Football Fever hits a HIGH in Spain!

During the month of June temperatures were slowly increasing throughout Spain, and I don't just mean the ones measured by an atmospheric thermometer (although I'm glad that particular heat wave finally cracked!). There has been a wave of RED spreading across the country... It started out on June 10th with an immediate impact on all segments of the population, including its youngest members:

The intensity increased over the next couple of weeks, invading our supermarkets...

and even taking over the streets at times during the Hogueras:

The climax hit us last night, on July 1st, as we prepared for the possibility of entering the history books...

España vs Scotland - the World Champions come to Alicante!

October 11th, 2011...

So, where were we? Ah yes! Dudes in skirts invaded Alicante!!! And why? All to see a beautiful trophy in a glass case? I don't think even the most ardent fans would fly all the way down here just for that (although the added incentive of the local beaches and sunny weather might help). Nope, they were all here to witness their teams' final qualifying match for the 2012 European Football Championship! What were the stakes? Well for Spain a matter of pride, hoping to win all their matches in a qualifying phase for the first time (something very few countries have done) and maintain their winning streak in Alicante (they've never lost here!), but for Scotland the stakes were much higher: a loss would mean farewell to their dreams of playing in Poland and the Ukraine next summer.

Now, although it might seem otherwise from the number of posts on the subject, I am NOT a big football fan! Except when the national team is involved... then I go kind of crazy... particularly if it's a World Cup year (see last year's football madness, lol!). ;o)  In fact, I've only been once to see a live football match, and that was a big final in Mexico D.F. 16 years ago with a friend who insisted I had to see a live match (and we had a blast!). Although I've often thought it would be fun to go see another match with a group of friends, I haven't really done anything about it. The best time would have been last year when Alicante's local team - the Hercules - was in 1st Division and the best teams in the country all came to play here at some point, but I was out quite frequently so nada. But the Selección comes to Alicante for the first time in 10 years?!?!?! There's NO WAY I was going to miss out on joining in in that fiesta with the reining World Champions! Add to that the fact that my dad had never been to a live football match (American football I'm guessing yes), and we were all set to make a father-daughter adventure out of it! :o)

He looks excited doesn't he?

We walked into the Rico Perez (the Hercules' stadium) barely 5' before the match started and of course the place was packed and the ambiance fantastic!

More dudes with skirts! Football fiesta in Alicante...

So, no guesses on the reason for the Scottish invasion? *sniffles* I'd hope at least someone on this side of the Atlantic would have chimed in... after all, similar events were taking place in a dozen or so cities around the continent!

I'll give you a few more clues and let's see if you can't figure it out before the end of the post...

Number one, although lots of them were turning crispy red on the beach or downing bears on one of Alicante's many terraces,

many more were to be seen hanging around this place:

Ok, yeah... that's in Spanish and it translates as "World Champions - Welcome to the Club Selección", Selección as in Spain's national football team (soccer for those on the other side of the pond). So why were Scots hanging around a place dedicated to Spain's current darlings? Well, among the many tents set up on this Esplanade on the harbour, most people (including lots of Spaniards) came to line up and go in here:

Yes dear, that man is wearing a sheep on his head! lol!

Spanish Football Fever

Just so you don't forget my football obsession from last summer... I'm going to dip my toes back in the subject! ;o)

Although usually I go nuts for football only every 4 years - and occasionally every 2 - i.e. when Spain's National team plays the World Cup (or European Cup), it doesn't mean I'm not interested in the sport in the in-between times. It's just that I haven't been bitten by the football bug, the one that's responsible for so many "football widows" in Spain (and many other countries) on weekends. I have a favourite team (Real Madrid with goalie "San" Iker Casillas, captain of the national team and who with this victory has now won every possible title), but I won't sit down to watch them face-off with the others every week. I'll definitely choose a good movie, a TV series or going out somewhere instead of putting football on the screen. But I LOVES me a good match! So when it looks like there's going to be one, usually a particularly important event, count me in!

Right now there are cars honking their horns in streets outside my window. Twenty minutes ago someone set off a huge blast (firecracker) that sent my dog running to hide in the bathtub. A little over half an hour ago my mom was yelling "gooooooooool" out the balcony and I could hear neighbours in other appartments yelling the same thing.