Editor’s Note: Passport Brazil is a series on what it’s like to be on the ground in Brazil during the World Cup.
It’s shocking how a little passion fruit juice and a breakfast sandwich can bring you back to the world of the living. We got an expectedly late start to the day but no one seemed to mind, it was day one of the World Cup, and spirits were high. Weighing heavily on George’s mind however was the issue of his luggage.
George had to run through Charlotte to make his connecting flight. In fact, he barely made it, even after I stalled the plane at the gate with some very slow, very poor Portuguese. He ended up making the flight but as expected his bag did not. Now flash forward to Brazil, the bag was supposed to be delivered to our hotel by 2pm but sadly it never arrived. Luckily, George had packed his American Outlaws jersey and USMNT board shorts in his carry-on, so he didn’t really care what happened to the rest of his gear. What a boss.
We again met up with our fellow American brethren and headed back to the FIFA Fan Zone in São Paulo. Man, what a difference 24 hours can make. We made it in about two hours before the opener between Brazil and Croatia but the entire place was packed. Everyone was fired up and people were pounding beers, singing and generally carrying on before the game. There was even a live band but surprisingly the Red Hot Chili Peppers tracks seemed to be the crowd favorite based on singing participation. We really got swept up in the spirit and even got our arms painted in yellow, blue and green by a teenager who ran around trying to get everyone hyped on Brazil. His efforts were appreciated, but totally unnecessary.
The fan zone itself was a massive area with food and beer vendors and a huge screen that actual had impressive definition from our vantage point. We were actually quite impressed with the amenities, especially considering the state of the area just the day before. By now you know how the game ended, but I must say the first goal silenced the crowd. We were a little concerned that the probability of being stabbed had raised precipitously, but luckily Brazil ultimately won the game so we emerged stab-wound-free.
What I will say about the game though is it’s pretty tough to explain the feeling when the home team to the World Cup scores their first goal and you’re surrounded by hundreds of their fans. However questionable the Brazilian goals were in that opening match, the feeling in that fan zone was not. All the question marks that were in my mind about this World Cup were put to rest with that game. The Brazilians expressed so much joy in their teams’ victory that their inevitable 6th World Cup seemed almost ordained. We considered making a night of it but the 4 A.M. wake up call to make our flight to Fortaleza ultimately deterred us from a repeat performance.
That being said, we did have a great night eating pizza and juggling a soccer ball with random World Cup fans on the city sidewalk. Kramer had really thought ahead and came up clutch with a size 4 ball that he had decided to pretty much bring with him everywhere. The only drama of the night was actually when a Belgium fan kicked the ball over a barbed wire fence. First they cancel the friendly, now this? Classic Belgium.
Oddly enough a Brazilian man in his 50s who had been juggling with us was the brave (read: reckless) soul who decided to jump the barbed wire to retrieve the $10 ball. Totally unnecessary and not encouraged, but obviously appreciated. Once he came back injury free we decided we’d had enough excitement for one night, and called it. As we packed up that night to get ready for the early morning flight, one thing was clear: this wasn’t an adventure I would ever regret embarking on, or ever forget.
Click here to read part 1 and part 2 of Passport Brazil.
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