If It's a Mall, We're There

If there is one constant for the U.S. WNT from city to city and country to country, is that the players are always up for a trip to the mall. The top-end Chinese malls are not much different than American ones in layout and vibe, and some of the stores are the same as in the USA, but many would not be recognizable to Westerners. About half the U.S. team went a large mall in Guangzhou this afternoon, getting that chance to stretch their legs. It was also important to get out of the hotel and keep their bodies moving as they continue to adjust to Chinese time. Some of the afternoon highlights:

 

• The American tradition of relaxing in a coffee shop. In fact, it was a main motivation for several players, who didn’t buy anything except for those café lattes. (Note: There are more than 400 Starbucks in China).
• There was an arcade at the mall with all the high-tech video games and several players passed some time in there. Heather O’Reilly drew quite a crowd with her “unorthodox body movements” (her words) during her performance on Dance, Dance, Revolution, which was surely a big hit for the Chinese who stopped to watch.
• Some of the players decided to hop in some bumper cars, which turned out not to be such a good idea. The Chinese ganged up on the U.S. players, creating what Tobin Heath called, “the most violent bumper car experience I’ve ever had”…and she’s from New Jersey. With three important games coming up, the players vowed that they would not return to the bumper cars.

 

For the players that chose to stay back at the hotel, there was rest, relaxation, studying and arts and crafts…well, crafts. Some highlights:

• Cat Whitehill finished Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy’s book titled “Quiet Strength.” She highly recommends it, giving it five Cat stars out of five.
• UCLA college students Tina DiMartino and Lauren Cheney studied for their “History of the Middle East from 1700-Present” class. That sound difficult, so it’s good they are studying. If anyone knows their professor, please tell them how conscientious the pair is being over here in China. I mean, they gave up a mall trip to study! That is impressive. DiMartino says she’s really enjoying the class.
• Amy Rodriguez made string bracelets. Apparently, she’s quite talented at it. She’s even teaching her roommate Abby Wambach how to make them.