Vamos Wimbledon!

For years and years I have watched my tennis idols on TV walk through the Wimbledon grounds, enter Center Court, and leave with the euphoria of victory, or the heartbreak of defeat. I have seen crowds of English hopefuls sitting on Henman Hill, eyes glued to the big screen wishing that their star player will take home the title. I have watched Roger Federer on the verge of making history in the 2008 finals, but instead watched Nadal take home the trophy (Vamos Rafa!!). It's surprising the amount of emotion a mere spectator can put into the Wimbledon tournament a thousand miles away. After years of pouring these emotions into my television screen (and into the arm of whoever was unlucky enough to sit next to me) I was able to visit the site where it all happened, The All England Lawn Tennis Club.

My Godfather, Antony, lives in Wimbledon Village and asked Kimmy and I to stay with him and his family on Monday night. I have not seen them in years so I was looking forward to seeing them again. We took the tube to the village and then walked to their beautiful house. We had dinner and played catch-up on everyone's lives since I was last here in 2002. On Tuesday morning my "godbrother" (if there is such a thing) drove Kimmy and I down to the legendary Wimbledon tennis grounds. As soon as we walked through the gates I felt the history of the grounds instantly. I knew we were in the presence of tennis excellence, and I suddenly felt very small. I have played tennis for years and have done quite well for myself (two CCC titles in a row and the chance to play at Nationals, thank you very much!), but that all seemed incredibly insignificant while I looked up to see the stadium that holds Center Court.

We went into the museum and got headsets that took us on a guided tour of the showcased memorabilia. We learned all sorts of things about how tennis originated and the history of the Wimbledon Championships. At the end of our tour we did just what every other tourist does when they visit Wimbledon, and went into the gift shop for souvenirs (I may be a citizen of this country, but that won't stop me from buying an "I *heart* England" t-shirt!). Unfortunately, the grounds are under major construction at the moment, so we were unable to walk through and see into Center Court or any other courts. And the most unfortunate occurrence of the day was when that good old English weather finally arrived. At that point we opened our umbrellas, and left.

Game. Set. Match. Wimbledon rain defeats Kimmy & Joanna.