Spain and the World Cup

     The world Cup is one of the greatest events that happens on this earth, and winning it isnt an honor many countries have the privilage of experiencing. Being present in Spain while Spain produced great results in South Africa is something I will always be grateful for. Sure it wasnt like actually being in Johannesburg but in some ways it was maybe even better,  I got to experiencing joy with masses.

    Last time I was in Spain I was only about ten years old, and when my parents decided to let me go visit spain seven years later, I was overjoyed. I didnt even rememeber asking my parents for it, knowing how expensive the trip was . But It was the best gift I could have been given, If a genie had asked me for one wish; I would've asked to spend the summer in Spain, and I did.

   Before the trip I kept daydreaming of all the things i wanted to do, all the people I wanted to see again, all the friends and all the sites would want to revisit. One of the things I kept thinking about was the reactions of my friends to my return; would they even recognize me? would they care about my return? I was optimistic; I knew Spain was home to the kindest warmest and friendliest people I had known. Deep inside I knew my love for them would not go unrecognized. 

I personally don't know why I fell in love with soccer but I think I know why people love the world cup, even those who are not the biggest of soccer fans. The world cup is one of the few times people from around the world leave their differences aside and meet in a country to compete and represent their country in a positive light, It must be the biggest honor for the athletes to be chosen. And it helps the common folks forget about their daily hardships and immerse themselves in a beautiful game. Imagine about a fifth of the world population engaging in the same event, does anything else really achieve that? 

A world cup summer is the best summer; at least for a soccer fan, it only comes once every four years, so you cherish it and revolve your life around it. Waking up early in the summer as a kid? Anything for the world cup.  Say no to a date with a supermodel? Sure, Stay home while your friends get delicious ice cream to watch two random countries? Well you get the point. One of those things didn't happen y the way.

     The World Cup had already started and Spain didn't have the glorious started everyone predicted they would have, they lost to switzerland by a goal in the group stage. Here our national team had managed to get a draw again England which was a fantastic start for us. I was going to Spain while the country was depressed about the loss but I didn't care, I knew they would bounce back. The night before the trip I didn't get much sleep, all I could do was think about all the things I was going to do. Daydreaming about something wonderful that you know is actually likely to happen is one of the greatest feelings one can have. 

    I arrived in Madrid, It was as beautiful as I remembered it. I walked in the streets for hours just hypnotized by the beauty in every corner. Hunger kicked in,  I was going to try some of the authentic Spanish cuisine I had been craving for years. First gazpacho, a cold soup made of vegetables that you could drink out of a cup, nothing like it to quench your summer thirst, second tortillas, tortillas aren't as we know them here in the States, they are kind of like a potato omelet in Spain. I wasn't the biggest fan of them as a kid but now I could appreciated them, it was a simple and delicious dish, or maybe it was just a case of distance making the heart grow  fonder. That day I felt that every person I encountered smiled at me. Even I had smile I could not wipe off my face. It felt like love.

     The following day I got up and couldn't decide what I was going to do first. Its like having a banquet of your all time favorite foods in front of you; hard to decide where do you start. There was no soccer that day so I had plenty of time to do many things. The first thing I did was try and see my friend, I still remembered where he lived, I was proud of myself. Walking to his house; the anticipation and trying to predict his reaction was so much fun. I got to his building and asked the doorman for him, he asked for my name and I told him to just tell him it's an old friend. He called him up and came back to me. My friend was on vacation.

     After couple of solid wins came the match against Paraguay and it was the toughest match. Spain somehow managed to get a 1-0 win with what I think was another David Villa goal, while Casillas managed to save a penalty. People call Iker Casillas Spain's starting keeper, San Iker; san means saint in Spanish. After the game people where going wild, Spain was in the semis, there was a real chance this time, Spain had always managed to disappoint in the world cup but this time people felt it was different. While waiting for the semi-finals. I got to meet up with a lot of friends and do the things I wanted to do, meanwhile the atmosphere had become all World Cup; you couldn't walk anywhere without seeing someone wearing a jersey or debating if Torres should start instead of David Villa.

Spain beat a strong Germany in the semi finals, and went on to the finals. The day of the finals was the most exciting day of the summer . My friends invited me to go watch the game, I had a good feeling but Netherlands had been amazing in the tournament. I had never been so nervous ;every time Spain didn't have possession of the ball I felt as though my heart was going to fly out of my chest, but spain where composed, even though "Saint Iker" had to make couple exceptional saves, and on the other end the netherlands keeper was equally competent. The game went to over time and out of nowhere Andres Iniesta scored; you could hear the whole of madrid jump in unison and scream. Spain held to the lead for couple more minutes; minutes which felt like hours.The final whistle came and Spain won its first World Cup. People around me where crying from happiness something I had never seen before, I felt so lucky to be there and experience it all. That night I got to see two million people sharing the same feeling; all of those feelings being positive.