in two weeks for the final game. Hopefully Canada will be in the finals.