Accomodation, the Foreign Service exam, and the World Cup

I have reserved my spot in a hostel in Taiwan. I went online and after reading some reviews and checking out prices I settled on the Eight Elephants hostel. I have also downloaded maybe 10 free iPod Touch apps that had anything to do with speaking Mandarin. My hope is one of them at some point can help me.

I took the Foreign Service Officer Test (FSOT) on Friday. I felt pretty good about it until the essay portion. I can't go into details, but I was very much not prepared for the essay. Apparently if one doesn't get a passing score on the essay then the rest of the test is not graded. Well, I don't expect to pass then. I wouldn't have given myself a passing score, that's for sure. It was an abysmal essay. Ah well, I was prepared for this anyway. I now know better for next year. I did fairly well with the Job Knowledge (where you are asked questions on geography, history, etc) and the English Expressions (where you are tested in your knowledge of the written English language) portions, but the Biography Questionnaire didn't go as well as I would have wanted, and I've already mentioned the essay.

World Cup South Africa 2010 is now in full swing. I have caught most of the games so far, but this is because most of the games has had someone I was interested in seeing. The first game was on Friday and it was Mexico vs. South Africa. It ended in a draw, with both teams scoring 1 goal. I am a fan of Mexico. Then later that night came Uruguay and France. I don't care for either team, although I was rooting more so for Uruguay as I'm not a fan of France. That ended in a draw with neither team scoring.

Yesterday was a big day. The night started out with Korea playing Greece. The Greek team was really not that good and Korea won 2-0. It was funny hearing the Koreans around me shouting and screaming, although I don't think Korean fans have anything of the loudness and spirit of Latin American fans, such as Argentines and Mexicans. Half an hour after that match was finished came Argentina vs. Nigeria. In a spirited game Argentina was able to win 1-0, but it made me uneasy for next week's match against Korea. Korea pretty much dominated Greece, however (as I've said) Greece was really not that good. And the reason why Argentina was not able to win by more against Nigeria was because their goalkeeper really put everything of himself to stop another goal, even when the Argentine offense easily broke through the Nigerian defense many times. Korea and Argentina easily lead their group. Thursday's match will prove interesting when these two meet. Korea beating Argentina would certainly be an upset because of the powerhouse that is La Seleccion, but I am uneasy. I made a bet with a few of my classes that if Argentina won my students would have to bring me food, but if Korea won I'd have to bring them food. I'm not as assured as I was when I made that bet...

Then, at 3:30am Korea time, came the highly anticipated game between USA and England. I wanted to beat England badly not so much because I'm a fan of the US, but because I have a huge dislike for the English team and for English fans. The game ended in a draw with each team scoring 1 goal (although English fans, and even some American fans, call it lucky that the American goal slipped through the English goalkeeper's hands in a fatal blunder). The goal in question I think is well deserved. The US was playing superbly against a team that, quite frankly, was a bore despite all the hype of its players and talent. On forums I kept seeing "Wayne ROONEY!!!! Rooney will win this," blah blah blah. Rooney was barely a player. He is supposed to be one of the best players in the world and I saw none of it during last night's match. It is clear to me that England very much underestimated the US, and I am happy with the way the team played against another supposed powerhouse. I would rather have a draw than England winning, that's for sure.

Tonight Slovenia plays against Algeria, then Serbia vs. Ghana, and finally Germany vs. Australia. Slovenia and Algeria are in the same group as USA and England, so this is definitely a game I (and my fellow Americans) should be keeping an eye on.

VIVA ARGENTINA!
VAMOS MEXICO!
GO USA!

-AALA