AIDA Team World Championships 2006 - Hurghada, Egypt

Day 1

December 1st and 2nd: Registration and Opening Ceremonies.

With Deron already at the competition site, the rest of Team USA took a 40-minute bus ride down the coast to Makadi Bay.  The bus stopped off at a corner store so athletes could load up on bottled water, rumored to be expensive at the resort.  The arrival at Fort Arabesque had the athletes ooh-ing and aah-ing at their new 5-star digs, while an army of porters warily eyed the stacks of boxes of bottled water that they would soon be carting to rooms all over the hotel.

The opening ceremonies were a raucous affair, disorganized but full of energy.  What a spectacle though: An auditorium full of people from almost 30 different countries, waving their flags, dancing together, and all cheering and screaming as every other country was introduced!  The three deepest men and women were introduced, with our Annabel sharing the stage with Natalia Molchanova (Russia) and Mandy-Rae Cruickshank (Canada).  A band started playing and a conga-line broke out that looked like a Benetton ad; smiling people from all over the world.   All of this with the athletes only drinking water!  We can’t wait to see what the closing ceremonies will be like when alcohol is involved!