Counting down the days

Over the past few days I have been trying to get as much rest as possible, which means chilling out in my hotel and not really exploring the sights of the city. This can get a bit boring at times but I know that it is for the best.

Last week Sunday a few of us caught a taxi and went to see a local market in the centre of Deagu. This was quite an experience! When I arrived I was overwhelmed by the sight of the crowded streets that lay ahead and the smell of dead fish baking in the hot Korean sun, we walked around for about an hour before deciding to head back to the hotel to escape the heat of the day.
Training has been going really well, I have done some good times in the pool over the past few days and so have many of the other team members.

The image above is a view from my hotel room. This is the edge of the city with the mountains in the background.

The journey!

My Olympic journey has finally begun. Our team departed from South Africa on the 22nd of July, the flights were very long, we flew via Hong Kong and luckily we had enough time to do a quick swim in one of the local pools which really helped me to loosen up. Our team then went back to the airport and flew to Seoul where we were informed that we had a four hour long bus drive ahead of us!
Finally we reached our hotel in the early hours of the morning, looking forward to a good nights sleep!

The next morning I got into my normal routine, despite oversleeping and missing my first training set at the new pool. Later that day I was served some good food, and then went to the pool where I would be completing the final stages of my Olympic preparation. Considering the long trip I was feeling good in the water and was looking forward to the Games.

Welcome to Riaan Schoeman Beijing 2008

Thanks for sharing with me my experiences at Beijing 2008. I will do my very best to keep you posted and thank you all for your support throughout the Games. Please feel free to visit my website at www.riaanschoeman.com.

Regards,
Riaan