On the Road ... Tour de France

I see Orange people 

Orange is everywhere.

It's on shirts, pants and hats; shoes, backpacks and skirts; around people's necks, wrists and heads. Orange is hanging from store fronts, over streets and in practically ever bar window. There are funny-looking orange hats and glasses. One beer company provided bartenders with orange overalls with a devil's tail sticking out the back, another company was handing out orange leis and a local supermarket-chain is giving away a furry little orange ball that can be stuck to any number of things.

The Dutch love this nuclear-brand of orange.

The reason? Orange is the designated color of the Dutch national sports teams. And since soccer is the most popular sport, it would make sense, I guess.

Why orange? Well, that's a little tougher. Apparently it has to do with the coat of arms of the country's founding father, William I of Orange-Nassau. The important thing, though, is that during the World Cup, you can't turn around without seeing it and on days Holland plays, it seems as if everyone between the ages of 8 and 80 is wearing something with orange in it.

Friday was one of those days, and being that I'm hear at least to partially report on what it's like to watch the World Cup in Europe, it only made sense to go to the action.

In this case, that meant crossing the canal that my apartment overlooks -- yeah, it's as nice as it sounds and yes, I know that sounds vain -- to an area called Leidseplein. At the center of this area there are about 10 bars that all feed into a courtyard. Usually, there are hundreds of people ordering dinner and drinks while seated in the center of the square. For once, there was no problem finding a seat at what is normally the dinner rush. Finding a good vantage point to watch the game ... that was an entirely more difficult propostion.

To say the bars were "overflowing" does not do the situation justice. At the more popular spots, orange-clad fans were lined up 10 deep -- not at the bar, mind you, but at the door. While most pedestrians are normally tourists, they hardly have the run of this part of town because the bike-riding and car-driving locals apparently are permanently granted right-of-way. For once, a tourist could walk aside the canal without fear of being run over.

At least that's what I'd imagine. I was, afterall, elbowing my way into position to watch the Dutch take on Ivory Coast, a popular sleeper pick to advance to the elimination round.

I didn't have a clear view of the tv by the time Holland opened the scoring, but I only needed to be within the city limits to figure out what had happened. The roar can only be compared to something you'd expect to hear at a live event. I say this as someone who has watched numerous Super Bowls in Las Vegas casinos -- where nearly everyone watching the game has something even more compelling than national pride to root for, or so I thought.

When Holland went up 2-0 an even louder cheer erupted. Throughout the game chants were started and the energy in the bar ebbed and flowed just as if we were at the game.

The Dutch eventually won 2-1 and clinched a berth in the next round of play with a game still remaining, a significant accomplishment considering they failed to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.

As I write this at 1 a.m., the party is still going on outside. The normally subdued Dutch have been partying like I haven't seen in the week I've been here. Perhaps they just save it up for gameday.

As for the full on debauchery that I've heard about in other parts of Europe, I can't say I've witnessed any of that. It may seem like the Dutch are a pretty wild bunch, but I think they usually leave that to the tourists. If they keep winning, though, that may change.

posted by FreeSanJose at 2:46 PM

0 Comments:

Post a Comment