Goooooooooooooooollllllllllllll!
To begin, a scene from the obstetrician's office. Cintra and I arrive at the office of Dr. R, who's scheduled Cintra's 6-month pregnancy checkup. Greetings, smiles, Cintra weighs herself, Dr. R waves her to the examination table and sonogram machine. All is proceeding according to plan. Then, just as he begins to palpate Cintra's uterus, Dr. R takes a sudden step back and turns to me with a concerned face. My mouth runs dry and heart stumbles to its knees. I'm not ready for the fear: Danger? Deformity? Death?
"I've got a question for you?" he says.
"Yes," I croak.
"Why has soccer never caught on in America?"
Yes, it's World Cup time here in Argentina. As I'd been repeatedly warned, Argentina is soccer hungry, soccer mad, soccer starved, soccer everything. And having been to a few games I had an inkling of the truth of the madness (a truth further imagined when a friend compared Buenos Aires during the World Cup to post-bomb Hiroshima--no one on the streets). But only this morning, sitting in a darkened bar at 10 a.m. with Grant of WhatsUpBuenosAires did the passion become real. The Argentine selection whooped Serbia and Montenegro 6-0 (the kind of result that could tear a country in two; now I understand why Montenegro was so eager to leave); if the competition had been over fan passion, I suspect the final result would have bene even worse.
...as crowds quietly waited in offices, cafés and bars...
...until they exploded when Argentina scored (x6)
We were not alone in jubilation (La Nación)
posted by Ian @ 4:27 PM
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My soccer-oblivious bosses in the US scheduled an interview during the match, so I missed out on the madness at Viejo Indecente. At home, I closed all windows and still the building shook with each of the six goals. The secondary school on our block was particularly frenzied with goal-glee. On the street, horns honked. All in all, I was glad to feel the love all the way through my office walls.
madness, they need to get a life and work on more productive things for the country
^_^ A pretty similar scenario occured yesterday, during the match against Mexico. I had never experienced what it was like not to be watching the match when Argentina scores, and it was funny and exciting. And the streets that seem like those of a ghost town during the match, are like human rivers right after we win. It's nice to have these "off" days, though I wouldn't mind if all the honking would end a bit earlier.. (how long does a car battery last??)
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