Wimbledon

Wimbledon 2009.

I went. I saw. And I learned a whole lot about tennis and the various ways in which high society in England enjoys displaying fancy clothes and big hats while dining in exclusive areas and sipping champagne...




katie and I. The pics make it look like we are farther away than we actually are.


It was a hot day in London. At 80 degrees and high humitidy this city is in the middle of a heat wave, striking fear into the hearts of every person who must use the suana of underground transport, which has become incredibly hellish and hot. The warm weather (I know many of you from Spokane will scoff at 80 degrees being described as "hot"), while I must admit is better than rain, made for a hot and sticky day at Wimbledon. But lucky me! My "nose bleed tickets" to Center Court really paid off. The truth is, at Wimbledon, there really aren't bad seats, there are close seats, closer seats and the royal box. Everywhere has a good view of the court and you feel up close and personal with the players. However, my not-the-closest seats (and definitely not the royal box), just happened to be under the awning. This is amazing for one reason - shade. Shade on one of the hottest days London has had this year. Also, it means fewer bodies, and fewer body heat. So while high society was sweating in the sun, trying to cool theselves with fans and umbrella's, us peasant folk were enjoying the games at Center Court in a relatively comfortable setting.



Serena Williams playing in the women's quarter-finals at center court; she won.


Now, as of this morning, I didn't know much about tennis, nothing actually, other than the fact that the ball needs to go over the net, rather than through it (as I was taught in basketball). So, my friend Katie took on the job of sports anouncer, telling me the rules and keeping me up to date with what was happening and why. As it turns out, tennis is kinda interesting. I actually enjoyed watching tennis throughout the day. I even found myself "ooo-ing" and "aaahh-ing" along with the crowd, and rooting for the underdog. Due to my lack of tennis knowledge, the only person I knew whom I saw play was Serena Williams. The rest of the femals in the quarter-finals were all Russians, famous apparently, but the only Russian tennis player I know is Anna Kornakova, and she certainly wouldn't be playing at Wimbledon...



Wimbledon was a little like Hoopfest, minus the swearing, injuries, fighting and tacky Spokanites - but the general tournament atmosphere was the same.