Super Clasico: Boca 1 - River 0

One very clear and true fact about Argentina: They LOVE soccer (or futbol). So much so that there is a strong sense of nationalism based around whom you're a fan for and whom you're against. Brought to Argentina by the British in the 1860’s, it was quickly adapted by the locals and turned into a professional sport by the 1930’s and with that a new culture was born. A common question here is “Who are you for?” meaning what team to you cheer for, and two of the biggest responses are River Plate or Boca Juniors. 50% of the nation’s soccer fans support one of these two clubs. Such support is not necessarily a good thing- Argentine soccer has been increasingly troubled in recent years by crowd violence at league matches, and especially when these two teams meet. Their rivalry has a long and intense history, which in part comes from their economic development as franchises. River Plate emerged from the middle-class Belgrano neighborhood while Boca Juniors emerged from the working-class Italian immigrant district in La Boca. Working in La Boca and going to school in Belgrano, you can’t deny the obvious and distinct socio-economic differences, their vast. Every little boy’s dream here is to become a professional soccer player, but for many of the little boys in La Boca it is the only dream they have or better yet, the only chance they have of over coming the poverty that defines their neighborhood.



Entering the home team: River Plate

So naturally, working in La Boca, and seeing what an important role the soccer team plays in many of their lives, I went cheering for Boca. So what does it mean to be a visiting fan at one of these games? Well for one you’ve got your very own section…no mixing and mingling among sports fans. Second, that very own section of yours is surrounded by two empty sections so you can’t be in close contact with the others, and just to make sure you don’t get in contact with the other fans, you’re fenced in with barbed wire on top with police and squat teams surrounding the perimeter with beat sticks. Why such precaution? Well each club has its fanatical supporters (you can’t miss them), a group of hardcore and often violent fans called the “Barra Brava”. As a result, many of the country’s stadiums- including Boca’s La Bombonera, are complete with moats, fences, and barbed wire designed to keep fans off the field and rival fan factions apart. Many speculations exist as to why such a violent faction continues to exist within these sports clubs, well my friend, that’s the politics of the game. Critics blame soccer club presidents or wealthy club members for giving their Barra Bravas free tickets, paying for their journeys to away games, sponsoring their trips to World Cups, and even admitting them to board meetings. Planned “disruptions” is one of the major reasons why theses fanatics are given a free admittance. One phone call is all it takes to start a fight in the crowds or throw stuff at the players to interrupt a game. In the spring, a fight broke out among the Boca fans as their team was down, injuring 30 some people. It just goes to show what you’ll do for your team, even if that means letting your buddy kick your ass!!!



Well to put you all at ease, we sat anonymously with the River fans about 500 meters away from Boca's Barra Brava. Arriving two hours early because we were in a first come first serve section, the stadium or “la cancha” (not to be confused with “la concha” which is a common word heard in the cancha but means something totally different) was already lit up with cheering, streamers and smoke. Each group of fans have their own set of, what are at times insulting, cheers and they go back and forth cheering for their teams. Boca fans came with their own fully equipped band, which didn’t stop playing the whole time, signs, streamers, and lot’s of spirit. Actually, we saw the police escorted caravan of Boca fans heading to the stadium on our way in, which consisted of loud music, chants, and people hanging in and out of all parts of trucks and busses. So in all honesty, the excitement starts way before the actual game does. But when it started, so did the fans and they never let down. I heard every insult in the book, and even learned a few from the five year old behind me, and the 85-year-old man to my right. I was given at random stuff to throw (papers and balloons (not rocks or anything cool like that)) and was completely trapped for 4 hours. There are no set rules on seats because anywhere you can fit, the aisles and the railings, are seats. I’ve never felt or seen so much sport energy in one place nor have I ever been around such die-hard fans. Sorry everyone, but the Dawg Pound, even in all of its excitement, has nothing on these fans.


Bringing in the Boca Fans: The rivalry starts well before the game.

Here's a quick re-cap of the game: heading into the second half it was tied 0-0. Within minutes of the second, a Boca player was given a red card, meaning his team would have to play down a man for the rest of the game. Thinking this was River’s chance; it was actually Boca that scored first off a header. The remaining Boca players continued to dominate the game despite playing a man down, embarrassing the thousands of River fans. In the end it wasn’t Boca who the River fans where cheering against or throwing stuff at, it was the defeated River players heading back to the locker rooms. A typical love-hate relationship: when it’s good it’s good, but when it’s bad it’s bad; you love them when their good and you hate them when their bad, but either way they're your team. I think many of my Brown’s supporters out there can relate.

Knowing that soccer is one of Argentina’s defining characteristics I’m glad to have had the chance to go to one of the biggest games that exists. So for now the “pibes” (or kids) from La Boca have secured their bragging rights until the next super clasico! Vamos Boca!!!!!!!!

UB Girls Soccer: Season Two

Well after a last season finish of a sad 4th place after heading into the tournament in 1st the UB women's soccer team seemed to pick it up where it left off heading into the second season. Where in the fall season we had enough girls to form two competitive teams, this season we started off with barely enough girls to play. The first two games were lost playing a man down and Wed practices were routinely canceled because of the spring time rain, and of course, playing only on Saturdays, with a majority of the members from out of the country, we were always losing players to vacations and late-night extravaganzas (the kind you can't get up in the morning after to play a soccer game).

However, in the second half of the season we started picking up some speed. Finally playing with a full team (and believe it or not a few subs!!!) UB has started to make a name for itself again. In the last 3 games we've gone 3-0 beating what were the first, second, and third place teams. Slowly creeping back up the rankings, it will take wins in the last two games to find ourselves in the tournament for first place. So long as we play as we have in the last 3 games there is almost no doubt that the tournament will be ours. Hopefully all trips to the moon and all night drinking brigades will be suspended until the tournament so that we can compete as a complete team and bring home the trophy we let slip through are fingers in the last season. Vamos UB!!!!!!!!!!

Penguins, Seals, and Whales, Oh my! -Puerto Madryn

Founded by Welsh settlers in 1886, this sheltered port city has become a tourist favorite for the nearby wildlife sanctuary in Peninsula Valdes. After 17 hours in a bus traveling south along the Atlantic coast of Argentina, passing nothing but fields and open plains, we came over a hill and there was the little city of Puerto Madryn. Promises of whale watching and penguin sightings is what drew me to the little city in the first place, and anyone who knows my affinity for wild-life could understand that as soon as I got there I would run to the beach and look for whales. Thinking that seeing whales was a chance happening I couldn’t believe that after just an hour of being in front of the water, we saw whales jumping about 100ft offshore!!!! The locals informed us that we hadn’t seen anything yet, and boy where they right!




The first full day we took and all day tour to Peninsula Valdes. Shaped by two large bays and the Atlantic Ocean, this bleak-looking peninsula was a real wildlife wonderland. One can see Sea lions, Elephant seals, Guanacos (argentine deer), Maras (Patagonian hares), Magellan penguins, Orcas and Southern Right whales from various parts of the peninsula where these animals were colonizing. Cold water conditions from Antarctic currents and enclosed bays safe from fierce Patagonian winds makes for a safe haven for many of these animals during the most sensitive time of their lives when they mate and breed. Many of theses animals travel miles to mate and bear their offspring in this safe location. The closest I’ve ever been to a whale (besides frequenting Sea World as a kid) was on a boat ride out into the bay in San Francisco where a whale splashed its tail some 500 ft away; however, this boat trip would prove to be much different. After an hour of riding we came upon a Southern Right whale mother and her calf. They were swimming about 50ft from the boat when suddenly they turned and started to swim towards us. Barreling at us they quickly dove underneath our boat and popped out on the other side! At one point they were jumping less than 20ft from the boat itself!




From there we headed to the seal-lion colony consisting for both seal lions and elephant seals. We were told that the previous day Orca’s were seen surfing the shores and feeding on the baby sea lions. The waters were a bit rough and not quite the ideal conditions for feeding, but that didn’t stop the normal day-to-day routine of the elephant seals. The dominant male, infamous for his phallic looking nose, was surrounded by his harem of females and their babies. Slowly cruising the shore was a less dominant male looking to spread his seed or to take control of the tribe of females. He slowly crept out of the water approaching one of the females. The dominant male was sleeping on the other side of the beach but was awoken by the howling of one of the females as the other male mounted himself on her. The dominant male come barreling down the beach barking and approached the other male. Knowing that he wasn’t quite big enough to fight, the other male quickly slipped back into the water.




From there we headed to the Magellan penguin colony. Spring fever was also in the air as penguins were mating and laying and caring for their eggs. All along the coastline and up and down the cliff for two miles you could spot little black and white dots as they nested in the prairie grass. We were so close you could touch them!!!

But the best sight seeing we saw came in the next few days when we weren’t even expecting it. Warm enough to lie out on the beach we headed out there to lie in the sun. As we got to the bay, there were 12-15 distinct black blobs jumping and splashing with their tales. Only 20 ft out you could clearly see the whales in all of their majesty, and the best view point came from the pier where they would swim by. Mothers and babies and mating couples frequently passed by the pier putting on shows with their theatrics and loud baritone noises as they surfaced for air. Coming so close that you could actually see their eyes, I was in complete awe. Just merely being there and watching captured everything that I had read about and all the specials that I had seen on this very wondrous little city. The entire four days spent in this small city will forever be one of the most memorable experiences of my life.