Between a visit to Scotland, a Rice track reunion in London, some visitors in my flat, and a soccer game in Manchester, it’s been a loaded week! I’m going to update y’all in reverse, starting with Manchester and rewinding to Scotland in a few days.

The Brazil vs. South Korea semifinal soccer game was as loud and rowdy as any event I’ve ever attended. I guess that’s what happens when nearly 70,000 crazed fans gather in Old Trafford, home of Manchester United and some legendary brawls (check out the 1990 Battle of Old Trafford if you’re into that kind of thing).

I especially enjoyed the massive waves and Brazil fans in random animal costumes, who cheered their guys on to a 3-0 defeat and advancement to the gold medal match against Mexico this Saturday.

Our Rice run through Hyde Park on Monday was another highlight of my trip so far. We missed a few people, whose friends or significant others were competing in the Olympics, but still represented over 4 decades of Rice runners, nearly 5,000 miles away from the place that brought us all together.