Victory - well, almost there!!!!

Well now, Paul the octopus, el Pulpo Paul, was correct. So was Queen Sofía. La selección española managed to see off the German team last night.

When Spain finally managed to score, I swear the resounding cheers made our building shake. For the remaining ten minutes of the match you could almost feel the tension in the air and you could certainly hear the resounding groan of frustration as Spain came close to scoring again and again and again. Then there were the squeals and screams as the German team got hold of the ball and looked as though they might score, followed by a collective sigh of relief as they missed!

Eventually the whistle blew and it was all over bar the shouting… and the cheering, the pipping of horns as and the fireworks. I looked out of our window and saw a young man, clad in Spain t-shirt and shorts, run cheering round the gardens and finally fling himself fully clothed into the pool. This was a signal for loads of others to appear, children and adults, some in swimming suits but many in their Spain t-shirts, and leap into the pool to join him. Two girls with flags (the two sceptics I had seen in the lift yesterday?) stood together at the poolside, yelled, “!Gerónimo!” and leapt in, flags waving as they went.

How else do you celebrate your team’s victory? Leaping into water, of course! Thousands leapt into the fountains at Plaza de España, I read in today’s paper, and then went on to party in Castrelos Park. Experience had told them that Plaza de Compostela was too small to hold all the fans. Besides, Castrelos Park is closer to the Plaza de España!

In La Coruña they celebrated in the Plaza de María Pita and in towns and cities all over Spain the Plaza Mayor was full of happy people dressed in red and draped with red and yellow flags. The sports reporters on the TV told us that San Fermín had obviously brought them luck – the Fiesta de San Fermín continues from the 7th to the 14th of July – and they were all sporting red bandannas to show their allegiance. What a happy coincidence that San Fermín bandannas are also red!

Now that is a “sporting” event of a very different kind - bull running in the streets of Pamplona. In our Italian conversation group the other day, Angelo expressed his amazement that bullfighting gets reported on television. This is the 21st century, after all! How much more surprising that a lot of people still have to prove their macho credentials by running through the streets with huge and dangerous animals? And that that activity also hits the national news? It was reported in today’s Faro de Vigo that a young man from Vigo is one of those injured in the fun and games. This "brave" vigués is in a serious condition in hospital. He probably missed the match as well!

Still, I don’t want to put a damper on Spain’s triumph. La selección has beaten the Germans. Now bring on the Dutch. World domination is within reach!