Just returned from Hong Kong for a long weekend to play in the Asian Games - Irish Gaelic Football tournament. It was and incredible weekend. Hong Kong is an amazing city. The first day I walked around by myself for about five hours exploring on my own. The city is very developed, nothing like Dalian, China. I don't know if I would want to live there for a long period of time since it is SO crowded, but it was exciting to visit.
The Asian Games are a pretty big deal! There were more than 700 players who played in what is the largest amateur team event in Asia. They had 65 teams play on five pitches, and 1,400 spectators. Players were from 14 Asian countries, including India, Qatar, Singapore, Dubai, Korea, Japan, and many teams were from China.
This new sport I am learning is similar to Australian Rules Football or Rugby played with a ball that looks like a volleyball but is heavier than a soccer ball. I get to use the skills I have from soccer and basketball. It is not too dangerous, since the women's game is "non-contact". I do have a few bruises, but nothing major. The men's game however is a contact sport and I witnessed a huge number of injuries. Our men's team from Dalian won their division! A bunch of amazing Irish athletes live in Dalian, many of them work with or for Intel. I feel so privileged to learn the game from some of the best, our coach played in front of 60,000 people in Ireland. Amazing!
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