A por ellos!
So, as you may or may not have known, the World Cup just ended (one week ago today). As I was in Spain for 95% of it, I was paying attention. While in Granada, I discovered a terrace restaurant that had an outdoor TV and ended up watching games every night when eating dinner (because it was better than eating alone). I watched the first two games that Spain played there, but got to Madrid in time for the third, so Amy, Meg, and I decided to go watch the game with thousands of other Spaniards...
Amy and I started out the day with nachos and a drink at Hard Rock Madrid, because I'd never been and she had a hankering for sour cream (almost impossible to find in Spain). In this picture, Amy poses with the huge drink we split (she paid extra and got to keep the souvenir glass):
And I pose with the mountain of jalapeños, which neither of us wanted to eat:
We then crossed the street to Colón, the perfect place to set up a jumbotron, as it is the plaza in Madrid that, year-round, flies an enormous Spanish flag. Anyway, one of the Spanish TV channels, Cuatro, had set up an entertainment center and was showing the games there. We decided to partake in the experience...
... and part of partaking in the experience was making our own drinks. Meg brought beer and lemon soda to make "claras," an excellent summertime beverage. 
The crowd was young, mostly male, enthusiastic, and getting drunker:
Singing the song of the Spanish team - "A por ellos, o-e / A por ellos, o-e / A por ellos, o-e / A por ellos, e-o-e." ("A por ellos" translates, more or less as, "go at them."
At this point, about 11 minutes into the game, Meg, Amy, and I decided we could take no more. So we left the 38 degree (approx. 106) heat and found an airconditioned bar nearby where we drank water and watched the game comfortably. 
Spain beat Saudi Arabia, 1-0. After three wins, everyone was pumped for the match against France. And then they lost, 1-3. And that was sad... At that point, I decided to root for Germany (the home team) and, to a lesser extent, Portugal, because I like the language and I'm an Iberian Studies major (and Portugal, while ignored by Wesleyan, is Iberian). So by the time the final rolled around, I no longer cared... Well, except that I hated the Italian fans more than the French ones. But in the end, it was fun just to have been in the same time zone as the games, surrounded by people from all different countries, all rooting for different teams. El mundial (the World Cup) is all right in my book.
Amy and I started out the day with nachos and a drink at Hard Rock Madrid, because I'd never been and she had a hankering for sour cream (almost impossible to find in Spain). In this picture, Amy poses with the huge drink we split (she paid extra and got to keep the souvenir glass):
And I pose with the mountain of jalapeños, which neither of us wanted to eat:
We then crossed the street to Colón, the perfect place to set up a jumbotron, as it is the plaza in Madrid that, year-round, flies an enormous Spanish flag. Anyway, one of the Spanish TV channels, Cuatro, had set up an entertainment center and was showing the games there. We decided to partake in the experience...
... and part of partaking in the experience was making our own drinks. Meg brought beer and lemon soda to make "claras," an excellent summertime beverage. 
The crowd was young, mostly male, enthusiastic, and getting drunker:
Singing the song of the Spanish team - "A por ellos, o-e / A por ellos, o-e / A por ellos, o-e / A por ellos, e-o-e." ("A por ellos" translates, more or less as, "go at them."
At this point, about 11 minutes into the game, Meg, Amy, and I decided we could take no more. So we left the 38 degree (approx. 106) heat and found an airconditioned bar nearby where we drank water and watched the game comfortably. 
Spain beat Saudi Arabia, 1-0. After three wins, everyone was pumped for the match against France. And then they lost, 1-3. And that was sad... At that point, I decided to root for Germany (the home team) and, to a lesser extent, Portugal, because I like the language and I'm an Iberian Studies major (and Portugal, while ignored by Wesleyan, is Iberian). So by the time the final rolled around, I no longer cared... Well, except that I hated the Italian fans more than the French ones. But in the end, it was fun just to have been in the same time zone as the games, surrounded by people from all different countries, all rooting for different teams. El mundial (the World Cup) is all right in my book.
posted by Lynn at 8:57 PM
0 comments
