Guus Bosman

Tomorrow will be the semi-finals of the European Championship Soccer 2004. I'm looking forward to go to the US very much, but I would also love to see the game. I'll make a stop-over at Philadelphia Airport, exactly when the match against Portugal is.

Just out of curiosity I wrote an e-mail to the customer service of Philadelphia Airport:

Dear Sir or Madam:

My question: is there a place at the airport where the soccer game is broadcasted? Perhaps in a bar, a restaurant? I would love to be able to see it!

And to my pleasant surprise there was a quick response.

Hello Mr. Bosman - Philadelphia International Airport ("PHL") currently has 16 bar/restaurants which should be able to accommodate your needs. If this game is not on upon your arrival, the on-site management should be able to help you. I recommend that you visit our website at "phl.org" and you will find a layout of the airport along with a link to a listing of the locations of all of the bars.

Thank you for using Philadelphia International Airport and please feel free to provide us with any comments on your forthcoming visit.

So, there's a chance I will be able to see the match. But well, in the worst case I won't: a great holiday together in Miami would compensate it more than enough. And of course: Sasha and I won't miss the final match between Czech Republic and The Netherlands.

A deserved victory on Sweden! Euro2004.com:

"After a dramatic penalty shoot-out, the Netherlands advanced to a UEFA EURO 2004™ semi-final against Portugal following 120 minutes of goalless stalemate in Faro-Loulé"

Together with Jelly, Manuel and Marcel I was watching the match in Van Stoffelen, a bar in Haarlem. A wonderful evening! The match wasn't great, but this has been the first time since 1992 that the Dutch actually won a penalty shoot-out.

Immediately after Robben's decisive goal a huge party started in Van Stoffelen, and we were dancing and singing all through the night. Almost everybody in the bar was dressed in orange clothes. Yeah, up to the semi-finals! Actually, I will be in Washington when the game starts, next Wednesday, against Portugal.

There's storm above Haarlem now. The wind is not as strong as predicted, but the weather is pretty bad.

In an hour the soccer game between Holland and Latvia will start. If Germany wins its match, they are through. If they don't, there's still a chance for Holland. Let's hope for the best!

This afternoon I did the multiple choice test for the SCEA certificate (Sun Certified Enterprise Architect), and I passed it. My score was 83% this time, which is lower than the previous time but I am still quite satisfied with it.

The test center in Haarlem where I did a another test moved to Amstelveen, so I went to a test center in Amsterdam, in the Aristo building.

I am currently in Kilroy, a travel agency in Amsterdam, where I´ll pick up my ticket. I´m going to the States in a week! Sasha and I are going on holiday together... to Florida! It´s a really nice thought -- Florida will be great and seeing Sasha again will be even better.

The computer in the travel agency broke down, so I´ll probably be here a little longer. That´s fine, the German Institute is near here and I´m very early.