For the first day since we arrived on June 10, we did not attend a World Cup match. Although we have loved every match we have seen and are eagerly awaiting the ones we have yet to attend, I thoroughly enjoyed taking a day to stroll around Frankfurt and not worry about queuing for entry into a stadium or going through the ordeal of reaching that stadium.
Cat and I joke that as a result of the many train, tram, and bus rides we've taken (few of which have had air circulating via open windows, much less air conditioning), we have spent the last six days in a German sauna. We agree that being drenched in our own sweat for hours is dreadful, but being stuck in a confined space for hours on end with others drenched in their respective sweat is infinitely worse. On one of our rides yesterday, we determined that we averaged 5.5 hours on public transport for each game we have seen. That means that Cat and I have spent the bulk of our time on this trip attending games, standing in line for games, riding trains, sweating, and showering.
The train rides in particular are not entirely bad, as they afford you ample time to chat with fellow passengers. During the three-and-a-half hour ride to Leipzig for the Spain-Ukraine match on June 14, we sat near some fans from Trinidad & Tobago. They were familiar with the Galaxy because of Soca Warrior Cornell Glen, a fact they pointed out upon seeing my Galaxy jersey. We also encountered a Southern Californian in a Guatemalan C. Ruiz jersey who was surprised that anyone at the tournament had heard of El Pescadito.
Cat whispered to me at one point on Wednesday that I was getting quizzical looks from passers-by who were trying to identify my jersey. Of the people who asked me about it, some had assumed that it was a new jersey for NFL Europe's Frankfurt Galaxy, and almost everyone showed glimmers of recognition upon hearing the names Landon Donovan, Cobi Jones, and in the case of Trinis, Cornell Glen. I have also been asked a lot about "that guy with the red hair and crazy beard." When told that yes, he's the boss now, the question that invariably follows is "Does he still play the guitar?"
Two days into our trip, Cat came up with the idea of getting photos with fans of every team in the tournament. It has become a sort of scavenger hunt for us, and we could easily be finished by now due to the sheer number of people here from all over the world. However, Cat and I are committed to quality, and therefore we seek out the lunatic fans with wigs, face paint, flags, and/or other patriotic props. We award ourselves extra credit for fans of teams that have not qualified, such as Scotsmen. To date, we are 16 for 32 of the teams in the tournament and have four points of extra credit.
The visitors show the most national spirit in terms of wardrobe, but the people of Germany have embraced the World Cup and the sport like nothing I have ever seen. Every restaurant or café we've seen is decorated with flags, colors, and signs and has at least one television tuned to the games. Small shops and kiosks carry postcards, flags, balls, whistles, jerseys, scarves, lanyards, mascots, and themed food related to soccer. The trams and buses that flash by are emblazoned with the tournament logo. The ceiling of Köln's main train station is a monumental fresco featuring Ballack, Zidane, Kaka, Beckham, and other stars; the modern buildings that give Frankfurt am Main its distinctive skyline bear massive advertisements with players' faces and names. Leipzig celebrates its musical and athletic history with scenes on large buildings that show Bach playing keeper in a colourful scrimmage. Even the Goethehaus, which I visited today, featured a "Goethe am Ball" exhibition from a modern illustrator, showing Frankfurt's famous literary son schooling an opponent en route to a bicycle kick finish.
But of course, most of the Germans' enthusiasm is reserved for Germany itself. During our terribly uncomfortable ride back to Leipzig following ESP-UKR, the intercom crackled; we expected to hear the drab monotone of the conductor droning about an upcoming stop. Instead, he animatedly proclaimed the good news that Germany had defeated Poland in dramatic fashion, which sparked cheers from the exhausted German passengers and smiles from the rest of us. Even after we reached our hotel after midnight, we heard car horns, cheering, and singing well into the early hours in celebration of Germany's win.
And now it's time to think about tomorrow. Cat and I are both incubating vicious chest and sinus colds, probably the result of prolonged proximity to contagion during a train ride. Our hotel room is a cacophony of sniffles and coughs, yet even we can't drown out the sound of Angolans outside cheering tonight's draw with Mexico. I look forward to losing what's left of my voice tomorrow cheering on the Yanks in Kaiserslautern.
Lisa Rollins is Manager of Customer Service for the Los Angeles Galaxy. She is a lifelong soccer fan and has worked for the Galaxy since September 2004, but Germany 2006 is her first World Cup as a both a spectator and as a reporter. Rollins is contributing journals of her World Cup experience from a fan's perspective. Questions and comments to the RollieReport are always encouraged. Contact Lisa at: therolliereport@yahoo.com.
Rollins wore a USA jersey to the USA-Czech Republic game on June 12 and a Lampard England jersey to England vs. Trinidad & Tobago on June 15; both the USA and Frank Lampard performed far below expectations. Sensing a trend, Rollins will wear a USA t-shirt to the ITA-USA game just in case the presence or absence of a jersey has a bearing on the game.
