Jaunted

World Cup / Brazil / → All Tags

Watching the World Cup in Boipeba

Your trusty correspondent had the rare opportunity to watch Brazil's first World Cup match on the island of Boipeba. Boipeba, of which you have not heard the last, is clustered (along with the islands of Trinharé and Cairu) just off the coast of Bahia south of Salvador.

11 locals and four tourists sat around a beach restaurant's television at 4pm. First, everyone was giddy, expectant. Bowls of stale popcorn covered with shredded coconut were passed around. Then an amber-hued bottle of moonshine materialized. It, too, made the rounds. Despite a bouquet reminiscent of an accidental whiff of a sharply toxic pen, the local liqueur went down a-ok.

When Brazil's Kaká scored, the explosions were immediate. Pans banged, yells issued forth. This was nothing compared to the noise that accompanied the match's close. Firecrackers set off in Boipeba's village, a good 10 minute walk from the beach, could be heard loud and clear.

That night, the highlight of the news coverage of the day's event was a drawn-out, comical segment about a Croatian surrounded by proper soccer-patriotic Brazilians.

[Image via SimoneCarrocino/Flickr]