I’ve loved soccer since I was a little kid, and it has always been a huge part of my life. I remember when I was 8 years old, my family and I took a trip to Europe to visit my cousins and just see the sights. We went to France, Italy, Switzerland, and for one day Germany. Now, we went in 2006, and that was a big deal because the 2006 FIFA World Cup was held in Germany that year, and more specifically, it was going on while I was in Europe. We were only in Germany for one day, seeing as we were staying with my mother’s old roommate from college that lived in Switzerland, but right by the border. Although it was more than 7 years ago, I remember clearly how exciting the whole experience was.

Our trip to Germany pretty much started off as a disaster. Our first disaster happened much before we even reached Europe. We were all set to buy tickets to actually go to one of the games in Germany, a game in Munich. We had talked to my mom’s friends and they had agreed to come with us, and show us how to get there by train! Very soon before we left, it all fell apart. The husband of my mom’s friend suddenly had an important business trip he needed to go on, and was unable to take us. Also, we weren’t able to find tickets on the train to Munich, which was another quite large problem. So, we ended up going to Stuttgart by train from Switzerland, and we weren’t going to get to go to an actual game. The second problem we encountered came through the fact that we were supposed to take a train from Switzerland to Germany, and because it was very early in the morning we ended up missing it! But we were able to work things out, and get on another train which departed very soon afterwards. Thankfully everything worked out and we eventually made it to Stuttgart.

The first thing I did when we got off the train in Stuttgart was run to one of the vendors standing nearby with a stand full of colorful World Cup memorabilia. I remember peering up at the side of the stand, and seeing wristbands with the flags of every country in the World Cup embroidered on them. Apparently after much begging and pleading, my parents bought me a blue wristband with the USA flag embroidered on it, next to the white words 2006 FIFA World Cup. To this day, I still have that wristband and it brings back so many memories every time I look at it.

Since I was so young, I don’t really have a clear memory of what happened immediately after we reached the train station. The next thing I remember is reaching this huge place called a “Fanzone”. From what I remember it was basically a giant area with vendors and restaurants surrounding three gigantic jumbotron screens which were constantly projecting live games. I remember walking past the initial couple of shops and cafes while wearing a button that had a British flag on it and said “Hello, I speak ENGLISH”. As we approached the huge area at the center, I will never forget what I saw at that moment. There must have been at hundreds of people, all wearing colorful clothing supporting their country, all cheering and screaming at every pass and tackle that was being made on the big screen. I remember we came just in time to see the USA play against the Czech Republic, and my mom painted my face to support them! Although the USA ended up losing the game 3-2, I still remember the feeling of cheering and staring at the jumbo screen as being one of the most amazing experiences of my life.