49. World Cup Live Match Report, pt.VI: Holland vs Costa Rica…

A sad day for me: my final live match here in my home for the past five weeks, Salvador de Bahía.

.

It wasn’t the blockbuster match-up I had hoped for, (Brazil could have been here had they finished second in their group), and I was hoping to see one of the most fun teams in the tournament, Mexico, but had to settle for Holland vs the surprise of the cup, Costa Rica, who not only survived one of the Groups of Death, they were the killers, knocking out both England and Italy.

I forgave the plucky Ticos for knocking out England…and rocked my new Peru jersey!

I joined up with my Spanish buddies, Andreas and José, and we caused trouble all the way to the stadium: meeting fans from around the world, (from Spurs fans loving my Lilywhites jersey, to hundreds of ‘Ticos‘ which I think we all learned is the slang for a Costa Rican), enjoying a few drinks (and the match-day cups that we would be collecting for possibly the last time), and generally enjoying the bubbling atmosphere.

22. Updates from the FIFA frontlines…

Twenty-two hours and fifteen minutes to go, and blog entries are coming thick and fast now!

This is the smallest so far, just a single message from a new friend who just returned to São Paolo from a holiday here in Salvador.

“So, literally all of my housemates are joining two buses of people headed to SP to protest tomorrow. They bought mini gas masks…”

 You have been warned…

Photo courtesy of Pressenza

17. World Cup News, Sunday 8th June…

Some quick updates from the world of the cup today, before I head to the gorgeous FIFA ticket collection centre here in Salvador to collect the remaining tickets I have managed to get hold of.

-I watched England struggle to a 0-0 draw with the mighty Honduras over a giant pizza last night, (me and some friends, not England). Honduras is one of

12. Brazilian dangers…

On Saturday I ventured out of my hostel for the first time properly, to meet people and see some of this former capital, the third largest city in Brasil, Salvador de Bahia. I was invited to explore the ‘Centro Histórico’ by a wonderful Couch Surfer with spare time and a passion for sharing her town and her time with foreigners.

We ended up at a weekly jazz event housed in the Museum of Modern Art complex, where I met some other CS’ers, and we shared stories of the World Cup.

Your intrepid correspondent attacked by a letter ‘D’…

I have always had a blindly optimistic view of

9. Is Brazil ready? Am I ready?!…

I made a new friend yesterday, who may also soon be a new roommate, as we were meeting to see if I wanted to stay in his small, sometimes crowded, but incredibly positioned apartment overlooking the stunning Bahia beaches.

The potential view from my potential World Cup accommodation…

Together, on (painfully slow) buses and (comparatively fast) foot, we explored the Historic Centre of Salvador, and made our way through the streets to see