The ‘smos made there Socal debut, travelling to the OC for the 2008 NHB.

We started at Chuck’s Donuts at 4:00 am.  We were in Hollywood by 10:00 am.  We stopped for lunch at Pink’s.  We ordered chili cheese dogs, dogs topped with onion rings, bacon, guacamole.  They had buns stuffed with two dogs.  When I ordered Estevan’s second coleslaw dog, I noticed the 12-inch polish wrapped in a flour tortilla, but I resisted.

The hotel was nice.  Definitely the best lobby we’ve seen so far (although the atrium at the Concord Hotel was good).  Brenda and Joanne were already in Socal when we arrived, touring the area and beaches for a few days in the middle of the week.

We gathered and ate La Salsa Friday night.  It was pretty good mexican, and the new habanero salsa was full of flavor.  After dinner, the coaches headed down the the NHB check-in.  This tourney cost $600 and I could see why.  It was like my prom all over again.  There were fake white roman columns, tables with black tablecloths, free beer, and a buffet.  They had it goin’ on.  The bar was off the hook, too.  It was the type of bar where you didn’t mind spending $9 on a cocktail.

On Saturday, we woke up and ate some of the free breakfast.  They had good coffee and juice, and it was a lot of fun.

For game #1, we played Long Beach Supreme Attack.  The Cosmos had too much speed, and really got out in front, winning 4-0 to start the day.  Leslie, Alicia, and Izzie all put goals in the net, and the defense of Clarissa, Lauren, Peyton, and Simone shut the Supreme Attack down.

In game #2, the Cosmos played Corona.  Corona was very fast, with two strong forwards on the outside.  Somehow, our team kept it close and regulation ended in a scoreless tie.  Since we were tied on every tie breaker, we ended up going into PKs.  Well, it took 7 PKs for Corona to finish us off.  We were all pretty proud of the girls, and it was not a bummer to lose.

On the way home, I drove Estevan and Arturo home in the rented Prius.  We took PCH and it was a nice drive in traffic along the beach, where we all got to know each other a little better.

Some parents and siblings went to Benihaha, while Estevan and, Arturo and I ate some awsome Chorizo burritos from Tacos & Co. near the hotel.  The kids all gathered in the hotel lobby for Amber’s B-Day party.  The team signed a soccer ball for her, and it was a good time for them dancing, and goofing around in the lobby.  The funny part was walking through the 20-year high school reunion, which was SRO, and we were a little under-dressed.

On Sunday, we had an early start against the Eclipse.  The Eclipse were a very good team, and scored first.  They were really well coached, and even though Leslie tied it, the Eclipse won the game 2-1.

In game #4, we played against Real Blue.  We struggled on offense a bit, and could not get a goal in.  The defense payed well, but we gave up a long goal in the first half for the only score of the game.

After the game, as we were preparing to head back home, I spotted Lionel Richie on the other sideline.  I told him I was a big fan and asked him to meet our kids.  He was so happy to do it.  He took the time to sign autographs, and was pro-active in getting in the right light for a team photo.  I was so happy, and it was a nice way to end the NHB trip.

Arturo said it best, against tough SoCal competion, the Cosmos only gave up 3 goals in 4 games - that’s something to be proud of.