GAME DAY! USAvGhana at 7:30pm. We planned to go down to the beach in the morning and see the dolphins that swim there and then we would drive to Natal for the match. We managed to get some wifi access at one of the cafes that had the party last night, so I was finally able to get some email action.
Pipa is sort of a touristy surfer town. It reminded me of the Southern California towns like Encinitas, not for the layout so much as for the stoner beach bums who seemed to be eternally planted there. There were lots of Americans walking the streets too, and it had the feel of a town that was about to be vacated of a large number of them.
The dolphin sighting area is a beach on a lagoon that is only accessable during low tide. Charlie had figured out that low tide was from 11:30 to 2:30, so we had some time to check it out before heading in to Natal for the game. After a ten minute walk along the shore,we arrived at the lagoon. The sun was high in the sky, albeit slightly overcast. We went for a swim, saw a pair of dolphins that smartly had no interest in interacting with people, and took in the beautiful ocean view.
On to the next event of the day, we set out for Natal with the goal of getting there early enough to find parking and hopefully have a couple of beers before going into the stadium. We found a big lot that was a 15 minute walk from the stadium and set up.
The lot was free and there were several bus loads of Ghana fans rolling in. Once they saw us there was a constant stream of them coming over to get pictures with us. It was fun at first, but after the 20th or 30th one we decided to get away so we wouldn't be late for the game.
Just outside the stadium we camped out with our last beers and tried to sell the stock of 13 scarves we had taken with us. We sold 12 there and Neal gave one to a Brazilian kid inside the stadium.
I'm starting to see a different type of American fan group showing up to World Cup games. With the american Outlaws supporters group it seems like there are a lot of idiot American sports fans. They want to get drunk and yell and act entitled. It is starting to feel embarassing to be from the same country when I'm around these bros.
We met a guy who wanted to buy 200 scarves from me to resell around the games. I had 275 of them with me on the trip and I would gladly have cut him a deal. Lugging them around was inconvenient. Unfortunately, without access to reliable technology it was going to be difficult to arrange anything. I gave him my email address and phone number and hoped he would somehow get in touch.
Enough on that though, the game was nearing! The sun had gone down and the buzz outside was waning as people went into the stadium. The security check was a breeze and we were in.
Neal commented that the stadium was cheap. The materials were low cost concrete and corrugated steel, and there were a lot of unfinished fixtures and unpainted surfaces. the new airport was like that too. All of this just for four World Cup matches.
I guess I would describe the match as a few minutes of euphoria followed by 90 minutes of nervous anxiety followed by more euphoria and celebration. The Dempsey goal scored in the first minute was surreal after all the talk of Ghana having our number. The bulk of what followed was suspenseful, often like we were barely hanging on. The Ghana equalizer was reality setting in, and the last minute John Brooks go ahead made it amazing again. It was a blast.
Neal took issue with the ref giving five minutes of stoppage at the end. As you know, he takes meticulous notes in his little black book. He counted four subs and no injuries, so that is two minutes. When Neal disagrees with another ref, it is serious business.
You will be proud to hear that I displayed the scarf high for the Biden motorcade as the VP was departing the area. The highway was closed down while we were siphoning through the path back to the parking lot, and I noted that we would probably be in the middle of the pedestrian overpass when the motorcade came through. Indeed, as the flashing lights appeared a couple hundred meters down the road I was able to position myself front and center with the "United States" side of the scarf stretched overhead. There were at least 20 vehicles and I'm sure the VP was in one of them giving the thumbs up.
Back in the parking lot, Charlie found a Ghana fan with a scarf, so he made a trade. Ghana scarves are so rare, I'm thinking we should make some next time around to sell just so they have some to trade.
We won our opening match, and now we are in good position to advance. We talked about our chances and the surreal experience as we drove back to Pipa for a little bit of partying.
Pipa is sort of a touristy surfer town. It reminded me of the Southern California towns like Encinitas, not for the layout so much as for the stoner beach bums who seemed to be eternally planted there. There were lots of Americans walking the streets too, and it had the feel of a town that was about to be vacated of a large number of them.
The dolphin sighting area is a beach on a lagoon that is only accessable during low tide. Charlie had figured out that low tide was from 11:30 to 2:30, so we had some time to check it out before heading in to Natal for the game. After a ten minute walk along the shore,we arrived at the lagoon. The sun was high in the sky, albeit slightly overcast. We went for a swim, saw a pair of dolphins that smartly had no interest in interacting with people, and took in the beautiful ocean view.
On to the next event of the day, we set out for Natal with the goal of getting there early enough to find parking and hopefully have a couple of beers before going into the stadium. We found a big lot that was a 15 minute walk from the stadium and set up.
The lot was free and there were several bus loads of Ghana fans rolling in. Once they saw us there was a constant stream of them coming over to get pictures with us. It was fun at first, but after the 20th or 30th one we decided to get away so we wouldn't be late for the game.
Just outside the stadium we camped out with our last beers and tried to sell the stock of 13 scarves we had taken with us. We sold 12 there and Neal gave one to a Brazilian kid inside the stadium.
I'm starting to see a different type of American fan group showing up to World Cup games. With the american Outlaws supporters group it seems like there are a lot of idiot American sports fans. They want to get drunk and yell and act entitled. It is starting to feel embarassing to be from the same country when I'm around these bros.
We met a guy who wanted to buy 200 scarves from me to resell around the games. I had 275 of them with me on the trip and I would gladly have cut him a deal. Lugging them around was inconvenient. Unfortunately, without access to reliable technology it was going to be difficult to arrange anything. I gave him my email address and phone number and hoped he would somehow get in touch.
Enough on that though, the game was nearing! The sun had gone down and the buzz outside was waning as people went into the stadium. The security check was a breeze and we were in.
Neal commented that the stadium was cheap. The materials were low cost concrete and corrugated steel, and there were a lot of unfinished fixtures and unpainted surfaces. the new airport was like that too. All of this just for four World Cup matches.
I guess I would describe the match as a few minutes of euphoria followed by 90 minutes of nervous anxiety followed by more euphoria and celebration. The Dempsey goal scored in the first minute was surreal after all the talk of Ghana having our number. The bulk of what followed was suspenseful, often like we were barely hanging on. The Ghana equalizer was reality setting in, and the last minute John Brooks go ahead made it amazing again. It was a blast.
Neal took issue with the ref giving five minutes of stoppage at the end. As you know, he takes meticulous notes in his little black book. He counted four subs and no injuries, so that is two minutes. When Neal disagrees with another ref, it is serious business.
You will be proud to hear that I displayed the scarf high for the Biden motorcade as the VP was departing the area. The highway was closed down while we were siphoning through the path back to the parking lot, and I noted that we would probably be in the middle of the pedestrian overpass when the motorcade came through. Indeed, as the flashing lights appeared a couple hundred meters down the road I was able to position myself front and center with the "United States" side of the scarf stretched overhead. There were at least 20 vehicles and I'm sure the VP was in one of them giving the thumbs up.
Back in the parking lot, Charlie found a Ghana fan with a scarf, so he made a trade. Ghana scarves are so rare, I'm thinking we should make some next time around to sell just so they have some to trade.
We won our opening match, and now we are in good position to advance. We talked about our chances and the surreal experience as we drove back to Pipa for a little bit of partying.
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