World Cup Recap

So the Czechs started off with a convincing win over the US and everyone saw them as the next champions. For the second game we got all dressed up in national colour and went to watch in the public viewing area - a big plaza with beer and sausages and a really big screen. Before we settled down the Czechs were loosing and never recovered. At least there was still some hope.

For the game against Italy I snagged a ticket on Ebay and witnessed the final defeat at the stadium. The atmosphere was great, fans were all very friendly and the game was entertaining. Great game, wrong result - Italy and Ghana are through, Czechs are going home.
After that we cheered for countries in this order Sweden, Australia, Ghana, Spain, Germany and France and one by one they too were eliminated. At the end only Italy prevailed again... I think they deserved the win but their play was far from stellar. But there celebration sure made up for it.
It was a fantastic month, full of emotion and national pride. Germans embraced their Nation and celebrated the success of their young team with flags everywhere and on everything. Feels like a much more positive expression than the repressed notion that any expression on patriotism equals extremism.