Goal!

I was only a little sad to leave Santiago—mainly I was amazed at how quickly the week went by.  The wine train was fun but uneventful and a bit of a disappointment.  Today we were up at the crack of dawn to fly to Buenos Aires, which I had already decided was going to be my favorite city.  I have not been disappointed.  We immediately dumped off our bags and headed to a Boca Juniors soccer match.  This is one of the best teams in Argentina, and it just so happened that they clinched the Argentine championship while on the road last week, so today was the home fan celebration of this win.  I have long contended that soccer is the most boring sport on the planet (two hours of men running at a breakneck speed up and down a field with ball possession changing almost every minute to only score once just violates everything I believe a sport should be), but this was one of the best sporting events I’ve ever been to. 

 

First of all, I actually learned to appreciate the game.  I sat between a Brazilian and an Englishman who explained the finer points and I have to admit getting a bit sucked in by the action (I now maybe prefer soccer to hockey, whereas before they were just the two ‘I’d rather put a fork in my eye than watch an entire game’ sports tied in the basement of my sports fandom).   But more importantly, a stadium full of celebrating Argentinians is something I will never forget.  People were setting off fireworks and these smoke things in the team colors all over the stands.  The fans sang through the entire pre-game festivities, the game itself, and the lengthy post-game celebration, and unfurled flags which covered entire sections and played drums.  It was the most incredible group of fans I’ve ever seen in my life. 

 

Side note- our Argentinian host told us not to eat anything in the stadium, but since all I had to eat at that point was a cookie, a bag of candy, and two beers, I ate a sausage sandwich.  This is why you get the Hep A and Typhoid vaccinations and the ‘just in case’ Cipro prescription, right? 

 

 

To read more about Boca Juniors, and to download their hymn, click here:

http://www.bocajuniors.com.ar/english/default.cfm