When I returned from my trip to Ireland last Wednesday, I was so tired that I was in bed by 8pm that night, and I missed a very important game for Real Madrid. They were playing Athletic Bilbao, and winning that game would clinch their spot at the top and earn them the La Liga title for this season. I just couldn't stay awake! So, Thursday morning I awoke to newspaper headlines and numerous tweets about Real Madrid's 3-0 victory and immediately felt sad that I'd missed yet another storming of the city streets by excited fans. Like in many sports-centric towns, this happens after every major victory. Since I was still in the states when Spain won the World Cup in 2010, I was very sad to have missed out on scenes like this one:
I'm told a similar scene happened last Wednesday night, though on a much smaller scale, and I missed it! Bummer! But all was not lost. Like the world cup, there are always two celebrations -- one always happens at the moment with a sudden eruption of euphoric fans pouring into the streets, and the other is usually the following day, once the team has returned home and the city can organize a proper celebration. What luck! So, Thursday afternoon I met up with a friend nearby and we made our way into Plaza de Cibeles to fight the crowds and hope to get a glimpse of our favorite blancos.
It was fun, but my goodness there were so many people. I don't think I'll do that again... until Spain wins the World Cup again in 2014.