More Rio

Yesterday was a pretty fantastic day for us track and field fans.  After the morning world records, we got to see a scintillating women's shot put which was won on Michelle Carter's final throw, duplicating her finish at the World's Indoors in Portland in March.  The crowd was amazingly sparse and Rio's plan of holding back tickets from international buyers until the last minute seems to have back fired.  The morning session today with Usain Bolt in a preliminary heat was pretty packed, despite the relative insignificance of the heats.  Guess folks just want to see a star in action, much like I did when I watched Phelps the other day in a prelim.

A little more about my living quarters.  I'm in a 5th floor apartment about a 20 minute walk from the stadium.  A nice middle class area, though one needs to be careful at night according to my landlord.  I've got my own room and private bath and, unusual for an AirBnb, breakfast is included.  Street noise is a bit bothersome, but earplugs and the white noise machine do the trick.  Food here in Rio isn't all that good.  Pretty basic rice and black beans with uninteresting cuts of meat.  The big thing here is buffets and they're quick and not all that bad.  One can eat a sizable meal with a large beer for around $5-6.  I've been using foot power, train and Uber to travel to and fro, depending on which section of the stadium I want to start and finish with.  As a single traveler/fan, I've been moving all over the stadium with an old press pass from this past year's NCAA indoors and most of the ushers aren't challenging it.  Always difficult to properly watch track and field in stadiums built for football (or futbol).

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Was surprised to find myself on American TV yesterday thanks to a friend who grabbed a  few screenshots when I was sitting next to Ashton Eaton and watching his wife perform

 These long days tend to be difficult, with two trips to the stadium each day and sessions which end close to midnight and then begin the next morning around 9:30AM.  Doesn't leave much time for sleep and the break in between sessions is about the only time one can eat properly.  I do like that some of the streets near the stadium are blocked off and residents are selling beer, caparinhas (the national drink) and various grilled snacks.  The police and military presence is heavy around the stadium, but one can go a few blocks away and you're on your own.  Walking to and from the stadium after dark is out of the question.  Then again, the train costs about $1 and a 10 minute walk home late at night, but for $2 I can go door to door with Uber.