Dear Jack... get your butt here!

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|| SportsShooter.com: News Item: Posted 2004-08-10

Dear Jack... get your butt here!
From Athens, Robert Hanashiro writes a letter to his USA TODAY colleague Jack Gruber.

By Robert Hanashiro, Sports Shooter

Photo by H. Darr Beiser / USA TODAY

Robert Hanashiro photographs boxer Andre Ward at the Parthenon in Athens, Greece as part of a portrait project on Olympic athletes.

(Note: USA TODAY's Robert Hanashiro wrote to his colleague Jack Gruber, who is the last member of the newspaper's staff photographers to depart for Athens, Greece to cover the Summer Olympic Games. SportsShooter.com received permission from Hanashiro to reprint the letter.)

Dear Jack,

I hope you're enjoying Outback Steakhouse and Hometown Buffet while awaiting your (ungodly) flight to Athens.

Bob (Deutsch) and I have been here a week now and I thought I'd drop you a quick note to prep and also advise you on a few things to bring.

First off, leave most of the long pants back home. It's hot here. No, let me expound: it is F***ING HOT here.

In the shade, with a breeze, it's survivable. But in the sun, it is blistering hot. While out at the beach volleyball venue the other day to shoot a feature photo (no, there weren't any members of the Brazilian team wearing their usual thong - or women athletes for that matter!) and sitting in the sand for just a few minutes, I nearly passed out. And I grew up in Fresno, so I thought I was used to this kind of heat.

I know you're not partial to tank tops, so I don't have to tell you to leave those skimpy shirts home so you don't look like these guys from France and Germany.

Of course the Olympic "photo bib" is made of HEAVY material that seems twice as thick as the Banana Republic / Domke photo vest - I guess Mark Terrill has something to add to his collection of photo vests! The color is a sort of blue – green. The woman who was issuing them in the Kodak Imaging Center said, "It's the new black." Guess she's been watching "Sex and the City" or something.

I made a couple of trips to the Parthenon to scout locations for the last of my Olympic Portraits project. We were there scouting location first in the early evening hours when the skies were darkening and filled with clouds. Standing there with Darr (Beiser), Michael (Madrid) and Frank (Folwell) a breeze kicked up, I thought maybe Apollo (not Ohno) would ride down from the Heavens in a chariot!

Needless to say, the sight of the Parthenon is absolutely breath taking! I know you've been to Greece before, so maybe you've been up there. If you want to go again, I'd love to make a return visit. It is definitely worth the train ride there.

Photo by Robert Hanashiro / USA TODAY

Souvlaki and Greek Salad at an oudoor cafe in Athens, Greece.

The food here has been pretty good. After our scouting trip to the Parthenon we stopped at an outdoor café for some Souvlaki and Greek Salads. Dude, forget about Wendy's! The Souvlaki is a heap of grilled meat piled onto pita with grilled tomatoes and onions. I just bounced myself off of the South Beach Diet!

A couple of quick things - I know you have a flight to catch and want to spend as much time with Amy as you can:

- We're running low on the Euro AC plug adapters, so swing by Radio Shack and buy a few if you're not carrying a bunch. For some reason, you can't find these things anywhere here.

- Now that more and more "journos" (as our British roomie calls us) are showing up, lines (especially at security) and waiting are getting longer. One thing I might suggest: a PLASTIC BUCKLE belt. Darr and I are now going SANS belt because we're tired of having to strip down to getting into the Media Village and MPC

- Don't worry about laundry service here at the Maroussi 1 Media Village, because there isn't any! They do have dry cleaning, so we decided to send out our shirts and pants. Frank says after we've turned our underwear and socks inside out for another wearing we can just go buy new ones at the department store next door to the MPC. Men's briefs are 9.95 EUR for 3 and socks are 6.75 EUR for 3 pair.

- Coffee here sucks (everyone from the States is complaining about not enough Starbuck's here), the only beer in the MPC is Heineken, but the local brew Mythos is great. I guess Alan Greth's going to have to go dry during his stay here, there isn't a can of Coors Lite to be found in this country!

- Bring that bicycle helmet with the rearview mirror - you'll need it when you walk the road from the Media Village to the MPC. I guess sidewalks are a new concept here - they use them, but for parking cars and scooters. You literally have to walk in the street and with these crazy bus drivers speeding down that narrow road, we've almost been squashed a dozen times already!

- I've already gone through the DVD's I brought with me, so if you have anything cool to watch, bring 'em! I've gone through the new "Enter The Dragon" 30th Anniversary double DVD collection, "Slap Shot" (for the 80th time!), "The Soprano's Season 5", "School of Rock" and "Dancing At The Blue Iguana". (Don't ask about that last one, Taniwaki gave it to me!) Remember: Bob and I have been away from home for almost 10 days now!

Photo by Robert Hanashiro / USA TODAY

USA TODAY's Michael Madrid enjoys a Mykos beer and H. Darr Beiser enjoys his Souvlaki and Greek Salads at an outdoor cafe in Athens, Greece.

- Security has been mostly uneventful. They are x - raying everything and not opening cases and bags. So far. But in the Athens Olympic Organizing Committee's infinite wisdom, they have the credentials in a lanyard with large METAL clips -you have to take the credential OFF before going through the mag and bag at the Media Village, MPC and venues. It's stupid.

- I already bought you a bunch of clothes hangers for your bedroom closet and a cheap duffle to store things in your room. Hopefully by the time you get here Eileen will have a new roomie - and the Aussie TV dude they put in there has moved out. (Just kidding!)

- One more thing: One of those little shower scrubber brushes might be a good thing because the shower stalls are so friggin' SMALL that you either bang your elbow into the wall or have to hang halfway out just to wash your legs or your back! Also you'll get used to the inch of water on your bathroom floor.

All right, I guess that's all from Athens ... have a good flight (sleep as much as you can in route) and get your butt here!

Your buddy, Bert.