Friday, June 23, 2006

Schwarz Rot Gold

When Germany was awarded the 2006 football World Cup, so many years ago, an idea budded in me: being there for the show. This dream grew into full-blown baloney while I was watching the 2002 World Cup with friends in the basement of my house in Utah. Fascinated with dancing Koreans wielding chop sticks and hugging every foreigner in sight, I decided to spend time in every single city where games are played, hoping the atmosphere would be equally nice in Germany. Quite a program, but it seemed reasonably to me at the time.

As is it oftentimes is with crude ideas, the closer they come to fruition the more they lose their allure. Germany is far away, I have to work, it's too hot for traveling. So I've been sitting in various bars or in front of my TV for the last two weeks following games and watching people dancing and hugging each other. But the idea in the back of my head was calmly insisting on being taken seriously.

Tonight I booked a flight to Frankfurt for the day before the quarter finals, returning the day after the semis. My sister will take me to some big screen where I will join hundreds in watching us kick Argentina out of the competition. And then it might be Italy in the semis.

Should I have waited one more day before buying the ticket? What if Sweden tomorrow...? I'm optimistic – this is going to be a great World Cup. The team has really convinced me with their second and third games. And in any case, the beer is going to be much better than in France.

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