A group of Mayatan teachers and some of our friends/teachers from La Escuela Guacamaya (the Spanish-language school in town) went to a bar to watch the game. Honduras maintained a 0-0 tie for most of the game up until the end when they finally scored a goal, and the whole bar erupted with ear-drum rupturing screams. However, I noticed that my friend Luis still didn't look reassured after the goal. He told me the catch was that not only did Honduras have to win, but the U.S. had to tie or beat Costa Rica (because of something with the point systems for qualifying). I then noticed that everyone had turned from watching the Honduran game (which was still going on) on one wall to watching the U.S.- Costa Rica game on the opposite wall. We were losing on our own turf! We had beaten Honduras in Honduras a few weeks earlier (which is fine-let the best team win), but when they needed us to do well we were down 0-2!
The games had both started at approximately the same time, so they were both at the last minutes of the 2nd half. It was so nerve racking. The U.S. apparently is super fit, and although we weren't the best skill-wise, we kept the ball around their goal and kept shooting it: long-shots, corner-kicks, penalty kicks. Nothing was going in. Everyone was getting tense, frustrated, and disappointed. Then at the end of regulation, the U.S. scored! Everyone lost it. There was screaming and dancing. Then, minutes went by in the penalty time, but nothing seemed to go in the goal. We kept shooting, but it wouldn't go in. The Honduran team had already clenched it's 1-0 victory, so every Honduran soccer fan was watching the U.S. Talk about being in control of a country! We were holding their hearts in our hand and didn't know what to do with them. Then, with about 5 seconds left (they had played so long in extra time) a corner kick was deflected by a head and went IN!!! I've never seen anything like it. People hugging each other. Girls screaming. Men crying. (Well, nearly crying). The roar was deafening, like being at a Nickelback concert. The bar started giving away drinks (which are they're most prized and overpriced possessions), and people started pouring out into the street.
We then went to go "see" the caravan in the Parque Central, which is always exciting because the cars, dirtbikes, trucks, mototaxis, 4x4s, etc, go as fast as they can (if they get any room) and then have to slam on brakes to not plow into the vehicle in front. On our way there though were greeted about every block with "Thank you!" and "U-S-A...U-S-A!!" chants. I could only laugh. Could I have said you're welcome? It was a nice feeling, however, to finally not only be welcomed down here (for something other than my money) but to have your country cheered for. If you still don't understand the weight and excitement of this win, then know that the "President" Micheletti declared the next day a national holiday. A holiday because the soccer team qualified! Carolina didn't cancel classes when we WON the National Championship! I couldn't believe it that Honduras was completely united for a night and that we got to experience it in a such a dramatic way.
Well, the cars started honking and flying by, forming the beginning of the caravan that loops around the town. We saw one truck coming with only one guy in it and realized that it was Luis, the guy who was beside me during the game! He signaled us all to climb in the truck and join the caravan. Hilarious and absurd. A truck full of gringos, waving Honduran soccer jerseys, circling around the city in the caravan after Honduras was qualified for the World Cup, and everyone chanting, "U-S-A! U-S-A." Unreal. Did I mention we got school off the next day?
Cut out of cardboard, taped to the side of a house...they realized they forgot the "R" after they had used up all of other cardboard apparently :)
In the back of the truck!
Here is a video of us in the caravan! :)
SAFE????? Your defintion of safe is WAY different than MY definition of safe!!!!CRAZY!!!
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