Mexico! Mexico! - Mwanza, Malawi

After a nice jaunt in Harare, we head for Malawi. It was a day of emotional highs and lows that are the norm in crossing multiple borders. All I have to say is don't travel with a capeverdean passport. We finally make it into Malawi and immediately pop into a small bank right at the border crossing to withdraw some Kwachas. The bank has the smell of hot contained dustiness but it is playing the Germany v. England game! We notice the Germans are already one up so we take our piles of cash and quickly head into the town of Mwanza.

Mwanza is a happening border town, people are everywhere. We pull into the Mwanza Hotel and are happily greeted by a good sized crowd of Malawians watching the game projected on a wall screen. It looks like there is an international NGO conference at the hotel because there is a sprinkling of real English and German supporters in the front of the room. The English looked horrible and Germany, with its many supporters in the room, definitely deserved to advance to the quarterfinals. 

Mwanza Hotel did not help us in the vacancy department, but after finding our own interesting accommodations, we came back to Mwanza Hotel's screen to eat great food, listen to even better music and watch the Mexico/Argentina game. The atmosphere had us pumped for the Mexico game, even though there wasn't a Mexican supporter among us. It still didn't stop Ivan from blowing his vuvuzela and allowing others to take up a blow or two. Unfortunately, Mexico's performance deflates our spirits and we crash out. Messi really is the little Messi-ah, he's so good.

With no more NAFTA teams to support, Oli is hopeful that Spain can carry on and reach its first World Cup championship ever.

USA! USA! - Harare, Zimbabwe

After a long border crossing into Zimbabwe and a longer than expected drive through the country, we missed our goal of reaching the Mozambican border, so instead we cruised into Harare at Saturday rush hour. Harare is interesting to drive through because there are no street lights but everything is still as bustling as any other major city, like a lively ghost town.

We settle into this backpacker's lodge in the northern suburbs, which was good to watch with other Americans since all the Africans and every other nation were supporting Ghana. Dumi was pulling for Ghana, Oli for USA, and Ivan in typical Kriol fashion, was split in the middle. It was a dazzler, all of us were completely enthralled for 120 minutes, but the Americans couldn't pull it out. 

From an African perspective, this is great, because it means the continent still has a team to support. This does make the World Cup more exciting since it is happening on this continent. When we were in South Africa and even here in Zimbabwe, every time we would ask people who they support, the response is the same: I am African, so I have to support the only African team left. Go Africa, Go Ghana!

In the States, are you all seeing the Africa United, Go Africa media campaign??

Spain v. Chile - Musina, South Africa

We had to leave Jozi early and cancel our Swaziland trip because we lost confidence in our car getting us back in time for a our flight back to the States. We started our trip back to Malawi a couple days early, which suits us because being on the open road ain't so bad.

Our objectives of the day were to watch the hyped up Portugal v. Brasil game and the Spain v. Chile late game. We found ourselves back in Polokwane, city of our first world cup game, and had a very blah experience watching the very blah Brasil/Portugal game. We rolled in right about game time so when we saw the multinational display of flags over a lodge, we quickly turned in. Although they had a nice TV and we were taught to drink our hard apple cider with lemons, we still haven't found the elusive partying Brazilians roaming WorldCupLand.

Moving on from this blah viewing experience, we hurried on to the South Africa/Zimbabwe border before the late game started. We have become very interested in the Spanish team…they got style! 

We arrived at the bordertown of Musina just in time to try to find accommodations so we can watch the game. In our rush to find the game somewhere, we stumbled into this lodge thinking we've found a gold mine. We walk in to this log cabin building with a bar and a huge projection of the Spain game with lots of sound and tons of free seating. As we go up to the bar looking for registration, we find that we've stumbled into a diamond miners place. The place is rented out exclusively to the miners working in the area, but they politely allowed us to watch the game and have a drink with them. There was a very happy drunk miner who was over the moon to see us and couldn't believe we'd come to Musina all the way from California.

Dumi found us a hotel on the other side of town so at halftime we relocated our viewing over there for the second half. Over there, we strike a conversation with a local gold miner who explains to us that this is actually rugby country. Hmmm… at any rate, we ate good food and watched a wonderful display by the Spanish side. 

Italy v. Slovakia - Alexandria township (Jozi)

On Thursday our new friend Muzi took us out to his township of Alexandria to show us his neighborhood. Alexandra is definitely where you feel more like you are in Africa again and away from the World Cup international scene. Folks are hanging out on the sidewalks and in alleyways, the smell of people making dinner is in the air and kids are everywhere playing soccer (or some other street game that involves stacking buckets and trying not to let your opponent knock 'em down).

Muzi takes us to this local spot where he and his friends go to hang out and watch matches. It is a big space. We walk in through this dark foyer that opens up to this expansive space with multiple screens, tons of tables and seating and a large loft with a two-floor bar in the middle. It's four in the afternoon so it's pretty empty, people do work after all. However, the place broadcasts the Italy v. Slovakia game like it's at full capacity. We have to yell and sit close to converse.

The game ends up being a doozy and more folks arrive in the last and best 20 minutes of the game. At every goal, which were many at this point, you can hear reactions of oohs and aahs from the other patrons coming from every corner. When the game ends the few of us in our area are pretty satisfied with the game we've witnessed and equally unaffected by the result. Although Italy going out in the first round is something to talk about, it appears South Africa is a bit deflated by the Bufana Bufana's departure from the tournament.

England v. Slovenia - Randburg, Jozi

On Wednesday we couldn't find the USA game anywhere since the England game was playing at the same time. So we plopped ourselves in a local chain restaurant called KEG with a very nice sized crowd of English folks…we actually felt like we were in England as we sat in a beer garden space and were serenaded with English songs like "God save the Queen." It was fun, we cheered on the English side but every once and a while we'd start saying, "U-S-A U-S-A" under our breaths to try to cast some juju for our countrymen. Unfortunately, we went the whole game without seeing or hearing how our boys were doing, so we were very excited to find out in the post game show that we had won in an exhilarating display. Lucky for us replays are a dime a dozen in these parts so we did catch the match later on.

Mexico v. Uruguay - Rustenburg

Yesterday was an outing!
We decided to take advantage of the city-to-city bus transportation that was available by riding from Jozi to Rustenburg in what should have been called the Mexican supporters' bus. The running joke after any small contretemps was that the driver was from Uruguay.

Rusty is a small town rich from platinum mining and boasts a small tourist attraction you might have heard of called Sun City (think Las Vegas meets Disneyland). The locals gained a 20% share of the mining and built this small cozy stadium for the World Cup. The weather is nice and the Mexican contingent is far more numerous and boisterous than Uruguayans. Unfortunately, the tide as turned against Mexico as Uruguay has gained the South African support. Turns out the Bufana Bufana path to the second round needs a big loss from Mexico. So much for the South Africa -Mexico love affair.

Our seats are right on the center pitch and we're baffled at how we were able to score these tickets. We are definitely in the Mexico rowdy zone. The party is on in the stands with chants, dancing, and the obligatory vuvu belching. The game is pretty tame with Mexico dominating possession and Uruguay lurking dangerously on the counter. It's really fun to focus on Diego Forlan and see him put in a day's work; an inspiration to all average folks of what hard work can accomplish. The party in the stands goes up a few notches when South Africa goes up 2-0 against France.

Right before halftime a Mexican supporter runs across the field and he is completely ignored until he reaches the other end of the field and-- BAM!!!-- body slammed from his blind side by the security forces. Don't mess with a country that hails a rich rugby tradition. He should have taken his clothes off to make it more memorable.

Mexico concedes a wonderful goal to Luiz Suarez who up until now I hadn't even noticed he was on the field. After numerous calls from the fans, Chicharrito finally comes on but he's a bust. The coach needs to start him and needs to find someone else to start for Salcido, the weak link on this team. Despite numerous opportunities for scoring, Mexico can't get it done. The Mexican crowd is wild nonetheless; countless attempts to start a Mexican Wave go unsuccessful but a certain profane cheer is a hit and now even small South African children are yelling with the crowd, "Ahhhhhh...Puto!"

The game ends without an equalizer, but it doesn't stop the large Mexican contingent from making a ruckus as the Mexicans make it to the next round. Another beautiful day in World Cup Land, even the weather was beautiful for us this day. We stay late in the stadium, taking in the atmosphere and enjoying the evening sky. But, soon enough only the partying Uruguayans in one far corner of the stadium are all that remain so we depart for our party bus back to Jozi.

Jozi Fan Parks - hit and miss

(Pictured: us at the Montecasino fan park)
The past two nights we have been checking out the official FIFA fan parks- designated big screen locations around town for fans to come together to view matches. The first night we went to this area called Montecasino, set up like a mini casino that one might find in Reno but much nicer. We arrive after dark so it was quite a shock to walk indoors and find ourselves in daytime Tuscany. After walking a ways through shops, a casino and restaurants, we reach the fan park. It is set outdoors in a big piazza-like setting with a performance stage and huge screen on one end and many rows of chairs lined up throughout. As we make our way in there is a musician performing traditional rhythms on various stringed instruments and the crowd is pretty small. But, as game time nears people start to pack the place with a surprisingly large number of Ivorian support. Although most people believe Brasil will win it all, folks are really hoping for more African representation in the knock out round.

As kickoff approaches the DJ, go-go girls and fire dancers get started and we begin dancing to really great bad techno. All the songs you'd expect to hear for such an occasion were thrown in the mix- the type of songs to rev up a diverse crowd.There are isolated dance parties everywhere; dancing warms the soul and the body in near freezing temperatures.

The game starts with the screen counting down then followed by fireworks. That was probably the most exciting time of the game as Brasil dominated Cote d' Ivoire, after every score (even the double hand ball one) fireworks would go off and cameramen and TV crews would crowd the most vividly dressed Brasileiros. Drogba's goal showed some signs of hope but not enough to keep the cold Africans around to watch the end of yet another dismal display by an African team.

The next night we headed to the Sandton area fan park at Innsfree Park to watch the Spain v. Honduras game. This turned out to be quite a bust as no one was there. You'd have to crazy to sit out in a city park in this freezing weather, but there we were! Those of us stranded there packed ourselves into this small tented area, which played out to be our own personal freezing living room with a 12 x 10 foot screen and about forty random, shivering friends. We made the most of our situation by watching Spain finally look a little like Spain. And, we had fun listening to the Mexican girls next to us yell "GUAPO!" every time Navas or David Villa would get a full faced screen shot.

After the game we went back to Sandton City to warm up and eat dinner at Nelson Mandela Square (where you can find a giant bronze statue of Nelson Mandela). Also notable because the library is right across a courtyard from the statue. Anyway, we bring this trip up purely to let you know we almost literally ran into Italian footballer, Zambrotta. We were looking for food and he was dodging reporters, we all have needs that require expediency.

Tomorrow is our Mexico game, we just need to figure out how to get to Rustenburg.

Johannesburg - More tickets please!

We went to the official FIFA ticketing office yesterday to try to score tickets to last night's BRA/CIV game, but we weren't the first or only ones with this brilliant idea. The line for tickets was crazy and the aggitated guys working the lines couldn't repeat enough that tickets were not available for the Brazil game or any other Jozi (local speak for Johannesburg) game left in the first round. Some people had been in the line for hours still convinced that they could score tickets. Luckily the Italy v. New Zealand game was showing on nice HD flat screen TVs all over the joint so we could pass the time doing something meaningful. Yes, the World Cup has taken over our existence, and every other person's in South Africa.

We were undeterred by the news that we couldn't get tickets to any Jozi game because luckily there are stadiums in neighboring cities that are playing equally exciting games such as USA vs. Algeria and Mexico vs. Uruguay. Lucky for us, the World Cup hasn't been easy for any team except maybe Brazil so these final games of the first round are shaping up to be very exciting.

So...with the USA game sold out, we're pretty excited to inform you that we're heading back to another MEXICO game!!! This time, we are up against the dominant looking Uruguay which is looking to be a hell of a game. I'm so happy we are equipped with all this Mexico gear. Look out for us tomorrow on Tuesday somewhere near the pitch. We bought tickets without knowing where they are located in the stadium, so this should be interesting. The FIFA woman asked us, "the only tickets for three seats are on the pitch, is that okay??"" Umm...please explain how those wouldn't be okay?

Even better is that many South Africans are also pulling for Mexico to beat Uruguay. The Bufana (SA team name) supporters have figured out the math to get them into the second round, although most don't really believe it will happen. As they are saying here: Bufana plans to exit the World Cup with dignity. If Mexico beats Uruguay by 2 and South Africa beats France by 2 (or something like that), then they're in!

What's awesome is the Mexican - South African camaraderie going on out here. Whenever a Mexican is interviewed they can't gush enough about how nice and friendly people are here and how they want the Bufana to join them in the next round.

Sunday in Johannesburg, South Africa

Sorry for the delay in posts but we were literally on the road from Monday until Thursday, traversing 2000 kilometers to get from Mzuzu, Malawi to Polokwane, South Africa. On Thursday when we arrived in South Africa someone asked where we were coming from and we said, "Malawi," then they asked when we left and we responded, "Monday," to which the person started laughing.

In general, we don't have easy connection at all times so we write and then post once we get connection. Today is Fathers Day, happy day Dad and all dads across the land! You're the best.

Since the game on Thursday we've been lying low and recovering from the excitement. Ivan got a bit sick from being underdressed out in the cold and then showered by beer, so now that we are in Johannesburg we've been lying low at Dumi's sister's house and watching every game. We are trying to get ourselves back in order. We're currently watching the Paraguay vs. Slovakia in a cafe in Randberg, Johannesburg, contemplating how we might score tickets to tonight's Brasil v. Cote d'Ivoire match. Should be great if we can do it.

Anyway, we are attempting to upload some videos from the Mexico/France match. Fingers crossed we can make it happen.

Road Trip: Thursday (6/17) - Masvingo (Zimbabwe) to Polokwane (South Africa) 500 km

We cross into South Africa today and there's a lot of security but everyone is super friendly and in a excellent mood even if the weather is a little nippy. The roads are excellent and we cruise into Polokwane. There's traffic with French and Mexican fans all over. Polokwane is a small town but very lively.

We miss watching both early games although we were able to catch some of the matches on the radio, but we're going to watch our first game live today. We get our tickets, buy gloves, and look for vuvuzelas. We get to our room and get ready for the big night.

And what a night it is!!!! Good lord, if you love the beautiful game, you must make it to a World Cup game some time in your life. We weren't quite prepared for such a beautiful thing. We had some anxiety getting to the stadium and trying not to lose each other in the crowded mania. But, once we settled into our seats, you couldn't knock the smiles from our faces. The stadium is beautiful and the crowd was in a such a party mode with both French and Mexican fans mingling freely. Not to mention the South Africans in attendance that we recruited to join the Mexican support. Man, there's really nothing like being at the stadium and looking around to see the rainbow of people. The songs, the dancing, the being happy are all completely too difficult to describe, I hope the videos upload so you can see for yourselves. The Mexicans outnumbered the French, we heard a statistic that we populated the 35,000 crowd with 30,000 Mexico supporters. The incredible party mood in the stadium only got better as the game went on.

If you hadn't figured it out already, Mexicans know how to party- but the celebration after the goals was purely Mexican-style. When we scored beer went flying everywhere, we were seriously showered by beer and song and cheers of "ME-Xi-CO! ME-Xi-CO! ME-Xi-CO!" It was sooooo fun. At times I would forget that we were in South Africa with so many Mexicans around, but then I'd look around and see the South Africans joining in the chants, or.... completely disturbed by being showered with beer and choosing to leave. Not everyone can handle Mexicans. After the game the party continues with lots of dancing and chanting. The French supporters were pissed off with the poor play of their team, but were cordial enough to talk about it.

After such an amazing night, we have decided to make a real effort to get tickets to more games, we're addicted. We'll keep you posted. Signing off after a beautiful night.

Road Trip: Wednesday (6/16) - Pumpkin to Masvingo (Zimbabwe) 500 km

We start early and hit Harare and refill on snacks. We catch Spain versus Switzerland at a bar in Chivu. It's a local bar and the regulars are into the game. When we arrive, the power is off, but they assure us that they will fire up the generator by kick off. The crowd is definitely into the game, but our lack of understanding the Shona language precludes us from participating in much dialogue. We're bummed Spain loses but doubt the coach fielded the best team. Torres only in 60th minute? Where the hell is Fabregas?

(Pictured: the local bar in Chivu, this is before the generator went on and before folks started to arrive)

We set off on the road again determined to catch the South Africa game in our destination of Masvingo. We get our room at Flaming Lilly but again there's no power. Although they inform us the power will be back up at game time, we take no chances and head to Chevron Hotel where the generator is working. The place is packed for the South Africa vs Uruguay game, the crowd is very lively and packed with locals. In fact, all over town you can hear worldcupmania with vuvuzuelas and buzz filling the air as we walked outside. The result is upsetting to the crowd but the mood is still upbeat.

Road Trip: Tuesday (6/15) - Lilongwe (Malawi) to Pumpkin (Zimbabwe) by way of Mozambique 500 km

We set off early hoping to arrive in Harare before nightfall. We have two border crossings to go through and the group of death plays today. Mozambique is a challenge both with immigration and crossing the bridge at the great Zambezi River, it sets us back on our schedule. We learn that Coca Cola is a fine bribe.

Pictured: I and O with some local vendors waiting to cross the Zambezi River in Tete, Mozambique (we're really hot at over 40 degrees celsius)

There's palpable excitement for today's games in Mozambique, partially due to the group of death but also the Portuguese-speaking nations do have some camaraderie around the globe. We watch New Zealand tie Slovakia in a restaurant. The Portuguese owner is a wench; we politely ask her to put the game on, but she insists there are no games at this time. Sure, the Portuguese team isn't on for a few more hours but indeed there is a game on right now. And, she's yelling at her Mozambican employees. Someone needs to tell her colonialism is over.

We're running late and need to cross the border to Zimbabwe before it closes. We pass many establishments with the Portugal vs Ivory Coast game showing on their small TVs. There are crowds around the TVs but we can't stop and we can't get the game on the radio. 

We get a room at Pumpkin Hotel just across the Zimbabwe border in the town of Pumpkin- a rural rural establishment which makes good money on folks crossing late into the country. We catch the last three minutes of the Portugal v. Ivory Coast game. We're super tired so we curl in bed and watch Brazil battle North Korea. Very fun game and I'm sure North Korea can beat Portugal if they play like this.