Fortaleza Cathedral

We took a quick trip down to the Fortaleza Cathedral, the 3rd largest church in Brazil.  It wasn't the biggest church I've ever been to, but their stained glass was beautiful.

After that, we made our final trip over to the local steakery, Dom Churrasco, to watch Argentina-Nigeria.  It was a relatively meaningless game, but featured a couple golazos; Messi's free kick, and Musa's snipe.

Brazilian beer

Much to my dismay, though definitely not a surprise, the beer selection in Brazil is disappointing.  The 'quality' beers here are Heineken and Stella Artois, and the European influence is obvious in many of the local beer names (and lack of taste).  While I don't doubt that good beer exists, it is definitely not common.

However, the beer is also reflective of the culture; beer is not meant to be an elite beverage as much as an inexpensive way to hydrate and replace electrolytes.  They cost 4 Real ($1.75) on the street, and 6-8 Real in restaurants ($3).  As much as I don't really like Bud Light, it has a time and a place.  Fortaleza is like a never-ending beach BBQ, so crappy light beers fit right in.  They're okay cold, and terrible warm, but most restaurants bring bottles out in buckets of ice and leaves them on the table.  Cheaper restaurants use large koozies instead.  The most common are Antarctica, Skol, and Brahma, but we've made a point of seeing how many different ones we can find.  We've found:

1. Antarctica
2. Antarctica Original (only comes in big bottles)
3. Schin
4. Brahma (most popular, but might be the worst)
5. Devassa
6. Skol (basically water)
7. Skol Beats
8. Itaipava (foil lid over the can, fancy!  But still crappy)
9. Bohemia
10. Bavaria (like Budweiser)
11. Kaiser

A personal favorite

After extremely little debate, we've agreed that these all taste more or less exactly the same.  Some are a little more Budweiser, and some are a little more Corona, but there isn't much difference.  Either way, don't bother with any of these if you see them at your local package store unless they're cheap.

Group stage update: 2/3 games played + America's outlook

This World Cup has been pretty wild so far, with lots of goals, overachieving underdogs, and underachieving heavyweights.  With only one game left in each group, what could happen?

Group A:

Brazil & Mexico 4, Croatia 3, Cameroon 0.  Brazil will advance if they beat or tie Cameroon, which shouldn't be difficult for them.  Mexico advances with a win or tie, and Croatia has to win.  There are a bunch of contingencies because of tiebreakers, including a scenario in which Brazil doesn't make it (heavy Brazil loss plus Mexico/Croatia tie), but all of them are unlikely.  I say Brazil #1, Mexico #2

Group B:

Netherlands & Chile 6, Spain & Australia 0.  Netherlands and Chile are through.  Netherlands will be #1 if they beat or tie Chile, and Chile is #1 if they can pull off a win.  This should be a GREAT game, but I think they'll draw: Netherlands #1, Chile #2

Group C:

Columbia 6, Ivory Coast 3, Japan & Greece 1.  Columbia is through, almost definitely as the #1 even if they lose (+4 goal difference).  Ivory Coast will be through if they beat or tie Greece, Greece takes #2 if they beat Ivory Coast and Japan loses, and Japan is through if they win by more than 2 goals while Ivory Coast draws or loses.  Columbia #1, Ivory Coast #2.

Group D:

COSTA RICA 6, Italy & Uruguay 3, England 0.  Costa Rica advances!!!!  It's really nice to see a heavy underdog not just succeed, but kick ass in a group where most expected them to have 0 points and -8 goal difference.  Italy has Uruguay on goal difference, so Italy is through if they beat or tie Uruguay, whereas Uruguay has to win; with Suarez back I think Uruguay takes it.  Costa Rica #1, Uruguay #2

Group E:

France 6, Ecuador & Switzerland 3, Honduras 0.  France is through, but the two tied teams aren't playing each other so this gets interesting.  Ecuador has 2 more than Switzerland on goal difference, so Switzerland needs to beat Honduras by several goals (or hope France beats/draws Ecuador.  France #1, Switzerland #2.

Group F:

Argentina 6, Nigeria 4, Iran 1, Bosnia 0.  Such a boring group, but Argentina's 6 is pretty soft given how crappy they've looked.  Iran can get through if they beat Bosnia by quite a few and Argentina beat Nigeria.  There is also an interesting scenario that would involve a coin flip, if Argentia wins 1-0 and Iran wins 1-0, but see below for more on tiebreakers.  Argentina #1, Nigeria #2

Group G:

Germany & USA 4, Portugal and Ghana 1.  Easily the most interesting group, because all 4 teams can still qualify as either #1 or #2.  Portugal has the most work to do, with a -4 goal difference, and Ghana needs to win and get help from the USA-Germany game.  Germany #1, USA #2.

Group H:

Belgium 6, Algeria 3, Russia and South Korea 1.  Belgium is through, Algeria is through with a win or probably through on goal difference in a tie.  Russia needs to beat Algeria and hope South Korea loses to Belgium, while South Korea needs to win big and hope Russia beats Algeria by only 1.  Belgium #1, Russia #2

America's chances:

    Despite the regret at not locking up advancement by only tying Portugal, USA is still in good position to get through.  A win or tie with Germany, while hopeful, isn't terribly far-fetched.  Germany is in the same position, except they get the #1 seed if they tie.  Given that both teams need to just not lose, look for conservative tactics from both.  That said, winning is in the German's DNA so they won't go easy on America either, but it's still sort of okay to lose.  For America to give up the #2 seed, one of Ghana or Portugal will have to win (a draw means America is through no matter what).  Portugal has to make up a -5 goal difference (remember that if America loses by 3, Portugal only needs 3), and Ghana only has to make up a -2 goal difference.  If America loses by 1, and Ghana wins by 2, Ghana advances.  This gets really sticky if Ghana wins by 1 and America loses by 1.  That leaves USA and Ghana tied on points and goal difference.

    I didn't actually know what happens in this case, and it seems to be pretty uncommon, so I looked it up and found this helpful explanation.  The next tiebreaker is total goals scored; USA has a 1-goal lead on Ghana.  America just needs to score as many goals as Ghana does while losing (weird, I know).  If Ghana scores one more goal than America does (and they still both only win/lose by 1), we go to the next tiebreaker.  In head-to-head play, USA beat Ghana, so America would go through!
   Like in Group F, there is also a chance that this group would be decided by a coin toss.  If America loses 3-2 and Portugal wins 4-0, all the tiebreakers fall through.  This is ridiculously unlikely, but still an interesting footnote.

That said, it would be nice if USA kept it simple and just beat Germany.

USA v Portugal

Watching this game from the FIFA fan fest was great, there was a very strong American presence, all of whom went absolutely nuts for both goals.  Even the Brazilian fans were pro-USA, so it was a great atmosphere.

If you had told me that this game would end in a 2-2 draw beforehand, I would have been fine with it, but it felt much more like a loss.  Aside from going down a goal early on a shanked clearance from Cameron (who was otherwise strong), USA was excellent; most of the credit for a strong team performance should go to Jurgen Klinsmann.  USA's coaching staff got their tactics absolutely correct in this game.

USA played a 4-2-3-1, but with the wingers tucked inside.  By crowding the midfield, USA prevented Portugal's Moutinho from finding Ronaldo in space, and Ronaldo was dropping deep into central midfield, where he is comparatively harmless, to get the ball by the end of the game.  The central midfielders rotated smoothly, with at least one of Bradley, Beckerman, and Jones between the center backs at all times.  This shield was vital on defense, but also was the base for transitioning to offense.  The tucked wingers allowed both fullbacks to attack freely; in the first half alone USA repeated the same passing move and created a chance.  Deep midfielder to Zusi, Zusi through the right CB and RB to Johnson.  One of these should have been a goal, but Bradley couldn't convert.  While I doubt this exact game plan will work against Germany, it's very encouraging to see that USA isn't afraid to play different players in different positions.

USA probably should have run away with this game, given how well most of the team played, but they only reason they didn't was an extremely poor performance by the most important player on the team.  Jermaine Jones was a rock, and scored a goal-of-the-tournament nominee.  Beckerman, who I normally think is worse than useless, was strong on defense and linked play well with simple passes.  Howard was even more imperious than usual, as were both Cameron and Besler.  Fabian Johnson was USA's biggest offensive threat for the middle half of the game.  But Michael Bradley was abject.  He missed an easy goal created by Johnson, didn't link with Dempsey well, and was responsible for the turnover at the end of the game that led to the draw (JUST BOOT IT).  That's 2 games in a row where he has been poor, so he needs to get it together before Thursday, because USA can't afford to be anything less than excellent against Germany.

Germany v Ghana at the Castelao

Without a doubt, this was one of the best stadium experiences I've ever had.  The Estadio Castelao is purpose-built for soccer, and there isn't a bad seat in the house.  From our middle-of-the-road seats, I could see everything perfectly.

Makes me wish I had a phone that could take fancy pictures

The acoustics are incredible; you can hear fans on the other side of the stadium singing clearly and the goals are deafening.  FIFA strong-armed the local government, which normally bans alcohol sales at games due to excessive fan violence, so the stadium sold beer in collectible cups, as well a 'double hot dog' which was exactly what it sounds like.

I'd guess that there were about a third Germany fans, half Brazil fans, and then a vocal minority of Ghana fans with random others sprinkled around the venue.  The crowd was definitely pro-Ghana, because Brazilians want to see Germany knocked out early (they're also pro-USA, which is nice).  We were in a mix of German and Brazilian fans, and the rivalry was friendly.

On top of being a great venue, the game itself was fantastic.  Germany was generally good, but couldn't get through Ghana's speed and strength on defense.  Khedira was a liability until  he was substituted for Schweinsteiger, though it wasn't totally his fault.  He was played as a central midfielder instead of his more comfortable role as a defensive midfielder, and was sloppy in possession; this led to several chances for Ghana.  Ghana repeated the strengths they demonstrated against America, working the wings and crossing effectively.  Prince-Boateng, Gyan, and Ayew were barely contained by the normally imperious German defence.  I think a draw is a fair result for both teams, but Ghana could argue they deserved to win.

I'm still figuring out what this surprise draw means for America, but it can't be bad.  We had a healthy debate over the various scenarios while we waited for dinner

He didn't have much to say on the topic

Either way, USA will need to take points off of Portugal and possibly Germany, but if they beat Portugal tomorrow they're through.  In any case, I can't wait for our next trip to the Castelao on Tuesday for Ivory Coast v. Greece!

Costa Rica!!!, the beach, and a caipirinha clinic

I've never wanted to be wrong so badly as when I watched Costa Rica take down my 'sure-thing' pick for group D, Italy.  In one fell swoop, they advance as the almost-guaranteed #1 seed in their group, eliminated England (my other pick to advance), and set up a do-or-die game between Italy and Uruguay.  Most impressively, Costa Rica wasn't lucky; they simply outplayed Italy.  Costa Rica pressed Italy in possession, won 50-50 balls, and attacked wisely.  Instead of breaking down the wing and putting in a hopeful cross, they attack to the corner and build from that position.  They either work around the top of the box, or let their tricksters beat a man to put in a purposeful cross; this is what led to their goal.  They defend as a unit, and caught the Italians in the offside trap time and time again (though a few of them weren't actually offsides).  When Costa Rica beat Uruguay, I passed it off as 'these things happen', but when Italy looked similarly cold...  It's tough to deny that Costa Rica isn't the real thing.  I wonder if they'll be able to stifle England and sweep the hardest group in the tournament, and I hope so!

I didn't watch the other two games, because we went to the beach and then to downtown Fortaleza for dinner.  The beach was beautiful at sunset, the water was refreshing, and we could still hear the 'gooooooool's from the beachside restaurants to keep up to date with the soccer games.

Downtown Fortaleza was more or less what I expected, an extension of the beach lifestyle but with pants and shoes instead of speedos and sandals.  The square, which was empty at 9pm and full at 11pm, was home to 8 or so bar carts.  Some had a range of drinks, and some specialized in caipirinhas.  Sensing my opportunity to figure out how to make a caipirinha correctly, I ordered one from a friendly middle-aged Brazilian woman.  She put two heaping tablespoons of sugar in a tall plastic cup, and expertly cut the ends off two limes.  She sliced half of one into circles, and cut the other into eight chunks.  The slices went into the plastic cup, and she juiced the chunks with a hand-held press on top of them.  Then she 'muddled' the limes by mashing them with a plastic rod for a couple minutes.  She started pouring cachaca into a cup while speaking Portuguese, and I didn't realize she was asking me how much cachaca I wanted until there was a quite a bit in the cup.  Her creation didn't fit in a plastic cup so she filled a second one halfway, and charged me 5 Reals (~$2.25).  No wonder the caipirinha is regarded as a 'low-class' drink, they're incredibly cheap.  A whole bottle of cachaca is 8 Reals ($3.50), limes are 3 Real/kg (basically free), and sugar is similarly cheap, which means the ice was probably the costliest part of my drink.  That explains why, unlike anywhere else that has ever served me a drink, she asked how much cachaca I wanted!

Today I'm off to see Germany v. Ghana at the Estadio Castelao.  An emphatic German victory is the best outcome for USA, so keep your fingers crossed!

Enough About Soccer

Don't let the title fool you, I watched all three games today, but it's time to talk about Fortaleza a bit too.  So let's get the soccer out of the way.

Columbia impressed against a physically superior Ivory Coast, but it wasn't an extremely entertaining game.  Neither team controlled possession, and it wasn't end to end; there was a lot of sloppiness but Columbia played more like a team and picked up the win.  Greece and Japan battled in one of the most fun (and poorly refereed) games I've seen so far.  Greece were absolute warriors, and deserve all the ibuprofen they can find after clearing about 500 crosses.  Japan didn't deserve to win, though they controlled the game.  Their plan was poor (headers only work if you're taller), and they didn't create too many good chances.  As a result, Columbia is through no matter what.  Ivory Coast has to win to guarantee they advance, and Japan and Greece need to win to have a shot (but also need help).

The England-Uruguay game was very entertaining, but I was disappointed that England didn't come away with at least a point.  Uruguay was good, but not great; I can't put my finger on why England couldn't score more goals.  They passed well, defended well, countered well, and created well.  They either couldn't finish when the chance was created, or couldn't create when the chance was open.  It was really frustrating that the only time the stars aligned was for Rooney's goal.

Fortaleza is a pretty straightforward place.  There doesn't seem to be a ton to do here besides go to the beach and eat/drink.  I think that's sort of reflective of the local lifestyle, and why it's attractive as a vacation destination for Brazilians.  It's also quite handy for watching tons of soccer, because I'm not distracted by art, history, or activities!  I haven't explored the beach yet, but I think I'll miss the Switzerland-France game tomorrow to check it out; I fear that if I go any time other than within an hour of sunset I'll be incinerated.  We're so close to the equator that I almost don't have a shadow at high noon, which is terrifying for my delicate complexion.  

The local population is universally friendly, which makes sense because tourism, along with fishing, seems to be one of the primary local industries.  There is a HUGE pop-up market absolutely brimming with crappy souvenirs, and hawkers wander freely through the beachside bar/grills with fake Ray-Bans.  However, languages other than Portuguese are almost nonexistent.  I was surprised, since I expected that enough European tourism came through here that they would cater to the people with cash.  But it's not all bad, I've been working on my miming; you'd be surprised at how many things you can convey with hand gestures and village-idiot Spanish.  The most difficult so far has been 'breaking a $20', with 'ice tray' coming in a close second.

All the tourist-y stuff is to the west of our hotel; a bit east of us on the beach is where the fishermen hang out.  Even without the vacationers, the same basic elements are there; kids play soccer on the beach, adults drink crappy beer in the shade, and feral cats/dogs chase after snacks on the floor.

Otherwise, it's just like any other place.  Things are generally similar in price to America (though peanut butter is $10 a jar), but the grocery store puts a heavy emphasis on linguica

Don't worry, it also comes in 10lb bulk packages

Other than the extreme heat from noon to 3pm, it's pretty much paradise.  I can't imagine what it's like in the summertime (it's almost dead winter right now), but the nights are glorious.  Speaking of which, time to go see what happens when I order off a menu I barely understand.  It can't be more surprising than the entire fried fish we got a couple nights ago... but probably not as delicious either!