It all began yesterday morning when I met up with a friend and we bought books for classes, stopped at La Bocqueria for more fruit salad and went down to the peer to eat our little lunch (an amazing apple muffin and fruit salad) After our little picnic, we walked around down by the port, and by the Maremagenum ( a huge shopping mall right on the water). We talked about how fun it would be to go to the game, but how it was probably too late.
So we made the decision to just go to a pub to watch the game( Barca vs. Sevilla). I decided this mainly because Jose and Ana wanted to take us to a free light/water show at Font Magica (it seems very reminiscent of the Cesar's Palace light show in Las Vegas). I had already told them on Friday that I would go with them to the light show, so I decided actually attending the game after the show would be cutting it too close.
However, plans quickly changed. After I got home from my exploration, I was talking to Ana, and when I told her I had thought earlier about possibly going to the game, she got soooo excited and immediately got dinner together so we could go to an earlier showing of the light/music show so I could make it to the game. According to Jose (a futbol fanatic) he said this was one of the best and most exciting games I could afford to go to while hear. I guess Barca recently lost to Sevilla, so this game meant a lot. Their excitement and enthusiasm helped me make up my mind, so I called up my friend, we decided to go, and she went and got us tickets(which were still on sale, surprisingly).
After a quick dinner, we went in Jose's work car to the water show, and it had been cancelled for some reason. This was good though, because I could get to the game earlier. They dropped me off at a metro stop and I was off to the game. The metro station was quite an experience. People decorated in FCB gear singing and cheering. The metro was so incredibly full and I was jammed against people like a sardines in a can. I really had no clue where I was going, but I just followed the masses. After arriving at the Camp Nou I found my friend and we made our way to our seats. Camp Nou is the largest stadium in Europe, and despite being older, it was very impressive. Our seats were the absolute highest seats possible in the entire stadium, but surprisingly, the view was still great. It was also good because this last row of seats had an awning over it, so we didn't get wet and cold like the thousands of others.
The stadium was so alive, and everybody was whistling and carrying on. It was really a lively event, especially considering it was so late, 10:00 pm. (that's early here though). If they played a sporting event that late at home, everyone would be falling asleep.
Earlier that day, when we were down by the peer, I had bartered with a man in a shop for a Messi jersey. Messi is number 10, so I knew I had to have his jersey. FCB's jerseys are extra cool because they say UNICEF on them. The club donates a percentage of the money they earn to UNICEF. They are one of the first clubs to adopt such a philanthropic idea.
It was extra exciting to be wearing number 10 last night because Messi scored his 100th goal for FCB. I keep telling people he did it for me. Obviously he didn't, but it was still very exciting. Every time we scored, all the people around us became like our instant friends.(highfiving us and such). It was fun. I'm not sure what the crowd was screaming half the time, but it was intense. Overall, the fans just seemed very proud of their team. FCB's slogan is "More than a club," and you could tell by the fans passion and strong nationalism, that for them, it was more than the team, it was a way of life. Great game, 4-0 victory over Sevilla!
After the game, it took about an hour to get home. Traffic was crazy, people were everywhere, and the metro lines were jam packed. I walked to another line, a few blocks away, and even it was just so full. I finally got home about 1:30. What a great experience!
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