Em in Burkina

I've been continually reminded how global a sport football is since I've been here. In some ways, the sport is extremely different here: since there's no grass, it's played in streets and dust-and-gravel courtyards that make short work of the glossy leather coating on soccer balls like the ones I brought. Since cleats are expensive, most people who actually play with shoes on wear those white plastic sandals with the ankle strap and the latticed forefoot that I wore to the beach as a kid.

In other ways, it's very similar. The country has gone mildly soccer-mad: any maquis with a television (or the TV room at ANERSER, for that matter) is always pretty busy when games are on, with people cheering mainly for Brazil, France and any African country that happens to be playing. If I'm sitting outside in the courtyard of our house during a game and a popular team scores, I'll know about it from the dull roar that rises from houses and maquis throughout the neighbourhood. All, in all, though, the level and intensity of interest is pretty similar to back home. Half of the people I talk to either don't follow football or don't really care who wins, and the people who do care don't worry for too long if the score doesn't go their way.

In honour of the World Cup and the Journée de l'enfant Africain, which is coming up this Friday the 16th, another Ouagadougou organization that works with street youth organized a small soccer tournament for teams from several similar groups. ANERSER's boys played last Monday and Saturday, and although they didn't make this Friday's final, it was pretty awesome to head down to the terrain de jeu with them and watch them play. I was astounded (and reminded of just how small a world we live in) when their jerseys and shorts turned out to be Gloucester Hornets ensembles, donated by a Canadian volunteer several years back! (For those who don't know, the Hornets are an Ottawa-area competitive rec club that my brother plays for.) I took plenty of pictures and will be sure to share them when I get home. For the moment, my internet card is about to run out and I want to catch the end of tonight's game, so I'll post again another day. Hope everyone is well!

posted by Emily @ 7:34 p.m.