heroes

what a game! wow. 3 red cards (2 for the US), 2 goals called back (one for either side), and a heroically gutsy performance by the American team to defend their goal against the Italian onslaught for the last 30 minutes. not to put too fine a point on it, but the Italians seemed to be playing on a skating rink, because they clattered down to the turf everytime they were breathed on. it was a shameless display of referee manipulation by the Azzuri, whose league (Serie A) is being investigated for match-fixing. (it´s no secret that teams in Serie A work harder to disrupt the other team´s attack and to flop around to manipulate the referee into free kicks than to create anything like football beauty.)

the American team did our country proud, and the American fans did as well. the stadium was really loud, and the American section was rocking the house. we were on our feet the entire game, and we hardly stopped singing to breathe. the match was so intense and the atmosphere so electric we felt almost faint with exhaustion by the 80th minute, and yet we had to continue cheering to urge our boys on for the last 10. (the two guys next to me were exuberant and aggressive in their cheering. one of them hugged me and Betsy together. i had their face paint on my jersey by the end.) i am incredibly proud of our team and our fans. this match, like the Germany-Poland match, is one of the best of the tournament. for me, it´s by far the most thrilling match i´ve seen in person.

the match ended around 11 pm, but we didn´t get home until almost 2 a.m. the logistics for leaving the stadium were not well thought out, and although it´s a smaller stadium (46,000) than the one in Gelsenkirchen (52,000), it took much longer to walk back to town. we were two among a swelling mass of humanity being herded through a narrow space down a long road. at one point a couple cafes were set up, selling beer, juice, snacks. they must have made a killing. apparently, some fans took even longer to get home - when we got to the train station this morning at 6 am (after a leisurely nap of 3 hours), a train pulled in from Kaiserslautern filled with singing American fans. drinking beer. with face paint still on. no luggage. 6 am. oh my god, we thought, these guys have been partying all night and they´re just getting home! and they´re STILL DRINKING AND SCREAMING! these people must have lungs and livers of steel.

so today we´re in Nuremberg en route to Prague (Praha) for a few days of relaxation before the third (not final!) US match, against Ghana in Nuremberg. the train here was filled with Croat and Japanese fans (their teams face each other this afternoon), the Croats singing at the top of their voices and the quiet Japanese in our compartment apologizing for being too loud in their conversation. we´re definitely rooting for Japan today!

note from betsy--i've never cheered and screamed and chanted and clapped for anything as hard and long and loudly as i did yesterday. at several moments i thought i might pass out from excitement. i must be a real soccer fan now.